Game Theory Podcast

A two-part episode today. First, I chat with Derek Bodner to break down the demise of the Philadelphia 76ers over the last four years. All of the missteps that led to a 4-0 sweep at the hands of the Boston Celtics.

Then, I chat with Tim Cato, and we discuss Luka Doncic, and the Mavericks-Clippers series that has quickly become the most exciting in the league. 

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A two-parter! In the first half of the episode, I chat with John Hollinger about the 2020 NBA Draft Lottery, which took place on Thursday night. What do we think of this draft and potential trades that are on the table with the order finally set? Then in the second half, I talk to Villanova forward and potential first round pick Saddiq Bey. Bey won the Julius Erving Award this season as a small forward, and is expected to be taken in the top-20 of the NBA Draft. 

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In this episode, Mo Dakhil joins, we break down everything that's happening in the NBA Bubble in Orlando. First, we chat about the Kings' split with Vlade Divac as Joe Dumars seemingly takes over as the lead basketball ops guy in Sacramento. Then, we break down each playoff series and talk Blazers-Grizzlies.

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First, Rob Dauster joins, and we break down all of the news in the NCAA regarding college football cancellations, and whether or not the college basketball season can be saved. Then, I interview Isaiah Stewart out of Washington, a likely first round pick in the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft

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In this episode, I chat with Blake Murphy about the Eastern Conference as we head down the stretch of the seeding games. We do 30 minutes on the Raptors particularly, and what makes them such a tough out heading into the playoffs. Then we chat Bucks, Celtics, Heat, 76ers and Pacers. 

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In this episode, I chat with Fred Katz from The Athletic about the Race in the Western Conference. We chat Lakers, Clippers, Nuggets, Jazz, Rockets, Thunder, and Mavericks. 

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Intro and NBA trends: 0:00-9:30

Jonathan Isaac Injury: 9:30-22:15

Race for the eighth seed in the Western Conference, including thoughts on Spurs, Suns, Blazers, Grizzlies and Pelicans: 22:15-1:11:00

Philadelphia 76ers: 1:11:00-1:16:30

Skylar Mays Interview: 1:16:30-end

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Intro, combine discussion, notes on Big Board: 0:00-16:30

Cole Anthony, Tre Jones, and Kira Lewis: 16:30-40:00

Who is the best wing in the draft?: 40:00-57:30

Elijah Hughes Interview: 59:30-end

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Intro: 0:00-3:00

NBA Scrimmage Overreactions with Dave DuFour: 3:00-28:00

Interview with Freddie Gillespie: 30:00-end

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Intro and explaining the landscape within which kids have to make their early entry decision: 0:00-22:30

Xavier Tillman: 22:30-30:30

Tyrell Terry: 30:30-35:00

Robert Woodard: 35:00-38:30

Corey Kispert, Jared Butler: 38:30-43:00

Ayo Dosunmu, Kofi Cockburn, Isaiah Joe, Chris Smith, other rapid fire players: 43:00-51:00

Cassius Winston Interview: 54:00-end

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In a two-part episode, first I chat with Michael Pina about 10 high-variance players who can swing the NBA title race. Then, for the final 25 minutes, I chat with Utah State guard Sam Merrill, who is a top-50 2020 NBA Draft prospect and has helped himself as much as anyone in the pre-draft process.

Conversation with Michael Pina: 0:00-1:18:00. We run through Eric Gordon, Eric Bledsoe, Jamal Murray, Kemba Walker, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, OG Anunoby, Marcus Morris, Kristaps Porzingis, Shake Milton and Joel Embiid.

Conversation with Sam Merrill: 1:21:00-end

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Intro: 0:00-1:30

What does Spencer look for in scouting? 1:30-6:20

Isaiah Stewart: 6:20-14:00

Obi Toppin: 14:00-34:00

Tyrese Haliburton: 34:00-50:00

Killian Hayes: 50:00-1:05:00

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Intro: 0:00-4:30 

Portland Trail Blazers: 4:30-20:00

Los Angeles Lakers: 20:00-31:00

Los Angeles Clippers: 31:00-41:00

Denver Nuggets: 41:00-52:00

Houston Rockets: 52:00-59:00

Dallas Mavericks: 59:00-1:05:00

Utah Jazz: 1:05:00-1:11:00

Oklahoma City Thunder: 1:11:00-1:18:00

(Rudy Gobert interlude: 1:18:00-1:20:00

Memphis Grizzlies: 1:20:00-1:30:00

New Orleans Pelicans: 1:30:00-1:48:00

Phoenix Suns:  1:48:00-1:52:00

Sacramento Kings: 1:52:00-1:55:00

San Antonio Spurs: 1:55:00-1:57:00

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Episode Time Stamps: 

General Overall Thoughts on the East: 2:00-5:40

Milwaukee Bucks: 5:40-15:30

Toronto Raptors: 15:30-23:10

Miami Heat: 23:10-30:15

Boston Celtics: 30:15-37:45

Philadelphia 76ers: 37:45-46:20

Indiana Pacers: 46:20-50:50

Orlando Magic: 50:50-54:45

Washington Wizards and Brooklyn Nets: 54:45-end

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Timestamps: 

Intro to The Athletic: 0:00 to 4:00

Matt Pennie Intro: 4:10-7:00

Overall Thoughts on 2020 Draft: 7:00-16:00 

Nico Mannion: 16:30-24:00

Who would you take at No. 1?: 24:00-31:00

Anthony Edwards: 31:00-39:00

Who is Pennie's favorite prospect? 39:30-45:00

Rapid Fire Prospects: 45:00-End

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In this episode, Sam is joined by Jon Krawczynski and Danny Leroux to break down NBA defensive standouts. On Wednesday, Krawczynski and Josh Robbins published their anonymous coaches poll of who should make the All-NBA defensive team. What did the coaches look for in their conversations with Jon? What were the trends? Did anything surprise them about how the coaches voted? 

Then, I chat with Danny Leroux, and we chat about what we look for when evaluating defenders as public facing analysts. How do we contextualize scheme? How do we look at effort defensively throughout the regular season? Who are some of the best defenders, and what are some of the differences we'd have with the coaches from taking a league-wide view? 

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A two-part episode. First, I chat with Brian Snow of 247Sports about Emoni Bates and his decision to commit to Michigan State. How good is Bates? Is he a superstar in waiting? What does this mean for Michigan State? And what do you need to know about when he can enter the NBA?

Then, Seth Partnow from The Athletic joins and we break down my recently released 2020 NBA Rookie Scale Prospect Rankings. What is the process for something like this? Where does Seth think I missed? Did I get the top 10 guys right? 

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Dieter Kurtenbach is back in this episode of the Game Theory Podcast, where we break down a few different topics about the Bubble, about labor strife in baseball, and most importantly: what are we most looking forward to watching when the NBA returns? 

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I chatted with Tony Jones from The Athletic, and we chatted about the Kyrie meeting, the NBA Bubble and restart, and the 2020 NBA Draft. 

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I've wanted to get Rashad Phillips on the podcast to chat for a while, so I got on the phone with him today to chat about some of the guards in the 2020 NBA Draft. We disagree a lot! We both like LaMelo Ball, but have very different evaluations on RJ Hampton. We like Grant Riller, but disagree on Jahmi'us Ramsey. All that and more on all of the guards in the 2020 NBA Draft. 

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In this episode, I chatted with former NBA agent Matt Babcock from over at Babcock Hoops. We chatted about the top of this draft class, the point guard group, the big men, the weakness of the wing class, and some of the guys you would pound the table for in this class in the second round. 

We ran through just about everyone in an hour. 

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In this episode, I chat with Dieter Kurtenbach. First, we discuss the G League's initiative to pay high school prospects to turn pro. Why I like the idea of it, but am a bit skeptical going forward. 

Second, we chat about The Last Dance, and how great it is while also not bringing anything new to the table. 

Finally, we chat about the NFL Draft for a while, and Dieter yells about SPARQ scores. 

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In this episode, current senior writer at The Athletic and former Memphis Grizzlies executive John Hollinger and I break down the 2020 NBA Draft. We run through what we look for in prospects, the pre-draft process's value, and break down a lot of the highest profile prospects in the 2020 draft. 

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In this episode, actual basketball content! We break down the NBA Awards we would vote for if the season ends today (and it looks like it might). MVP, All-NBA, DPOY, all the good stuff. But we open on a couple of things, including a hilarious scuttled Knicks-Hornets deal, and the sham that is the NCAA's agency accreditation process. Finally, we talk about Tiger King and the Unauthorized Bash Brothers Experience, both of which were definitely experiences. 

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In this episode, Dieter Kurtenbach joins. We went heavy on the US response to the coronavirus epidemic for the first 21 minutes. If you're not interested in listening to complaints about the federal government's response to COVID-19, then skip to the 21:00 mark. 

Then, we chat about Josh Harris and the 76ers trying to convince their employees to take a pay cut. And we close out by answering mailbag questions from listeners. Some stuff on the Cavaliers' backcourt, the Warriors offseason, the NBA Draft, and then some thoughts on what the best bad movies are to watch during quarantine. 

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In this episode, Chris Stone from The Sporting News joins us to chat about Kansas, its national title banner, and how I want them to do it. 

Then, we break down the NBA Draft and Chris and I run through a lot of the prospects. 

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In this episode, Dieter joins and we talk for some time about coronavirus, the bummer that is the sports world, and what you can watch in the meantime without sports. Oh, and some coaching carousel stuff. 

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In this episode, Dieter Kurtenbach joins to chat about the Houston Rockets being super fun and enjoyable; the Bulls being a total mess; and Collin Sexton! Collin Sexton is a legitimately good scorer!

Oh, and I made Dieter talk with me about the Democratic Primary. 

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Because it doesn't seem like anyone is talking enough about how the Bucks are one of the literal best teams in NBA history through 58 games, I had The Athletic's Eric Nehm on to break down how exceptional this team is. Why they're so good, and why we should believe in them come title time. 

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The 76ers remain the most fascinating team in the league to me, so I decided to make Derek Bodner come on and chat about it. He's the most plugged-in person in the market, so if he can't figure it out, no one can, right?

We leave no stone unturned, chatting about the Al Horford fit, the Ben Simmons-Joel Embiid fit, the offensive concerns, has the defense been good enough, and finally, the front office's performance. What should the team do? And what should their expectations be the rest of the way?

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In this episode, I'm joined by Jovan Buha from The Athletic, and we chat about the NBA now that we've hit the proverbial "Second Half." 

We start on the Brooklyn Nets with news of Kyrie Irving being out for the year. How does this affect the rest of their season? But more importantly, how does this affect their future planning with Kevin Durant coming back soon? Will they make some tough decisions this summer?

Then, we move on and break down the Western Conference. We focus for about 35 minutes on the Los Angeles teams, how they match up with one another, what their strengths are, and most importantly what their biggest weaknesses are heading into the playoffs? Also, what do we think of the recent additions of Markieff Morris and Reggie Jackson? 

Then we chat about the rest of the West. Which of Utah, Denver or Houston are we worried about most (sorry Denver, who we didn't talk enough about)? Which of Oklahoma City or Dallas is the team you want to play the least? Which team gets the No. 8 seed?

Also, shout out to sponsors Keeps and Bet Online. 

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In this episode, Jim Root from the Three Man Weave joins, and we start with All-Star weekend, breaking down what we thought of the increase competitiveness of the event this year. 

Then, we move to John Beilein, chatting about why this thing didn't work, why I don't expect him to coach the Cavs again, and what could happen with him next?

Then we get into the main portion of the episode, talking about the entire college basketball season. Why is the talent level down in college basketball? Are there any great teams? Which teams do we trust most? We talk about almost all of the best teams in the country. We talk about the national player of the year race and who the best players in the country are (including my spiel on Luka Garza). 

Then, we close on the five players we like to watch most in college basketball this year, in addition to our favorite futures bets to win the national title. 

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In this episode, I chat with Dieter Kurtenbach. First, I explain where the podcast has been. Then, I chat with Dieter about the Warriors-Timberwolves trade. What are the Warriors doing? Where are they going from here?

Then we chat about All-Star weekend. And finish on the Oscars, and my excitement about Parasite winning. 

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In this episode, I get with Rob Dauster over at NBC Sports and we chat about a few different topics. We open with 15 minutes on Kobe Bryant, then we move on to discuss Coach K yelling at the Duke fans like a crazy person because it's hilarious. 

Finally, we spend the majority of the podcast talking about prospects. Who has impressed Rob? What do we think of Anthony Edwards? What do we think of Memphis' guys? Of guys like Saddiq Bey, Daniel Oturu, and the players at Gonzaga? All that and a lot more. 

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In this episode, I'm joined by Dieter Kurtenbach, where we chat about who should make the 2020 NBA All-Star Game. We run through in categories and by conference. We say who the No-Doubters are, the very likely guys, and the wild cards who could crash the party. Then we chat a bit about movies, about the Oscars, and about the Baseball Hall of Fame at the end. 

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In this episode, I'm joined by Michael Pina from SB Nation, the Winning Plays Podcast, and the Open Floor podcast. 

We chatted about a few things. First we hit quickly on the Atlanta-Minnesota deal at the top. Then, we chatted about Kyrie Irving making comments about what he thinks is or is not the future core of the Nets roster, and why naming names is never a good idea. 

Then, we move to Boston, and chat about why Boston has been so good this year. 

And finally, we close on Utah, who is on a fun little winning run here largely centered around Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, and moving Joe Ingles into the starting lineup. 

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In this episode, Dieter Kurtenbach is back, and we really run the gamut of sports. We talk Green Bay-San Francisco, then Clemson-LSU and Dabo Swinney. 

Then, we move into the meat of the episode, where we discuss if the NBA Media is Biased toward big markets. 

Finally, we chat about the Oscars. Or rather, I talk about the Oscars and Dieter nods along in agreement. 

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In this episode, Danny Leroux joins the podcast and we chat about Andre Drummond and Chris Paul. First, we break down Andre Drummond potentially moving on from Detroit, particularly potentially to Atlanta. Then, we chat about Drummond and Detroit and whether or not Detroit should do it? 

Then, we chat about Chris Paul, and Chris Paul's start to the season. Should he be an all-star? And should he be on the trade market? And why is Philadelphia the best spot? 

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In this episode, Cole Zwicker and I run through the NBA Trade Market. What are the biggest potential deals on the market? What are our favorite ones that could be under the radar, but could help NBA teams and contenders improve? We run through nearly every team in the league at some point in a free-flowing conversation that goes a lot of different directions

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In this episode, Cole and I break down a few different things. First, Deandre Ayton returned to action against the Clippers last night, so we stop and break down the game. Then, we chat about the Clippers and their overall play this year, particularly since Paul George has been back. 

We close on NBA Draft news. We chat about LaMelo Ball's injury, Cole Anthony's injury, R.J. Hampton's injury, Myles Powell's injury, then move on to some sleeper guys we like, including Spencer Jones. Payton Pritchard, Robert Woodard, Kaleb Wesson, Mason Jones, Joel Ayayi

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In this episode, I chat with Cole Zwicker, except the typical format of the podcast gets turned on its head. Cole gets to ask me the questions this time, about my overall opinions on this draft class, some format and philosophy questions on the draft, and more. We talk about the Race for No.1, some sleepers, and some more interesting players across the board. 

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Cole Zwicker and Sam discuss some of the fun early-season stories, including Davis Bertans and Washington, Devonte Graham and PJ Washington, the Spurs being bad, and more. 

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In this episode, I chat with Cole Zwicker about a variety of topics. First, the Knicks fire David Fizdale. Was it earned? What happens now? Then, the Cavaliers aren't happy with John Beilein. What happens next? 

Then, we chat Vernon Carey, Paul Reed, Romeo Weems, Terrance Shannon Jr, Yves Pons, and Aaron Wiggins. 

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In this episode of the podcast, I chat with Dieter Kurtenbach about the top of the Eastern Conference. We start with the Bucks because not enough people are talking about how dominant Milwaukee has been to start the year. Then we move to Miami and its super fun group of players, we talk about the Celtics and their cohesion, the Raptors and the leaps they've gotten from young players, and the roller coaster that is watching 76ers games. 

Then, we move on to the Rockets and how watching them play is a bit frustrating. We close on The Irishman and Knives Out, two movies were very wildly different experiences. 

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In this podcast, Cole Zwicker and Sam run through their overall thoughts on a big variety of prospects. 

Somewhat in order of who we discuss: 

James Wiseman, Tyrese Haliburton, Isaac Okoro, Arizona, Grant Riller, , Florida, Kira lewis, Myles Powell, Aaron Nesmith, Jahmi'us Ramsey, Tyrell Terry, Mason Jones, Franz Wagner

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In this episode, Cole Zwicker and I break down a bunch of different college prospects. We start with Anthony Edwards' massive explosion against Michigan State, where he scored 33 points in 15 minutes in the second half. 

Then, we move on to the Michigan State prospects, including Cassius Winston, Aaron Henry, and Xavier Tillman. 

Then, in this order, we jumped around to other teams and players: Landers Nolley, Obi Toppin, The Kansas guys, UCLA. 

Finally, we close on the Duke Loss to Stephen F. Austin, and why we're seeing so many high-end upsets this season. Then, we break down Duke's prospects and how they've looked.  

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In this episode, Ricky O'Donnell from SB Nation joins for our yearly "Bulls in Crisis" podcast. In this edition, we discuss Jim Boylen being a disaster, the players struggling, management, and more. 

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In this episode, Dieter Kurtenbach joins me to talk about the NBA ratings stuff. Does it matter that the NBA ratings are down? Should the alarm bells be going for the league? Is this an actual issue of viewership? Or is it a monetization problem where the NBA needs to figure out how to sell advertising in regard to internet viewers? Is it a surprise? What matters here? 

We chatted about movies, too. What are the best movies I've seen this year? What did Dieter think of The Irishman? 

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In this episode, Cole Zwicker and I break down NBA Draft prospects. Particularly, we start with James Wiseman, move onto the rest of Memphis-Oregon. 

Then, we have our typical "LaMelo Ball's Australian Journey" segment. 

Then, we move to Stock Up/Stock Down, where we break down

Isaac Okoro, Devin Vassell, Paul Reed, Isaiah Stewart, Jaden McDaniels, Kentucky, Onyeka Okongwu, Zeke Nnaji, Wendell Moore

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In this episode, Cole Zwicker and I break down the starts for seven teams across the NBA and decide whether or not these starts or real or if they're fool's gold in one way or another. 

The New York Knicks, the Phoenix Suns, the Portland Trail Blazers, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Boston Celtics, and the Philadelphia 76ers. 

This episode is brought to you by Manscaped. 

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