NBA Tanking, Loyalty, and Locker Room Turmoil: What’s Really Wrong With the League?

Untitled project from SquadCast === [00:00:00] Jose: Alright, it's time to talk basketball. I'm Jose Salviati, Editor at thePeachBasket.net. He is Steve Purciello, a longtime educator, vice principal, high school basketball coach, athletic director, and also the host of Celtic Chalk Talk. Celtic Chalk Talk is a pod dedicated to the latest news and opinions surrounding the Boston Celtics from a lifelong fan, Steve, that pod drops new episodes every Monday, but this of course is the shot cock pod, the best 24 minutes of random NBA thoughts online anywhere. His podcast was born outta the contents of Steve's 13 rules random NBA Thoughts articles which he publishes weekly. Steve and I have exactly 24 minutes to discuss what's on his mind around the NBA today. We'll discuss his latest 13 rules, random NBA thoughts article where he shares his random thoughts after week 17. The lead on the lead in week to All Star weekend of the 20 25 26 NBA season. Alright as always, we ask please [00:01:00] if you have, you've got this far like, subscribe, comment. It all means the worlds to world to us and we're grateful for all of it. Alright, we got some stuff to talk about. Steve, are you ready? Steve: Ready? Jose: Clock is running and off we go. Alright. You started your article and we're gonna bounce around like we started to do and we're not gonna, we may hit all, we may not, but this one I thought was really interesting. You painted the picture of the NBA. As a league riding high and it was right, and now all of a sudden there's some significant bumps in the road. You called a few of them out. Is the NBA in trouble? Steve: I don't think they're in trouble, but they have to do things to help their credibility, would be the best way. I think the tanking and we'll talk more about that in a few minutes about the teams, but I think the tanking is a. Major problem because when teams aren't trying for the rest of the season, it just ruins it. People are paying a lot of money for those tickets Jose: Yeah. Steve: There's two months left in the season and [00:02:00] tea teams are already tanking. So you know it's it. That's a major problem. Now, weekend is the Allstar game. That's a big thing. However, tonight, Sunday night is. All stars playing. The ratings go down, have gone down, and people literally are making fun of the fact that these guys don't play hard. Jose: Yeah. Steve: So that's a, another problem. And then the other thing is with, as I mentioned, Kawhi Leonard's situation's gotta be resolved. that's a major thing because you're dealing with what the 10th, richest man in the world and Steve Baller, and you're gonna come down on. The only way, how can you come down on him, but it's going to, it looks bad if and as the things unfold, the fact that to get him as a free agent bomber, I don't know if he knew or not, but Kauai had to get extra money from an outside source. [00:03:00] And, bomber might've been involved in getting that extra money to that outside source. And that's just a lot of things that aren't good for the game. And with the NBA being so much fun, so much money involved, NBA's got to, do something to quiet the tanking, make the All-Star game. They're trying 18 different things every year. They have a new idea for the All-Star game. Jose: Yeah. Steve: And this is their biggest weekend. And I guess to demonstrate how the weekend gone downhill. Let me ask you, who won the dunking contest last night? Jose: Okay. I didn't watch it live. I watched the highlight and I know that he. It was San Antonio Spur player who, whose name I don't have Steve: exactly the point. Jose: I, but he didn't win it, lost it because he couldn't make a dunk in the time allotted. And I think he lost to a magic player. But I know. Steve: That's exactly the point though [00:04:00] because the people that are in that contest are the guys on the fringes and the people would love to go see I don't know, some star in that contest. or a rising, like an Anthony Edwards, a rising star, Jose: Yeah. Steve: be fun. But instead you've got these people, and even in the, this year they had a pretty good cast in the three point shot contest. But generally that's not always the greatest thing in the world either. Jose: Yeah. Steve: They're not helping themselves. And it's a great festival this weekend in NBA and Jose: Yeah. Steve: it should be a, a real way for the league to tell everybody how good they are. And it obviously it isn't Jose: Yeah, it's it's sad to see what's become of the dunk contest. We're gonna going down a rabbit hole, a little bit of a left turn here, but I did watch it yesterday. I watched the highlights. The dunks that were made were impressive, but there was a lot of misses. And these are players that, again, I'm just not familiar with, Steve: right. Jose: But when I think about, the dunk [00:05:00] contest in the seventies, right? When Dr. J was doing his thing there were, even then in the eighties there was a kind of a nobody player. His name was Terrence Stansbury, played for the Indiana Pacers and he created what he called the Statue of Liberty dunk, where he rose up, had the ball in his head, up in the air, did a 360 and dunked it. Amazing. So the fact that. You've got let, I hate to call 'em nobody. These are NBA players. But the guys who aren't stars doing it is okay if there's creativity involved, if there's some pizazz. And one of the players tried to do that. But I think what's happened to the dunk contest is, again, Dr. J was in it, Kobe Bryant was in it. Those level of players aren't gonna be in it anymore. And now you've got this situ, this situation, this oddity where when people were dunking in the seventies and eighties. They were the only people dunking. Today. Dunks have become an art form in and of it themselves, matt McClung is the perfect example. He's a dunker. He is not a basketball player. No offense to Matt [00:06:00] McClung because I know he played in the NBA too. This guy won it three times in a row. He would've won it today. He would've won it yesterday, no doubt. And he made, I think, a little bit of a mockery of the NBA. He put out a video saying, these are the dunks I would've done. And they were all better than anything we saw yesterday. So I think Dunking now had become a bit of an art form that's surpassed the NBA. You don't, I'd be a great dunker to succeed in the NBA. So nobody why would LeBron do this? Why? Why would Anthony Edwards do it when there's a chance of getting hurt? Chance of missing a couple of dunks? He saw one kid try to, try to dunk, hit his head. I think the dunk contest is probably we're not gonna see it soon. It's gonna die a very sad death. Steve: I guess what I'm trying to say though is when you looked at the cast that would be in the dunk contest, gave you absolutely no reason to even think about watching it. Jose: You watch it. You're right. You're right. Steve: guys could be tremendous dunkers or doing tremendous things, but nobody's Jose: Yep. Steve: That's the [00:07:00] part that, Jose: Yeah, Steve: I guess, goes with that. Jose: undeniable. I was much more excited to see Dame in the three, I didn't even know he was in it. And then all of a sudden dude wins it. And the drama of the end because Devin Booker had it. All he needed to do was make one of his last three, and he missed his, he missed all three. Dame won it all. That was pretty exciting. But yeah, unfortunately we might need to to RIP, the dunk contest soon. Again the content here is the NBA in trouble? And I agree with you. I don't think it's in trouble, but man, there's some significant issues that need to be addressed from Kauai to the tanking to this, we'll see if anybody participates in the game today. We has said he will he's gonna take it serious. We'll see. We'll see. Alright, let's move to keeping it on the same topic. These are related, and you mentioned it already, that's the tanky problem. You presented a solution. Last week. Adam Silver is thinking about it. I'm sure he watches the show and he's contemplating that opportunity. But I thought it was really interesting, [00:08:00] your article here. We talked a lot about here on the show how the West is really tough. But when you start to take teams out of equation, now all of a sudden the west is not as tough because when you've got a late season game against the Utah Jazz. Who, if they gave it their role with Jerry Jackson and the rest of their really good players. I can't think of them right now, but they've got some really good players. They play everybody. They're gonna give you a battle, you're, you got a double, you going up against Utah, all of a sudden the west gets easier because you got teams tanking, doesn't it? Steve: First of all, you're talking about Lori Marketing and Keay Jose: That was the guy. Steve: But when, and I looked at it, and in the west there's five teams tanking. So Jose: crazy. Steve: do the math that leaves 10 teams. So basically those 10 teams are in the playoffs, are playing and they're playing for a placement. then if you go to the east, there's four teams tanking. So one team won't make it. Of the [00:09:00] 11, there's 11 teams still playing. So it the fun was last year over the years that even everybody playing for that last playing. It just not there. Jose: Yeah. Steve: it's not a good situation for the league to be in, and it's gonna be a really bad thing if you're a Mavericks fan. Cooper Jose: Yeah. Steve: the admission, but why do you wanna go? Like it just, the games mean nothing. And they're probably, if they have to they'll cut flags minutes to 30, or if he gets a hangnail, he'll miss two games, so it's just not a good look for the league. Jose: Yeah. Yeah. Undeniably and Silver has come out in the All-Star game and said, listen, we're looking at it. We're looking at it. It's time to stop looking and start time to start acting right. You gotta find a solution. You gotta find a quick, because this has just been ongoing and frankly, I'm shocked to see the jazz doing what they're doing because they, again, they've got a good team. And Jared Jackson has been great there. Why? Why are they [00:10:00] tanking? Steve: he's out for the year. But I think what the jazz did and I'm trying to speak for Danny age, he looked at the fact that there's six or seven guys. That are super players in this draft. He was probably thinking we go for it this year. Two things happened, WA Walker. Kessler got hurt, which is big and the draft. So looking at both things, the realization was try to get top six pick. If we get that, we got another player to go with these guys and it's a cheaper player. Look at what we got. We've got, four, four legit players counting Walker Kessler plus good first round pick. and Ace Bailey. And there's other people that are on the team, Isaiah Collier that can play a little bit too. It's a good move. It's a good move within the rules of the league. Jose: Yeah. And I think that encapsulates it perfectly within the [00:11:00] rules of the league. Those rules have gotta change, right? If you don't want teams to taint the rules have gotta change. And yeah, apologies. I know that Jared Jackson now is out with a knee injury, but the NBA fine, the jazz, half a million dollars for benching healthy players, including Jackson at the time, for compromising the integrity of the leagues, which is absolutely wild when, again, to your point, they're doing it within the rules. Change the rules. Let's unfortunately continue with this. We're not being very positive in this show. We gotta talk about James Harden. We, you and I talk a lot about loyalty and how it really doesn't mean anything to, to players. It means everything to the fans. Harden just literally came out and said it, loyalty's overrated. He's, it's, he's not about loyalty and I don't know what to make of it. He had a great run here, the Clippers, and he's been monumental for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He's, all of a sudden the Cavs are, and you talk about that in your article, they're playing really well. What do you make [00:12:00] of James', James art? Steve: He knows what he does. He knows he is not innocent, so he's gonna make an excuse for it because anybody, if you are a fan of the Clippers, and this just happened with this guy, when the team is, about it. The team is playing great basketball. Jose: Yeah. Steve: that miserable start, they're playing great ball. Jose: Yeah. Steve: And now your best player. Wants out because of money. What do we what? Let's not mask it. So if you are a fan of the Clippers and you saw this, what are you thinking? what a joke. I can't, I'm rooting for the team thinking that these guys wanna be with them and they don't, they wanna get the next check. And I think if we started looking, I have no idea. I didn't look it up. Harden has made a couple hundred, thou a hundred million, and so that next check isn't gonna keep people starving in his family. Jose: Yeah. Yeah. I it, yeah, it's [00:13:00] tough. I will say, again, we talked about this last week, Harden's exit here in LA was a little different than other places he has exited because there is a lot of love for him here in la. We, I think the Clipper fans who are very knowledgeable fans, I know they get a lot of. Heat a lot of grief, right? Because they, they're in the shadow of the Lakers undeniably. But this is this is a fan base that knows basketball. And I think they understood. Listen, when they got hardened, we got a hard gun and that's okay. He came in, he did his job, and now he left. We expected that. So there's a lot of love for what he did for the Clippers. But yeah it's hard to hear him say what we all knew to be true. Yeah. Loyalty in the NBAs under Steve: Just shut your mouth. Yep. Just shut your mouth and move on. Jose: Just keep going. Alright. Again, keeping the theme, we're a very anti NBA show today without meaning to be. We gotta talk about the fight the pistons and the hornets. And I love the way you you put a bow on it, right? This was in, in your mind's eye. This was the hornets who have been up and [00:14:00] coming, who have not been good for a very long time. Who are just a frustrated franchise. But all of a sudden they look like they've got a future, right? The future looks bright, which is exciting for the Hornets. And then you got a team in Detroit who was there, right? They were the Hornets a couple years ago, but now they're good. They were good last season. They're good this season and they've got, they're gonna push you. That's their mo. And the Hornets say, you ain't gonna push us. We're not those hornets anymore. This was a statement for the Hornets, wasn't it? Steve: It was a perfect it was a perfect script. And by that this. You've got the up and coming team. They want respect. And they're Team. They're playing a team. And let's face it, don't beat you with this offensive skill. They beat you. They play defense hard. They've got a couple good players that work around it that can score and they go at you and every possession is a fist fight. it's a perfect situation for something to happen. And it did. do is a very physical [00:15:00] player. When he gets the ball, he pounds and he was pounding dte if you watched it. Jose: Yeah. Steve: and yes, he had enough probably doing it all night. The clippers the hornets want respect. They're, obviously Detroit isn't giving it to 'em, and then they're playing a mug up game where you mug the game up and possession by possession. You're just pounding. It leads to a fight. It's the perfect ingredients. It's not a good look again for the NBA because again, Isaiah Stewart and his infinite wisdom came running off the bench and that makes it look worse. And the fear in the NBA would be you're gonna have another malice in the palace. Meaning, guys going up into the crowd fighting Jose: Right. Steve: So it, again, it's not a good look for the league and it's, this is the way Detroit is. And I have to imagine, I don't know if there be fights, but in the playoffs, Detroit's gonna be pushing teams to the limit where they're gonna wanna, go at 'em. Jose: Yeah. [00:16:00] Hey I wonder. Because the best, may, maybe not fair to call it the best, but one of the best Detroit Pistons teams ever is they were nicknamed the Bad Boys. So I'm wondering, is there, let's say pressure, 'cause I can't think of a better word, but is there pressure for this team to show, listen, the bad boys were good, but where the bad boys we're the better bad boys? Do you think that plays into it at all? Is that a part of it? Steve: think it's, I think it's real simple. You look at what you have you try to sit there and decide what's the best way to win. Jose: Yeah. Steve: don't have the firepower to play with some of those, the better teams, but they do defend better than most of those teams. What do we do? And they can be physical and key thing that we all miss. Referees are humans. Obviously some people don't believe it, but they are. But. There's a little thing that goes on in coaching on every level. If you look up at the scoreboard and see five fouls [00:17:00] called on my team and one on your team, I'm gonna complain. Jose: Yeah. Steve: if you think about it, Detroit can be physical, more physical. But generally the fouls called in a game are gonna be somewhat even. So there's more of an ability of an official to let more go when Detroit is defending because you want the foul totals to be somewhat close together. Jose: Yeah. Steve: When you see a game, no matter what the game, when you see one team shooting 40 foul shots, the other team shooting 20, your mind right away goes to goodness. You know what was going on here. Jose: Yeah. Steve: that's a big factor that you know, that you can get away with. And Detroit is pushing it to that limit. But naturally, if you are a player and you're getting hit every time you're doing something, at some point you, you've had enough, especially if you're losing. So that all goes into this situation. Jose: Yep. Isaiah Stewart, seven games miles, bridges, and ate four games each for the [00:18:00] brawl. I, I don't wanna go down this rabbit hole, but you and I were fortunate enough to interview Scott Foster, NBA referee not too long ago, probably about a year ago now. And you brought out, referees are human. I I really do think that the time is coming. It may not be soon, but it's coming in. When we talked to Scott Foster, he talked about something that the NBA was piloting, I think it was called. It's, I have to find it now, but I think it was called Harmony or was that what Steve: A hawk eye or something where Jose: Talk. Steve: things Jose: That was part of it, but yeah, and the whole idea is let's, I'm certain the idea is not to get rid of refs, but to help refs. But right now, with technology being as, as good as it is and improving. Daily. I can't help but think some of the things that are that are hard to spot with a naked eye that are easy to spot with cameras. Things like goal tending. Did it touch the backboard charging versus a block? Those kinds of things that's gonna be taken out of the equation fairly soon. And then you might go [00:19:00] from three rests back to two. And I think that's the evolution of the game, whether it's good or bad. Steve: if they'll ever go back to that to refs, but I do understand the use of technology into the game and changing it. And what what's really interesting, they only have one challenge, and if they're right, they get a second. If a coach is right. What's really interesting is you see a game and in the second quarter somebody it's a 50 50 call and a charge Jose: Yeah. Steve: That could be challenged, but no you gotta wait. So what does that mean? More challenges? That doesn't work 'cause it takes too long for them to figure it out. Jose: Right. Steve: And then one more piece, always hear about marginal contact. Is the difference here and what makes marginal, how could you see that in a film also? So those are things that you see that that don't make sense. Jose: Yeah. Yeah. Tough job, no doubt. A referee is a tough job. And yeah, we'll see. I do think some changes are coming, [00:20:00] again, not right away, but in time. Speaking of, I can't make a segue to this one. I'm just gonna, I'm just gonna own the W there or the W that the l I tried to segue. I can't, you wrote about the Nicks struggles Now it's interesting because the Knicks are playing good basketball. They won the NBA cup. They just won yesterday. The one of the challenges in the All-Star weekend, things are going good for New York right now, but they're, and you've called them the most talented team in the east. Steve: Yeah. Jose: But there's some oddities here. They're winning big and then they're losing big, right? It's an inconsistency issue that kind of freaks you out about them. Yeah. Steve: If you begin to look at it here, last year Boston was the defending champion and they would run into games like the Knicks had against the Pacers this week and ball a game to a team they should beat by 30. And look what happened to Boston. The year before Denver did the same thing this year. Look at Oklahoma City [00:21:00] teams. They should be beating easily. They're not. And what was the result? Now the Knicks haven't won a title yet, but if you're not consistent it's hard. It's hard. One of the things, if we go back to the nineties with the bulls, Jordan wouldn't allow that to happen. They were gonna win their games and even at the, what the year they won, 70 or whatever it was, that was later, after a few titles. It wasn't like they were, just not, they played every night. And Jose: Yeah. Steve: to win a title, you need to stay consistent. And that was my point on saying it. The Knicks have time to correct themselves, so maybe they will and go into a hot streak until the thing, and they are hot. They played well, Jose: Yeah. Steve: can't go out and beat and lose to teams like that. Last year, and this woke me up, Boston played the Lakers in Boston. was out, Luca was out, and I believe Reeves did play. So you're [00:22:00] thinking, oh, this is, a skate, they're gonna skate through this game. It's easy. Boston got beat by about 15 that game. And from that game, you say to yourself, I don't know if they're champions. I don't know if they're, and so that's my point. Jose: Yeah. When the Knicks got Jose Alvarado I wrote that he is the kind of player that'll win you a championship by making the timely steal, by hitting the big shot. But he's that kind of spark plug. But the Knicks have gotta get there, right? To be able to give 'em that opportunity to the finals. And right after I, I said that not patting myself on the back, just got super lucky. Jose Alvarado had a phenomenal game. I think he's a bit of a difference maker for that team. Steve: He is only gonna play 15 minutes. I, you still come back to there guys that are on the court for more. I think he's a, he's He plays the game. He's gotten better as a shooter, a pesty, defender, Jose: Ee Steve: good stuff. But again, if you're playing 15 minutes a [00:23:00] game, if that. I don't know how big if, maybe I'm wrong, but I, I, the New York press makes a big thing. If they picked up Jeremy Sohan yesterday and he wasn't playing for San Antonio and they're acting like, he's gonna bring him the title, slow down and let it happen. Jose: Do need players like so Steve: Of course. Jose: who I like and Alvarado? Steve: I think more so I think Alvarado is a guy that, he's a high, I call him high energy, but he makes other players play hard Jose: Yes. Steve: their teammate going at it. And there's a few of them in the league. Jose: Yeah. Steve: the kid on Detroit Holland is one Hugo Gonzalez or Jordan Walsh on Boston. And that helps Boston, of course. The Kid Holland is a and naturally the Thompson boys, the two of them, those are energy players. They're Jose: Yeah. Steve: plays defensively, and they get you everybody to play hard. And it's hard when you're in game 60 of the season, in a long season Jose: Yeah. Steve: a go [00:24:00] every night. Jose: Which is why I enjoy players like that, right? They're gonna take their 15 minutes and they're gonna make they're gonna make the most out of it. And I always enjoy players like that. You heard the buzzer go off. We violated the shot clock again, but not by a lot. That's not too bad. We do have a couple of other topics that I want to encourage you to read Steve's article to find out his thoughts on Cleveland, maybe peaking at the right time and LeBron's cryptic message. There was a little bit more random thoughts on Steve's brain this week. But that's it. Our Time's Up. Thank you for listening. Thank you for watching. Make sure to read Steve's entire 13 rules, right Article. They'll be linked wherever you watch or listen to this show. And before I sign us off officially, I gotta ask Steve, are you gonna watch the the Allstar games today? There's not just one, right? There's four games today. You watching them? Steve: I think I have to wash my hair. Jose: More important things. Steve: No I, I haven't watched an All Star game in a couple years. Jose: Really. Steve: yeah I just don't I, it annoys you when you see guys [00:25:00] not trying, and it's just, Jose: Wow. Steve: and I understand the worry about injury. I understand all that, and if the game is good, I'll go Jose: Okay. Steve: it on YouTube. Something after. But the point being, it just annoys you to see guys going through it. And I'm gonna add one more thing and just you think about it. LeBron James being LeBron James, all the players are in town and all for in LA and all for this LeBron James. And then he all do their press conference yesterday and all that nice stuff. LeBron Joe James shows up today. And has this press conference today, and then plays you're not helping the league, you're making rules for you and that's not just not good. And that, that kind of turns me off to the game also. Jose: Okay. Okay. Feel bad that I asked now, I'm sorry, but. Steve: no. It just it's not something that, no look, I love watching. I can watch a game anytime. But that means people are playing. There's times like we, [00:26:00] we just talked about when teams let down against certain teams, but they're trying to win in Jose: Yeah, Steve: Who knows what they're trying to do? Jose: I. Steve: might pick somebody tonight, like right now, maybe LeBron, and make them the MVP 'cause that's what they've been doing. That guy was gonna have a great night and maybe 'cause LeBron might be leaving, they might throw him another MV P or something. I, it just, that's not fun. That's Jose: I got you. I got you. Fair enough. I, this was the worst commercial for the All Star game, so I, you watch us before you watch the game, I hope you still watch the game because we don't want the NBA to be mad at us. But of course, join us next week for more random NBA thoughts as we recap week number 18.