 What's the word y'all all right this video should feel similar to like last year remember last year after an entire slate of games I used to come out here and with no cuts no edits no hiccups talk about like eight games in one video How the heck did I do that? I can't I mean okay today's video? I'm attempting that but instead of talking about eight games I want to talk about two teams because there are two teams that are heating up right now like we're about the 20-game mark of the NBA season and with that we see some teams start off high and cool down and we saw some teams start off cold and heat up and two teams that are heating up right now I've been really enjoying watching and those teams aren't the Boston Celtics and the Minnesota Timberwolves you can decide for yourself Which version of these teams you believe in is it the two weeks ago when they were struggling or is it they're right now? We're there heating up either way. I just want to shine some light on two organizations. That's been really really cool I've never shied away from that idea that this is a reactionary channel, right? We basically take the NBA day by day and with that we will overreact to some things That is 100% true and one thing we definitely overreacted to us And when I say we I mean me because I'm the one talking and making a video was the Boston Celtics earlier in the season And some of it was warranted right there's this blue and a huge lead to the Chicago Bulls Then after that they had to have a players only meeting which I am pro players on a meeting by the way Every time the team has a player only meeting it seems like that team takes off so far I was listening to no Dutch this morning There were there are four different teams that have had players only meetings the first one being the The Washington was before the season even started and they turned out starting the season on fire The second being the Boston Celtics and again since that moment There are seven and three in their last ten and then the last one was the Memphis Grizzlies who lost by 40 like two nights ago And then just beat was it the Utah Jazz on Jaren Jackson, Jr.'s game winner So players only meetings big W But this is a team that had a players only meeting Margaret Smart went out to the public to the median and said some things out of frustration Everybody was overreacting me included and since then the team has turned around completely and there are a couple different things I want to talk about as far as the bullet points of what has changed between Then and now first one being dinner shooter has been whooping really really well I mean the graphic after the Lakers games hilarious y'all paying Russell Westbrook X amount of money while dinner shooter's here Make a five million dollars it's hilarious because in that moment in those couple games He has been killing he had another game where he had 30 plus on national TV Then you went against the Lakers ahead another one like he has been playing basically The version of dinner shooter we thought they were gonna get there starting to get at this point another one is health Man, they had missed Jaylen Brown for eight games. They miss Robert Williams Like having two starters missing is going to hurt a lot of teams and the last one and I think the most important one has to do We email you docus coaching I think in that moment if I can go back in retrospect talk about the Celtics again when they blew that huge lead I should have probably shied the light on email you doka being a first-year coach and basically his priority if you remember in his Interviews he was talking about this a team that needs to learn the identity and be great on the defensive side of the ball Now what I saw in the first couple weeks compared to now was email you doka tinkering with his Rotation and trying to figure out the players that he believes can contribute to having an elite level defense And it seems like he's finally found that recipe because since those days since the Bulls game They have been one of the best offensive teams in the league. Where are my statistics? Where am I statistic because in the last two weeks the defense has been absolutely stellar? And this is what we used to do back in a day Okay So in the last two weeks they have the fifth best defense and the 13th best offense seventh and point differential and they've won some key games They've won some key games So you have email you doka finally find the finding the defense out to Grant Williams I love the pj Tucker comparison for Grant Williams because I feel like that's the that's the career that Grant Williams is about to have I remember like years ago a tweener type player was like a terrible person to draft and then drain my greens stepped Onto the seam as a tweener and became an all-star defensive player of the year now teams are like Oh, we want that tweener because you can guard me two through fours and sometimes the fives and Grant Williams Even though he's kind of been up and down. He is pj Tucker light bro He sits in the corners and he hits his corner shots and he plays good high-level defense. It's kind of crazy there So all of that and then since that We've seen Jason Tatum turn back into Jason Tatum. We have to remember that JT was slumping heavily Looking like a shell of fit former self and it may be a week or two ago I was talking about like when do we start to have the the conversation about Jason Tatum? You don't have to have it anymore because look look I I'm taking full credit for awakening Jason Tatum because here here's some context. There was a game House of Highlights on their Instagram story. They had a pole going up Who would who do you think would win a game of horse and one of the slides was Jason Tatum and Zach Levin? And me being from the shot. I'm like, I'm gonna take Zach Levin even though Zach Levin I'm pretty sure lost to Ali Quigley. You remember the NBA actually did a horse thing during the pandemic crazy He lost to Ali Quigley in that thing. So maybe But Jason Tatum is a better horse player, but what I did to start some controversy I'm saying see what's going on. I took that Instagram post. I Cropped the the knockout version and just kept the verse the text that said who you taking oh And I put that on Twitter and I said we need to start a dialogue and since that moment Jason Tatum has not put up less than 30 points per game that I awake him because I was tagging him in that post I saw yeah, I was tagging him and no, but realistically He's just fine in his groove and in that players only meet him when Marcus smart He was talking about how he needs those younger players what Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown To to learn how to play make better because everybody knows they want the ball to go to Jason And they want the ball to go to Jaylen But they have to figure out that secondary read when those two things aren't working and Jason Tatum in the last X amount of games has been playmaking the hell out of the ball So a lot of things are coming around for them. Um, do you believe them to be there? I think we've all agreed that they're gonna be a playoff team That's just they just have the talent to be a playoff team But what level of playoff team is what we have to decide next our whore for this still been really good And then Rob Williams returned all the energy in the world. So shout out to the Celtics man putting it together The next team is the Minnesota Timbers. I'll be honest with you I'm a little bit more excited about the Minnesota Timberwolves even though Let's be realistic their four game win streak has big kind of a cake wall Bro, I didn't want to edit this video. Then the dogs start barking What am I supposed to do y'all want to hit Jack's barking in the background of this video? So I got to edit it I want to talk about the Minnesota Timbers because it's been fun to watch them now the four game win streak It's not like they've been out there beating up on playoff teams But this is a team that had struggled to even beat up on the teams that are less talented than them But in this four game win streak, they beat the Kings by 10 They'd be the Spurs by 15 they beat the Grizzlies by a million points and then they beat the Pelicans by about 14 And again, there's a team that lost to the Pelicans earlier in the season So this four game win streak might be like that one of the easier parts of the schedule But this is a team that wasn't closing out these games regardless now the upcoming piece of the schedule is about to be a little bit more Difficult they have the Miami Heat that is tomorrow Then they have the Hornets who've been who've been on fire as well. You have the 76ers who just be the Kings with like six players They have the Pacers who just beat the Bulls by 50 So like the part of your part of the schedule is about to get a little bit tougher but let's talk about what I've seen from the Minnesota Timbers during this stretch and the main thing is This team we've mentioned this before because this has kind of been a consensus throughout the year But it's even elevated right now This team has been playing defense What and listen listen listen there are players in their careers, right? That after a few games we kind of have this consensus hive mind idea about them on one side of the ball, right? D'Angelo Russo and his career has always been a negative defensive player We can all agree on that no matter the stop even when he was an all-star He was a good offensive player and a huge negative on defense Well this year ladies and gentlemen the eye test tells me D'Angelo Russo was actually defending. Oh That's scary D'Angelo Russo defending Patrick Beverly has has put a stamp on this team that that you wanted as a Minnesota Timbers fan Because this is a team again that had been a pushover for years and years and again I'm overreacting a bit to the four game win streak, but just just hear me out This is a team that that you felt like Could get smacked in the face whenever and nobody was gonna do nothing about it And Patrick Beverly's grit and his teaching has definitely trickled down You have Patrick Beverly of Jira Vanderbilt holding it down in the defensive side of the ball You can't tell me that stuff like that is contagious and we're seeing it on the Easter conference And yes, I'm gonna compare it to the Bulls too Because you got to remember a team of Zach Levine, Vucevich, and DeMarco de Rosa Should not be a good defensive team when you have a couple players in the lineup that are great defenders That can be infectious. Lonzo Ball and Alice Caruso is doing that for the Bulls and for the Minnesota Timbers It's Jira Vanderbilt and it's Patrick Beverly Pat Bev might not might not have the great game where he has 20 points six rebounds six assists He might have that occasionally But sometimes you look at the stat line and be like man it's Patrick Beverly just running around right out there And I gotta ask Are you a box court watcher? Because his defensive intensity his leadership has definitely trickled down on this team And it's been fun to watch recently. It's been really fun to watch now me being me I try to be an optimistic person But I gotta I gotta simmer down a little bit because it is the Minnesota Tim Wolves and they always find a way Can't they tell us earlier this season was like hey, I'm here in Minnesota a three game losers You can turn it to 22 already say 18 or something. It can Hopefully they can have to say mindset a four game once you can turn into this This is a team when you look at talent I think a lot of people agree this this should be a team fighting for a playing spot And at the moment that's exactly what they're doing That's exactly what they're doing in in order to make a plan and to make a postseason appearance You have to beat the teams that you are better than the teams that are better less talented than you and the last couple games They've been able to do that now they could continue to do that through this season and occasionally steal one versus the team That's better than you. I mean, I don't see a world this team doesn't at least make the plan right now There's ten teams right here that I could say nine teams here that I can say confidently Probably make the postseason right the tenth spot is up for grabs for Minnesota Maybe the Kings if they start to turn things around, but that's it You know I'm saying so Minnesota should be in the driving seat to have that 10 seed spot because I have car I think he tells when the best offensively gifted big man's In this era they have Anthony arrow to can heat up and score What do you have six threes in the first half of the game and the Angelo Russell if he's playing defense in the Kaysley hit his shots for you boom now I do I do fear for them again once they get to those close game situations because I feel like though That's where they crumble most of the time and in this four-game win streak I just ran off the point difference who they've been dominated teams So when they get down to the nitty gritty, it's a three-point game with two minutes to go We will see what version the team we're gonna get but then beating up on some of these teams has been really really interesting The Angelo Russell playing defense is kind of wild