Nightcap Hour 1: Nuggets BEAT Spurs in SEASON FINALE + Lakers vs Rockers PLAYOFF PREVIEW + Sixers vs Magic + Detroit Basketball is BACK

14:30Chad Johnson:Yeah. Hey, look. I like your argument. And you're right. Gordon is definitely the key factor. But I think McDaniels is the key factor for minnesota okay ocho meaning if he plays great basketball it ain't gotta be 25 30 at night but if it can be anywhere efficient 16 to 22 a night and you know he's defending well i think they almost be impossible to beat it's just he have games where and i'm speaking on mcdaniel where he plays great and you it looks like minnesota's hard to beat but then he has some games where he kind of disappear and you're like hold on you know what i mean so i think he's the key factor for Minnesota.

15:14Chad Johnson:Ant-Man's going to need McDaniels to play well, too. And the funny thing about it is, Joe, you talk about McDaniel having to play well, and sometimes he's disappearing. Hell, I think the key factor, if Ant-Man is going to get his, and we know what Ant-Man is going to do, hell, we need Julius Randle to always be on point every single night. You really can't have no off nights. No, he got to be 20 and 10. He's going to have to be 20 and 10 in this series. Boy, he's going to, hey, they're going to have their hands full with yoke down there. They're going to have their hands because he always

15:44Shannon Sharpe:looks. The thing is basically, he's got the question is, and this is the dilemma and Webster defined dilemma is two equally perplexing situations. Would you rather get hit by a dump truck or a Mack truck going 50 miles an hour? The results are the same. You just as deep. One is a Mack truck and the other is a dump truck. So what do we do, Joe? Do we let Gobert try to deal with his man one-on-one and let him go get 35-40 or do we try to send help and let him get 28-15. Because you know in some of those 15 assists, some of those are going to be threes. They're not going to be all twos. They're not going to be all Jordan in the dunker spot, Brown in the dunker spot, getting dunks and layups.

16:27Shannon Sharpe:He's going to swing that ball, and some guy is going to be hitting corner threes. So that is the dilemma. Do we let him? But here's the problem. As the Clippers found out, you might say, okay, let him go get one-on-one, and now he still gives you 50 and 10.

16:41Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah. Well, look, you got to look at it like this, Uncle Ojo. You know he's probably more than likely going to get his numbers, right? You got to make it as uncomfortable for him as possible. So what you cannot do is give that man a steady diet of one look. Yeah. You can't give Jokic that, bro. You're going to have to mix it up throughout the game. Okay, look, this quarter we may come on the first dribble. The next quarter we may come on the catch. Third quarter you may have him by yourself. You know what I mean? I feel like you got to keep him guessing just as well as he going to keep you guessing on defense.

17:14Chad Johnson:You know what I mean? You going to have to show him different looks. Never let him get comfortable because he going to expose you each and every time, especially if he figure out your coverage and you never change it. Shh. Man, hey, he going to have one of them 40, 20s and 16 triple doubles, and that ain't what you want, bro. That ain't what you want.

17:34Shannon Sharpe:On the season, he averaged 28 on 57 % shooting. he was 38 % from the three. He had 13 rebounds, 11 assists.

17:45Chad Johnson:Mm, mm, mm.

17:47Shannon Sharpe:And Gobert, because Gobert is not the fleet of the foot, so he's going to get – Gobert's going to have to be trouble. He's going to have to be careful and not to get in foul trouble. In foul trouble early. Because Nas Reed is not big enough in the back pocket to deal with him down on the block. You know what?

18:02Chad Johnson:Nas Reed ain't, but he got a little bit more mobility to where he can kind of keep him in front. But look, they ain't going to stop him, but they going to have to make it tough for him. You're going to have to wear him down. You know what I mean? I ain't saying he ain't going to score 30, which he probably will. But at the same time, you're going to have to make him work on defense just as much as you work on offense. You can't let him rest. You let him rest. But here's the thing. How Rudy going to make him work on offense? I mean on defense. He going to have to be rim running, playing hard. He going to have to be doing a lot.

18:31Hey, you know, Rudy, Rudy can mess around to give you 27 too now, out the blue. Oh, yeah, yeah. Oh, no, no. He's out of nowhere. out of nowhere. O 'Joh, that was a one-time thing. I know you saw what he did with the Lakers.

18:42Shannon Sharpe:That was a one-time thing, O 'Joh. Yeah. Hey, Joe, another thing that was funny, right, is you talk about having to give Jokic different looks, you know, and different sets and making it a thinking man's game for him. But the funny thing about it is you think about it, he played a full season, right? Yeah. He's had three seasons. He done seen every look possible. And he always has to answer for every goddamn thing you throw at him. so I think what Minnesota got to worry about is like listen we know he gonna get his we know he gonna get his we gonna do what we can but we gonna worry about the other folk we're gonna find a way to maintain and control the other folk and let him do what he need to do because there's really no way to stop him there's really no way to contain him only slow him down you're right Ocho

19:24Chad Johnson:ain't nobody been able to crack the code but here's the difference in the playoffs this is the only team that we're playing right now we're gonna have to dissect everything that they do offensively and defensively. And we got to make them pay, bro. You know what I mean? Like, Minnesota going to have to find – they're going to have to find a way to win in Denver. Who got the home court advantage?

19:44Shannon Sharpe:Denver does, right? Denver.

19:45Chad Johnson:Yeah, they're three.

19:46Shannon Sharpe:Minnesota's the six.

19:47Chad Johnson:Yeah, so I look forward to seeing Minnesota go in, especially game one, you know, trying to steal the first game. But it's going to be hard to stop them. Ocho it is. But I think they're going to hone in, you know, more on this series because this is the only team that they're facing right now. So, you know, after the first game, you'll see some adjustments, you know, depending on how Minnesota plays. But, yeah, I definitely think, okay, Ojo, they cannot give Yoga just steady diet of the same look every play down court. You got to mix it up, bro. The great one's going to expose you.

20:20Shannon Sharpe:The problem that Minnesota potentially runs into, Joe, you say make it tough on him, try to make it as inefficient as you possibly can. The problem is he's shooting 57%. So you say, you know what, we're going to make him shoot 5 % less than what he normally shoots. He's shooting 52%. So he's still making over half his shot. Most guys shoot in the... Let's just say for the sake of argument, they shoot high 40s. And you say, you know what? We're going to make it tough on them. And so we're going to make them inefficient. Now they're in the mid to low 40s. If you make him shoot 5 % less than what he normally shoots, he's shooting 52 % from the floor.

20:55Shannon Sharpe:He shoots 38 % from the three. That is absurd a man his size. shooting like that. So when you factor in, he's shooting 38 % from the three. He's shooting 57 % from the two. And I just think the thing is, like you said, now the problem that he has on defense is that he has to guard Nas Reed because Nas can pull him out to the three-point line, keep his ass from being under the basket. Now I can pull him out here. Now I can use my quickness and get by him because he can't slack off because Nas can knock down the three.

21:29Chad Johnson:Yes, sir.

21:30Shannon Sharpe:It ain't no just show or head. No, you can't do that. You got to get up on him because he can knock down the three.

21:38Chad Johnson:Yeah. Nas's going to have to play huge too. But I agree with you. It's going to be tough trying to stop Jokic. Me personally, Uncle Ocho, I say start off man up. You know what I mean? Because what you don't want to do, you don't want to get Jokic 40 and Jamal Murray got 30 and then Gordon got 25. You ain't got a chance of winning like that. You may have a good chance of winning if, you know, Jokic go for 50, but everybody else, you know, keep them low pros. So I don't know. I'm curious to see how Minnesota is going to approach this series or how they're going to start off on Jokic because they understand they got to slow them down some way, somehow.

22:21Ready for a different take on Formula One? Look no further than No Grip, a new podcast tackling the culture of motor racing's most coveted series. Join me, Lily Herman, as we dive into the underexplored pockets of F1, including the astrology of the current grid. Lewis Hamilton, Capricorn Sun, Cancer Moon. Wouldn't you know it, Michael Schumacher is also a Capricorn Sun, Cancer Moon. The story of the sport's most consequential driver's strike.

22:45Shannon Sharpe:We have one man who, upon hearing that he was going to be fired, freaked out and apparently climbed out the window of the bathroom. And was Daniel Ricciardo's illustrious F1 career a success story, a cautionary tale, or some combination of both? He started getting all this attention, and he maybe started to think, I'm bigger than this, I'm better. And plenty of other mishaps, scandals, and sagas that have made Formula One a delightful, decadent dumpster fire for more than 75 years. Listen to No Grip on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. yeah you're right about that uh the next the lakers take on the rockets five matchup lebron james without the uh without he's gonna he's the lead dog and what we've seen joe he must have heard us being aggressive there you go 15 shots in the first half you saw the game before he did uh what was it 28 12 28 13 and and and and and seven or eight yeah the game before that so we see being in the lead spot that now I got to be aggressive.

23:52Shannon Sharpe:The assist going to come because when I get down the lane, I'm going to pull coverage. I'm going to drop the ball off the DA. They're going to come. I'm going to be able to swing the ball. Who do you like in this series and how many games you think it takes?

24:04Chad Johnson:Oh, man, without Luka and AR, it's just tough. But I know Lakers had a lot of great success against the Rockets this year. Yes. They guard Kevin Durant. I haven't seen many teams guard him like that and be successful at the same time.

24:21Chad Johnson:Man, can Aiden keep this up? Can he continue to give you 22 and 10 a night in a playoff series? I mean, in order for the Lakers to win this series, like I've always said, Bron got to be aggressive and those other guys going to have to come along. but can you get this type of production from Rui and Big Aiden for a playoff series? Because that's what you're going to need to win, bro. They're going to have to be special. Them two guys are going to have to be special.

24:51Shannon Sharpe:What do you think? If you think about it, what I like is when Luke Kennard is aggressive. When they try to close out on him, Ocho, he ain't just sidestepping, selling for the three, Joe. He'll put the ball on the floor. He'll try to get all the way to the rim. and then when you come he'll kick it yeah he's been really really aggressive and i've never seen and i'm i'm like damn bro you had this in your bag all these years and you just been shooting threes i've never seen him put the ball on the floor as much as i've seen him put the ball on the floor since he's been with the lakers yeah he's normally a spot a catching shoot or spot up shooter that's normally what he is but since he's been with the lakers he's been extremely aggressive now Rui shot 44 % from the three he's been he's been aggressive when the Lakers are aggressive and they do a great job of taking care of the basketball because sometimes they can get really sloppy and they have they'll have turnover after turnover after turnover and they have these laws Joe Ocho they have these stretches where they'll go three four five minutes and don't score a field goal you can't have that in the playoffs you can't have that um LeBron's gonna have to go back for so long he's been in the lead, he's been the driver.

26:07Shannon Sharpe:And this season, he wasn't the driver. He wasn't even in the passenger seat. He wasn't even in the catbird seat. He was riding the bat. In the what? The what seat? The catbird seat, which is a favorable position.

26:24Shannon Sharpe:So he was, hey, Joe, you know, you used to ride with your homeboy. It is the one out in the winter trying to holler at everybody. He ain't got no car. He ain't even the driver he had to go, hey, what's up? What your name is? Hello, bro. So LeBron, they had LeBron in the back. Yeah. But, unfortunately, Luka got dinged, AR is dinged, and LeBron has been thrust back into that. Now, nobody in the history of the NBA, past the age of 37, has been asked to do more than one LeBron James. The mere fact that they still have, if he'd have got, bro, he 41. You never ask guys, what guy did you have that kind of, did you have that on?

27:14Shannon Sharpe:Even when Kareem, I think Kareem won a finals MVP. Kareem might've been what, 35, 36 when he won the finals MVP, but they wasn't counting on Kareem to do that. That was magic. that was worthy and kareem did that so now he has all this on his plate yeah it's gonna take a herculean effort it's gonna it's gonna take guys playing above who is gonna have to play great every game uh la rabia is gonna have to do a great do an unbelievable job because i think he and marcus smart is gonna have the assignment of dealing with kd and lebron is gonna have to be lebron is gonna have to be 2018 lebron I think that is the apex.

27:57Shannon Sharpe:Look, people go back and say, nah, it's 2012, 2013, Bron. I think 2018, Bron, was the greatest Bron we had ever seen. Because you're looking at a guy that averaged 34, 8, and 8 in the postseason with eight 40-point games, and he got that team to the NBA Finals. He's going to have to be that, Joe.

28:15Chad Johnson:Damn, that's eight years ago. Do you think he can get back to that?

28:19Shannon Sharpe:I don't know if he can, but he's going to need anything less will be uncivilized. Yeah, that too. Without that, Joe, they can't go any further. Because the Rockets aren't full strength. They got Shingun. They got KD. They got Thompson.

28:35Chad Johnson:Yeah. You know what? Hey, Joe, you know? What's that? He's the chosen one, ain't he? Hey, non-Joe? Yeah, yeah. We call him King James for a reason, right? Yeah.

28:44Shannon Sharpe:Yes. What we can't do is we can't bring in the fact. We can't fact in, oh, he's 41. He's playing at a high level for a reason. He's LeBron James for a reason. So if he's still in the NBA, he's expected to look a certain way. He's expected to play a certain way. But obviously now, unfortunate circumstances have occurred. AR is out. And Luke is out. So we're expecting LeBron to look exactly like he always has. Think about what you're saying. Whether it was 2018 or whether it's 2013. That's what we're expecting because he's still actually playing basketball, even at 41. yes you're asking a man that's 41 something in the history of basketball nobody else has been asked to do well nobody else had opportunity and nobody else has been king james yeah there been some 40 year olds he's still for you yeah see i think the thing see that's the thing ocho he's been so great you've he's been so great for so long you forget that he's real not you and i both know what it's like to be get old i know i'm with you i'm with you you better explain to the people.

29:52Shannon Sharpe:I don't care who you were. Father time don't wait on you. Because the thing is, the problem that it has, okay, when we were great, as we were starting to age, what we could, what I could do, I'll just speak for me. I could give you a Herculean effort, but I don't need about three or four weeks before I give you another one. As opposed to when I was in my 20s, I put them back to back.

30:18Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah.

30:19Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, hey, I want that 23-year-old Shannon. He don't exist no more. He don't live here. I don't know what happened to him. I don't know what happened to him, lady, but he gone. Take this 35-year-old and be happy with it.

30:32Chad Johnson:Hey, listen, I agree with you on it. He going to have to be Hercules. And I think he knows that, though. I think he's relishing this moment, and I think he's going to really try and take advantage of it and show people like, man, I must have forgot, bro. Y 'all must have forgot. I heard him say, he said, man, taking it back to the old days. I heard him say that. So I know, you know, he understands. And from the past two games, how aggressive he started out the games. I bet he's going to come out guns or blazing. He has to. He has no choice. I'm talking about in the playoffs, he's going to have to shoot that thing about 25, 30 times.

31:08Chad Johnson:Easy. Yeah.

31:10Shannon Sharpe:And the thing is, Joe, and people are like, well, he should just. Do you understand how much effort it takes to just drive the basketball? When you're constantly getting beat up, you've got to go through a body, you've got to beat one guy, and then you're getting met at the rim. It takes a lot out of you. The same thing with a running back. As he's starting to get old, I can't give him the ball 35, 40 times a game, Ocho, and Joe back to back to back like I could when he was in his first or second year. Now he's in his eighth or ninth or tenth year. I can't give him the ball like that. I can't, but I ain't going to have him down the stretch.

31:45you know LeBron has played so long he's going to know when he needs to insert himself he's going to know when he needs to be aggressive I think he's going to pick and choose those moments when he needs to do what he's going to base it off how everyone else is responding in game that's all but the way he came out tonight and the other night also

32:08Chad Johnson:I'm talking about I miss a make though I don't care if he gets his first 4-5 shot Hey, just keep letting it go, Joe. You got to stress the defense. As though he just made his last 4-5. That's what I'm saying. Yeah, he got to let it go. Yeah.

32:23Shannon Sharpe:But the thing that he does so well that he's probably done better than anybody in the history of the game is that he can control the game. He's going to dictate the speed in which the game is going to be played at. He's not going to let you just get up and down. Because guess what? He'll walk the ball up. Listen, I'm not finna get into a race with Fairbreds when that's not what I have to run with on my side.

32:46Chad Johnson:There you go.

32:48Shannon Sharpe:So I'm gonna control the pace. If he have to, okay, yeah. If there's an opportunity to get a transition bucket, okay, fine. But we're not just finna get up and down. We're not finna get in that. Okay, we'll put you, let's see how well you can mentally function running your half court set over and over and over and over and over again. Because in football, Ocho, what we try to do, minimize the big plays. How did the Giants beat the Patriots? They minimized the big plays. They didn't let Randy get over the top. Yeah. If you're a big play offense, okay, instead of getting one to two plays and your ass in the end zone, doing that, let's see if you can do that.

33:33Shannon Sharpe:Let's see if you can do the same thing, Ocho. if you take your 12, 13 plays. Because I believe you'll make a mistake if you have to consistently do that as opposed to give you one, two big strikes over the top. So he's going to control the tempo. That's what he's always been good at. Oh, yeah. And they're going to try to speed him up. They're going to try to coax him and let's run.

33:53Chad Johnson:Hey, nah, we don't need to do that. Hey, and then you got to look at it from this side. We get two of the top 10 scores in NBA history against each other again. Kevin Durant and LeBron James.

34:05Shannon Sharpe:Yeah.

34:06Chad Johnson:Man, this is going to be a great series. I think I hope the Lakers can get two games, bro. I hope. I just think – I don't know. I mean, Bron going to have to be so great just to keep them around because I just – Houston is a juggernaut. They got a bunch of young guys who can play. I feel like they're going to take advantage of the moment, playing at home, getting a chance to, I don't know, the Lakers got the home court advantage. The Lakers got home court. They might have a good chance. Yeah. They might have a good chance. Hey, look, I'll tell you what, if you're the Lakers, you got to win both of these games at home, the first two.

34:45Chad Johnson:Because Houston coming in, they coming in to disrupt something. Yeah. So hold on, Joe. Let's be clear now. Uncle, you got this series now. Obviously, you know Uncle Uncle for the Lakers. So who you got, Joe?

35:01Oh, Joe, I'm probably going to go with Houston.

35:08Chad Johnson:I ain't going to lie to y 'all. I'm going to go with Houston. I think Singoon, bro. Singoon, I don't know how in the hell they going to stop him. Man, DeAndre Ayton finna have an out-of-body experience. What you mean, how they going to stop him? Huh? Man, Ayton going to give you 20, 25, 25 a night. Hell, I don't even believe that.

35:28Shannon Sharpe:No. I'm just hoping I just wanted to catch the ball if you catch the ball he might give us 20-10 we can live with 20-10 we can live with 18-12

35:38Chad Johnson:he been catching it in the past couple games he in playoff mode he ready

35:46Shannon Sharpe:the fact that y 'all got me trying to put my faith and confidence in this man you should tell y 'all a lot what other choice you got no choice

36:00Chad Johnson:y 'all at home y 'all got home court advantage

36:11Chad Johnson:guys to be more careful yeah i want to bet the first game i i kind of i kind of if uh if anybody

36:16Shannon Sharpe:if anybody could do it go james go i tell you what i just need somebody to give me a game Go James and do the rest. Okay. Somebody give me a game. Somebody have an out of my – Lou Kennard, go six for ten from the three. Laravia, have a game. I'm going to need somebody, somebody to give me a game. Hold on, Joe. Go James and do the rest.

36:40Chad Johnson:What's up? Don't think I ain't just hit you now. What? Make it light on yourself. What you trying to do? You got the Lakers? With me? Yeah. I mean, honestly, I ain't really got no horse in this race, but whoever you got, I'm going to pick the opposite just so we can push it down on it. Who you got? I got Houston game one. Let go game the game. Game the game? Okay, let's make it easy, though. That's easy. That's easy. I got Houston game one. Okay, I got the Lakers. There you go, Ocho. That's what I'm saying. Ocho and I will be right. I'm with you. Hey, hey, hold on. Hold on. You got Ocho. You know he junky as hell.

37:20Chad Johnson:You got that man riding with you.

37:22Shannon Sharpe:Come on, man. Joe, don't do it like that, Joe. He got on purple tonight. So it got to be Lakers. What are we talking about? Hey, Joe, how much we talking, Joe, so I know how much to put aside?

37:35Chad Johnson:We ain't got a bit nothing but like a little hundred. Just a friendly bet, Ocho. I ain't trying to break your pocket, but I want a nice little friendly bet. I appreciate that, but Joe, I'm not one of the pockets you can break, but I'm here. Yeah, I understand that. I understand that. I understand. My bad. I didn't mean to word it like that. I don't really tolerate no disrespect, though. Okay, I see. I see.

37:58Chad Johnson:Okay.

38:00Shannon Sharpe:The playoffs, the number seven matchup, Sixers versus the Magic. The winner goes to the number seven seed and they play the number two seed which is the Boston Celtics. And so the loser, now they'll wait the winner of the Hornets' heat matchup. So who you got in the – I forgot to ask you guys who you got in the – What? The play-in? The seven. So Phoenix, Portland. They kick it off. Who you got, Joe? You got Phoenix or you got Portland?

38:35Chad Johnson:I got Phoenix. Phoenix – hell, I think they healthy now, if I ain't mistaken. But I got Phoenix. I don't know how they dropped all the way down to – what spot they in on? Seven. They play the seven and then Portland eight. Yeah, I got Phoenix. I got Phoenix beating Portland. I know Portland, you know, despite everything that went on this year, they played pretty good basketball. But I got Phoenix beating them.

39:00Shannon Sharpe:Okay. Clippers, Warriors.

39:03Chad Johnson:Ooh.

39:03Shannon Sharpe:Clippers. What you mean, woo? They ain't got enough firepower over there down in the Bay. Man, they got chef's stuff.

39:13Chad Johnson:Yeah, but outside of Kawhi, what the Clippers got? I know they got a little Darius Garland too, but I don't know. Yeah. It's a toss-up to me. Oh, they playing in LA? They playing Intuit? I probably, yeah, I'm going to go Clippers. I got Clippers. I got Clippers. See? Told you. Come on.

39:34Shannon Sharpe:Who you got, Ocho? You taking Clippers also? I said a Clippers right away. Yeah, I'm going to go with Ty Lue also. Yeah. But damn, boys. I can't believe we bet against Chef Steph. Man. He can't do it all by himself. He's going to try. He'll make you think he can. He can get out there and get the cooking. All right, Joe. So in the seven seed matchup, you got Sixers Magic. Who you got?

40:01Chad Johnson:I'm going Sixers, bro. I don't think Embiid playing, but I don't even care about that, Uncle Ocho, because I like how Edgecombe and Maxie play when Embiid. When he's got in there. Yeah, and because they got backup bigs who can, you know, they're not going to put up NB numbers, but they're going to play hard. They're going to do their job. And I think they got enough guys on the perimeter who can score the basketball to where I feel like they can beat Orlando. Hornets heat. Come on, Joe. Make the right decision now. Oh, Joe. Joe, Joe, don't do that. Don't do me like that. You used to wear this jersey, Joe.

40:39Chad Johnson:Oh, Joe, I know. Hey, look, I'm a part of it. Hey, based on your decision, you're not going to be able to come back to Miami. Be careful. I'm a part of heat culture, but, boy, I like them Hornets, man. I ain't going to lie to you. Okay, Ocho, them boys balling, man. They be letting that three ball go.

40:56Shannon Sharpe:You know Knipple and Melo finish one, two, and threes. 273 to 272.

41:02Chad Johnson:Shit, give me the Hornets, bro. Let's go, Hornets.

41:04Shannon Sharpe:I knew you were going to do that. Yeah, nah, boy, but what we betting on that game? What we betting on that game? You know I'm going with the Heat now. Now, I see LaMelo, nigga, hey, passing up goddamn twos, going out to the goddamn three. Had a layup. He didn't pass on no twos. He passed up a layup. Went to the three and he. But, you know, Joe, let's make it light. I'm going to heat no matter what. I don't care what it was playing. But we can make it a light, not a hundred. So I'm 200 in the hole right now.

41:29Chad Johnson:Bad, bad, bad. Yeah, yeah. Hey, listen. Man, LaMelo out there, he playing a video game, seemed like. Hey, look, look. They got some talent. They got some nice young talent who can explode. And I think they're going to play well in this play-in. Hey, the Hornets been hooping. They shoot that three ball, man. Really well.

41:51Shannon Sharpe:They can shoot you out of the building from the three. And they got like five, six guys that can easily, on a given night, make eight threes. You got LaMelo. You got Knipple. You got Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges. You got Kobe White. Kobe White came in and they gave another 19 off the bench. Man, they, ooh.

42:10Chad Johnson:I think the most underrated thing about the Hornets, not only can they shoot the three, and they got some guys who can do it at a high clip, but all of those same guys, Uncle Ocho, they can go off the bounce. Knipple, he can go off the bounce. Yeah. Killa can go off the bounce. Bridges can go off the bounce. I ain't talking about just to create for themselves. They create for others, too, which makes them so difficult to guard, and it seems like they enjoy playing with one another. their games complement each other. You know what I mean? And they got some hard-working bigs down there. Yeah. Yeah.

42:44Chad Johnson:They're going to make some noise, bro. Hey, statistically, right, as many threes as they do put up, as many three-point shooters as the Hornets have, what do they compare like when it comes to the Celtics with the threes that they put up a game? It's close.

43:01Shannon Sharpe:I mean, the Celtics made 29 threes today, 25, 26, 29, threes today? They basically shoot at the same clip, basically.

43:10Chad Johnson:Yeah. They're getting them up.

43:12Shannon Sharpe:Both of them try to get up 50 a game. Ready for a different take on Formula One? Look no further than No Grip, a new podcast tackling the culture of motor racing's most coveted series. Join me, Lily Herman, as we dive into the underexplored pockets of F1, including the astrology of the current grid, Lewis Hamilton, Capricorn, Sun, Cancer, Moon. Wouldn't you know it, Michael Schumacher is also a Capricorn, Sun, Cancer, Moon. The story of the sport's most consequential driver's strike. We have one man who, upon hearing that he was going to be fired, freaked out, and apparently climbed out the window of the bathroom.

43:46And was Daniel Ricardo's illustrious F1 career a success story, a cautionary tale, or some combination of both? He started getting all this attention, and he maybe started to think, I'm bigger than this, I'm better. And plenty of other mishaps, scandals, and sagas that have made Formula One a delightful, decadent dumpster fire for more than 75 years. Listen to No Grip on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

44:18Yeah, I don't know if the heat got enough firepower, old Joe.

44:28Chad Johnson:Joe, don't do that, Joe. I'm just keeping it on. I said I don't know. They can prove me wrong, but I'm just saying, I don't know. I know Bam, he went for 83 now, but hey. Hold on. We bet on the first game. Now, we ain't talking about the series. No, we bet. We just bet on the first game. Oh, yeah. Well, you lost that. You know, we're the first. We're going to play them one game. That's not going to be no series with Miami. That's a one game to go on to see who get the seventh spot. That mean I'm going to have$200, basically. They playing in Charlotte. What that mean? What? We talking about the Heat, what?

45:00What that mean? Okay. The last person that played for the Heat that didn't believe in us, you know what happened?

45:06Chad Johnson:What happened, bro? You lost. You lost. Who I lost to? I'm telling you, you finna lose right now. I'm not saying I'm clear. I'm not saying I can tell the future, but I'm just telling you. Pat Riley's Heat, Spolster's Heat is going down to Charlotte. Wait, the Hornets in Charlotte, ain't it? Yeah. Yes. All right. Matter of fact, let's make it 200. Bet it. Make it 200. That's how confident I am in your team. Bet it. That's how confident I am in my city. Bet it. Bet it. Bet it.

45:46Shannon Sharpe:What you call them? The Hornets made the most threes this year.

45:50Chad Johnson:Yeah. Hey, y 'all.

45:53Shannon Sharpe:Most threes per game, they make about 16 and a half threes per game. that made 1 ,300 threes.

46:03Chad Johnson:Hey, they say it's a sucker born every minute. Hold on, where you at? Ocho, what's up, baby? You all right? Oh, hey, just to show you how serious I am, matter of fact, you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to send you my money ahead of time. No, no, no, wait. You mean, after I win? No, no, no, no, no. Hold on, I'm going to send you my 200 right now. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Don't jinx me like that. Don't jinx me like that. No, no, wait, let's let the game. Let's let the game. Nah. I want you to send me 400 back. I don't know where I'm from. We don't do business like that. Like, hold off.

46:40I just don't want you to say, oh, here he go. He don't pay. He don't pay. So I'm going to send it to you early. Just. He tried to get you to burn the money, Joe. He tried to get you to burn the money. I already know what he's trying to do. Nah, hey. I mean, I just want to see more come to me. That's all. Man. Hey, you don't even believe in yourself, huh?

46:59Chad Johnson:Hey, look. I already told you, bro.

47:03Shannon Sharpe:Hey, you got your phone on you? The Sixers in the Eastern Conference, seven, eight, between the Magic, the loser will wait the winner of the Heat's Hornet. Same thing with the – in the Western Conference, Portland Phoenix play the winner. is the 7th seed. They play the San Antonio Spurs. The loser awaits Golden State LA Clippers. Who do we like? Sixers, Magic. Joe, you say you like Sixers? Joe, I mean, Ocho, who do you like? Sixers or Magic? I like Sixers too. I like Sixers. Yeah, I like Sixers. Joe, what happened if Embiid played?

47:55everything changed especially maxi numbers he's not he's not playing no easy he got a serious

48:00Shannon Sharpe:injury he got yeah he got appendicitis oh remember he had his appendix taken out but you only told me that was a few days now no ain't no few days that thing went from 10 to 14 days okay and here they play what wins it twos it yeah yeah yeah he's gonna be gone for a minute yeah maxi maxi finna go crazy about 30. Okay, Ocho. Okay, Joe. The Hawks and the Knicks. Knicks. What?

48:26Chad Johnson:Man, you lost your back. That was quick, Ocho. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on. You betting against big body Brunson? I got the Hawks all day long. I don't care who the Hawks was playing. I think they could beat anybody. I got the Hawks. You see how he is? I got the Hawks. Now you delusional like I was. I ain't no delusion. ain't no delusion i'm just keeping the 100 ocho so why you ain't keeping 100 when we talked about the goddamn heat just now well i did keep it 100 i'm going with the hornets okay hey check your phone real quick man nah don't send me nothing bro send it back to me hey yo dirty that joker's

49:05Shannon Sharpe:got no joke joe he's trying to get you to burn the money man what's wrong with him hey hey joe Send it to A. Don't show dirty, boy.

49:14Chad Johnson:Hey, hey, oh, oh, he trying to put that candy wrap around my head like I'm some type of stuff. No, no, no, no, Joe. No, no. I'm letting you hold the money, Joe. I'm cool. I don't need to hold the money. Then let the game happen, baby. When the game happens and we win. Hey, you don't believe in yourself. Hey, I got the Hawks beating the Knicks. Is it going to be a tough task? Yes, it's going to be a tough task. But I think we got guys who are very hungry. We have a team that's very, I want to say, unpredictable as far as how you can game plan for them. Because we can beat you in so many ways. You can't load up on nobody.

49:53Chad Johnson:We got so many guys who play make, who can shoot the ball, who can score the ball, who are going to defend at a high level. I think we're going to be able to cause havoc. The thing is, we're going to have to slow Brunson down. That's period, point blank. That's the head of the snake. We slow Brunson down, we're going to be all right. We give ourselves a chance.

50:09Shannon Sharpe:well I'm pretty sure Dyson Daniels is going to start out on Brunson oh yeah oh yeah he's a big long guy 6 '7 and he's going to have to because the thing is you look at Brunson and you're like oh man he's yeah but he's got a body that can play through contact yes there you go like a little pit yeah he's got a body that can play through contact people look at his size but he put together now Yeah. And so he's going to take contact. He's going to initiate contact. And all he wants is a little separation so he can get that shot off.

50:43Chad Johnson:Yeah.

50:44Shannon Sharpe:He's really crafty. I don't know what it is. I think it's just like I've never seen a left-handed ball hooper that wasn't crafty. You're right. You look at James Harden. You look at Sharuna's Marcellona's. You look at Manu Ginobili. You look at Brunson. Look at all Nate Arch. Look at – go back and study the left-handed player. And all of them. Yeah. I'm like, damn, how y 'all do that?

51:07Chad Johnson:They got some craftiness to their game. They do. They do. You're right. Hey, you're right, because his body, he built for the BS that you're going to throw at him. Meaning you want to play physical? Okay, I'm built for that. You know, he going to post up. He going to be in the pick and roll. He going to be all over the damn court. But we got to make it tough. He got to see bodies, you know, show hands because he going to flare. Once you do try to create some contact with him, you know how it is. He going to flare a little bit. But I think we should be able to handle all that.

51:36Shannon Sharpe:and plus Joe Anoncio you got to keep him off the free throw line because he can be inefficient but go to the free throw line and shoot 15 free throws he's another he's going to get his shots so if you think he ain't going to take but 10 shots he's going to be somewhere between 15 and 20 you might be able to pencil him in somewhere between 18 and 27 shots a game come postseason he's getting his shots up

52:04Chad Johnson:You're right. You're right. Hey, Uncle Joe, I'm going to need the cat to get off that three-point line. I'm going to need the cat to get down there. No, no, no, no, no. Don't tell him to get off the damn three-point line now. Let him stay his ass out there. No, no, no, no. I'm being serious. I am too.

52:21Shannon Sharpe:That's like telling the pigeon in New York to get off the window seal. He there all the time. You ever see the pigeon? Shoo. And shoot him. You shoot him. Guess where he go? He come right back. Shoot him. You turn and walk around. He come right back. get right back where he was. I need him to assert himself down in the block, down in the post, whether it's high or low. Assert yourself there, and then, once you become efficient at that point, then if you want to go out there to the three, if you want to do your midi and do whatever you need to do out there by the then do that. I mean, they ain't got nobody big but a kangaroo.

52:54Shannon Sharpe:Who the other big they got, Joe, in Atlanta?

52:57Chad Johnson:No, no, no. Hey, look, you and Ocho are right. I think we don't. Outside of Congo, we just signed the kid from Indiana. I played with him in Utah. Damn, I forgot his dang old name. Big kid.

53:11Shannon Sharpe:Oh, yeah, the kid from North Carolina. Bradley.

53:17Chad Johnson:Yeah. Yeah, Bradley. Yeah. We just signed him because we're going to need the body. That's the one thing that New York kind of scares me because of that paint presence that they have with Mitchell Robinson. They got Mitchell

53:29Shannon Sharpe:Robinson. You know, Mitchell Robinson ain't looking to do nothing but grabs the board. He's going to give him multiple second chance points.

53:35Chad Johnson:Second chance opportunities, excuse me. I just watched, you know, we just played the Knicks probably about a week or so ago, and Mitchell Robinson killed us. He killed us. So I'm sure that's going to be in the back of these guys' mind. My biggest thing out this whole series, Unc and Ocho, the leap that we have to see Jalen Johnson make in order for us to make it to the next round. Meaning, because Unc, he's going to have to play a lot of the four spot, and we're going to need him to rebound. We're going to need him to defend. We're going to need him to do every damn thing, score, playmate. He's going to have to do everything.

54:06Chad Johnson:So I'm looking forward for his numbers to be real gaudy in this first-round playoff series against the Knicks because outside of that, it's going to be tough. It's going to be tough on us, bro. He's going to have to deliver for us.

54:20Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, you definitely don't want to lose the rebounding. I mean, you're probably going to lose it because they're a big team and they're looking to crash the board because you got a guy like Josh Hart can give you 10 rebounds. With no cat just by size alone, Mitchell Robinson is looking to do nothing but rebound and defend. Yeah, he'll roll to the basket, but he's looking there to defend the paint and rebound the basketball.

54:43Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah. And another thing that worries me is that I know the Knicks got home court advantage, but hell, when they come here and play to Atlanta, man, it's going to be so many damn New York fans in there. It's going to be number orange and blue. I'm like, oh, my God.

54:59Shannon Sharpe:Man, you know they done came down, Joe. They done left the city. They done left New York and moved to Atlanta. But they still got ties to the Knicks. They still love their Knicks.

55:07Chad Johnson:Man, I'm talking about it was bad about a week ago. I'm talking about in State Farm Arena, bro. It was nothing but Knicks fans. I couldn't believe it. So I know they're going to pack us out. But we got to some way, somehow. We got to get through this. So what we got on that? What, you want another little honey on that? Yeah. So you want me to send another hundred to you? Nah, let me put this in my notes. I got to put this in my notes. I got to put this in. Hey, don't send me no money, bro. I already did. I saw you check your phone. I don't know. I don't know what account that stuff going to. I don't know, but that ain't mine.

55:43Chad Johnson:I'll tell you, don't send me nothing. I'm cool. Hold on. It said you registered with Zell. Nah, nah, nah. I ain't got nothing. Hey, hold on. That wasn't you? Nah, that wasn't me, bro. Oh, hold on. Let me stop that payment. Yeah, yeah, slow that down. Might be too late. Yeah, turbo. Oh, no, I say went through. Yeah, oh yeah. Hey, Yoga LLC, that's you.

56:09Hey, that's you.

56:10Chad Johnson:Hey, you got chill, bro. Hold on, hold on. I'mma see you. Hey, hey. You finna send him another 100-dollar show? Yeah, I don't want no excuses. Oh, wow. You know what? And I blame my money. I really blame myself for even dealing with this joker. Like, all right, you know what I'm saying? I should have never gotten caught with this joker. No, you know why I'm messing with it. Joe, I'm just – I'm not finna play – I ain't finna play about no money, so I'm sending it to you ahead of time so you can send me – But who does that, Ocho? Who pays before the game even happens? That's how confident I am in my teams that I'm picking.

56:43You're not confident. You just said it yourself. What happened at State Farm Arena the last time the Atlanta Hawks played the Knicks? What happened? So you think a seven-game series is going to be any different? No, that's delusion. That's being naive. I hope you're better than that.

57:02Chad Johnson:Somebody please help this man. Oh, man, listen. Y 'all wanted me to get into basketball. I'm into it now. I'm ready. Come on. Because you got money on it, so you got to watch the game. You know you get, but you got to watch the game. Listen, I'm going to be on here talking like I'm Doris Burke or George Sodano.

57:20Shannon Sharpe:During the 2023-24 season, the Pistons finished with the worst record in franchise history, 14-68. Two seasons later, Detroit finished 16-22, their third 60-win season in franchise history. Joe, is Detroit basketball already back?

57:39Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah, they back. Detroit back. And listen, they're back. They got a lot of guys, obviously, who can play, but they're gritty, they're tough, blue-collar, hard-working cats who are going to defend at the highest level. And, man, they've been playing great basketball. Even when K has been out, bro, they got guys. They play. The kid that come out to bitch Jenkins? Yes. I don't know where he came from, but, boy, when I tell y 'all he been hooping, man, he been balling. These guys have played significant minutes when K has been out, so I feel like they're ready for the moment for sure.

58:13Shannon Sharpe:Who they got? Yeah, they're definitely back. I mean, look, you draft Cade number one overall, you get Thompson, you get Durin, and they brought back Tobias, Karis LeVert, they go get Duncan Robinson, they get Werther, they get guys that can knock down the threes, they defend, as you said, Joe, they defend at an elite level. Yeah. Durin is protecting the paint. They got guys that can pick you up. So, yeah, I think they're back. I think they're back. But do I – it's just hard. As great as they play in the 60 wins or 60 wins, it's just hard for me to see them beating Boston in seven games.

58:52Chad Johnson:I know, man. It'll be a tough challenge for them, but I think they have a shot in the dark. They really have a shot. I think they've been the best team in the East. Obviously, Boston just getting back full throttle with Tatum coming back. Yes, it's going to be tough to beat them, but I think Detroit can do it.

59:10Shannon Sharpe:And that joke, man, Detroit – I mean, you see – hold on. I think Boston made like 29 threes today against Orlando.

59:18Chad Johnson:Did they? I think so. Hell, they ain't even had none of their starters out there for real. Let me see what you think.

59:26Shannon Sharpe:I'm almost certain they did because they was – because I glanced up.

59:33Chad Johnson:Let me see. Hey, Joe. What's that? Hey, that goddamn Cade Cunningham, boy. Boy, he nice, boy. He real nice, old Joe. Nice. Man, they got Harper. Yeah.

59:49Shannon Sharpe:Joe, you got Shireman. He had another one.

59:52Chad Johnson:That boy had.

59:52Shannon Sharpe:Ron Harper Jr. had 27. Garza had 27. So they made 8, 11, 12, 13, 16. They were 19 of 50 from the three with backups.

1:00:07Chad Johnson:They got a deep team, man. They got a lot of guys who can play. Hell, yeah.

1:00:16Shannon Sharpe:Oh, yeah. I mean, Garza gave him 27, 10 of 18. Ron Harper Jr., 27, 10 of 20. Shireman, 30, 8 of 20, 6 of 14.

1:00:29Chad Johnson:You know, them the hardest teams to play against, guys who you don't really game plan for? No. You know, you don't really, so you like, okay, we're just going to see what they're going to do. Shanae came out, them three guys and gave you 30. On crazy. Yes. Damn.

1:00:47Shannon Sharpe:So that's what makes them dangerous. Yeah. Okay. CH.

1:00:56Peace to the planet. Charlamagne Tha God here. And listen, we are back. The Black Effect Podcast Festival is back in Atlanta on April 25th at Pullman Yards. Yeah. And the full lineup is nuts. We got the Grits and Eggs podcast, Deontay Kyle and Big Ice Cup Cat. We got Club 520 with Jeff Teague and the gang. Don't call me white, girl. Mona will be there. Keep it positive, sweetie, with Crystal Renee. We got Reality with the King with Carlos King. And yes, Drink Champs will be in the building.

1:01:25Shannon Sharpe:Plus, you know, we're going to have a lot of guests. So you need to join us. And we got the Black Effect Marketplace, the picture podcast, and everything you expect from the Black Effect Podcast Festival. Tickets are on sale right now. Go get yours at blackeffect.com slash podcast festival. Don't play yourself, okay? Pull up.