Celtics SIGN Svi Mykhailiuk + Brad Stevens speaks on KP-Smart trade | First to the Floor
The Celtics have signed Svi Mykhailiuk!
Plus...
Brad Stevens provided some offseason survival juice in a radio interview with WEEI earlier this week, speaking on Kristaps Porzingis' health, the reasoning behind the Marcus Smart trade, and the leadership void Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum will need to fill.
Plus, what should we expect of Payton Pritchard this season?
#bostonceltics
#nba
Plus...
Brad Stevens provided some offseason survival juice in a radio interview with WEEI earlier this week, speaking on Kristaps Porzingis' health, the reasoning behind the Marcus Smart trade, and the leadership void Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum will need to fill.
Plus, what should we expect of Payton Pritchard this season?
#bostonceltics
#nba
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SportsTranscript
00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 (upbeat music)
00:05 - Who is gonna be first to the floor here?
00:16 And it is Marcus Scott, as he usually is.
00:19 (crowd cheering)
00:22 - This is my first time seeing a superstar
00:24 in plain white sacrifice my body.
00:27 - Starting next, Dr. Wayne Harvey.
00:29 (upbeat music)
00:32 - Welcome in to another episode of First to the Floor.
00:37 Ben Vallis here, thank you for joining us.
00:39 Hope you're doing well.
00:40 It is August 31st, 38 days until the first game
00:43 of the preseason.
00:44 We're hanging in there folks.
00:45 Alongside me, as he often is, it's Wade Spoonie.
00:48 Spoonie, how you doing mate?
00:50 - Can you smell that Ben?
00:51 It's the smell of freshly oiled parquet.
00:54 It's getting close, man, it's getting close.
00:56 We're preparing, we'll be there soon.
00:59 - Doing good. - It's upon us.
01:00 - Great to hear.
01:01 And of course, the man with the mistress,
01:03 hot take, Jake Eisenberg.
01:04 Jake, how you doing, sir?
01:05 - How's it going?
01:06 Well, I can't believe you catered for our American audience
01:09 by lying to them and saying that it's the 31st of August
01:12 when in fact, it is the 1st of September.
01:14 - Traitor, man.
01:15 - Yeah. - Traitor.
01:16 - How dare you?
01:17 - I have indeed broadcasting from the future here
01:20 in the Southern Eastern hemisphere.
01:23 And wherever you're broadcasting from,
01:25 there's a lot to get to in the Celtics world today.
01:28 Uncommon in the NBA off season,
01:30 but not uncommon for the first of the floor boys here.
01:33 Bringing the news,
01:34 bringing probably another one hour podcast here
01:35 in the depths of the off season.
01:36 We've got to start with the Celtics signing Sfi Mihaluk,
01:41 which I practiced off air guys.
01:43 Did I get that?
01:44 I got it, Mihaluk? - Nailed it.
01:45 - Signed to a one year deal.
01:47 We woke up to this news this morning,
01:49 at least in this part of the world.
01:50 Six, seven, just talking physical dimensions here
01:52 very quickly before we get to the good stuff.
01:54 Six, seven, 26 years old, 205 pounds,
01:57 a six five wingspan.
01:58 Someone's added negative dimensions into that.
02:01 - I snuck that in.
02:02 I snuck it in.
02:03 - And he is a guard slash wing.
02:06 So Spoony, I guess just general reactions
02:09 to the Mihaluk signing.
02:11 Does this mean that TJ Warren
02:13 and the other gentlemen, Lamar Stevens and Louis King,
02:16 are those guys off the table?
02:18 And yeah, how does this sort of set the course
02:20 for the Celtics going forward?
02:22 - I don't want to say they're off the table
02:24 just because we do have an open roster spot.
02:26 And we're getting really close
02:27 to that second apron though.
02:29 But it just kind of, I think is showing again
02:33 with Brissett, with Banton,
02:36 Brad's targeting deep bench guys
02:39 who have played real NBA minutes
02:41 that are still young, right?
02:43 We're not getting 33, 34, 35 year olds.
02:46 He's looking at guys who have shown something
02:49 and then maybe they could pop play next to Jason Tatum,
02:52 Jalen Brown.
02:52 So Zvi's an interesting dude.
02:55 Like he played about 30 games last year,
02:58 most of them for the Hornets.
02:59 And he had some like big games,
03:02 like borderline triple doubles and stuff like that,
03:05 basically playing against nothingness.
03:09 Like they were completely out of the playoffs by that point.
03:12 But last year, almost 44% on catch and shoot threes,
03:17 43% from the corners, but he's a shooter, right?
03:21 That's what he's known for.
03:22 That's what's going to keep him in the NBA.
03:24 The reason he's kind of almost on his way out of the NBA
03:27 is 31.2% on catch and threes the year before that.
03:32 Two years ago, 33.2% on catch and shoot threes,
03:37 but, but, and this is an important but,
03:40 he's always been money from the corners.
03:44 Last year, 39.5% from the corners,
03:47 even though he shot 31.2%.
03:49 41.5% on the corners two years ago,
03:52 even though he shot 33.2%.
03:54 So like, he's got a very clear role on an NBA team,
03:59 like six, seven wing that can bury corner threes.
04:03 And you just got to hope he doesn't get completely murdered
04:05 on defense, which, you know, jury's still out.
04:09 - Some good defensive highlights there, Jake.
04:11 - Yeah.
04:12 - Yeah.
04:13 - Look, you go back and look as randomly,
04:15 the highlights that Ben just ran that I cut together,
04:17 I randomly caught Sfee's,
04:19 like one of his best games as a Hornet,
04:21 18, five rebounds, eight assists, three steals, two blocks.
04:26 One of which on our good friend, Josh Giddy.
04:29 Look, Brad's building the stable here, boys.
04:31 Six, seven, six, eight, just galloping around the paddock,
04:36 doing all kinds of stuff like shooting and playmaking.
04:41 So Nakia's Duncan,
04:44 a much more intellectually sound basketball mind
04:48 than at least myself.
04:49 I'll let you two guys be the judge of that one.
04:52 But he tweeted out that he likes this move for the Celtics,
04:57 was pretty good as a secondary playmaker,
04:59 held up okay on defense.
05:00 On the Sfee pick and roll,
05:04 he generated 1.22 points per possession
05:07 among 226 players to receive at least 100 on ball picks
05:11 that ranked first.
05:13 Insanely low volume comparatively
05:16 compared to James Harden and Trae Young,
05:18 who were over 3000.
05:19 But, I like, this guy can play basketball.
05:23 You know, when you think about guys you can throw out there
05:26 that can like shoot dribble pass,
05:28 play as part of the offense.
05:30 I think, you know, a guy that has the capability
05:34 on a random night for the opposing fans
05:36 to leave the building being like,
05:39 I can't believe Sfee Mikhailovich just had 18, five and eight
05:42 and we lost by three.
05:44 They won that game by three points
05:45 on the road in Oklahoma City.
05:47 It's fine.
05:48 It just adds to the stable.
05:50 We got six, seven, six, eight.
05:51 We got athletes, we got shooters.
05:53 We got secondary ball handlers, defenders.
05:55 What do you need?
05:56 What night is it?
05:57 Tuesday, Friday, we got something for you.
05:59 - I'm just gonna say it,
06:02 best 14th man in the league, unquestionably, right?
06:05 We talked about the dimensions.
06:06 We talked about the elite corner three point shooting.
06:09 He has been a Celtics killer.
06:10 And if nothing else, Brad is gathering up
06:13 all of the available Celtics killers
06:14 and stashing them on the floor.
06:15 That's gonna mean something for the Celtics.
06:17 So I love the signing.
06:19 I just, maybe I just love it for the fact
06:21 that there's some news.
06:22 It's an oasis in the desert as we're starting to call it
06:25 in these depths of the off season.
06:27 But I think it's a great signing in that, you know,
06:29 really the biggest addition that you can add
06:32 to add success to the Jays,
06:33 which as we know, the most important factor
06:35 in our title hopes is just spacing around them
06:38 and shooting and finishing.
06:40 The defenses are gonna collapse on the Jays.
06:42 We know this.
06:42 We need solid defense.
06:44 We know this.
06:45 We need solid kick out options.
06:46 And if you can stuff the corners with guys like Mahaluk,
06:49 you're gonna see success from the Jays perspective
06:51 and points on the board.
06:53 It is interesting, like the criticism,
06:55 one of the major criticisms of the Celtics last year
06:57 was it's like jacking too many threes.
06:59 And a little bit Brad Stevens is like,
07:00 hold my fucking beer.
07:02 (laughing)
07:02 Who he assigned to this roster since then.
07:06 So I love it.
07:07 So there's one roster spot remaining.
07:10 Does it go to Blake Griffin, Jake?
07:12 - Yeah, that's funny though.
07:13 You are right.
07:14 We sent out Marcus Martin, brought in KP
07:16 and more shooting with, it is hilarious.
07:20 I hope that Blake gets the last spot.
07:23 It does feel like that's enough wings now.
07:27 I know Ben, you were begging,
07:29 begging for Brad Stevens to not be done.
07:31 I'm not sure if this feels your thirst,
07:35 quenches your thirst, satiates your hunger for one more move.
07:39 Is this exactly what you were thinking?
07:41 - I mean, dimensionally speaking,
07:42 he's not the wing I yearn for,
07:44 but yeah, I think my cup is filled.
07:46 - Okay.
07:47 Well, yeah, I mean, I hope it's Blake
07:48 because I don't think that between Hauser, Walsh,
07:51 Brissett, Sfee, like what's, yeah, Banton as well.
07:56 Like what's the point of bringing in Warren or Stevens now?
08:00 I guess maybe one of them like hits,
08:02 but at this point I don't think, you know,
08:04 TJ Warren's not, doesn't have undiscovered upside.
08:08 If it is Sfee, Lamar Stevens,
08:10 I think's kind of in that mid to late twenties range as well
08:13 who I like to actually like Lamar Stevens,
08:15 definitely the more defensive minded option of those guys.
08:19 But I feel like if we have,
08:20 if we're going to go with one of those guys,
08:21 we may as well just throw Walsh out there.
08:24 It should be Blake.
08:26 We haven't found out the deal yet.
08:28 Like, is it going to be a true minimum?
08:30 We assume so.
08:31 I know Spooner, you were saying if it's not,
08:33 then that would be part of the tax, like the MLE,
08:36 which would hard cap us.
08:37 So we're probably not going to do that,
08:38 which means there's a little bit of cash left over
08:40 for Blake Griffin.
08:41 All the breadcrumbs feel like they're pointing towards
08:46 Blake coming back, right?
08:47 With him talking about how much he loves Boston
08:49 on the golf course and being at Sam Houser's wedding.
08:53 Like he feels very Celtics-y.
08:55 Like, where is he going to go?
08:57 Is he going to get more than a minimum anywhere else?
08:59 Like, no.
09:00 And he may as well try and hang out with the fellas
09:04 and get a chip.
09:05 - Dude, when we had Trill on, he's like,
09:07 I'm telling you, Blake is not signing
09:09 until training camp is over
09:11 because he doesn't want to report.
09:12 Like, I think that's what's happening here.
09:14 Like, we have an open spot.
09:16 Blake makes so much sense as that last roster spot
09:20 because he knows what Joe wants to do.
09:22 He knows what Joe's expecting of him.
09:25 And he knows he's going to play,
09:27 you know, he's going to get like 15 games
09:28 where he plays 20 plus minutes a night.
09:30 There's not a lot of teams like that are contending
09:34 where he will actually play a legitimate role.
09:37 And look, we've said it once, we'll say it again.
09:41 Blake was pretty good when he actually played last year.
09:44 Like, yeah, he was fine.
09:46 He shot like basically 40% for three,
09:48 taking charges, like he was good.
09:50 So, you know, doing the handoff game.
09:52 So I'm all in on Blake as the last spot.
09:55 I think that's what's going to happen.
09:57 - You are all in on Blake?
09:58 (laughing)
10:00 (crowd cheering)
10:03 - Griffin, terrific.
10:05 (crowd cheering)
10:07 - A never a bad idea.
10:13 - Bang.
10:14 - This is why we don't delete those clips
10:16 from our screen.
10:17 It's always a good idea.
10:18 Someone was asking about Svee Mihailuk's injury concerns
10:22 in the chat, and I was just Googling that.
10:24 And it looks like there are no such concerns.
10:27 So most recent injury, 2022,
10:29 that was health and safety protocols.
10:31 So whatever.
10:32 And then it was back in 2020,
10:33 you had a hip issue, 2019, a knee issue,
10:36 and then a couple of finger fractures in 2019 as well.
10:40 So it's only 26, but so far,
10:42 I'd be safe to say he has not been plagued by injuries
10:44 at all outside of COVID thus far in his career,
10:47 which looking down the rest of the roster,
10:49 like we need someone with that ability to stay healthy.
10:52 So that's great.
10:52 - Yeah, I was just going to say like this question here,
10:55 like we need a big, is Blake enough?
10:57 I'm not sure.
10:58 I think I would push back a little bit
10:59 in as far as we need a big,
11:00 'cause I would say three of our top six players now
11:02 are bigs.
11:04 And then you go to your fourth big man is Luke Cornett.
11:06 I think he's pretty good.
11:08 And like legitimately,
11:09 I agree in the sense that the injury prone
11:12 and the age of Horford.
11:14 Blake at 15 games, dude, he's fine.
11:17 He's good. - He's fine.
11:18 - He's fine. - Yeah.
11:19 - Making the right decision is like
11:22 all you need to do in this offense
11:24 to rack up regular season wins.
11:25 I think Blake and Sfee kind of fit that mold.
11:29 - Yeah, Blake's just a cool dude.
11:30 Give me cool dudes all the time, every day.
11:33 I want cool dudes on the team.
11:35 I know this is not analytical.
11:36 Maybe it is.
11:37 Like maybe from a Vibes perspective,
11:39 there are analytics that are untrackable and yet.
11:42 - No. - Anyway,
11:43 you guys know what I'm saying.
11:44 - No, I agree.
11:45 Like then you send out Marcus,
11:46 like we got to ensure that the Vibes maintain the ceiling
11:50 of the immaculate level they reached at times
11:53 over the last couple of years.
11:55 - The delicate chemistry.
11:56 Brad's in the lab getting it done.
11:58 - All right, speaking of Brad Stevens,
11:59 he was recently interviewed on WEI radio
12:03 and he had a lot of very insightful updates
12:06 on a lot of things that we care deeply about.
12:08 In particular, the health status of Christaps Porzingis,
12:11 as we run a clip here.
12:12 - And Christaps, we now know has that foot injury.
12:16 What is the challenge of bringing someone
12:18 into a new locker room
12:20 while they're simultaneously rehabbing,
12:23 coming up to training camp?
12:24 - Yeah, I'm not concerned about that.
12:26 I mean, he's in Latin or he's in,
12:28 he's out at the FIBA tournament with the team.
12:31 So he's doing his rehab there.
12:33 We were with him in the 10 days.
12:36 Our training staff was with him in the 10 days
12:39 as he was diagnosed with plantar fascia.
12:42 He went through all the progressions.
12:43 He really tried to ramp up and play
12:46 and just determined like,
12:48 I don't want to deal with lingering effects down the road.
12:50 And so this is something that we should be able to navigate
12:53 and manage in the next few weeks
12:55 and be ready for training camp.
12:56 So we're planning on having him
12:59 on day one of training camp.
13:00 I dealt with plantar fascia
13:02 towards my later years of playing,
13:04 which was a long, long time ago.
13:05 I don't deal with it anymore.
13:06 And I didn't deal with it
13:09 after I took the appropriate rest, right?
13:11 So if you manage it, if you treat it correctly,
13:14 and then you ramp back up at the right rate,
13:17 then it's got a lot less chance of being a lingering issue.
13:20 So again, this is not like--
13:22 - His foot's gonna fall off.
13:24 Right, okay, good.
13:25 - This isn't what I would call a significant injury
13:27 that you're concerned about big picture.
13:29 - Just clutching to those words, those final words.
13:33 This isn't what I'd consider a significant injury.
13:35 So Boonie, do you buy it?
13:36 Do you buy what Brad's selling here?
13:38 - Yes, I think I do.
13:41 I think I buy it,
13:42 but I also think like,
13:44 this is just another injury
13:46 in a long line of porzingis injuries, right?
13:50 So like, I buy that this one's not a big deal,
13:53 but it's not gonna change my thoughts
13:56 on the greater idea about the porzingis trade
14:00 where it's like super high risk,
14:02 but it's also super high reward.
14:05 So I also liked that Brad was like, he's in Latvia.
14:09 Wait, no, he's with the Latvians.
14:12 (laughing)
14:13 He was like, where's this tournament happening?
14:15 I don't remember, whatever.
14:16 I'm just gonna move on.
14:17 That made me laugh.
14:19 - I'm glad you picked that up, Spoonie,
14:20 because I've also been confused
14:23 at where this tournament is.
14:24 It's happening in multiple countries.
14:26 It's in Manila, it's in Japan.
14:28 And so I know, I saw,
14:29 we all saw Brad's face.
14:30 He's like, wait a second.
14:31 I can't believe-
14:32 - I don't know.
14:33 The tournament's moving on, yeah.
14:34 - India as well, apparently.
14:36 - Yeah, and India.
14:36 So it's like, it's very confusing.
14:38 I don't know how,
14:39 the tournament itself is confusing.
14:41 Then now they're into the second stage,
14:42 which is more group stages, but also, anyway.
14:46 That's an aside.
14:48 - Yeah, no, I feel ya.
14:48 So are you buying it as well, Jake?
14:51 The sentiment from Brad
14:52 that it's nothing to be worried about?
14:54 'Cause I need this.
14:55 I need this to be a thing.
14:56 So I'm just curious how you feel about it.
14:58 - Yeah.
14:59 There was one more little bit after where he said,
15:01 "In our draft evaluations,
15:03 when we're doing free agency evaluations,
15:04 when it comes to medical stuff,
15:06 plantar fascia is not something we worry about.
15:09 That's not something on the list of concerns
15:12 when you're evaluating a player's health.
15:14 That's not really a red flag."
15:15 Trill, when he was on here, MVP,
15:18 Embiid had plantar fascia going into last season.
15:22 Also, seven foot two, behemoth,
15:26 injury history, literally won the MVP.
15:29 So specifically plantar fascia, this injury,
15:32 I actually, I don't think it's a big deal.
15:34 I prefer him to not have it.
15:36 If I could choose door number B where he didn't have it,
15:39 then I would choose that.
15:41 But I don't think it's a big deal.
15:44 He was saying he's gonna be ready for training camp.
15:46 Not just the season,
15:47 but they expect him to be there for day one of training camp.
15:51 And then Brad going with the classic,
15:53 "Yeah, I had plantar fascia too."
15:55 - It's fine.
15:56 - Yeah, in my playing days.
15:57 It's like when you go on Twitter
15:59 and you see people below talking about,
16:00 "Oh, when I did my MCL, I was back in X time."
16:03 It's like, none of your experiences are relevant
16:06 to these athletes at all with their recovery
16:09 and their bodies, but thank you anyway.
16:12 - Well, we've got some more gospel from Brad here.
16:14 Let's check it out.
16:15 - And our bigs were pretty thin.
16:17 And when Rob was out at the start of the year,
16:21 those guys that played in his place did an amazing job
16:23 of kind of keeping us afloat.
16:25 Like Blake was as good as it gets on and off the court.
16:29 Luke did a really good job.
16:30 Al, at 36 years old, did a great job.
16:33 We just can't put that much on those guys
16:36 and continue to expect it to be at the level
16:39 we need it to be.
16:40 So we had to address kind of the balance of the roster
16:45 is a big part of it.
16:46 And then, you know, it's just time.
16:48 It's time for guys to continue to show the growth
16:52 that we need to show to get to where we need to go.
16:55 And as part of that,
16:56 you're oftentimes have to make tough decisions
16:58 and you bring in talented players.
17:00 The only way you're going to do that other than draft
17:02 is trade somebody out.
17:04 And that's really, really the difficult part of it.
17:06 So we'll see how it all plays out.
17:09 We'll see how it all fits together.
17:11 Chris Stapp seems to be in a really good place.
17:13 Like he is focused on what matters.
17:16 Like he's coming here to do his part to help us win.
17:20 And that's what's very clear in communicating with him
17:23 when he came for his press conference.
17:25 - So yeah, so acknowledging that this is a high risk maneuver
17:29 in leaning in on some very injury prone big men
17:33 in particular, would you guys agree that the roster
17:36 is much more well balanced now?
17:38 I think it definitely is.
17:39 And he spoke about having to lean way too heavily
17:42 on Al Horford and Rob Williams,
17:44 like coming off that injury, that surgery
17:46 to begin last season.
17:48 And now you add in Porzingis,
17:50 an elite player at his position.
17:52 Yes, you take away Marcus Smart,
17:54 but there's sufficient guard depth.
17:56 And we're going to get into Peyton Pritchett,
17:58 who is at the bottom end of that depth shortly.
18:01 The roster is just way better balanced, right?
18:02 And you're factoring in that injury risk,
18:05 which is always a factor going into the season.
18:08 Like you've got to feel better about,
18:11 I want to call it a championship balance, right?
18:12 Like they're just more well stocked
18:14 at every single position.
18:15 Am I wrong, Spoonie?
18:16 - So I think I just can't get over the fact that like,
18:22 man, Porzingis just kind of scares me,
18:25 like with the injury history.
18:26 But I think on the court,
18:29 like if we're talking everybody's healthy,
18:33 there is no more high risk, high reward than Marcus Smart.
18:37 Like that is entire mantra.
18:39 Like he's taking insane threes,
18:41 like he's diving on the floor,
18:43 like he's doing like behind the back,
18:45 off the backboard passes once in a while.
18:47 So like that was this whole mantra.
18:49 So yeah, I think the team is definitely more balanced.
18:53 We were very guard heavy last year, pretty wing light.
18:57 I'm not sure we solved being wing light
19:00 just because like Grant's out the door,
19:03 you're replacing him with Brissette.
19:06 And I guess Hauser's gonna get more minutes.
19:09 But then you think like on the big side of things,
19:13 like it was really just Al and Rob and they're so,
19:17 you know, you can't,
19:19 you just can't count on both of them to be healthy,
19:22 like for every single series in a playoff run.
19:26 So having Porzingis, like if he stays healthy,
19:29 like I think this team is unequivocally,
19:32 no argument, better.
19:34 - I think he's a better player than Marcus Smart, but.
19:37 - Nice, Ben's in.
19:38 - 38 days, let's go.
19:42 - Porzingis is really, really good.
19:45 It's just like, as long as he stays healthy,
19:47 but now we're talking about our third,
19:49 that's three big men we have to worry about staying healthy,
19:53 you know, which kind of scares me.
19:55 - I actually disagree that it's only two
19:56 we have to worry about.
19:57 I get that Al's getting old, but he literally.
20:00 - Fair, fair.
20:01 - Does, is like never injured.
20:02 So he is as durable as like LeBron at this point.
20:07 - Fair.
20:08 - It is interesting and Spoony,
20:09 you touched on it with Alex Hoops as well,
20:11 and we've spoken about it, the idea that it was time.
20:14 And I feel like that was the first time we'd heard Brad
20:17 kind of echo some of the sentiment that we've talked about,
20:20 about it's being time.
20:22 He didn't necessarily say it, Jason and Jalen,
20:24 you need to step up, but that's what this means.
20:28 If you're sending out markers,
20:30 it's time for people to step up
20:32 and it's time.
20:33 They're talking about Jalen and Jason.
20:34 That's why wing depth,
20:36 it's nice to have for the regular season.
20:38 The wing depth doesn't really matter for the playoffs
20:39 because Jalen and Jason are gonna play 40 minutes a night,
20:42 like plus.
20:43 So it's nice we've got this stable of guys.
20:46 And then the second bit, balancing the roster.
20:49 I think that Brad saw the level that the team reached in 22
20:54 when they were just historically good on defense.
20:59 They were wiping teams off the floor,
21:01 night in, night out.
21:02 They didn't quite get back to that level consistently
21:05 in the playoffs because of Rob's injury.
21:08 But the best the Celtics have looked in the Jays era
21:11 was that 22 season.
21:13 And that was when they went to that double big lineup.
21:15 And I think Porzingis gives you the best chance
21:20 of reaching those levels.
21:21 You can play him with Rob, you can play him with Al.
21:24 - Yeah.
21:25 - Alone.
21:25 I think he is a way you unlock that ceiling on,
21:29 and not just defensively, but offensively, I think as well.
21:34 And so you send out Marcus,
21:35 but Derek wasn't really part of it.
21:38 You can put Derek into that lineup.
21:41 And that's the, I think,
21:43 their best chance of winning a title
21:44 because as much as we love Tatum,
21:48 he's not quite at Jokic, Giannis, Steph Curry level.
21:53 And that's okay,
21:55 because that's an absurdly highly level.
21:57 But so how do we get there?
21:58 We've got to raise the total ceiling of this team.
22:01 I think Porzingis recapturing that twin tower,
22:05 versatility on both ends.
22:07 That's the way that you get there.
22:09 - Yeah. And real quick, just real quick,
22:12 Porzingis will murder a Miami zone.
22:15 Like he will murder a Miami zone.
22:18 And we just, we struggled with it, dude.
22:21 Like, you know, we have,
22:22 and that's just, he's just a one man fix to that.
22:27 - Jake, and I'll ask you as well, Spoonio,
22:29 I'm curious to hear your thoughts and folks in the chat,
22:31 interested to hear your responses to this question.
22:33 Is this the most under the microscope
22:36 the Boston Celtics have been for you personally
22:39 during an off season?
22:40 Because to me it is.
22:42 Like we're like, we made it to the finals in 2022
22:45 and it, like we talked about this,
22:48 but it kind of, it didn't feel so bad to lose
22:51 because it felt like,
22:52 well, we're just going to get right back there.
22:54 And then we did it.
22:55 And so now expectations have kind of been reset a little bit
22:58 and now we've made these seismic changes.
23:00 And I feel like this is the most closely I've watched
23:04 and tried to measure change and predict the outcome
23:08 during an off season that I've ever felt.
23:10 So Jake, does it, is it more under a microscope for you
23:13 this off season than it ever has been in the past?
23:15 - Well, this is the first time they've made real
23:18 seismic changes, I think, in the Jays era.
23:22 Like we, like losing Horford,
23:24 that was obviously huge.
23:26 Trading for like losing Kyrie and bringing Kemba.
23:31 But that almost feels like a different era to me
23:34 since Jalen and Jason have become like the guys.
23:38 This is what going into year three of it, maybe, right?
23:42 'Cause Kemba was still here in that bubble season.
23:47 And it feels like a lot longer, man,
23:48 we're aging quick following the Celtics team,
23:50 let me tell you.
23:51 But yeah, like this, I think is why it's hard
23:54 to, it's fun to talk about, it's hard to predict
23:57 because we don't know what it's gonna look like.
24:00 'Cause going into last season and the years previous,
24:03 we had a pretty good idea of how it was gonna look.
24:05 We'd seen these guys play together so much
24:08 that we knew that where they could get to
24:12 on a night-to-night basis,
24:13 where they could get to in the playoffs.
24:15 So this definitely feels like the most different,
24:18 the most unpredictable off season we've had
24:22 for a while now.
24:23 So yeah, I think that's fair assessment.
24:26 - Yeah, I think the only one that could even contest it
24:30 is when we made the Eastern Conference Finals with IT.
24:34 And everyone was like,
24:35 "Wow, are they gonna sign IT to the max
24:37 when he hurt his hip?"
24:38 And that would have been maybe the worst contract
24:41 in basketball history, unfortunately.
24:44 I mean, that would have been John Wall level, really.
24:47 Like he was out of the league.
24:49 Yeah, yeah.
24:50 So that would have probably been the worst contract
24:52 in NBA history.
24:54 And they didn't, we traded for Kyrie instead.
24:57 So, but I don't even think that really compares
25:01 as far as evaluating every single step.
25:05 It just feels like signing Sveen Mihaljuk,
25:08 like, "Oh my God, is he gonna bury a big three
25:11 in the second round that's gonna get us?"
25:14 You know what I mean?
25:14 Like win a game?
25:15 Like he might, you know?
25:17 Like it just feels really, really important.
25:19 And I think Z Gamer hit it in the chat,
25:21 is like the big three Celtics,
25:23 they wanna chip immediately, right?
25:26 So when we were going into 2010 season,
25:30 it was like, it's kind of gravy at that point.
25:33 You know what I mean?
25:34 Like it worked, it already worked.
25:36 And we haven't quite got there with the Jays.
25:38 So yeah, at least in my lifetime,
25:42 this is easily the most intense off season.
25:46 And it will continue.
25:48 Next year, if we don't win a championship,
25:50 next year will be even more intense.
25:53 Yeah, it will be, man.
25:54 Like it's not gonna get easier.
25:56 - Yeah, I love it.
25:57 Exciting times.
25:58 Embrace it, folks.
25:59 It's a good place to be.
26:00 All right, we're gonna move on.
26:01 But before that, a very quick word from our sponsors.
26:03 - New FanDuel customers can bet $5
26:06 and get 200 in bonus bets, guaranteed.
26:10 Plus, all customers who bet $5
26:12 will get $100 off NFL Sunday ticket
26:15 from YouTube and YouTube TV.
26:17 (air whooshing)
26:20 - Yeah, pretty good little deal there
26:22 from old mates at FanDuel.
26:24 And thanks to Gazza for the read there.
26:27 I think at this point, guys,
26:29 we've talked about all of the options.
26:32 Kansas City Chiefs seem to be the way to go
26:35 with that particular deal.
26:37 Spooty Shaky has said, "I know nothing about the NFL."
26:40 So I'm gonna stop talking now.
26:42 Have you guys got any takes before we move on?
26:45 - I actually haven't come up with a bet for this episode.
26:49 I've had one every single episode recently.
26:52 If you'd taken my Cardinals under four and a half,
26:55 the line has moved down to like three and a half.
26:57 So that's obviously gone.
27:00 Seahawks to win the division, I still like that puppy.
27:05 Yeah, that's my go-to right now.
27:09 - Yeah, if you took the Joe Burrow bet
27:12 that I put down about a week and a half ago,
27:14 yeah, he's gonna miss the first couple of games.
27:17 So I'm sorry, that's on me.
27:19 - I'm more responsible. - My bad.
27:21 - Yes, Jesse Almeida in the chat,
27:24 "I'm just ready for the Celtics to begin."
27:25 Yeah, I was like very happy for a break
27:30 once the conference finals and finals ended.
27:33 And even some league, I was like, okay,
27:35 I definitely feel like I need a breath.
27:36 Like the last two runs, the game sevens
27:40 in the second round and conference finals,
27:42 two years in a row is just so much unnecessary stress
27:47 and anxiety and that too.
27:50 And yeah, and so I was happy for a break,
27:54 but like these last week or two, I'm ready.
27:57 I'm so ready, let's get pre-season firing.
28:01 Let's go, let's do this.
28:03 - Yeah, a couple of quick news here
28:05 before we move on to Peyton Pritchard
28:07 and let's just, let's spend like two or three minutes
28:09 on these because there's really no substance
28:11 to either of them.
28:12 First one, Mark Spears on a recent pod,
28:14 "I know that Boston, I know Jason Tatum's called
28:18 Damian Lillard, he's tried to get in Dame's ear,
28:20 but his focus is definitely on Miami."
28:24 Spoonie, like what's going on here?
28:26 Is this anything?
28:27 I'd happily move on immediately.
28:29 I think there's kind of nothing to this,
28:30 but it was, you know, top of the hits on,
28:33 that's not the right terminology at all,
28:35 but I've started to-
28:36 - It's trending, is that what you're talking about?
28:37 - Thank you, I'm not that old, I promise.
28:41 It has been spoken about online by people a lot.
28:45 So is there anything to this?
28:46 - You know, I just think Tatum, look,
28:51 we kind of understand the cap,
28:53 we understand like you gotta match salaries
28:55 and stuff like that.
28:56 Like Jason Tatum is not in the room with Mike Zarin
28:59 being like, "Well, if we were gonna trade
29:01 for Damian Lillard, we'd have to trade Jalen."
29:03 Like he's not about, you know what I mean?
29:05 He's not getting into-
29:06 - You know I think Mike Zarin's doing the thing,
29:09 like they do in FBI movies
29:10 where they pick up the phone at the same time
29:11 and listen in.
29:13 - Jason, here's the deal.
29:14 No, like that's not happening, you know what I mean?
29:17 So he just picks up the phone, calls Dame,
29:19 like, "Yo, you should play in Boston."
29:21 Like, I really don't think there's anything to it.
29:24 I just think he's like, "Oh, Dame's really good.
29:27 I'll call him and see if we can get him."
29:30 - Yeah, yeah.
29:32 It would be nice to have the Jason Tatum called Dame
29:36 and now he's reconsidering report
29:39 just to show that Tatum has that sway.
29:42 The problem is, obviously this comment is,
29:45 I haven't listened to it.
29:46 I'm assuming it was like kind of in passing.
29:48 Tatum's just like not the guy
29:51 that gets involved with this stuff,
29:53 especially at this point.
29:55 Like Jalen's, you know, he does the interviews
29:59 with the coded everything.
30:01 And even Yarnis, we haven't hit the schadenfreude report
30:05 on the most recent Yarnis article,
30:07 but there was some juicy stuff in there.
30:09 - Oh yeah.
30:10 - Tatum up until now doesn't really seem to care
30:14 about anything really,
30:17 except for playing for the Celtics and like being a dad.
30:20 Like there's just so little off court,
30:23 there's like article drama, there's really nothing.
30:26 So I don't think he's really pushing.
30:29 So to me, it's like, you know,
30:31 I didn't actually really try and get Dame
30:33 so he couldn't really deny me.
30:35 If that makes sense.
30:36 It's like, you know, I just,
30:37 it was like a, it was just a passing Snapchat.
30:40 It wasn't even a real, it wasn't even on a messenger app.
30:43 It was just a Snapchat message he sent to Dame.
30:45 That's what I imagine.
30:47 - All right, well, let's move on then.
30:48 It's just, you know, whenever two big names
30:50 end up in the news, like Lillard and Tatum,
30:52 and one of them plays for your team,
30:54 you've got to at least, you know,
30:55 brush up against it on the pod here.
30:57 Okay, Romeo Langford has signed an exhibit 10 contract
31:00 with the Utah Jazz, according to Tony Jones
31:02 of the Athletic.
31:04 The deal means Romeo will be invited to training camp
31:07 and that the Jazz will retain his rights
31:08 to his G-League deal should he not make the team
31:11 or be claimed by another team.
31:13 Jake, is he really that unlikely to be claimed
31:16 by an NBA roster?
31:16 Like, is he, it's quite a fall from grace, right?
31:19 14th pick.
31:20 And that's really the precipice, right?
31:23 That's really the apex.
31:24 It never really took off from there.
31:26 - There was like one just poster from summer league
31:30 in his second year that I'll always remember.
31:33 There was a 17 point game, I think,
31:35 in the first round against the Nets.
31:38 That may have been the peak.
31:39 Danny Aydin just can't quit Romeo Langford though,
31:43 it seems.
31:44 He has a soft spot for him.
31:48 I know there's some people still left
31:50 on Romeo Langford Island,
31:52 but I think it's more than just the health stuff.
31:57 He just didn't seem to want, like,
32:00 have that thing where he could assert himself consistently.
32:03 I didn't, yeah.
32:05 Like, he had the tools, it seemed like he had the skills,
32:07 it felt like, to be successful.
32:09 But if he wasn't able to stick around with the spurs,
32:12 I don't feel very confident for old Romeo Langford.
32:17 - Ben, you may have to cut this from the audio pod,
32:21 but I think it was before we had Jake join the pod,
32:25 we had somebody who knows the Celtics
32:29 and he was just like, after, he was like,
32:32 I'm not putting this on record,
32:34 I'm not gonna say who it was,
32:35 afterwards, when we were just BSing,
32:38 after we were done, he was like,
32:39 Romeo Langford does not care about basketball.
32:43 Like, he doesn't, he's just not a hard worker,
32:45 he doesn't care.
32:47 And I think everything about his career
32:51 makes me think that human was correct.
32:55 Because, like, he's got talent, man,
32:59 he's got, like, his first step's not bad,
33:01 he's athletic, he's like 6'6", 6'7",
33:05 huge wingspan, seven foot wingspan.
33:08 - Great dimensions.
33:09 - Yeah, dimensions guy,
33:12 and like, decent shooting from the corners,
33:14 like, there's nothing about him that says, like,
33:17 he should not carve out an NBA career,
33:20 and he's just not doing it.
33:21 And it just seems like, baby,
33:23 he's just not working hard enough, you know?
33:25 - It is funny, like, I feel like Danny would say
33:29 he prides himself on the ability
33:30 to evaluate people's mentality.
33:34 - Yeah.
33:34 - Like, that's how he nailed it on Jalen and Jason.
33:38 His ability to identify the dog, let's call it.
33:42 - Pritchard, Nismith, like, those guys are crazy, yeah.
33:45 - Yeah, so maybe he just missed it on Langford,
33:49 and like, that's okay, the 14th pick
33:51 is so far away from a lock,
33:54 but to miss it on the mentality side of things
33:56 is somewhat surprising to me.
33:58 But it is what it is.
34:00 - Yeah, I was really excited for Romeo
34:01 when he signed with the Spurs,
34:04 or was he traded to the Spurs?
34:05 When he ended up on the Spurs,
34:06 because I thought that-- - With Derek White.
34:08 - That's right, yeah, there you go.
34:09 And I thought the Popovich factor,
34:11 the Spursian culture would be a really good influence on him,
34:15 and maybe it will end up to have been the case,
34:18 but an exhibit 10 deal is not what you hope
34:21 for your 14th pick, and so, shortly after that draft.
34:24 So, best of luck to Romeo, like, we love him,
34:27 he's front and center in many recent
34:31 weird Celtics Twitter memes, like, we love the guy,
34:34 so we hope the best for him,
34:35 but we are gonna move on and talk about this guy.
34:38 (crowd cheering)
34:41 - One on the clock for Pritchard, got it!
34:45 Splashdown at Piggy's Place here in Atlanta,
34:48 getting more burn in the absence of Marcus Smart.
34:53 Got to a nice spot.
34:55 (upbeat music)
34:58 - That was so good, Ben, that was so good.
35:13 (laughing)
35:14 - I'm learning-- - Let's go!
35:16 - So, Peyton Pritchard, hopefully,
35:18 is sharpening his tools in the off season,
35:20 like I have been.
35:22 61 points recently alongside Isaiah Thomas
35:25 at the Ball Don't Stop Pro Am, rather, in Vancouver.
35:29 Team USA Select Squad, apparently,
35:31 just taking it to those Team USA guys
35:33 prior to them shipping out to several unknown locations
35:37 in Asia there, and ultimately,
35:40 you know, he sort of hasn't really been discussed
35:42 all that much with all the changes
35:45 that have been happening with the Celtics,
35:46 and Jake, this is your idea,
35:47 I think it's a great angle here to,
35:49 we really need to give some more attention
35:51 to Peyton Pritchard because I think he's gonna play
35:54 a pretty important role on the Celtics this year
35:57 with Marcus Smart being shipped out.
35:59 I'd be curious to hear both of your thoughts,
36:01 Jake, we'll start with you.
36:02 Like, how do you see Peyton Pritchard's role changing
36:05 from last year to this year?
36:07 Obviously, there's gonna be an increase in minutes,
36:09 but just as a role player on the team,
36:12 maybe he's, like, numerical place in the rotation,
36:16 how do you think that's gonna change?
36:18 - I'm really excited for Pritchard
36:19 because I thought he proved himself
36:23 to be an NBA player in his rookie season,
36:26 and the following year, he still got run, but less so,
36:31 and then, obviously, the Celtics make the finals,
36:34 and then last year, he doesn't have a role, basically.
36:38 And I think there's a pretty wide range
36:43 of how people feel about Pritchard.
36:44 I think some people think that he's, like,
36:47 a starter quality player.
36:49 I'm not there on Pritchard,
36:51 and then there's other people that are, like,
36:53 he just has this Boston gas, where he's overhyped.
36:58 If he was any other team,
36:59 he wouldn't be getting this kind of publicity, et cetera,
37:02 and he should be out of the league type of thing.
37:04 I think it's definitely somewhere in the middle,
37:06 but I think this role right now,
37:08 to me, he's the ninth man on the team,
37:10 he's the third guard, and it's a perfect role for him.
37:15 In his rookie season, where the team went 36 and 36,
37:19 he was sixth on the team in minutes,
37:22 where he played, like, 1,268.
37:24 Quick reminder of that team.
37:27 Tristan Thompson started.
37:28 Daniel Tice also played over 1,000 minutes,
37:31 leading that double bigs lineup.
37:33 Kemba Walker only played 43 games that season.
37:37 Marcus only played 45.
37:38 It was a shorter season.
37:40 It was only 72 games because of COVID.
37:42 Shemi, almost 1,000 minutes.
37:43 Jeff Teague, 600 minutes.
37:45 Romeo Langford, 280.
37:47 Carson Edwards, 280 minutes.
37:49 Like, this roster was-
37:50 - That wasn't that long ago.
37:52 - This roster was a disaster.
37:53 Like, it was awful.
37:55 And for Peyton Pritchard to be sixth on the team in minutes
37:57 on a team that actually goes 500,
37:59 I actually think it's a positive sign.
38:01 Like, if you were to put him in a role
38:03 where he's playing minutes on a team
38:04 that actually has talent,
38:06 for example, the 2021, 2022 season,
38:09 so he played 36 games of 13 or more minutes.
38:14 The Celtics went 22 and 14.
38:16 That's like a 48 win pace.
38:18 And interestingly, which I think fits perfectly with this,
38:21 is that the four games where he played 30 minutes or more,
38:24 the Celtics lost all four of those games.
38:26 Like, he's not a 30 minute a night player.
38:29 He's a 15, a 13, just-
38:32 I have him down at 16 minutes per game at the moment
38:35 in the following season.
38:37 At that spot, he's perfect.
38:40 So I'm really excited for Pritchard this upcoming season.
38:43 - Yeah, so I think Pritchard's biggest strength
38:49 is the fact that he plays really,
38:52 really well off Jason Tatum.
38:55 And he-
38:57 So when he was a rookie,
39:02 one of my-
39:03 One of the most popular things I ever wrote
39:05 is probably because of the title.
39:07 It was called "Whipping Out His Pee-Pee,"
39:09 how Imei Udoka has-
39:11 Or I guess the second year.
39:12 How Imei Udoka has weaponized Peyton Pritchard.
39:15 And what he basically did is,
39:18 when Tatum runs those bench units,
39:22 Pritchard's the guy setting the pick.
39:25 And then he pops.
39:26 Every single time, he pops.
39:28 And Tatum gets doubled against those bench units
39:32 all the time.
39:33 And then it's just a dump off to Pritchard,
39:35 and he either just fires from above the break,
39:37 or he drives into the lane, lays it up.
39:40 The dude knows how to play basketball,
39:43 and he's an elite shooter.
39:44 He shot 36% from three last year.
39:47 He was still 39% from above the break.
39:49 His corner three kinda left him,
39:51 but he didn't play that much.
39:54 It's tough to be an elite shooter
39:57 when you're not playing a ton.
39:59 He didn't get a lot of attempts from the corner, right?
40:01 I bet if he got 200 attempts from the corner,
40:04 he'd be up around 40%.
40:06 So, and I think the thing I like most about Pritchard
40:11 is that he just pushes the ball.
40:12 Like he gets it, he makes a quick decision, and he goes.
40:16 And that's the foundation of a guy who knows his role,
40:21 knows he's not gonna be playing 36 minutes a night.
40:25 He's gonna be playing 15, and he's gonna take open shots,
40:30 he's gonna push the ball,
40:31 and he's gonna play his balls off on defense,
40:33 which he always does, right?
40:35 He's not a great defender, but he always plays super hard.
40:38 So, yeah, I'm with you, Jake.
40:40 I'm excited for Pritchard next year.
40:42 I think he's gonna surprise some people
40:43 who've gone out on him after last year.
40:47 - Yeah, and you can form a multiple minute highlight clip
40:51 of just Peyton Pritchard, like tenacious offensive rebounds,
40:55 like among the trees.
40:56 And that's just a picture of the tenacity that he brings.
40:59 And we talk about it all the time,
41:01 but with Marcus Smart going out and Grant Williams going out,
41:04 we're looking for that in, I don't wanna say unknown places,
41:08 because we know that Pritchard possesses that.
41:10 But like, thank God he's still on the roster,
41:12 and thank God he's going to be playing a bigger role,
41:14 because we're gonna need that from him.
41:16 And then this is what, year four in the league
41:18 for Pritchard now?
41:19 You know, he's got that maturity.
41:21 He was, I think, a four-year senior coming out of college.
41:23 So he's not young, and he's got that confidence.
41:27 You would hope, I'm speculating here,
41:29 but his fourth year in the league,
41:30 he knows who he is.
41:31 He knows he can perform on multiple stages.
41:34 Pro-amp, sure, it's not NBA level.
41:36 But by all accounts, he, don't wanna say dominated,
41:39 but performed really well on that USA Select team.
41:42 Like, he knows who he is.
41:44 And he wasn't traded.
41:45 Marcus Smart was traded.
41:47 That's a nod of confidence
41:48 from Brad Stevens in the front office.
41:49 And like, we need you, bro.
41:51 Stick around.
41:52 You're gonna play more minutes this year.
41:53 And I'm just really, really thankful
41:56 that we have some tenacity that we can go to,
41:58 culture-wise, and of course, on the court as well.
42:01 Now look, we've been playing some clips
42:02 from Brad Stevens' WEEI interview earlier in the ball.
42:05 We're gonna play another one,
42:06 because Jake, I believe this comment from Brad
42:08 was sort of the impetus for this segment here.
42:10 - As you looked at it, just simply from a roster,
42:15 construction standpoint, last year,
42:17 Peyton really got squeezed, obviously,
42:19 because our guards were so deep.
42:21 You know, with Marcus, with Malcolm, with Derek,
42:24 you know, you slide Jason to the point a lot
42:27 with that group where he brought the ball up a lot.
42:30 - You know, and it's like,
42:32 why would Brad mention Peyton Pritchard?
42:35 Because we're gonna see a lot more of him,
42:36 and he's gonna be in the interview spot.
42:37 - The 11.
42:38 - That's right.
42:40 The windy 11.
42:41 Really should have played that clip
42:43 to begin the segment.
42:44 Sorry, guys.
42:45 So, okay, we've talked about where we think
42:48 he's gonna be in the rotation.
42:50 Minutes per game, like, I know it's hard
42:52 to slap a number on that,
42:53 but like, he's gotta be up around,
42:55 I don't know, like, 16?
42:57 - I think it's gonna be interesting to see.
43:02 I actually did actually try and come up
43:04 with the minutes rotation,
43:06 see how fast this uploads,
43:07 see what you think here.
43:08 So, this is wishful thinking,
43:12 but Tatum and Jalen only play 34 minutes a night.
43:16 But this kind, and then KP, 28,
43:17 Robben now split at 24,
43:19 Brogdon, 28, Houser at 18,
43:21 Pritchard at 16.
43:21 - Oh, I think that's some wishful thinking.
43:24 I hope you're right.
43:25 - So, which part of it's wishful thinking?
43:27 For Pritchard?
43:28 - Well, Pritchard, I think, is right on 16,
43:31 but the bigs playing, was it 28, 24?
43:35 - Well, KP's playing 28, yep.
43:39 And so, you think that's too high for Al and Rob?
43:43 - I think it's too low for what Missoula
43:46 will definitely force them to do.
43:48 I hope that it's that low.
43:50 - I think it's spot on when everyone's healthy.
43:53 - Sure, okay.
43:54 - If we're trying to predict
43:56 what he's gonna end the season with,
43:58 I bet you Pritchard's like 20,
44:00 just because Brogdon's gonna miss games.
44:04 I don't know, Jalen Brown's gonna miss a couple games.
44:07 And the bigs, who knows, dude?
44:11 Who knows with those guys?
44:13 That's gonna be really difficult.
44:16 But I think you're pretty spot on, Jake,
44:18 when everybody's healthy.
44:19 And that's still, 16 minutes is a big roll.
44:23 Eight minutes a half is legit for a dude
44:26 on a championship contender when everybody's healthy.
44:29 - Yeah, I think that fits him great.
44:33 It's enough for him to come in and inject,
44:35 spray some energy all over the court.
44:39 - PP energy everywhere.
44:43 - But not long enough for it to be like,
44:48 as I said, the four games where he played
44:50 30 minutes or over in that 21, 22 season,
44:52 they were 0-4.
44:53 So it's like, there's a middle ground
44:56 with how much you want to whip out the PP.
45:01 - Yeah, absolutely.
45:03 Words to live by.
45:04 Question for the chat and for you guys as well.
45:09 Is Peyton Pritchard the biggest,
45:10 quote unquote, baller on this team?
45:12 I think you guys know what I mean when I ask that, right?
45:15 Like we know what epitomizes a quote unquote baller.
45:18 Like street ball kind of finesse,
45:21 a bit of showiness. - Hooper, right?
45:23 - Hooper, sure.
45:24 Yeah, it's another way of putting it.
45:25 I think he is.
45:26 I think he is.
45:27 But I'd love to hear your answers.
45:28 - The fact that he now holds the record
45:30 at the Ball Don't Stop Pro-Am,
45:32 who is like the founder of the pop culture phenomenon
45:37 that is pure Hooper.
45:40 The fact that he now holds the record
45:44 for the Hooper tournament, I think is a yes.
45:47 Peyton Pritchard, yeah, he can turn up anywhere
45:50 and he's gonna have an impact
45:51 because he can just like drop it from 30 feet
45:54 or whatever court he turns into.
45:56 I think it goes to Tatum though.
45:58 I think he's born for buckets.
46:00 - That's exactly what it's Tatum, dude.
46:04 Watch his high school highlights, dude.
46:08 Tatum was just like basically playing a Pro-Am game
46:11 against children.
46:12 Like he's just like pulling up for mid-range,
46:14 like this is easy, dunking on people.
46:16 Like it's gotta be Tatum.
46:19 But if it's not Tatum, yeah, it's, it's,
46:23 pee-pee's up there, Pritchard's up there.
46:25 - Like Derek, I don't know.
46:28 - Derek makes a case, but it's like not like,
46:30 not like a, he's not a pure Hooper.
46:32 He's more just like, he's a basketball player.
46:36 He's gonna do the fundamentals.
46:37 He's gonna take the charges.
46:38 He's gonna get-
46:39 - I was gonna say, he's the dude taking charges
46:42 in pick up, you're like, fuck off, dude.
46:43 - Yeah, he's getting over screens, chase down blocks.
46:47 - Yeah, like he's gonna be good no matter where he goes,
46:50 but it's gonna be in a different, very different way
46:51 than Peyton Pritchard being good anyway.
46:53 - Yeah, whereas like Pritchard, he's gonna,
46:55 he's not like setting screens.
46:57 He's not like the garbage man with a hard hat on.
46:59 I know I just conflated two different analogies.
47:03 He's like, he's gonna cross someone up
47:04 and he's gonna like come out there and like,
47:06 who's this guy?
47:07 And then like drop to the floor,
47:08 the best player on the court.
47:10 He's just gonna go with him.
47:11 Like he is a baller, you know?
47:12 And I, if he wasn't an NBA player,
47:16 I'd love to think he's like out there,
47:17 Billy Hoyle style hustling,
47:19 just balling on the courts of the world.
47:21 I think he's got that in him more than anyone else
47:23 in the Celtics.
47:24 So let us know in the chat,
47:25 let us know in the comments after the fact.
47:26 - Yeah, well, I mean, then allegedly got in a brawl
47:29 in Massachusetts.
47:31 Like he's just, he's got that dog in him.
47:34 So allegedly, obviously,
47:35 you couldn't see him in the video at all,
47:37 but he was definitely--
47:37 - He's got that, he's got that mass hole in him, baby.
47:40 - Yeah.
47:41 - We've already adopted him, yeah.
47:42 (laughing)
47:43 - All right, let's end on this.
47:45 Celtics legend, NBA referee, Eric Lewis
47:47 is retiring effective immediately.
47:49 So the league is ending its investigation
47:52 into his social media activity.
47:54 And for context, 'cause I didn't have all the details
47:57 when this news came out yesterday.
47:58 So for context, per ESPN, before the finals,
48:00 some now deleted tweets were revealed
48:03 by a pair of then Twitter users
48:05 that appeared to show a referee defending himself
48:07 and other officials against critiques of their work.
48:09 The league opened an investigation
48:11 into whether Lewis violated NBA rules
48:13 by speaking about officiating in an unauthorized manner.
48:16 It had not been determined
48:17 whether Lewis was using the account
48:19 which used the name Blair Cutliffe.
48:22 Lewis was not selected as one of the 12 referees
48:25 to work the finals between Denver and the Nuggets,
48:28 the Denver Nuggets rather, and the Miami Heat.
48:29 While the league continued to investigate,
48:31 Lewis had been chosen to work the finals
48:33 in each of the past four seasons.
48:36 The NBA, they didn't announce whether or not
48:38 it was determined that the account
48:39 was actually owned by Lewis.
48:41 Prior to the deletion of the Blair Cutliffe account,
48:44 a response to one of the Twitter users
48:45 was posted from someone claiming
48:47 to be Eric's older brother, Mark Pablo,
48:49 and they basically took accountable for owning that account
48:52 and took the blame away from his brother, Eric, there.
48:56 Also interesting to note,
48:58 the Celtics are 50 and 29 in Eric Lewis games,
49:01 and the second are the Heat, they're 50 and 37.
49:05 So interesting correlation between the stats and reality
49:08 and the accusations.
49:10 - This is interesting, Spoonie,
49:12 I think you mentioned before we went live,
49:14 like shades of Tim Donahue here.
49:16 Is this something that's gonna sort of echo
49:19 in the chasms of people questioning the integrity
49:22 of the NBA for years to come?
49:24 - On the internet, yes.
49:26 But in actuality, look up the Celtics record
49:30 for the last 10 years.
49:32 Like, it's gonna be better than 50 and 29,
49:36 or it's gonna be right around there, you know what I mean?
49:38 So like, it's gonna look bad for us, period,
49:43 but I'm pretty sure we've won the most regular season games
49:46 in the last decade, other than the Warriors.
49:49 So, look, Eric Lewis has had,
49:53 like there's been pictures of him in Celtics jerseys.
49:57 I was never mad when he was getting a Celtics game.
50:01 - Can we get him back?
50:02 - Yeah, so do I think he was like overtly biased?
50:07 No.
50:08 Do I think he was subconsciously biased?
50:11 Yes.
50:12 But do I think like Tony Brothers,
50:15 like is subconsciously biased against the Celtics?
50:19 Yes, I think there's all the refs have biases.
50:22 Eric Lewis is just an idiot.
50:25 - I don't believe that.
50:26 - And tried to defend his biases when it's like,
50:30 you just, like every human being in the world has biases.
50:35 Like you're gonna have biases in your job
50:38 and you just need to like pretend
50:40 the criticism doesn't exist.
50:42 And Eric Lewis couldn't help himself.
50:44 So like, clearly he was helping us out a little bit.
50:47 Like maybe it's one foul a game, maybe it's two,
50:50 maybe it never mattered,
50:51 but it's enough to like take the mask off
50:55 of the NBA refing and like,
50:58 you're just never gonna ref again.
50:59 I'm sorry.
51:01 - Yeah, good point in the chat here.
51:03 This may have been a bigger loss than Marcus Smart.
51:06 (laughing)
51:08 It's hard to say.
51:10 Yeah, look, this is pretty funny for Celtics fans, I guess,
51:15 less so for everybody else probably,
51:17 but definitely guilty it feels like
51:21 because obviously the fact that he's not referring anymore,
51:25 ending the investigation, which is him basically retiring,
51:29 but still getting his pension, you know,
51:30 shout out the unions.
51:33 I'm getting that one done.
51:35 I will, I think the most important thing
51:38 to take away here,
51:39 what I've been able to find on Twitter so far,
51:42 Eric Lewis refereed game six, Boston in Milwaukee,
51:46 the Jason Tatum 46 point game,
51:50 where it has been brought to my attention
51:52 that Giannis picked up his fourth foul
51:56 with about seven minutes to go in the third quarter.
52:00 I went back and watched,
52:01 for some reason that you can't click on the fouls
52:03 in like NBA stats and stuff,
52:05 but I was able to find one of the fouls, his fourth foul,
52:07 that fourth foul in the third quarter, seven minutes to go,
52:10 was a take foul on Grant Williams,
52:12 where he did, it was like borderline,
52:15 but he didn't even complain.
52:17 Giannis, no one on the court complained.
52:19 Also in that game, Giannis had 44, 20 rebounds,
52:25 six assists, and went 14 for 15 from the free throw line.
52:29 So- - Fuck off.
52:32 - He did okay. - Yeah, fuck off is right.
52:35 - He did okay.
52:36 - And Tatum's hitting every step back.
52:38 Like that's nothing to do with Eric Lewis,
52:40 Tatum's hitting step backs in people's eyeballs.
52:43 - You can't influence that,
52:44 not with the whistle in your mouth, absolutely not.
52:46 - Yeah, I just wanna prepare everybody that's in the chat
52:48 that is potentially gonna have to come up against a tweet,
52:52 a family member, a friend,
52:53 who comes across this information as well,
52:55 your counter, I believe,
52:57 will be the argument that I just laid out.
52:59 I want you to be prepared as well.
53:02 - Yeah, beautiful.
53:03 Well, look, before we wrap up,
53:05 as a bit of a tip of the cap to,
53:06 and a farewell to a Celtics legend in Eric Lewis,
53:09 we've got some Eric Lewis highlights to run here.
53:11 - Well, they're gonna pin down for James.
53:14 James comes up top, gets it.
53:16 James on the drive, gets in the paint, layup, missed it.
53:18 (crowd cheering)
53:21 And the game is over.
53:23 Lakers furious, they thought he was fouled.
53:27 Excuse me, and it's now overtime.
53:29 - Susan, before overtime started,
53:31 Patrick Beverly comes out on the floor
53:33 to Eric Lewis with a camera.
53:35 I mean, just ridiculous.
53:37 And Eric Lewis rightfully tees him up.
53:40 - You said they thought he was fouled.
53:44 He was fouled.
53:45 And would you say missing that?
53:48 - I had no idea that was Eric Lewis.
53:54 (laughing)
53:55 - So good.
53:56 - He's like, "Pat Bev, you are a Laker, sir.
53:59 "One technical foul to you, and walk away."
54:01 - To be fair, that should have been assessed
54:04 as being in regulation.
54:09 So the Celtics should have just been-
54:10 - Flash free throw.
54:11 - A free throw in regulation, which would have meant
54:12 the Celtics won the game.
54:14 They won the game anyway.
54:14 But so Eric Lewis, he's on top of it.
54:16 He's smart.
54:18 - Take that, Eric Lewis haters.
54:20 - We'll miss you, baby.
54:21 We'll miss you.
54:22 - May he ride again.
54:23 All right, that's gonna do it for this one.
54:25 Thanks so much for joining us.
54:26 Next week, we have the grand final
54:28 of our 2023 off-season Celtics trivia bonanza,
54:31 featuring one Hot Take Jake Eisenberg
54:33 from the "First to the Floor" podcast,
54:35 as well as Greg Menekes from the "Green with Envy" pod
54:38 and Sam LaFrance from "How 'Bout Them Celtics."
54:40 In the next couple of days, please, please take mercy on me
54:43 and submit your Celtics trivia question and category ideas
54:46 to firsttothefloor18@gmail.com.
54:50 That's firsttothefloor18@gmail.com.
54:52 I'm running on empty here, folks.
54:54 After years of devising trivia questions and categories,
54:57 I need your help.
54:58 Spoonie, Jake, love your work, guys.
55:00 Until next time, go Celtics.
55:02 (upbeat music)
55:04 - Say what?
55:07 Say what?
55:16 - I love the Celtics!
55:20 (explosion)