Brian Robb and Chris forsberg of nbc sports Boston break down the debuts of Jrue Holiday, Kristaps porzingis and a host of new Celtics faces this preseason.
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00:00 of the winning plays podcast.
00:02 The season is here.
00:03 Real basketball is here.
00:05 Chris Forsberg of MBC.
00:06 - Real basketball.
00:07 - Basketball is here.
00:08 - Real basketball. - I don't know.
00:10 This is actually a good place to start.
00:12 That opener against the Sixers,
00:14 that was the most intense preseason game I've seen,
00:17 which isn't saying much,
00:18 but like from the crowd to like guys actually trying
00:21 that are regulars, like that was like,
00:23 it was almost jarring to start things off here.
00:26 - I think I loved when Joe wouldn't sub in
00:29 the bus one gang 'cause Jalen got hot
00:31 and he wanted to rally ahead.
00:33 And then it was ridiculous how loud it got
00:36 when O'Shea had that putback dunk.
00:38 And yeah, so that was a fun one.
00:41 And then we downshift last night with night two,
00:45 which you knew was gonna happen
00:46 because the preseason schedule is ridiculous,
00:47 but maybe a good opportunity
00:49 'cause I'm sure we're gonna get into, it is kind of fun.
00:52 Everyone likes backup quarterbacks
00:53 and we obsess about spots seven through 10,
00:55 way more than we probably should.
00:57 So yeah, like I guess I was eager to see some of those guys.
01:00 So hopefully the rest of the viewing public was as well.
01:03 - All right, so this is the Winning Place Podcast
01:06 brought to you by Fanduo here.
01:07 You mentioned some of those,
01:08 so I'm gonna give you the choice.
01:09 You're the guest here.
01:10 Do we wanna start with the big names on Sunday night
01:13 or do we wanna talk with like the fun gritty,
01:16 like eight through 15 roster battles
01:18 that we got a closer look at on Monday night?
01:21 - I guess I'm always a sucker for recency.
01:24 So let's go with the seven through 10
01:25 and then we'll like circle back at the end
01:27 and be like, oh yeah, the guys that actually.
01:30 - Oh yeah, the two guys,
01:31 the team is betting their future on the entire season.
01:34 Yeah, we'll get to them later.
01:35 But first let's talk about Payton Pritchard.
01:38 Now, Payton Pritchard, Payton Pritchard
01:40 has graduated from this category now of the,
01:43 I feel like he's, is he safely number seven?
01:45 - Not only is he safely number seven,
01:50 I'm pretty sure like, I was telling you in the locker room,
01:53 he's listed as the latest shooting time
01:56 among players, at least for game one.
01:58 And maybe those will change, I don't know.
02:00 But he might not even be a bus one boy anymore.
02:03 He can kind of show up and roll in late,
02:06 do what he does and then do his shooting.
02:10 I assume he's still gonna ride with that crew
02:12 and still be super early to the gym
02:13 and still be super motivated.
02:14 But yeah, I thought that was interesting
02:15 that Payton Pritchard has a little bit
02:20 of a later shooting time, at least the start of the year.
02:22 And yeah, we'll see how long that lasts.
02:24 But yeah, I would say he's fair, fair to be seven.
02:26 I mean, that should be Hauser or Cornette too,
02:30 like, you know, based on what we saw last year,
02:32 but they've struggled out of the gates.
02:34 And so they've got to pick it up.
02:38 - It is, and we haven't even talked,
02:42 obviously since the extension for Pritchard
02:44 came out, they raped for four years, 30 million.
02:48 To me, I was honestly kind of shocked to see those numbers,
02:51 given where the cap is going.
02:54 I know, again, this is a late first round pick,
02:56 a guy who's been in and out of the rotation,
02:58 but there's a lot of buzz around him this summer
03:01 in terms of opportunity.
03:04 - Warranted.
03:05 - Warranted, clearly with these, you know,
03:07 we're putting all the stock
03:08 into the first two preseason performances,
03:09 but no, like this is a guy that they've honestly,
03:12 in hindsight, probably should have stuck with more last year
03:15 and maybe use their resources elsewhere
03:18 rather than bringing in a upgrade with Malcolm Brockton
03:21 that ended up being just a little too pricey
03:23 and didn't work out for a number of reasons.
03:25 But now to lock him in at seven and a half per year
03:28 for the next four years, like if he does break out,
03:32 that is A, either gonna be a great weapon for your bench
03:35 for a long time here when you need it,
03:37 when you need cheap talent here,
03:39 or B, a nice little trade ship.
03:42 Maybe not for now, but certainly like,
03:45 they're gonna be low on those.
03:47 And so that's either way, it's, I think,
03:49 should look like, I think it's a home run move by this team.
03:52 Really good for Brad, right?
03:54 Like there's no downside to me.
03:55 Like even if he fizzles,
03:57 whatever, he just doesn't get on the court,
03:59 seven and a half million dollars for a guy that should be
04:01 like a rotation caliber guard feels pretty good.
04:04 And if it's like, you preface it by saying,
04:06 if he's the seventh guy,
04:08 like 5% of the salary cap next year,
04:11 like that's ridiculous because the Celtics are committed
04:14 to like a billion dollars
04:16 in the top four guys on their roster.
04:18 So it would be huge if you could find a low budget,
04:22 even if he's the eighth, ninth man, whatever it is,
04:23 like if he's competing for a potential playoff minutes,
04:27 which I don't think there'll be a lot of.
04:28 And I still, last season,
04:31 it was hard for them to necessarily find
04:33 consistent minutes for three guards.
04:35 And you suspect that Drew and Derek White's
04:38 gonna play more.
04:38 So I don't think he's gonna have a huge role here,
04:40 but he's gonna get every opportunity
04:41 to eat some minutes there as the third guard.
04:45 And yeah, like, I mean, the seven and a half annual average,
04:49 it sounds like really low.
04:52 Like Peyton has a player who's typically banked on himself,
04:55 kind of like trusting that he's gonna find his role
04:59 and get that.
05:00 I know there's some security in that
05:03 in case things go crazy or wrong,
05:05 but really feels like a home run for the Celtics
05:07 in terms of just eliminating that potential distraction.
05:10 - Yeah, he was clearly, when we talked to him
05:13 Sunday night about it, he was clearly,
05:14 and I was trying to use it,
05:16 sounded like a guy that like, he just wanted that security.
05:18 He's like, I just wanna like not,
05:20 and that's totally fair.
05:21 I mean, we thought, oh yeah, it's a cheap deal.
05:23 If you're a late first round pick,
05:24 you get $30 million guaranteed.
05:26 That's life-changing money.
05:27 That's fantastic money for a guy
05:29 who's career has been up and down to this point
05:33 with factors beyond his control.
05:35 But at the same time, there was certainly the upside
05:37 for a lot more there for him,
05:39 but they just, and he just wanted,
05:41 like, what would you do?
05:42 Would you be a locked in type guy?
05:44 Would you take the sure thing money
05:47 or would you reach for the stars
05:48 and try to get that mid-level money?
05:50 - It's so easy for me to sit here and be like,
05:52 you bet on yourself and try to play it out,
05:54 and yet, man, you're one torn ACL
05:57 away from a very murky future.
06:00 And so, if my agent comes to me and says,
06:04 look, we've looked at the landscape of the league,
06:06 I don't know necessarily what is gonna be out there
06:09 for a six foot one point guard,
06:12 third guard on a really good team,
06:15 but I guess the flip side of that is like,
06:18 we always overvalue guys that are pieces
06:21 on a championship team.
06:23 I mean, Bruce Brown deserves that money,
06:26 but look at the money people signed for this off season.
06:29 And I think if things break the right way,
06:34 Peyton will maybe look back and be like,
06:37 I could have got a little bit more money,
06:38 maybe up to mid-level money, maybe even better.
06:40 I don't know.
06:42 And yet, is the risk of that worth potentially passing up
06:47 $30 million and securing your future?
06:49 Probably not.
06:50 So, I go back to it.
06:52 One thing Brad Stevens really loves is everyone's sort of
06:55 having their mind fixated on the task ahead,
06:58 and now there's no distraction.
07:00 Like everything that could have been a distraction
07:01 coming into the year, you know,
07:03 I mean, Malcolm, obviously with the situation,
07:06 I would put Rob's health somewhat in there,
07:08 even though that's what you still worry about
07:09 a little bit with your bigs.
07:10 You can't have it perfect.
07:12 And Peyton's attitude, like in just in terms of
07:14 if he didn't play and wanting maybe another trade.
07:16 So, just every distraction,
07:19 Brad is trying to stiff arm them in every direction.
07:22 - It is, it's jarring on that front.
07:25 So, there you go.
07:26 So, that's Peyton Pritchard.
07:27 We, no surprises really,
07:29 just as good as a start to the preseason
07:31 as you could hope for if you're the Celtics
07:33 after signing him to that deal here.
07:35 On both ends of the floor,
07:36 he actually, you know, three steals against Knicks last night
07:39 has been pretty frisky on that.
07:40 And out of the eight through 15 last night,
07:44 who stuck out to you?
07:46 Who intrigues you for the, you know,
07:50 the a hundred minutes a season
07:51 that might be available to them?
07:52 - Yeah, it's funny.
07:53 I was doing the post game plan.
07:54 I was trying, 'cause I know Ryan, you know,
07:58 posted something like there's probably 500 minutes available.
08:00 And I was trying to do the quick math in my head
08:02 and maybe I'm factoring in spot seven too.
08:05 Like, I mean, we're talking what?
08:07 500 to a thousand minutes total of like maybe-
08:09 - But think about the injuries though.
08:11 Like injuries can change things in a hurry for this group.
08:14 - And that's where I come down to.
08:16 It's like, if you were gonna,
08:17 and I guess it comes down to what is Joe gonna do?
08:20 Joe has talked a lot about trying to reintegrate
08:24 with that group seven through 10
08:26 after maybe ignoring them last year.
08:27 It's Grant Williams nods feverishly
08:30 and Peyton Pritchard nods feverishly, like, yes.
08:32 Like he forgot about us a little bit.
08:34 But do I trust that Joe is actually not gonna play?
08:37 Jason and Jalen 40 minutes a night
08:39 and like on a random Wednesday against the Magic.
08:42 Hell no, the guy wants to win.
08:43 And like, he's already said, like he wants to be, you know,
08:47 that he's gotta be better about that stuff.
08:49 But it's a lot easier, like I said,
08:50 a lot easier to say it than to go out there and do it.
08:52 So, but let's say like you just need somebody
08:55 to help get you through the regular season.
08:58 Like I'm not gonna lose my mind over Cornette
09:00 and Hauser being not good through the first two games.
09:04 Hauser missing 13 of his 15 three-pointers
09:07 and Luke grabbing, I think five rebounds
09:09 in 30 something minutes on the court, not great.
09:11 But they've sort of proven, I think they're gonna,
09:14 they'll be in that mix and they're gonna be better
09:16 than what we've seen.
09:17 Some of the pieces that maybe we didn't know about,
09:20 like, you know, O'Shea, I factored him in
09:24 because you need guys behind Jason and Jalen,
09:26 but I really love sort of,
09:29 I'll keep comparing them to Nesmith
09:30 in terms of like the way he crashes the glass,
09:32 a little less reckless.
09:34 But, you know, sort of better discipline
09:37 in terms of grit and defense.
09:39 And, you know, I'm also biased
09:41 'cause I like the YouTube videos, you know, shout out.
09:45 He put a little chunk of our media day interview in there.
09:48 So everybody go check out Brissy TV.
09:50 He's scooping me on my own interviews, so good for him.
09:56 And Banton last night, honestly,
09:58 and B-Rob, I probably said this over the summer,
10:01 like because he was non-guaranteed
10:02 and we didn't get a lot to really see him in summer league,
10:05 you know, I just sort of wrote off
10:07 whether he'd be part of this team.
10:09 People over the summer told me
10:10 that he was really intriguing, that blend of size.
10:13 And man, he was fearless.
10:16 Like he was going right at those bigs last night at the rim.
10:19 You know, I did not think we'd have a Banton 20-point game
10:23 in the first days of the season.
10:25 And so I'm pretty good with the winged out.
10:27 It just comes down to the big man
10:28 is gonna be what we obsess about
10:30 and you know, is Cornette.
10:32 And I don't think Wendy and Gabriel
10:34 put his best foot forward last night
10:37 and looked a little too hyped.
10:38 So that's where I come down.
10:40 Like I'm really, I think they're more set
10:43 at the guard position than I thought they would be.
10:45 I'm comfortable with the bigs.
10:47 Lamar Stevens, I should throw in there too.
10:48 Like Lamar and O'Shea look like they are ready
10:50 to just play that role.
10:52 I don't know how much they're gonna,
10:53 I don't know if they'll both play.
10:54 I don't know if they'll both play every night,
10:55 but I like where they're at.
10:57 And yeah, it's just on Hauser and Cornette
10:59 to sort of, to get back to what they've been.
11:03 - Yeah, I mean, I think you broke that down nicely.
11:06 Like the intriguing thing for you
11:08 of like the Stevens and Brissett angle here is like,
11:10 okay, if Hauser isn't shooting,
11:14 then probably one of those guys
11:16 are just gonna play over him.
11:17 And they're gonna, especially if they're starting big,
11:19 because that means Derek White's coming off the bench.
11:22 You can play him and Pritchard together.
11:23 That's probably enough shooting
11:25 and going like a gritty entered guy in there
11:28 with like Tatum and one other starter
11:30 that could be a formidable unit there.
11:32 So that's the intriguing part of me.
11:34 And the other wild card here,
11:35 you mentioned it's like someone like Svee.
11:37 - Yeah.
11:38 - And if he like, if Hauser isn't shooting,
11:39 like that is a Hauser alternative
11:42 if you still want the extra spacing out there.
11:45 Obviously it doesn't have as much,
11:47 you know, it's a little smaller than Hauser is,
11:48 but clearly is, you know,
11:51 an alternative option on that front.
11:53 If Hauser, again, this is two games here.
11:55 Hauser's gonna have the spot in the rotation
11:57 to start the year.
11:58 I think that's pretty safe to say,
11:59 but it's more of like a, if things don't turn for him,
12:03 you know, after the first couple of weeks of the year,
12:04 that could be an intriguing subplot, I feel like.
12:08 - I did think it was interesting that Svee didn't play
12:10 in the opener that, you know,
12:13 Joe tipped his hand a little bit.
12:14 Like these are the 10, 11 guys
12:16 that we're kind of thinking about.
12:18 Credit to Svee because like, you know,
12:21 he has a bad night last night
12:23 and we're all sitting here saying, you know,
12:24 is he gonna go overseas instead?
12:26 Like he's another one of those non-guaranteed guys.
12:29 But I mean, I didn't know he had that sneaky athleticism.
12:32 That little lob dunk, we were busting Eddie Hauser's chops.
12:35 We've never seen a 50 get up like that in a Boston uniform.
12:40 So it was fun to see that.
12:42 And yeah, if he knocks down shots,
12:43 I do like the secondary playmaking.
12:44 He can like drive a close out way better
12:46 than Hauser can at this point.
12:48 And so I think there's a chance for him to stick.
12:51 It's just, it gets murky.
12:52 Like if you had to pick two of those three wings
12:55 to carry now, so I'm gonna put Svee, O'Shea, and Lamar
12:58 in the wing category.
13:00 Who are you taking?
13:01 - Probably Svee and O'Shea, I guess.
13:07 Like just, I always default to like shooting.
13:10 Like to me, O'Shea and Lamar are both good.
13:14 They're probably both gonna make this team,
13:16 but that's redundant.
13:17 Like it's hard to see them both playing together.
13:20 So if there's not a whole lot of reliable shooting
13:25 off that bench right now, that can be addressed.
13:29 But in my mind, if Svee makes shots
13:32 and Hauser isn't making shots,
13:34 like he feels pretty safe about his spot in this team.
13:37 - I think that's fair.
13:39 I mean, I wouldn't argue with any of that,
13:41 that it did feel redundant when they added Lamar
13:44 and O'Shea as sort of, again, very similar players.
13:48 But I just think they have a little bit more,
13:50 both have sort of proven a little bit more than maybe
13:53 than Svee has.
13:54 - Without a doubt.
13:55 - But then I think about the coach
13:58 and the coach loves shooting.
14:00 And so if he's gonna default to someone,
14:02 he's probably more likely to lean on Svee
14:05 than the two guys who, I don't know if I'd want them
14:08 taking shots.
14:09 Like I guess if they're super open,
14:11 and invariably they're gonna have to test defenses,
14:13 but if they're out there with any combination of Jason,
14:17 Jalen, Drew and Porzingis,
14:21 let those guys take the shots.
14:22 So maybe that makes a defensive minded player
14:24 a little more valuable to carry
14:27 when they have that serviceable skill set.
14:29 - Yeah, to be honest, I feel like all of them
14:31 should feel really good right now.
14:32 Like this, they don't have to cut anyone.
14:34 They have a ton of flexibility
14:36 with these non-guaranteed deals,
14:38 where if they wanna make a trade
14:40 or they see someone get waived in a couple of weeks
14:43 that they like, they can pounce and cut ties
14:45 with a lot of these guys with no backlash.
14:47 But at the same time, all those guys we just talked about,
14:50 those three, I think should feel pretty secure.
14:53 I'd be surprised if anyone's playing elsewhere,
14:55 especially since the floral contracts
14:57 don't get guaranteed to layered in a year, I don't think.
14:59 So they can still start the season with them
15:02 and then if they wanna make a change or two later,
15:05 they'll still be in the cards here.
15:07 Any final thoughts on the low man
15:11 before we talk about the studs?
15:14 - Um, I love that.
15:17 No, I think, I just think, I agree.
15:19 Like, I mean, there's gonna be another game
15:21 in the preseason where all those guys will get a chance
15:23 and we'll see what they can do, but yeah,
15:27 probably about what I expected.
15:29 It's just Hauser and Cornette gotta be better.
15:32 - And Cornette, I mean, I don't know, that's,
15:35 Cornettes should feel good, but at the same time,
15:38 like they're gonna address that position at some point.
15:41 Like, and it's a matter of,
15:44 and he'll get a chance before they do probably
15:45 in all likelihood if barring some disaster
15:48 next couple of weeks, but that's something.
15:50 The position, we'll have plenty,
15:52 we'll have weeks and months to talk about that
15:54 down the line, but that's the time I'll wait for that,
15:56 for Luke to bounce back here.
15:58 All right, Drew or Porzingis?
16:01 Who gets you more route up after that opener?
16:05 - Porzingis by like a mile.
16:07 - Yeah, I mean, that's a different question.
16:08 - And part of that is just, yeah, I mean, like,
16:10 Drew, it's so funny, right?
16:12 Because the, from like, take a step back
16:14 and the hype went from, you know,
16:17 high to really, really high when Drew arrived.
16:21 And understandably so, they just felt like,
16:23 okay, they were close and they were definitely in the mix,
16:24 but now you're as talented as anybody in the league.
16:27 But then you see Porzingis on the court.
16:30 I think it was just kind of forgotten
16:31 because it was such an early in the off season move.
16:34 I kept, you know, part of me spends much of the summer
16:36 wondering like, how's he gonna look
16:38 and how does he fit in there?
16:39 And then 20 seconds into his first game,
16:41 he's catching the little feed from Tatum
16:43 on the wing and splashing a three
16:46 and had an alley-oop and threw over the top
16:49 of a defense at one point.
16:51 And it's like, wow, like the looks he's gonna get,
16:54 the looks he's gonna create for other people,
16:56 the gravity that he has because, you know,
16:59 everyone is so locked on the Jays,
17:02 like coming off the screen,
17:03 like this could be really good for them.
17:06 And I think Drew's gonna impact you a lot winning wise.
17:08 And I think his personality
17:09 and needing that locker room guy,
17:13 but from like impact on the game,
17:17 Porzingis really intrigues me.
17:19 I mean, just, I keep saying,
17:23 take every look that Marcus Smart got
17:25 and now give it to a seven foot three guy
17:27 who is gonna get even,
17:29 like it's just gonna be an even better look.
17:30 And if he stays healthy,
17:33 man, they're in a really good position.
17:37 - Yeah, especially from the chemistry standpoint,
17:41 clearly not there.
17:42 I mean, which is totally expected of a weekend to camp here,
17:44 but then you're, but they still were getting great looks,
17:47 like despite that,
17:48 like the offense being like clunky in the half court at times
17:51 with that starting group out there.
17:53 But yeah, it is the, like the passing ability
17:56 that he has shown some of,
17:58 we really haven't seen much of that.
18:00 And I mean, it's funny,
18:01 just like his career has been such a rollercoaster ride
18:04 where he was so much type of New York,
18:07 turned into an afterthought in Dallas,
18:11 they pretty much gave him away.
18:12 And then the kind of redemption season last year
18:16 in Washington that no one was paying attention to
18:17 'cause that team was irrelevant.
18:19 To now it's like full circle, okay, can this,
18:22 like you're playing on your best team ever,
18:24 you're having more eyes on you than ever.
18:26 And obviously the upside is, could be as good as ever.
18:29 And the fact that the quality of those looks
18:33 like you talked about,
18:34 is gonna be tremendous all year long.
18:36 It's like, wow, they could really be pretty fun to watch
18:40 when they get going and they figure out
18:41 what they wanna do with each other.
18:43 - He's the early leader in my guy
18:48 that could potentially replace my Rob Love for the first.
18:54 - And I haven't brought that up to this point yet.
18:55 Like I've been afraid, like it's been a couple of weeks.
18:58 We've kept our distance here.
18:59 I don't wanna like bring on any more pain here.
19:03 - That's okay.
19:04 - But that's interesting that that is,
19:06 like the man that, the fact that got Porzingis
19:11 probably let them open the door to moving Rob
19:13 in the first place, but that might be the man
19:15 who's taking his spot.
19:17 - Taking my heart as well.
19:18 - Wow.
19:19 - You know, I don't know.
19:20 I'm not ready to commit to anything yet,
19:22 coming out of a long-term relationship
19:23 with Robert Williams, but Scout did admit
19:28 that I might just need like a bounce back guy player
19:30 to kind of go into the season.
19:34 And, you know, right now watching Por,
19:36 if I have a thing for oft injured big men,
19:39 maybe it makes sense to see how it goes
19:42 with the Porzingis foray.
19:44 - That Daniel Tyson acquisition is coming down the pike.
19:47 So I'd be holding off on that for a couple more months.
19:51 And then that will be the Porzingis insurance in that front.
19:55 Before we close up here, I mean,
19:59 and we'll talk about Drew a little bit,
20:00 but this kind of, you know, obviously works into it.
20:03 Starting lineup, looking like sensing,
20:06 seeming to be don't read in anything.
20:08 Joe Mazzuola says, okay, guess what?
20:10 This is our job to read into this stuff.
20:12 So too bad.
20:12 We're looking into your lineups here.
20:14 It looks like you still want to start double big
20:17 at least to start the year with Drew.
20:19 Drew came off the bend.
20:20 I don't think, I mean, is there any percent chance
20:22 Drew Holliday comes off the bench in the start of the season?
20:24 I feel like that's probably a no.
20:26 So that's a zero.
20:27 So assuming they go double big,
20:29 Derek White will be the guy coming off the bench there.
20:32 What are your thoughts on that?
20:34 And is that a lineup built to last?
20:36 Or is that just something to make everyone's feelings good
20:39 to start the year?
20:40 'Cause Derek obviously won't care either way.
20:42 Right.
20:42 And I honestly, I think that's what it comes down to
20:44 is like Derek is the path of least resistance
20:47 with who is the guy that goes to the bench.
20:50 And it is a little weird
20:51 because Joe was so demonstrative in July
20:54 saying he's our starting point guard,
20:56 but you can just explain that away with,
20:58 well, we didn't know again, Drew Holliday.
20:59 And so now things have changed.
21:02 And Derek did it last year,
21:04 but Derek was supposed to be like a bench guy last year.
21:07 And then ended up starting what, like 60 games
21:08 because people were perpetually injured.
21:11 So we'll see if like, maybe he'll just be the spot starter.
21:14 And maybe when Al doesn't play the second night
21:16 of back-to-back, you just bring him up and go small.
21:18 And, but I do, I am curious.
21:21 I know you think that they lean big and it's,
21:25 it makes sense 'cause I can't see Al going to the bench,
21:28 but if it was me, I might start small.
21:32 And, you know, I know you wanna get,
21:36 you wanna be, you wanna go big as much as possible
21:40 and take advantage of your size,
21:41 but, and you're gonna definitely probably close games
21:43 smaller and Derek White better be out there
21:46 in those situations if we've learned anything
21:47 over the past couple of years, and especially Miami.
21:50 So it's not, it's not an easy decision.
21:54 It's an embarrassment of riches for Joe
21:56 to be able to sit there and have six guys
21:59 that really deserve to play.
22:01 And yet they've, there's gonna be, you know,
22:04 someone's gonna be hurt.
22:06 I don't love the, we have eight or nine starter spin
22:09 that Joe's putting out there.
22:11 - I might have to ask, who is your ninth starter, Joe?
22:15 - Can you go ahead and, if you could list for me
22:18 your eight or nine starters.
22:20 Yeah, okay, if you're telling me that O'Shea Brissett
22:22 and Lamar Stevens could start on a team
22:26 that has Jason Tatum, Jalen Brown, Holiday,
22:29 and Chris Topps, Port Zinkes, yeah, I get it.
22:31 Like, yeah, like I could start for that team
22:33 and like probably be okay.
22:36 So I appreciate the sentiment and it's better
22:40 that he's trying to look out for the people
22:41 that are seven through 10 on this roster
22:43 a little bit more than he did last year,
22:45 right, Grant Williams?
22:46 And, but like, yeah, let's just, let's just,
22:49 let's just call a spade a spade here.
22:50 It's, you've got six, six potential starters
22:53 and it's on you, Joe, to figure out
22:55 which five you should use.
22:56 - Well, I look forward to seeing Joe
22:59 not play some of these starters
23:01 in regular season games.
23:02 (laughing)
23:04 All nine of them as he opens.
23:06 - How deep will you go?
23:07 I mean, it's an easier question to answer
23:10 once Tauzer and Cornette start playing better,
23:12 but like, how deep are you gonna go on a normal night?
23:14 - Oh, I think we'll see like eight with that last spot,
23:20 maybe split by two guys.
23:23 So like, so White off the bench,
23:27 Pritchard off the bench,
23:28 and then a mix of like Cornette and Brissett maybe,
23:33 obviously Hauser, as you know, right now,
23:35 I'd say eight and a half guys.
23:38 So like Hauser, I think is safe leader
23:40 as one of the guys off the bench this year.
23:42 And then the last guy is split by Cornette, Brissett,
23:46 depending on match-ups and, you know,
23:49 if they wanna play bigger or smaller.
23:50 So that'd be like, that's my guess how it starts,
23:53 but I think it will,
23:54 I expect that to kind of evolve quickly
23:57 based on just like what you're getting out of these guys.
23:59 We'll see, like, I feel like maybe this year,
24:01 that's one of the things we have to look at most for Joe
24:03 is like, how quickly is he willing to adapt with that stuff
24:06 when he has so many options here for those slots?
24:09 - You know, one thing that we did forget,
24:11 and I actually forgot to when I was writing my ups and downs,
24:13 I wouldn't have included them in this,
24:15 but I will admit like I perk up a little bit
24:18 when Jordan Walsh is out there.
24:19 So someone just sent a comment along
24:21 and said, I hope they develop Walsh
24:22 and not waste him in the G League.
24:23 And it's a good point.
24:25 Like, it's obvious he's got potential.
24:28 It's, you know, my eyes sort of gravitate towards him
24:31 when he's out there
24:32 because he's gonna do something, right?
24:34 Like, and he's gonna make mistakes and he's only 19.
24:37 And I don't think he's got a roadmap
24:38 to really kind of muscling past O'Shea or LaMarie
24:42 or anybody like that.
24:43 But I do hope, you know, he's,
24:46 low budget players who can impact winning
24:49 are really important.
24:51 - And the other guy I throw in there,
24:53 like JD Davison actually kind of,
24:56 there's no room in the point guard position,
24:58 but like, am I crazy?
25:00 But I was taking crazy pills
25:01 or was he like so much better than a year ago?
25:04 - Well, it was, I forget a year ago,
25:06 two months, like summer league, like woof.
25:09 Like he was, him and Banton had some rough times there,
25:11 but this is, well, I'm with you.
25:13 I was like, wow, he's some pretty solid, you know,
25:17 not like amazing, but just competent pick and role play.
25:19 Like good looks, like no turnovers really.
25:21 And that's the type of stuff that you want to see
25:24 in your two.
25:24 And now we have, you know, there's,
25:27 the Celtics haven't opened to a slot now.
25:30 And I mean, I expect they will have a slot.
25:31 We'll see what happens with Jay Scrub's injury here.
25:34 But I was wondering if Davison was gonna be one
25:37 of those guys just on the bubble of like,
25:39 is he gonna, you know, is he worth keeping around
25:41 or not for the potential here?
25:42 But I think that was a very good step forward
25:44 for him in New York on Monday night on that front.
25:47 - Yeah, it almost made me forget about Yann Médard
25:50 for like a hot minute.
25:52 (laughing)
25:53 The Celtics in there, like where is Yann Médard
25:56 on the depth chart right now
25:58 for potential point guard options?
25:59 Is he like seventh?
26:01 And I think like a summer ago,
26:04 I would have taken him as the backup point guard.
26:06 So the Celtics have, you know, revamped
26:08 and retooled that position and guys are stepping up
26:11 and hey, maybe that's a good thing.
26:13 And, you know, I was surprised JD came back on a two way.
26:17 You know, usually guys like that would go through a one year
26:20 and wanna be kind of up on that roster.
26:22 I think the G-League could be good for him.
26:24 He should dominate at that level with that speed.
26:26 You know, those games are a little bit more ragged
26:29 and I think it's gonna be tougher for him
26:30 to sort of learn the control he needs to play with.
26:34 But like the intangibles are there.
26:36 And, you know, if he learns to shoot,
26:39 like that's really kind of an intriguing little project.
26:41 So I guess that's my way of saying like,
26:42 Maine Celtics games could be fun.
26:44 You know, if Jordan Walsh does go down there
26:46 for a little bit and we'll see what happens
26:48 with the big spot.
26:50 - It is.
26:52 - And who they replace Jay Scrubb with.
26:53 - Right.
26:54 And some decisions to be made here in the coming weeks.
26:57 But you know what, Chris Wurzer, that's a half hour.
26:59 That is weird.
27:01 I'm putting us on the clock.
27:03 We cannot talk about preseason basketball
27:05 more than a half hour.
27:05 We can't get too far out of ourselves.
27:07 I think we stayed fair here.
27:09 I think we stayed, we didn't cross any lines here
27:12 or react too much, but this was a strong start.
27:15 But you'll be reacting.
27:16 - The trains are rolling.
27:17 - Trains are rolling.
27:18 You'll be able to check Chris out, obviously,
27:20 all season long on his Southern Stock Pod after every game.
27:24 Definitely check that out.
27:26 We'll be back with you guys here
27:28 at the Winning Players Pod where he is this week
27:30 as the starters return to form in Philly on Wednesday night.
27:34 The brutal three and four nights start to the preseason.
27:38 We'll see what we have in the tank here.
27:39 (laughing)
27:41 But, yep.
27:43 Thanks for listening, guys.
27:44 Thanks for Chris for hopping on.
27:45 and we'll talk to you all later this week.
27:47 [BLANK_AUDIO]