You should be glancing Matt, he has been so consistent helping Jokic when everyone else forgot how to shoot. Coach, teammates, pointing to pass it, he’s like I can go get my own damn shots.
The reason neither Jokic or MPJ doesn't enter the three-point contest is that they both have really high release points, meaning it takes them slightly longer than many shooters to gather themselves for the next shot. The extra milliseconds don't matter so much during a single shot during a regular game, but multiply that time by 20 shots and they'd be too rushed in the contest. That and the fact Jokic couldn't care less and MPJ jumps really high, meaning it takes more time to land. In contrast, someone like Trae Young can get off a bunch of shots quickly much more naturally.
That's why the head coach needs to take control of his team. 6-1 in Russ starts = 80% win rate vs 50% win rate when he doesn't start. Why? Russ adds more energy, better defense, quicker pace, and superior play making to the starting unit to start games. This doesn't mean Murray to the bench, which to me would be ridiculous, it means CB to the bench as a super sub(30+ mins) This moves Murray off the ball to start games and emphasizes Russ and Jokic as the primary playmakers. Murray and Gordon come out at either the 5:00 or 6:00 min mark and CB and Watson come in. When Murray and Gordon come back in, they have CB with them, 3 starting level players vs reserves. Using this type of stagger allows Jokic to sit earlier rather than playing the entire 1st qtr. My idea is he comes off the floor at the 10 min mark so Jokic keeps about 3 mins rest(the last 2 mins and the
Sorry, my phone acted up. Jokic can sit at the 10 min mark of the 1st qtr mark and rest for the last 2 mins and the 1 or 2 mins of the qtr break. With this stagger, he comes back in to start the 2nd qtr and plays the first 4 mins(now he is at 14 mins for the 1st half) This is an extended break where Jordan plays center(this can also be broken up into 2 mins with Jordan and 2 mins with AG at the 5, depending on the opponent) Jokic comes back in to close the last 4 mins of the 2nd qtr(which is 18 total first half minutes, projecting towards 36 total minutes) To me this is the best way to maximize the current roster.
@@sammyslam1 100% Russ needs to be starting PG, Murray starting SG, Braun comes off the bench. This gives us such better pacing and ball movement which opens our offense. The bench needs CB’s defense and scoring.
@@gnomechomsky2524...yea to me GM Calvin Booth gave Coach Malone a cheat code but isn't trying to tell him "what" to do or "how" to do it. He not only acquired Russell Westbrook because Nikola Jokic thought he could help, but because he looked at the analytical data of Russell Westbrook as a starting point, with two ball dominant scorers in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Like Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, those are iso/play making stars that can do everything on the offensive end and Russ worked seamlessly with them. It can't be based on Russ as a super sub because to be frank and i'm a huge Russ fan, Russ wasn't special as a super sub for The Clippers, Norman Powell was special. Russ was special as a starter. I said it when The Nuggets acquired Russ. "Don't make the same mistake as The Lakers and Clippers" It doesn't matter if the player just wants to play and is willing to do anything to help the team win, what matters is doing what's actually best for the team. What's best for The Nuggets is to actually start Russ alongside Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. He's proven that he is a fine role player when surrounded by two stars(as a #3 with Bron and AD he was 18/8/8) but he wants to be on the ball creating plays for teammates. The problem with The Lakers is that the organization wants Bron on the ball and the problem with The Clippers was that they wanted James Harden on the ball. The Nuggets don't have LeBron James or James Harden. As much as we all respect Big Shot Jamal, he is not that type of play maker for others and no, having Jokic and Russ together does not mean taking the ball out of Jokic's hands. What you do is increase the usage rates of Jokic and Russ when they are on the floor together and reduce the usage rate of Murray(making him more of a catch and shoot guard) when he shares the floor with them and increase his usage when he is the floor leader(no Jokic or Russ) In those few minutes where it's Murray and Russ(no Jokic) Russ plays off the ball and Murray remains the #1 scoring option. It's not rocket science! Coach Malone has to be more flexible!
@gnomechomsky2524 ....hey my friend, here are some analytical data that supports our position: Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, and Murray 119.5(off rating) vs 111.9(def rating) = +7.6(net rating) Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, and Russ 127.6(off rating) vs 101.5(def rating) = +26.1(net rating) Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, Murray, and Russ 131.6(off rating) vs 114.7(def rating) = +16.9(net rating) No matter what people think about Russ and how he limits spacing(supposedly) look at the off ratings when he starts with these two groups. Now of course there are very few minutes in both the CB and Murray iterations(i didn't look for Jokic, Gordon, CB, Murray, and Russ, a non MPJ five) It's the pace and extra play making that helps the offense in my view and clearly we can see Russ is an impact defender. The 114.7 def rating with the Russ/Murray backcourt is a bit concerning no matter how great the 131.6 off rating is but i will argue that this group would improve the def rating with more minutes together. The Russ/CB backcourt helps The Nuggets have an "elite" defense. The problem is you can't hurt team chemistry or create a moody star when you just committed to him with a huge extension. From a "team" perspective and "fan" perspective, it would make perfect sense to switch the Murray/Westbrook roles and make Jokic/Porter the #1 and #2 scoring options with the new starting five and Murray the #1 scoring option when he comes off the bench and then use him to close games with the Jokic/Murray two man game and decide on who should be on the floor between MPJ, CB, and Russ, depending on the game and opponent. So i say start Murray and Russ, shift Murray off the ball to sg, and make CB the first sub and Murray first out. Murray comes in to lead the reserves and closes the 2nd and 4th qtrs with Jokic. Jokic gets 30+ mins, Gordon gets 30+ mins, MPJ gets 30+ mins, Murray gets 30+ mins, Russ gets 30+ mins, and CB gets 30+ mins(because he can play a few minutes at sf) 6 30+ min players with everyone else filling in as needed. To me the next three for now should be: Jordan, Watson, and Tyson rather than Strawther. I understand the theory behind more Strawther minutes(he gets up a lot of 3's) but to me it will be defense that pushes The Nuggets towards elite and right now he is not the defender the other 3 role players are. If i am Gm Booth i am trying to sell high on the potential of Strawther and Nnaji to a younger team with solid veterans, and i am maybe adding a 3rd contending team to the deal that might like Dario Saric. I want to move 3 for 1....creating two open roster spots for veterans with postseason experience.
I don't think anyone, including you, Ryan, ever said that Porter needs to be traded just that he's the only one who can be traded out of the big ones...
They don't need to trade MPJ. They need Coach Malone to do a better job of maximizing the current roster. Same Gm, Same Head Coach, Same Players, Same Roster and they win 80% of the time when they tweak the roster and start Russ. In all the other games they win 50% of the time. Coach Malone is being too loyal and although it would seem that Murray should be the one who is subtracted from the starting unit, i would subtract CB and convert him to the super sub(30+ mins) they are currently using Russ as. The facts are the facts. The Nuggets trend "elite" even with all their flaws with Russ as a starter and they are incredibly average when he doesn't. 80% vs 50% Coach Malone needs to announce Russ and Murray as his starting backcourt going forward with Murray as his #1 scorer in the 2nd unit. CB becomes the super sub playing with all units(30+ mins per game) With Jordan, Watson, and Tyson being the next 3 solid regular season rotation players. Strawther gets whatever minutes are left. Play like this for 12-15 games and see where you are. They have only played the: Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, Murray, and Russ starting lineup once the entire season and this should have the starting unit from the beginning. To me moving Murray off the ball with the starting five and on the ball with the reserves is the way to go. Emphasize Jokic, MPJ, and Gordon when Russ is on the floor and let Murray get up as many shots as he wants in the second unit with CB as his 2nd in command.
@Paloshoot oh can't remember, but I still think it stems from knowing only MPJ is an option, because if Jamal was eligible, I think we'd all be talking about him not MPJ even after last game.
@@IamHailey8 ...yea which to me makes these rumors bogus. If the team values MPJ as much as or even more than Jamal Murray, meaning that without that extension it would be Murray that would be in trade rumors, then you don't trade MPJ...... You keep MPJ, make minor trades to improve the bottom 7 of the roster, and see what happens in the postseason. Now you have both MPJ and Murray as possible trade pieces, as well as still having a boatload of talented youngsters who have actually played on an nba floor. You also would have had a season showing Nikola Jokic and Calvin Booth were right on Russell Westbrook and his ability to play next to Jokic without harming Jokic's game or dominance. You are now in a stronger trade position. I don't see a need right now to break up the championship core of Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, Murray, and Jordan. With the addition of Westbrook and the improvement from Watson, The Nuggets now have a solid 8 at the top of their rotation. It's the lower 7 of the regular season that is hindering the team and that's mostly because it lacks experienced veterans and has two players that can't even play 4 total mins(Saric and Nnaji) in a game. Also one of the bottom 7 is an inexperienced gunner who is playing hard and taking open shots but makes way too many defensive mistakes(Strawther but he does seem to be improving) The one player in the bottom 7 that i am not moving(unless a trade partner demands he be part of a deal) is Hunter Tyson. My goodness this kid looks good in his minutes. His game just seems so cerebral and makes sense with any group of players he is playing with.
First of all, I wish all fans, players, podcasters, trolls a Merry Christmas from Serbia, we celebrate on January 7. I wish you all the best of health and love, the rest will come by itself. --Does it really have to be on every podcast every time Pickett or Jamal plays a game that is not even average in terms of performance, it must be shown as -that's the class of 2023 and you can see the progress-. I've watched all the teams this season, even Philadelphia without Embiid plays better basketball than Denver. Spurs players run and fight for every moment of the game. As soon as Denver beats a team that is either on the margin of .500 more, less immediately starts the narrative that everything is fine, Denver is back. And again, again after a few games, we lose.... maybe next home game vs Detroit. When we go on a 5-8 win streak like Indiana that was written off in November Indiana won 5 of their last 4 games away from GSW, Kings, Suns, 76. Then we can say that Denver is on the right track, and if someone of the bench players like Zeke, Saric, Pickett, Cancar, Tyson and even Julian or Watson are not traded (No team fighting for a ring develops 4 or 5 young players at the same time..completely absurd Mr. Stuart Jokic's era in Denver) and thus they do not strengthen the bench for one or two role players who can be included for the play off, we will not even pass the first round because we only have Russ who does something positive from the bench.
I'm with you on the over glut of young/developing players.... If i were Gm Booth, i am trying to sell a team on the potentials of Zeke Nnaji and Julian Strawther(or Peyton Watson)to their youth movements. By offering one of their two really talented younger players, it can mitigate the other draft compensation that might need to be attached to the deal for a quality veteran. In this deal i am seeking to ask the trade partner or involving a third party, to take the contract of Dario Saric who can't seem to win any minutes on the floor. Basically i would try to sell Zeke Nnaji, Dario Saric(who can go to a contender or poor team that would immediately waive him) and either Payton Watson or Julian Strawther for one quality veteran with postseason experience. What this does is move Saric and Nnaji's contracts off the books for next season, brings in a playable vet, and also creates two roster spots which should immediately be filled with free agents who are out there staying in shape or playing competitive basketball somewhere. My recommendations are: Robert Covington, a defensive minded wing that can guard 1 thru 5 and Lonnie Walker, an aggressive combo guard who hunts buckets, who can get super hot in streaks. The trade targets i have are: Larry Nance Jr, Malik Beasley, Chris Boucher, Nic Batum and PJ Tucker(in a 3 for 2 deal which opens only one roster spot) of course there could be other vet targets who i am missing. I know Valanciuanas is better than Jordan but with Jokic playing 32-40 minutes, i'm not sure DeAndre Jordan isn't the right type of backup center for The Nuggets.... They just need someone to rebound and defend when Jokic sits and i would rather have more versatile wings and guards in the second unit rather than a center who will not be a featured scorer(if Naz Reid were available i would feel differently on this) Keep the top 7 intact: Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, Murray, Jordan, and Russ. Make moves to improve the bottom 8 Even if Nnaji and Strawther or Nnaji and Watson are dealt, the team will still have a bunch of decent youngsters to mix in and continue to develop but now the regular top 10 is all veterans that know how to play and you have 5 young guys to play in blowouts.
@@light-chemistry ...i think it's how you package him and what the trade partner is trying to do. For instance i built a trade just now with The Clippers that allows them to continue their youth movement behind Kawhi, James, and Norm: Zeke Nnaji, Julian Strawther, Dario Saric, and Jalen Pickett to The Clippers for PJ Tucker, Nic Batum, and Kai Jones. The Clippers get one vet back to help with the current playoff chase and 3 more youngsters to look at(they are currently not using either Tucker or Jones in the rotation) and The Nuggets get two experienced postseason veterans that have played with Russ and an athletic power forward whose speciality is interior shot blocking. I don't think either team needs to attach draft compensation to this deal. It seems to work for both.
@@light-chemistry ...i found another one that could work: Zeke Nnaji, Julian Strawther, and Dario Saric to Portland for: Thybulle, Banton, and Reath.... I think deals can be made.
@@sammyslam1 With Valanciuanas, you can rest Jokic to be on the border of 68-70 games, and that would be one of two reinforcements. Valanciuanas is on a contract of 9 million which would cover the contract of Zeke + Cancar. In the second trade I would use Saric+Pickett+Julian or PW would prefer it to be Julian because defensively it is simply not possible to improve his game. For these three players, bringing in an experienced wing and one young player, and Denver frees up space to sign Holliday, who is still in Denver. The goal is to strengthen the defense, which would be most important in non-Jokic minutes. All this talk about how no one will trade for the Zeke is nonsense because there are a bunch of players with contracts like the Zeke who don't play at all, and they are mostly veterans. While here they get a 23-year-old player and Cancar can wave immediately. Many people write here in the comments even though they don't understand how the NBA works. Teams like the Nets, Washington, Utah, Chicago, Hornets and I would add the Pelicans, Detroit and Portland, which I don't believe will chase a place in the playoffs, but rather chase a good spot in the draft. This all implies trade players to relieve the team of big contracts as well as players who are very good or would like to join championship contending teams. Every year we see things like this, especially when after the departure of such players, they chase contracts like Zeke to fill the roster and trade him further next year.
So one good game and everything from previous atrocious games is no longer relevant? Fact is mpj has had 3 good games this season. They need to trade out of this problem or the season is over. He failed last year against the wolves and he is failing now. Same w jamal. Yet everything is ok? Delusional
Russell westbrook needs to be the permanent starting point guard the rest of the season
Since we got him, I was sure that Malone will test starting Westbrook over Braun... I think its a very good idea
Oh ok, I saw the presser. It was you who Mike said he watches the show?
Yup it was
You should be glancing Matt, he has been so consistent helping Jokic when everyone else forgot how to shoot. Coach, teammates, pointing to pass it, he’s like I can go get my own damn shots.
The reason neither Jokic or MPJ doesn't enter the three-point contest is that they both have really high release points, meaning it takes them slightly longer than many shooters to gather themselves for the next shot. The extra milliseconds don't matter so much during a single shot during a regular game, but multiply that time by 20 shots and they'd be too rushed in the contest. That and the fact Jokic couldn't care less and MPJ jumps really high, meaning it takes more time to land. In contrast, someone like Trae Young can get off a bunch of shots quickly much more naturally.
Very good analysis. However i’d LOVE to see Jokic do the 3pts Contest!!
I think MPJ can do well, Jokic will not cuz he has a slow high release like u said
They play more as a team without Murray walking up the court and gumming things up with his hero ball and laziness.
That's why the head coach needs to take control of his team.
6-1 in Russ starts = 80% win rate vs 50% win rate when he doesn't start.
Why?
Russ adds more energy, better defense, quicker pace, and superior play making to the starting unit to start games.
This doesn't mean Murray to the bench, which to me would be ridiculous, it means CB to the bench as a super sub(30+ mins)
This moves Murray off the ball to start games and emphasizes Russ and Jokic as the primary playmakers.
Murray and Gordon come out at either the 5:00 or 6:00 min mark and CB and Watson come in.
When Murray and Gordon come back in, they have CB with them, 3 starting level players vs reserves.
Using this type of stagger allows Jokic to sit earlier rather than playing the entire 1st qtr.
My idea is he comes off the floor at the 10 min mark so Jokic keeps about 3 mins rest(the last 2 mins and the
Sorry, my phone acted up.
Jokic can sit at the 10 min mark of the 1st qtr mark and rest for the last 2 mins and the 1 or 2 mins of the qtr break.
With this stagger, he comes back in to start the 2nd qtr and plays the first 4 mins(now he is at 14 mins for the 1st half)
This is an extended break where Jordan plays center(this can also be broken up into 2 mins with Jordan and 2 mins with AG at the 5, depending on the opponent)
Jokic comes back in to close the last 4 mins of the 2nd qtr(which is 18 total first half minutes, projecting towards 36 total minutes)
To me this is the best way to maximize the current roster.
@@sammyslam1 100% Russ needs to be starting PG, Murray starting SG, Braun comes off the bench. This gives us such better pacing and ball movement which opens our offense. The bench needs CB’s defense and scoring.
@@gnomechomsky2524...yea to me GM Calvin Booth gave Coach Malone a cheat code but isn't trying to tell him "what" to do or "how" to do it.
He not only acquired Russell Westbrook because Nikola Jokic thought he could help, but because he looked at the analytical data of Russell Westbrook as a starting point, with two ball dominant scorers in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
Like Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, those are iso/play making stars that can do everything on the offensive end and Russ worked seamlessly with them.
It can't be based on Russ as a super sub because to be frank and i'm a huge Russ fan, Russ wasn't special as a super sub for The Clippers, Norman Powell was special.
Russ was special as a starter.
I said it when The Nuggets acquired Russ.
"Don't make the same mistake as The Lakers and Clippers"
It doesn't matter if the player just wants to play and is willing to do anything to help the team win, what matters is doing what's actually best for the team.
What's best for The Nuggets is to actually start Russ alongside Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.
He's proven that he is a fine role player when surrounded by two stars(as a #3 with Bron and AD he was 18/8/8) but he wants to be on the ball creating plays for teammates.
The problem with The Lakers is that the organization wants Bron on the ball and the problem with The Clippers was that they wanted James Harden on the ball.
The Nuggets don't have LeBron James or James Harden.
As much as we all respect Big Shot Jamal, he is not that type of play maker for others and no, having Jokic and Russ together does not mean taking the ball out of Jokic's hands.
What you do is increase the usage rates of Jokic and Russ when they are on the floor together and reduce the usage rate of Murray(making him more of a catch and shoot guard) when he shares the floor with them and increase his usage when he is the floor leader(no Jokic or Russ)
In those few minutes where it's Murray and Russ(no Jokic) Russ plays off the ball and Murray remains the #1 scoring option.
It's not rocket science!
Coach Malone has to be more flexible!
@gnomechomsky2524 ....hey my friend, here are some analytical data that supports our position:
Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, and Murray 119.5(off rating) vs 111.9(def rating) = +7.6(net rating)
Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, and Russ 127.6(off rating) vs 101.5(def rating) = +26.1(net rating)
Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, Murray, and Russ 131.6(off rating) vs 114.7(def rating) = +16.9(net rating)
No matter what people think about Russ and how he limits spacing(supposedly) look at the off ratings when he starts with these two groups.
Now of course there are very few minutes in both the CB and Murray iterations(i didn't look for Jokic, Gordon, CB, Murray, and Russ, a non MPJ five)
It's the pace and extra play making that helps the offense in my view and clearly we can see Russ is an impact defender.
The 114.7 def rating with the Russ/Murray backcourt is a bit concerning no matter how great the 131.6 off rating is but i will argue that this group would improve the def rating with more minutes together.
The Russ/CB backcourt helps The Nuggets have an "elite" defense.
The problem is you can't hurt team chemistry or create a moody star when you just committed to him with a huge extension.
From a "team" perspective and "fan" perspective, it would make perfect sense to switch the Murray/Westbrook roles and make Jokic/Porter the #1 and #2 scoring options with the new starting five and Murray the #1 scoring option when he comes off the bench and then use him to close games with the Jokic/Murray two man game and decide on who should be on the floor between MPJ, CB, and Russ, depending on the game and opponent.
So i say start Murray and Russ, shift Murray off the ball to sg, and make CB the first sub and Murray first out.
Murray comes in to lead the reserves and closes the 2nd and 4th qtrs with Jokic.
Jokic gets 30+ mins, Gordon gets 30+ mins, MPJ gets 30+ mins, Murray gets 30+ mins, Russ gets 30+ mins, and CB gets 30+ mins(because he can play a few minutes at sf)
6 30+ min players with everyone else filling in as needed.
To me the next three for now should be: Jordan, Watson, and Tyson rather than Strawther.
I understand the theory behind more Strawther minutes(he gets up a lot of 3's) but to me it will be defense that pushes The Nuggets towards elite and right now he is not the defender the other 3 role players are.
If i am Gm Booth i am trying to sell high on the potential of Strawther and Nnaji to a younger team with solid veterans, and i am maybe adding a 3rd contending team to the deal that might like Dario Saric.
I want to move 3 for 1....creating two open roster spots for veterans with postseason experience.
I was confused about the background with the thumbnail lol. I almost skipped this episode because I want to see the new one.
Mike said that he watch Ryan’s show,so I just wanna say “Mike I love you and you are a Denver nuggets ❤❤❤❤
I don't think anyone, including you, Ryan, ever said that Porter needs to be traded just that he's the only one who can be traded out of the big ones...
They don't need to trade MPJ.
They need Coach Malone to do a better job of maximizing the current roster.
Same Gm, Same Head Coach, Same Players, Same Roster and they win 80% of the time when they tweak the roster and start Russ.
In all the other games they win 50% of the time.
Coach Malone is being too loyal and although it would seem that Murray should be the one who is subtracted from the starting unit, i would subtract CB and convert him to the super sub(30+ mins) they are currently using Russ as.
The facts are the facts.
The Nuggets trend "elite" even with all their flaws with Russ as a starter and they are incredibly average when he doesn't.
80% vs 50%
Coach Malone needs to announce Russ and Murray as his starting backcourt going forward with Murray as his #1 scorer in the 2nd unit.
CB becomes the super sub playing with all units(30+ mins per game)
With Jordan, Watson, and Tyson being the next 3 solid regular season rotation players.
Strawther gets whatever minutes are left.
Play like this for 12-15 games and see where you are.
They have only played the: Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, Murray, and Russ starting lineup once the entire season and this should have the starting unit from the beginning.
To me moving Murray off the ball with the starting five and on the ball with the reserves is the way to go.
Emphasize Jokic, MPJ, and Gordon when Russ is on the floor and let Murray get up as many shots as he wants in the second unit with CB as his 2nd in command.
He actually did mention it last time after the loss.
@@Paloshoot ....you mean Coach Malone?
@Paloshoot oh can't remember, but I still think it stems from knowing only MPJ is an option, because if Jamal was eligible, I think we'd all be talking about him not MPJ even after last game.
@@IamHailey8 ...yea which to me makes these rumors bogus.
If the team values MPJ as much as or even more than Jamal Murray, meaning that without that extension it would be Murray that would be in trade rumors, then you don't trade MPJ......
You keep MPJ, make minor trades to improve the bottom 7 of the roster, and see what happens in the postseason.
Now you have both MPJ and Murray as possible trade pieces, as well as still having a boatload of talented youngsters who have actually played on an nba floor.
You also would have had a season showing Nikola Jokic and Calvin Booth were right on Russell Westbrook and his ability to play next to Jokic without harming Jokic's game or dominance.
You are now in a stronger trade position.
I don't see a need right now to break up the championship core of Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, Murray, and Jordan.
With the addition of Westbrook and the improvement from Watson, The Nuggets now have a solid 8 at the top of their rotation.
It's the lower 7 of the regular season that is hindering the team and that's mostly because it lacks experienced veterans and has two players that can't even play 4 total mins(Saric and Nnaji) in a game. Also one of the bottom 7 is an inexperienced gunner who is playing hard and taking open shots but makes way too many defensive mistakes(Strawther but he does seem to be improving)
The one player in the bottom 7 that i am not moving(unless a trade partner demands he be part of a deal) is Hunter Tyson.
My goodness this kid looks good in his minutes.
His game just seems so cerebral and makes sense with any group of players he is playing with.
Nuggets played a good around game played better defense shot the ball well
1 game, make it a streak of consistent game with effort and I'll stop criticizing as much.
Sometimes the 3 pt contest messes with a guys stroke. I’d be happy if Jokic passed on that
First of all, I wish all fans, players, podcasters, trolls a Merry Christmas from Serbia, we celebrate on January 7. I wish you all the best of health and love, the rest will come by itself.
--Does it really have to be on every podcast every time Pickett or Jamal plays a game that is not even average in terms of performance, it must be shown as -that's the class of 2023 and you can see the progress-. I've watched all the teams this season, even Philadelphia without Embiid plays better basketball than Denver. Spurs players run and fight for every moment of the game. As soon as Denver beats a team that is either on the margin of .500 more, less immediately starts the narrative that everything is fine, Denver is back. And again, again after a few games, we lose.... maybe next home game vs Detroit. When we go on a 5-8 win streak like Indiana that was written off in November Indiana won 5 of their last 4 games away from GSW, Kings, Suns, 76. Then we can say that Denver is on the right track, and if someone of the bench players like Zeke, Saric, Pickett, Cancar, Tyson and even Julian or Watson are not traded (No team fighting for a ring develops 4 or 5 young players at the same time..completely absurd Mr. Stuart Jokic's era in Denver) and thus they do not strengthen the bench for one or two role players who can be included for the play off, we will not even pass the first round because we only have Russ who does something positive from the bench.
I'm with you on the over glut of young/developing players....
If i were Gm Booth, i am trying to sell a team on the potentials of Zeke Nnaji and Julian Strawther(or Peyton Watson)to their youth movements.
By offering one of their two really talented younger players, it can mitigate the other draft compensation that might need to be attached to the deal for a quality veteran.
In this deal i am seeking to ask the trade partner or involving a third party, to take the contract of Dario Saric who can't seem to win any minutes on the floor.
Basically i would try to sell Zeke Nnaji, Dario Saric(who can go to a contender or poor team that would immediately waive him) and either Payton Watson or Julian Strawther for one quality veteran with postseason experience.
What this does is move Saric and Nnaji's contracts off the books for next season, brings in a playable vet, and also creates two roster spots which should immediately be filled with free agents who are out there staying in shape or playing competitive basketball somewhere.
My recommendations are: Robert Covington, a defensive minded wing that can guard 1 thru 5 and Lonnie Walker, an aggressive combo guard who hunts buckets, who can get super hot in streaks.
The trade targets i have are: Larry Nance Jr, Malik Beasley, Chris Boucher, Nic Batum and PJ Tucker(in a 3 for 2 deal which opens only one roster spot) of course there could be other vet targets who i am missing.
I know Valanciuanas is better than Jordan but with Jokic playing 32-40 minutes, i'm not sure DeAndre Jordan isn't the right type of backup center for The Nuggets....
They just need someone to rebound and defend when Jokic sits and i would rather have more versatile wings and guards in the second unit rather than a center who will not be a featured scorer(if Naz Reid were available i would feel differently on this)
Keep the top 7 intact: Jokic, Gordon, MPJ, CB, Murray, Jordan, and Russ.
Make moves to improve the bottom 8
Even if Nnaji and Strawther or Nnaji and Watson are dealt, the team will still have a bunch of decent youngsters to mix in and continue to develop but now the regular top 10 is all veterans that know how to play and you have 5 young guys to play in blowouts.
No one wants Zeke Nnaji
@@light-chemistry ...i think it's how you package him and what the trade partner is trying to do.
For instance i built a trade just now with The Clippers that allows them to continue their youth movement behind Kawhi, James, and Norm:
Zeke Nnaji, Julian Strawther, Dario Saric, and Jalen Pickett to The Clippers for PJ Tucker, Nic Batum, and Kai Jones.
The Clippers get one vet back to help with the current playoff chase and 3 more youngsters to look at(they are currently not using either Tucker or Jones in the rotation) and The Nuggets get two experienced postseason veterans that have played with Russ and an athletic power forward whose speciality is interior shot blocking.
I don't think either team needs to attach draft compensation to this deal. It seems to work for both.
@@light-chemistry ...i found another one that could work:
Zeke Nnaji, Julian Strawther, and Dario Saric to Portland for: Thybulle, Banton, and Reath....
I think deals can be made.
@@sammyslam1 With Valanciuanas, you can rest Jokic to be on the border of 68-70 games, and that would be one of two reinforcements. Valanciuanas is on a contract of 9 million which would cover the contract of Zeke + Cancar. In the second trade I would use Saric+Pickett+Julian or PW would prefer it to be Julian because defensively it is simply not possible to improve his game. For these three players, bringing in an experienced wing and one young player, and Denver frees up space to sign Holliday, who is still in Denver. The goal is to strengthen the defense, which would be most important in non-Jokic minutes. All this talk about how no one will trade for the Zeke is nonsense because there are a bunch of players with contracts like the Zeke who don't play at all, and they are mostly veterans. While here they get a 23-year-old player and Cancar can wave immediately. Many people write here in the comments even though they don't understand how the NBA works. Teams like the Nets, Washington, Utah, Chicago, Hornets and I would add the Pelicans, Detroit and Portland, which I don't believe will chase a place in the playoffs, but rather chase a good spot in the draft. This all implies trade players to relieve the team of big contracts as well as players who are very good or would like to join championship contending teams. Every year we see things like this, especially when after the departure of such players, they chase contracts like Zeke to fill the roster and trade him further next year.
Ryan should glaze mpj….. if the Denver media did a better job of exposing Jamal he wouldn’t be earning 50 Mil a year. Now MPJ is on the trading block
Hi Mike I know you are lurking 👀🤭
Suns are gonna make adjustments
So one good game and everything from previous atrocious games is no longer relevant? Fact is mpj has had 3 good games this season. They need to trade out of this problem or the season is over. He failed last year against the wolves and he is failing now. Same w jamal. Yet everything is ok? Delusional
Trading a healthy MPJ reveals no vision and ignores his improving ability and his team history.