Transcript
WEBVTT
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This is former Chicago Bear, desmond Clark, and y'all hear me on many podcasts, but when y'all hear me on Pick'em Pros, y'all know it's all about family.
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This ain't just business.
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All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back.
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You know who it is.
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I am Derek Thompson.
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I'm Diego Thompson.
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I'm Christopher Davis.
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And who are we, the Pick'em Pros?
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We are the Pick'em Pros coming back at you in the house with a special episode, episode 115 of who you Got Father-Son Dynamic Duo and our main man the next, stephen A, chris Davis.
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How y'all doing, man, I'm doing good.
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I'm man, the next steven, a chris davis.
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How y'all doing, man?
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I'm doing good, I'm doing pretty good.
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Yeah, good man, man, check out these digs, man, it's looking, looking pretty fly man, yes, yes.
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Well, shout out to joe everywhere joe, studio here at carrie.
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Shout out to you, joe, hello.
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Yeah.
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Yeah, thanks for thanks for letting us uh be here.
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This is a really cool.
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We gotta make this a staple.
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I like this look it's a good look Really good, look, yeah.
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So, uh, hey, we got a lot to talk about today.
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We've got NBA kickoff Time to talk about.
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You guys are going to give your rankings 10 through one.
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I'm going to tell you who's going to make the playoffs, who's not going to make the playoffs.
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We're going to be able to beat the Yankees.
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We'll talk about that.
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We got a special flash giveaway for the World Series, so you don't want to miss that, so you want to stay tuned for that.
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And then, of course, nfl.
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We're going to dive into the NFL news D-Hop going to the Chiefs.
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You know, are the rich getting richer?
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Bryce Young is back.
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Oh yeah, we got the two Carolina Panthers homers here we're going to talk about Bryce Young being back a whole lot.
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And then of course, we got to make all our week eight picks.
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Diego's doing fairly well this year, so I know Diego wants to dive into these picks.
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We're going to make all 16 picks.
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See if he can go 16-0.
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You've gone 14-0 this year but you haven't gone 16-0.
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I didn't go 16-0.
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I'd set the record standard 14-0, but I didn't do it in the full weeks.
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Some people are trying to take that away from me, but I just got to go 16-0.
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It's pretty simple we're going to see what happens and then, hey, we'll freestyle.
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There's a ton of stuff we've been talking about off camera, so this is going to be a fire show.
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This is going to be a fire show.
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We're ready to get into it.
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All right, shout out to everyone that makes this show happen.
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Shout out to Summer behind the scenes.
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Shout out to you Thanks again.
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And shout out one more time.
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Shout out to Mom Dukes, my wife, your mom for the concept of picking pros and having us do this, so this would not be possible without her.
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So we know you're watching, love you, baby, and we're going to have a good show, all right.
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Also real quick.
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Thank y'all for the opportunity, oh heck yeah, man, heck yeah, oh, yes, yes, nah, man, you are fam man.
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It's crazy because I feel like we've known you for years and what has it been?
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Maybe two months.
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Maybe two months.
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It's crazy, it's coming up on two months.
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Yeah, yeah, and you've been on I don't know at least like five shows, been on full shows with us.
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We've gone to a Panther game, we've done a ton.
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So yeah, nah, I appreciate that.
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Much love, much love, all right.
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Well, let's get on into this, guys.
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Let's kick off.
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Let's start with NBA.
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Since NBA just started, let's go ahead and get into it and give our playoff predictions and rankings.
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Which one do you want to go first?
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All right?
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So, all right, you're going to start us off.
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Let's do go go 10 through one.
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Let's do East first, since West is a little more competitive.
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Go West first.
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10 through one.
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Why don't you do West?
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I'm sorry, you do East, you do East, you do West, you do West.
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All right, 10 to one.
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So 10 to one at number 10, rather Charlotte Hornets Now.
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Now we've got the Hornets.
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Now, I think, room for improvement.
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Lamelo Ball and Brandon Miller are basically new stars in this league and I really feel like they might not be the best team in the East right now, but I do like their pieces.
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I like their new coach.
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I think, if LaMelo stays healthy, that they can definitely make a push Number nine.
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I got the Hawks Now again.
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I just believe I'm a Trae Young believer believer I've been a fan of trey young ever since he was at oklahoma yeah but again, I don't think they're good enough to be a top tier team in the east.
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But I believe with trey and the right pieces around them, you know that they can still, you know, get in that play-in race and number eight.
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The heat.
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Now people might be like why do you have the heat that low okay however, I just feel like jim, like Jimmy Butler doesn't take the regular season that seriously.
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He doesn't.
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And I feel like they're going to be scratching and clawing with all their scrappy, undrafted players.
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Let's go with the typical story they're going to get in the playoffs, surprise a high seed, and then they're going to probably lose in the second round.
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Okay, Number seven I got the orlando magic.
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I really like what they're building over there with.
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I love how palo blanco plays I like james hugs, franz wagner.
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I love how just how that team is constructed.
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I really like what they're building over there.
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Right and number six this might be my hottest take.
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I have the sixers now okay jack jack c.
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I hope you're watching.
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Listen with the Sixers this is subject to change, really because of the injury concerns I have for both Paul George and Joel Embiid.
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I do think they possibly have one of the most talented teams it's not the most talented team in the league when everybody's healthy but because Joel Embiid and Paul George do have injury concerns, I'm a little I'm not as sold on them.
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Number five I got the caps, I think the cavaliers with donovan mitchell and with mobley and garland, you know, I feel like they're gonna get better with their roles and stuff.
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I don't.
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I don't really doubt the calves much.
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I feel like they're always a playoff team they're always pretty hard yeah plus, donovan mitchell is one of the best shooting guards in the league and he's leading that team number four got the pacers now okay, I think listen eastern conference finals appearance and you can say a host injuries versus the knicks.
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They still really performed well in the playoffs without halliburton playing at his best.
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I think halliburton still raises the floor of that team.
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They're very talented.
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Plus, they could have won a couple games in that conference final series.
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It's just, you know, one shot, some shots, ain't going to win for them.
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So I think they have the potential to be a top four seed in the East.
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Well, and ESPN is still laying people off because the Pacers made it to the eastern congress, so they're still suffering from that right now.
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So, yeah, okay, all right.
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So number three.
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I got the milwaukee bucks.
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Now I again.
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Yannis is probably my favorite player in the league and I think yannis and dame are kind of going to be on a revenge tour after all the injuries and everything that happened this this past season.
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And I think if chris middleton gets healthy they're going to be fine okay then number two, I'm the new york knicks, and I know the knicks were my finals pick, but, honestly, after that celtics game.
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I that I was a little nervous, you know after I'm still sticking with it.
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But I do think that the unquestioned number one seed has to be the celtics.
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I mean, if you saw the game opening night, all the threes they hit how talented they are and they still don't have Porzingis yet.
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I think it's basically it's them.
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It's going to be them at the end of the road in the conference finals and one team has to just either be really hot or on a crazy run to maybe surprise them and go to the finals they look great to just either be really hot or on a crazy run to maybe surprise them and go to the finals.
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They look great.
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The question is are we ever going to see the coach Joe face anymore?
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He used to have that face when they would be getting blown out or wouldn't play up to par.
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He would have a certain look on his face but, now they've turned the corner.
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I think he will.
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You think he will.
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You'll definitely see that face.
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You're going to see it.
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Yeah, okay, all right.
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In the middle of the season for All-Star, they're going to start just chilling a little bit.
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They're going to take it easy, you're going to see that Missoula face.
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Okay, we're going to see it again, yeah, yeah.
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So they definitely have.
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They have something to prove, but, um, it's going to be interesting to see.
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Can they sustain that.
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So tatum has a lot to prove.
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He's coming out, he's trying to win mvp.
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jalen brown he is, uh, you know, playing like jalen brown yeah, on a revenge tour, because the whole nike usa thing, right.
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I definitely think that I don't like how team usa kind of put a battery in the back of a team that just won the finals.
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They did, that was just a very bad idea for the rest of the league.
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Yeah.
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Again, this is as a Lakers fan saying this.
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I don't want to say this, but I do think the Celtics.
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I'm looking at what my eyes are telling me and they're something special.
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They're looking good.
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All right, diego, mr 14-0.
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Four-game lead overall on Dez man.
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Let's hear your 10-1 for the East.
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All right, 10-1 in the East Number 10, I have the Atlanta Hawks For the same reasons.
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Chris said really, Trey Young, they're pretty much always just in this play-in position scrapping for a play-in.
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We got Zachary Richichetie, number one pick.
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So uh see how he does, and and uh, yeah, nice good luck, impressive good luck to the hawks you ought to be a broadcaster number nine.
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You got the charlotte hornets.
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Um, you got lamello ball healthy at the beginning of the year.
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That hasn't happened in a long time, uh so him and him and him and brandon just wait him and brandon miller looking like a pretty good duo, brandon miller's looking good.
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So I think the horn is gonna have a solid year and a week east to sneak into the play-in and number eight we got the heat.
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Uh, they're just gonna be.
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Uh, the same old heat, just frisky.
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Just just hang on.
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Hang on.
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Play good late in the year to get that playing spot.
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And you see, jimmy Butler with the three points one and one man.
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What in the world?
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It was weird.
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Let's talk about that for a second.
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It was weird If you can remember where you are.
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What's up with Jimmy Butler man?
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All right.
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So my thing with Jimmy Butler has always been he takes the regular season lightly, he doesn't seem to care as much, and then all of a sudden his team stinks in the playoffs and he turns into a dog.
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Now my issue with that is you can avoid all of that if you just cared about the regular season, act like you wanted to win and you wanted to be the top dog in the East.
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However, you know, I think the Heat kind of like that underdog role.
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Oh, we're scrappy and tough, and it's like y'all can avoid all that if y'all just took the regular season exactly.
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So I just, you know, I think it's going to be the same old story.
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You know he's going to turn up.
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Everybody's going to be like remember playoff jimmy?
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Because I don't know if you all remember, but last year, because of everything he did in the playoffs, everybody was, oh, he should be a top 10 player in the NBA.
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No.
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I don't believe that you don't take the regular season seriously enough and I get it.
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It's 82 games.
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How invested can you really be?
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But come on y'all.
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This is ridiculous at this point.
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I mean that's just weird.
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I mean the thing with the Heat too is they could be like a third seed in the East if they tried their hardest.
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Yeah, and if they're going to be the seventh or eighth seed, like we say they're going to be, they're not winning a playoff series.
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No.
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They're not going to beat the Knicks, no, and they're definitely not beating the Celtics, no.
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So they've got to be a top six team to be able to at least try to win a playoff series.
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So yeah it was the Heat.
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Then.
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Number seven I had the Pacers coming off that East Conference Finals run.
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Just I don't really believe in them that much.
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Actually.
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Just Haliburton, I don't really believe in him.
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The roster things kind of just mid, I just don't really believe in them.
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And number six I have the Magic.
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I like what they're doing.
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Apollo playing good, really believe in them.
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And number six I have the magic.
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I like what they're doing.
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Apollo uh playing good front.
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France wagner uh, he played good last year and then they got kcp2 a veteran on a championship and provides a lot the shooting that they didn't have last year.
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Okay, so a good locker room guy.
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So I think they're gonna have a solid year.
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Number six ahead of the playing.
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And number five have the bucks.
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Uh, yannis, dame, uh, I don't have them top four because I just don't.
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I think they're too old to be able to play as well in the regular season.
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Because yannis is going to play well but dame is going to probably get hurt.
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Uh, the rest of the team just old, so I just don't really believe you're going to be good in the regular season middleton's never going to play more than a certain amount of games.
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Yeah, number four, I have the Cavs.
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You know Mobley's getting better, of course, mitchell, they're just a solid regular season team, being at four or five range every year.
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So I have them at four.
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And number three, I have the Six Sixers and B.
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This is mainly just because the East is weak, I think, below the two seed, just because I don't know how much Embiid's going to play.
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Paul George, of course, has all his injuries.
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It's really just going to be Maxie.
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Maxie's going to have to play like he did last year.
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Them to get this three seed, because I don't believe in Paul George and Embiid until late in the season in playoffs.
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And number two, the Knicks.
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Uh, I just like their roster, I like their you know approach to games.
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They're gonna play hard and they're, of course, gonna try to get this top, top two seed.
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And then, of course, number one, the Celticsigning champs same roster and they're hungry.
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So I think they're going to have a good year.
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Number one Okay, all right, so that's the East there.
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So really, no, I wouldn't say there's any glaring omissions from the team.
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Now, with the West, that's a whole other situation, because we may have a game or two that separates six, seven seeds.
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But the East, yeah, pretty straightforward.
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Now you have the play-in and then we have the teams that are going to make the final roster.
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I think you both have the Hornets making it in the play-in.
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Either you have the Hornets actually making the playoffs.
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No, not at all.
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Not at all no, not happening no.
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No, okay, you'll be crazy for North Carolina sports man.
00:14:28.082 --> 00:14:28.904
It's not going to happen.
00:14:28.904 --> 00:14:30.807
So neither of you have that happening.
00:14:30.807 --> 00:14:32.730
What's your, diego?
00:14:32.730 --> 00:14:34.273
What's your Eastern Conference finals?