 That Rihanna concert was amazing. Now we can focus on a real sport again. Run it back, starts now. Run it up, do run it back. Run it up, do run it back, run it back. Run it up, do run it back, run it up. Welcome to Run It Back. It's a Monday morning. I don't know why Eddie's already laughing because you know all the questions are gonna go to you first this morning because this is our first time seeing each other since the trade deadline came and went, which seems like seven weeks ago, but I'd like to introduce everyone, as always, stadium insider, Sean Shirania, who just went to his very first Super Bowl. How was it? It was an amazing time. They played the same songs, the same musics over and over, so far Eddie just filled. I'm hoping Chandler will sing before the end of this show ends, that's all. Well, I'm glad you mentioned Chandler. Did you rip the price tag off of that jersey before you put it on this morning? How's it going, buddy? Listen, I'm not cheating. I'm a Travis Kelsey fan, and they got it done last night. In spite of all the people saying they never would, except for I never heard anyone say that. That's so weird. And on the end, Eddie Gonzalez, who has been fielding so many Twitter questions over the weekend, I've enjoyed watching your feed grow and grow and grow. We will get to you, I don't know, right away because guess what? Trade deadline, Kevin Durant. One o'clock in the morning and the news breaks. Are you kidding me? It's making his first appearance right there. Oh, it looks so weird as a member of the Phoenix Suns. We're gonna run the floor right now, Shoms. How? And most importantly, why did this deal get done? I think we have to go all the way back to last summer. When Kevin Durant asked out, we all know about the trade request right on the EVA free agency. And then he goes to Josiah and asks for Sean Marks and Steve Nyash to basically get fired or he needs to get traded. The organization decides to not do any of that. They get him to come back, they recommit to him. And I think during that process, they made it clear to him, if this season goes sideways, they will work with him and send him to his destination of choice and they would work with him on a trade. So Kevin Durant came into the season fully locked in and then we all know what happened. It came out of nowhere, Kyrie Irving requests a trade. And when that happened, it was not only a domino effect for Kevin Durant in the Nets, it was really a domino effect for the entire league. And so once that happened, Kevin Durant, the Nets, they worked on his trade and the Suns were his preferred destination and the sides were in negotiations for several days, even leading up to the trade. There was a high price threshold here, Mikhail Bridges, Cam Johnson, four first round picks, a pick swap. It's a massive haul that now puts Kevin Durant on the same team as Chris Paul, Devin Booker, DeAndre Aitin. And so we see a Nets team that's kind of starting to retool now. It was time for them to move on from this Kevin Durant Kyrie Irving regime. You can kind of see the cloud leave that organization. They feel like they're in a better place now, but this puts Kevin Durant in a place where he has a chance to really compete for a championship. He has a chance to compete against players he wants to play with and players that are committed to winning games. I mean, talk about a first day of work for Matt Ishbea. That is a way to make a splash. Eddie, you know KD better than most. How excited is he now? New place, new uniform, new teammates. I mean, he's obviously excited, but I think it's bittersweet as well. Most people may not believe, but Kevin was really locked in at Brooklyn, really committed to what the Nets were going forward and was looking forward to the next three years, four years of his career here. He had settled into a nice spot in Brooklyn, was enjoying his routine. He was close to the arenas, close to the practice facility, and had really come to love that routine he was having. But look, I think a lot of people think him and Kyrie were quote unquote attached to the hip or a package deal. It wasn't the fact that Kyrie was traded. I think it was more so about the fact that they didn't get another star back. There was no co-star left for Kevin afterwards. And you know, I think for Brooklyn, a lot of people call it the win now trade, and it was in a sense, but there was also a bit of in the summer, we'll improve even more. In the summer, we can even do this. In the summer, we'll have this many draft picks, and we just acquired one and we have the Philly pick and we can cobble together five draft picks and get a star in the summer. And then that's how stars are typically acquired in the league right now. You get a Donovan Mitchell in August and in September. You don't typically get them in February. But to intimate that to a 34 year old, 15 year veteran who's looking at what, a title now, that's a bit of a stress to ask for. And I think that's what it ultimately came down to. Not the fact that Kyrie was gone, it's the fact that they maybe have taken a step back from being a true contender and didn't get a co-star back in their trade. So yeah, Kevin is obviously excited, but he was enjoying Brooklyn and had come to really commit to what Brooklyn was providing him. And so, we'll see when he gets back on the court, but everything I've heard, it sounds great. And I think we'll hear from him Thursday this week and he'll be able to put in his own words. It is, I mean, I want to kind of get back to the idea that they didn't get a star back because I do have questions about that. But Chandler, are the sons now the best in the West? Is it just that simple? No, it's not that simple. Listen, they're very top heavy and they got a very, very, very talented player, arguably the best player in the NBA, but there's a lot of good teams in the West. And listen, this was a huge trade, but listen, this was gonna happen for a long time now. Like you guys just talked about with Kevin Durant on the Brooklyn Nets without a co-star, that's tough. And that's a tall test. Now at least he has the talent with Devin Booker. Now he's got Deandre Aiton. Now he's got Chris Paul, even though he's older and aged. And he's got real talent there. They're not very deep. They need to have a lot more there. But this puts them in a really good position now to win right now. And obviously we just said he's 15th, the year he's 34 years old. This is a tall task in a deep conference when I like a lot of other moves that like the Clippers, I think they made a lot of good moves and they're right there. Denver's had a great season. So listen, this makes them very, very top heavy and very talented. The guy like Kevin Durant, I think you gotta do it. They gave up a lot though and they gave up a lot of future picks and you could just tell the way Kairi and James Harden and they're all talking, there's something going on in Brooklyn whether that's with the ownership or that's with the front office. It's dysfunctional and guys aren't happy. And this was a huge bust to have those three guys there and not pan out and the things to fall apart how quickly they did. So I think there's something more there. But yeah, this is great for the Phoenix Suns. They made a splash. They went and got a mega star. And they're extremely talented now. I just, I gotta see it for a couple of weeks, couple of months to kind of put them at the top right now. Shoms, that's the thing. I feel like as media we've killed front offices for much less, but we're talking about a team that's had these huge superstars now didn't keep any of them. And then a lot of people's opinions didn't get anything back that would be even close to being considered comparable. What is the deal? What is going on in Brooklyn that this is sort of where we are now with this team? Well, I think they went all in on a couple of different trades. And unfortunately for the organization, like Kyrie Irving, what happened last year with the vaccine mandate that set the franchise back basically leads to James Harden's departure. James Harden has been pretty vocal about the fact that Kyrie Irving's inability to be on the court, their ability, they played that three headed monster duo whatever you want to call it. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden played 16 games together. They were 13 and three. So it would have been great to see that threesome like a 80 game span at the very minimum. We didn't even see it for 20 games. And so I think it's a run of misfortune, bad luck. What could have been, I mean, when you think about the biggest what ifs in league history, to me that three player duo to me takes the cake for sure in the whole league. But I think when you look at the Nets right now when you talk about getting another co-star they've looked really hard at Pascal Siakum but to go get a Pascal Siakum to pair him with Kevin Durant it would have cost you Nick Claxton from what I'm told. It would have cost you basically multiple, multiple draft picks. So you're mortgaging your future. You're giving up a guy and Nick Claxton who's clearly become a cornerstone piece for you right now and someone you'd want with Kevin Durant and Pascal Siakum. So the Nets were really in a tough position because some of their assets like Johan, Kyrie, Ben Simmons did not hold that same value in the marketplace. So you're kind of having to mortgage some of your future and some of the pieces that really matter to go get that co-star for Pascal Siakum. So you miss out on Siakum, trade Kevin Durant and now you're basically retooling and rebuilding. Yeah, I think it's a great point from Shoms and it's really fascinating that Kevin seemingly didn't hold the feet to their fire with that one. Did not mortgage the Nets complete future to get him another star now like we've seen other stars in the league do before. He could have told them put every pick on the table go get Pascal Siakum, go get whomever it is that's available at the moment. And seemingly did not. And seemingly him and the team both decided, let's go this way and make moves for the future without you rather than make moves for the present with you. And that's a decision. That's a decision will take years and years and years to see if it was the right decision. Some of these picks are 2029. We're talking about six years from now and then we still gotta watch whoever that pick is develop into whatever that player is. What I think was truly the downfall and I don't mean to place blame on any singular person's shoulders but Kyrie Irving and James Hardin did themselves no favors on the way out. Did the Nets no favors on the way out and essentially tank their value on the way out with their trade demands. James has talked a bunch about who's really the quitter kind of essentially saying like, yeah, he understands why he's viewed as the quitter himself. And then Kyrie, same thing, comes and tells them on Friday, I want out, I'm gone and he's gone by Sunday. He left them, no choice. There was no star for them to go grab. And the one that they did get, the one all started did acquire in any of these three trades was Ben Simmons. And we've seen that Ben Simmons just has not materialized into being anything close to what he's gonna be. He got on the podium the other day and said, I'm not gonna be that guy for a while. Had either one of those trades warranted anything of true now value. That's not to say Michael Breeds is Cam Johnson, Doreen Finney-Smith, and everything else they got, there's not value, but value they could see right now on the court. All-star level value right now in the court. Kevin Reyes is probably the net today and he's getting ready to play tonight. But it never happened that way. And because of the trickling from Kyrie not getting the mandate and Kyrie not getting the vaccination and James Harding clearly missed by him missing as many games, the team deciding to not let him play road games at that time. And on and on and on and on and on, those guys got way less than they were worth on the open market. And now here the nets are needing to get resources back later. And who was their best trade chip to do that? Kevin Durant. Now they're four draft picks, Richard. They have Mike Cal Bridges, who's probably the first team all defense guy. Cam Johnson, a guy who they can look to add on in the all season. And now they actually have resources and will be great to have on this team right now. A seven foot multi-time all-star who can play on both sides of the court. Maybe score 30 points a game. It just doesn't work like that in Brooklyn though, I guess. And real glass thing on this. I don't, they're in a weird situation cause they're not fully tanking in my opinion. Like they have a solid team. They just don't have that star player anymore. And without Kyrie, without Kevin Durant, they're not a contender. That's obvious. But you look at now the assets and the kind of the depth and the balance team that they formed here. They're in kind of that weird no-man's land where they're not a contender but they're not going to lose enough games to kind of be in the lottery. So they're in a weird situation now where at least they do have assets and they got better. They got younger. They got deeper. But they're not a contender. But yeah, it's a weird spot right now for the Nets. But they're going to make the playoffs. They're probably going to lose first round cause they don't have enough. But it's interesting. They may not lose in the first round, Chandler. I don't know why all of a sudden you root for the Chiefs and now you've decided you know everything about everything that is not right. Eddie, how many times have you been asked if you're moving to Phoenix since the deadline? Over under a hundred. A few hundred, a few hundred. And I'm not as of right now. I'll be quicker to move to L.A. with Chandler. Yeah, same tease, same tease. All right, like look, that wasn't the only trade that, I mean, it wasn't even close to the only trade that happened. Shams, you were so busy. Everyone just waiting and pins and needles for your next tweet the whole time it's happening. You broke a bunch of them. Let's start right there. What is the most impactful trade that happened, in your opinion, after Katie? I was texting with Chandler about this the other day and great minds think alike. To me, the Clippers getting Eric Gordon and Bones Highland was the most underrated, probably least talked about trade. Lucanard goes to Memphis. Houston ends up with a bunch of expiring contracts and a pick swap. But for the Clippers to get Eric Gordon, who I think Tyler will trust more, he's a veteran player. You know he can score, you know he can shoot. He's played well in big moments. He's a guy that I think will provide them with a lot of stability coming off the bench or starting. And then Bones Highland, he brings a level of electricity coming off the bench. He can score. He's something that they did not have with kind of those veteran point guards and Reggie Jackson as well as John Wall. So to me, what the Clippers did kind of blind under the radar was the most underrated move of the trade deadline. Such a clipative move, Chandler. Yeah, I mean I agree with Lucanard. I love the Clippers. I think they already had a very, very deep team. Now they added these two dudes that are bonafide scores can go get a bucket. I tech shams. I was confused. It's obviously something off the court or personality issues. Cause Bones Highland is young. He's talented. He can score the ball. He's great in that six man role. So for the Clippers to be able to acquire him and kind of relieve pressure off PG and Kawhi on that second string and Eric Gordon and I think they got plumbly too. To me, they made the biggest splash. To me, they got the deepest team. And to me, I think they're, you know, they're a real contender now with the moves they've made. I do love that the Clippers did things and it was sort of quiet. And the Bones Highland thing, I think had a lot of people wondering the same thing. Why? What happened? But the other tenant of that building, the Lakers, Chandler, in your opinion, did they improve their roster? Oh my gosh, mightily. And then it's, why can't they have this team before the season started is what I want to know. Like now they've got themselves, you know what I mean? Like now they got a real team. They got deeper. They got younger. They have an actual team with playmakers and shooters. And if this was their team in the beginning of the story with the way LeBron's played, this is a different story. And they got a real big who hasn't really blossomed in Orlando and Mo Bamba. Malik Beasley can shoot the ball at the best of them. Jared Vanderbilt to me is one of those guys that every team needs. He's tall, he's athletic, he's versatile. He can guard one through four. He can shoot the basketball. He's a huge asset. And then they got Dilo who's a real point guard that they can build with, that can play make, that can go and get you 30 on any given night. So to me, the Lakers made a huge, huge move here. And obviously I still don't think it's enough. And I don't think it's going to be able to put them, you know, advancing in the playoffs. I think maybe now they can probably squeak into that play-in if they kind of get moving here. But this was huge for them. We all know the kind of the issues with Russ and what was going on there. Shipping Patrick Beverly out, which he just got away. Maybe he'll come back, who knows. But to me, they got a lot better. Yeah, I'm with Chandler. This team is night and day right now. And I think the sneaky guy they picked up is Malik Beasley. Absolute sniper who's going to thrive next to LeBron. The Lakers have been looking for this particular type of player, essentially since LeBron came. And they finally found him in my eyes. He is going to get so many open shots playing on this roster. I think the problem looking forward is I'm not sure that this team could defend the four of us. So they're going to have to place a defense in this conference as they work their way into the playoffs. And they're in such a big hole right now. They're going to have to win something like 20 of 25 games to really get into the playoffs. And they may be able to do that. LeBron's foot is OK. And they remain healthy. And they get a little bit of synergy in the next month. And on and on, there's a lot of ifs. But the team absolutely got better. And I'm with Chandler. Dilo is huge for them. He can run the second unit. He can add a little more stability to that offense. And if reports are to be believed, and Russ was a vampire or whatever he got called, there's some addition by some traction as well. I don't know. The Russ stuff seems oddly personal and has a weird venom to it. I wish him the best in Chicago or wherever he lands. Maybe Psalms knows. But I truly do wish him the best. I thought he played great this season. But he obviously was not a fit. And I keep going back to him going, yo, let's just have fun. And LeBron's staring a hole through him in the locker room. So there was something to miss. But now they don't have him. And now they get to prove their point. You can't blame Russ for this season. I thought he played great for them off the bench. But I think, listen, when we were together last week, last Monday, we talked about them missing out on Kyrie Irving. And I think when you look at now, there were two passes this organization had. You go all in on one star, or you kind of move your assets around and get a bunch of role players. I think that's what they did. The Angel Russell, Malik Beesey, Jared Vanderbilt, Mo Bamba, on and on, like Chandler said, I think this provides them more NBA caliber bodies, more players that can play at a high level at different positions. And so I definitely think they improved. And you have to give Rob Polinka and that Lakers for an office, a lot of credit, especially after last week, as we spoke about, they didn't even call the Nets back. Now I think, they made all the calls they needed to make by then the week. And did you say they got to win 20 or 25 with a straight face? Is that what just happened or am I drawn? Is that 20 or 25? I was inspired by your LeBron hat. I said that, I think they can do it. I'm not wearing a LeBron hat. That would never touch my skin ever. Thank you very much. All right, moving on. There was a mention of Kyrie there because we finally got to see the project. Look, Mav's loss to the Kings, it was an overtime there, but we got to see Luca and Kyrie. Everybody's waiting on that. Luca afterwards said, it's only our first game together, but it's so fun to play with this guy. He's an amazing basketball player and I think it's going to be really fun. First game, it was really fun. Mark that quote down for months from now. I just want to make sure we remember all those words. It's only one game, Chandler. Have you seen enough? Is this thing going to work? Listen, I think it's a work in process, but I do think these guys understand what has to be done. They're both smart enough players. They're both so advanced and so good offensively that this should be able to work. And I think when you look at where they are, they're right there in the thick of things in the West or in home court advantage. They got better. They definitely, they got better. Kyrie Irving's special talent. I went to the game against the Clippers and it seems very positive. Everyone's excited. Obviously it was the first game, but there's a lot to go with this. And I think they know this is kind of a, this is a trial period and everyone's kind of on their best behavior. Everybody's trying to do the right thing here. But I think offensively, this is a perfect match. I think these guys know how to play with other stars. They know how to shoot the ball. They know how to play make, they know how to space the floor. They've done a good job kind of adding shooting around these guys. But to me, the Mavs, Josh Green and Jaden Hardy, these are two guys that have gotten no love all year long. I went to that game and I watched them. These guys can really play. They play hard. They can score the ball. These are two guys that they're going to need to kind of have the impact off the bench moving forward. But there's holes defensively. There's holes with their size. I think they need to get Maxi Kleber back. He's going to be big for them. But I do think this will work. And I do think there's going to be a lot of challenges throughout the rest of the season. But this was, to me, was a great move for Dallas. And again, it's the same thing with Phoenix. You want to go get a Kevin Durant? You're going to have to give up some stuff and it's going to be some sort of a risk. He's 34 years old, et cetera. Same thing for the Mavs. You had a chance to go get the best player available at the time. They did it. Yeah, look, they're going to be an absolute monster on offense. And you can just see the struggle with guarding that team and those two guys. What I wonder going forward is how they work them together. When Kyrie played with LeBron, he was a screener a lot for LeBron at the point of attack. And like Chandler mentioned, he knows how to play with other stars. He's done this. And he's thrived in this role. And I wonder when they get into that, when they get into pet plays like that and pet actions that will make them better. There was a lot of hot potato, a lot of your turn, my turn, and a lot of it. And they ultimately lost. So their defensive struggles were persisted. And they do have to bend quite a bit to cover for Luca, who kind of just doesn't defend. And Kyrie, who has his struggles on that in his will. But they're good enough. They're talented enough offensively. And like Chandler mentioned, the young boys, they got waiting in the wings. Those are snipers out there who can make some stuff happen. So this is going to be a very interesting team watch going forward. And they're going to be dangerous out in the playoffs. All right, Chandler, I have a question for you. You're a fan looking for a team right now. Are you picking the Mavs with Luca and Kyrie? Or are you picking the Suns with Katie? Oof. To me, I'm a homer. I'm a homer. I'm going with the Mavs. Do you think? They have the same record, the same record at home, the same record on the road. So we'll see which trade kind of worked better from this moment forward. But to me, it's the depth of the Dallas Mavs. Like the two kids I just mentioned, they have they still have guys like Christian Wood, Tim Hardaway, Junior Reggie Bullock. To me, they have more outside those two stars. And that's huge to me. Obviously, they have their holes with depth. They have their holes with defensively size, et cetera. But when you look at this team, this is going to be an offensive jug or not. And Kevin Grant is older and age. Chris Paul is older and age. DeAndre Hayton, let's not forget about all the issues he's been through in Phoenix. So to me, I think this paper pick is Dallas. But man, it's hard to bet against Kevin Durant. That's crazy. Yeah, four or five is, man, let's start them today. Might as well. We know where everybody's going to be. Not this year. Shams, look, for those of us who are not capable of living in the now, and we just want to look ahead, this time next year. Kairi, will he be in that Mavs uniform? What are we thinking here? I think if everything goes well the rest of the season and then in the summertime, listen, he's going to be a free agent. He's going to be going through another free agency process, take meetings. That's something he did not do last go around in 2019, when him and Kevin Durant went to the Brooklyn Nets. They didn't really meet with Sean Marks and Kenny Ackins and meet with other organizations before they made that decision. So now I think him having an actual free agency, as long as everything goes well, the remainder of the season, the Mavericks were one of his preferred spots. We saw at the end of it, it was Lakers, Sons, Mavs. I don't think Kyrie Irving had a problem going to either of those teams. And I really think in Dallas, he has a great fit with Mark Cuban as the owner. Nico Harrison, who him and his family know. Jason Kidd vouched for him heavily throughout this season. This is something that's been in play for the Mavericks ever since really November. Ever since that tweet went out with the anti-Semitic material movie and everything that happened that kind of casted Kyrie Irving's future up in the air. And now he is the Dallas Maverick. And I think we'll see how the remainder of the season goes. Yeah, I agree. I mean, listen, again, this is a wait and see kind of thing. And hopefully this goes well for the Dallas Mavericks. But he has to be. Or this is a very, very, very bad trade for the Mavs. And you would think there'd be some sort of deal here in place. But he's going to go through free agency. He said, I'm not talking about free agency. I'm not talking about extending my contract till the summer. But after seeing Kyrie talking to him in LA, he seems happy. And he wanted to go to Dallas. Like Sharves just said, he had a couple of teams. But he was open to going to Dallas. He has a great relationship with Mark. He's got a great relationship with J-Kid and Nico. It seems like a good fit. Obviously, a lot of things can happen throughout the rest of the season. But I'm with Sharves. I think if everything goes well and they make a nice little run there, I can see him getting three to four year deal extension for a max in Dallas. Eddie. So the options are he either stays in Dallas or he asks for another trade. How shocked would you be? Listen, if it doesn't work in Dallas, no one else is paying him. So if I'm Kyrie. Oh, please. For a long, long. Yes, somebody will pay him. They're not giving him multiple years. Chandler, sports are stupid. That's why somebody will. It's like we fall for it every single time. Somebody falls for it, right? Like, it's not us. What do you think, Eddie? Would you be shocked at all? I wouldn't be shocked at either direction. I wonder what works is like are they they win a playoff series? Does that works if he shoots bad in the conference semis? Is that that linger into his free agency? If he's taking 10 meetings, is Mark Cuban sitting there a little miffed about that? Like, hey, I really went out on a limb for you. I wouldn't say anything is a sure bet with Kyrie. I think the safest bet is a little bit, you know, a little bit of dysfunction and a little bit of uncertainty when it comes to Kyrie. I think he means well. I think he's a great guy. I think he's an incredible player. And I think he wants to stay in Dallas as of right now. But what is this February, March, April, May, June? Five months is a long time. Five months is a long time, is all I was saying. That's forever. That is a really long time. This is why you don't mention divorce and wedding vows. It would be a little awkward. But I feel like that's Kyrie Irving in a nutshell. Look, the one thing I think the conversation's been a lot about other than these gigantic trades is the GP, too. Like, what's the deal, Shoms? Like, this has gone all over the place, but now it looks like he will get to stay Golden State. What happened? So it was a 14-trade, Michelle, on deadline day. James Wiseman to Detroit. Sadiq Bada, Atlanta. Gary Payton the second to Golden State. But once Gary Payton the second got to Golden State, he took a physical on Friday. He failed the physical. He had a core muscle injury over the summer. He had surgery. And he played through that over the course of that trailblazer season this year. And he played through pain. He gutted through pain. I'm told he was given tort all by the organization in conjunction with himself. So he was getting a position to play through pain. It took that pain killing substance to try to ensure that he can alleviate some of that pain and be on the court. But until he's going to miss significant time for the remainder of the season, that's what the Warriors exam, that's what the Warriors doctors have basically told him. It could be two months. It could be three months. But the deal will go through because the Warriors, they do eventually, they do want him, but they also did not pass his physical. So this is kind of one of those things that we're taking him. We're kind of boycotting whether we're going to pass or fail his physical on the record. But I'm curious, Chandler's perspective, tort all, whether it's oral pills, whether it's injections, like how common is that in the NBA? And also, are you surprised that Portland or Gary Payton II would go through that in order to play? Yeah, I mean, it's common, but it's more of like a playoff thing, kind of get me through a series. And guys do a bunch of injections. They do a Reginokine. They can do kind of the SunVis type of stuff where it's like a gelatin, kind of, you know, a lubricant on your joints. There's tort all that's just basically a straight up numbing pain pill, like a pain pill that you can get injected into you. Guys go to Germany and do the Reginokine thing where it's same thing. It's kind of like an advanced PRP that's not really certified here, but doesn't show up on a drug test. So there's a lot of different things you can take. To me, listen, Gary Payton's a good player. Is this a huge trade for the Warriors to kind of put them over the top? Not in my eyes. I think he had a great role with them last year. I think he's, you know, a freak athlete. I think he can guard multiple positions. He kind of plays a dunker spot, almost as if he's a five man, very, very well. He knows the system. He knows the guys. He knows how to play with Steph Curry. So it is a good fit, but I mean, is this like a breaking trade? I don't think this kind of moves the needle for them very much. And especially with all this medical stuff coming out, I went through the same thing in Portland where they, you know, they've had the Brandon Roy's, the Greg Odin. And when I was considering going to Portland and for agency, they took the physical very, very serious. And now it's interesting to see it kind of the other way going back to Golden State from Portland. But to me, listen, I hope he's healthy, I hope he can play. He's a very good player, but it doesn't move the needle much for me. No, but I did feel for him. And I feel like the fact that he was there is maybe a little bit why they decided to keep him, if it was somebody else, maybe not. But we're going to take a quick break. I hate this story, but we're going to get the latest on it. Zion's newest setback. And could Danny Green be returning here to Cleveland? That's next. Welcome back to Run It Back. Just because the trade deadline has come and gone does not mean that the scoops stop, Shoms. You had one about Zion. What's the latest on the timetable there? So Zion Williamson re-aggravated his hamstring strain. He's been out since January 2nd. And David Griffin says that he's going to miss an additional few weeks after the all-star break because of that hamstring re-aggravation. I'm told it could be at least another month. And so we're going to be without Zion Williamson at least it seems like through mid-March and then you hope to get him back at some point before the playoffs and before the end of the regular season. But just a brutal blow. This is a guy that made the all-star starting team. He was playing at such a high level for a couple of months of the season and basically made the all-star team and got all the accolades and all NBA consideration off of that start. So brutal loss for them. They have not played well lately. They're really back in position to kind of fighting for play in a playoff spot. And they're going to do it for at least most likely another month or so without Zion Williamson. Man, Chandler, this sucks. I'll say it sucks. How worried are you about this? Yeah, this is tough. And this is kind of, this is a huge blow to him because everything I hear the kid works hard. He's a great dude. But these were the concerns him coming out of Duke. And I think I said this on here before but I have a medical guy in the NBA that I trust, you know, a lot who I went through a lot of stuff with who when we were watching Zion play at Duke, he was saying this is physically impossible for this kid to sustain this. With that load and that athleticism and that impact with his size, the body can't handle that. And so I'm not shocked at all. I'm honestly more sad because when he does play, he's so great and he's must see TV. And you just see the dunk there at the end. The NBA needs more guys like Zion. But I'm concerned the guys played 29 games and they've been allowed 29 games and he's been very, very good. But this isn't nothing to do with basketball. This is all just physical anatomy that I just think it's impossible to sustain unless he really cuts weight or does something drastically different. But this is tough because he is so good when he's on the floor and he's just not on the floor enough. Yeah, it's unfortunate. It sucks. Like Michelle said, we're talking about a guy who's played less than 40% of the games in his career. Guys who's only played more than 30 games once who just missed an entire season. And if we find out he misses the rest of this season, nobody on this panel will be shocked. And that's just the way he's been managed and that's the way his body has been. It's unfortunate. And we're talking at least a month from now and they bring him around slowly, like we said before. And if you get to see him play off basketball and end of the day, they need him badly right now. They're only a game over 500. They can just as easily slip into the play-in or out of the playoffs. And that picks won't matter as much with the Lakers. It was just two months ago where like, yo, they've fleeced them in the Anthony Davis trade. They might get Victor Wimminiama off that trade. And now looking at it, it's like, you know, you really got to wonder about Zion's future and what his future is in his league as he continues to accrue these injuries and as they build up on his body. And if there's a true answer here, like Chandler was saying, we don't know if there's a fix for him in this body. He really shouldn't be able to do things he's doing. It's just frustrating. He looks amazing. He looks like one of the best players in the league when he is on the floor. Yeah, we're all missing out on this one right now. Look, guys that are still moving around, getting released, waivers, all that good stuff. So Reggie Jackson-Shoms, where's he headed? So, Bones Highland out and Reggie Jackson will be signing with the Denver Nuggets. This is the guy that has been a veteran throughout his career. He played at a high level. He had a great run with the Clippers a couple of years ago, making it to the Western Conference Finals. And so, I think Reggie Jackson will provide some stability there. They've been looking for that at the backup point guard position. Guy that can score the ball play at a high level in meaningful playoff moments. That's something that they felt like Bones Highland could not. And they basically both switched teams. That is all right, Eddie. What do you think this does for Denver? I mean, it plugs that hole right back up. And then, you know, for all the things, all the flaws Reggie has, he is battle-tested. And we all know Yolkets makes it easier for everybody on that team. So, he's gonna get some great looks out there and he'll be able to play some backup point guard minutes and find a spot in every rotation. So, they were able to move along just fine. And you know, I think he's arguably a better player than Bones Highland right now. So, it's an upgrade in that sense. Yeah, I agree. And Reggie Jackson, he kind of brings that vet experience. And the Nuggets are who they are. They got a cozy lead right now. And there's the number one seed. They have arguably the best player as well. And these role players are having really good years. Aaron Gordon, Michael Porter, Kabul Pope. These guys are playing very, very well at a high level. So, you look at the standings there. And they're in a really good place. They had a guy like Thomas Bryant even who kind of flew on the radar as well. That's a really good stint with the Lakers this year and just kind of grew frustrated with his role once AD came back. But the Nuggets are, I think to me, I think they're a safe pick. I don't love them defensively, honestly, but they're a really, really, really good balance team and offensively, man, they are impressive. Shams last, but certainly not least. Big time vet, Danny Green. Gonna have a new home. Three time champ, a champ with your spurs. He will be returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers where he started his career. He's signing a one year, $2 million contract. So he's getting a lot more than just his minimum. So for the last three months of the season, he's gonna make $2 million. He's gonna go back to Cleveland. He's gonna be able to provide them some veteran leadership, a guy that they can bring off the bench. But I think when you look at his suitors, the Lakers, the Suns, the Celtics, he was clearly looking at a championship contending team. He played on one in Memphis. He leaves one in Houston. And now he's gonna be in Cleveland for the remainder of the season. Yeah, he had a nice little list of teams that were interested, Chandler. They took the Cavs job. You surprised, and what does it do for the Cavaliers? I'm a little bit surprised, but no, the Cavaliers, this is exactly what they need. They need more vets. They need more guys like Kevin Love, like Lopez. And Danny Green's the perfect fit. He provides shooting off the bench. He's a great mentor for all these young guys. And look, with everything that just happened with the Nets, the Celtics, the Bucks, the Sixers are really the only three clear-cut, better teams in the Eastern Conference than the Cleveland Cavaliers. And we all know anything can happen in a playoff series. So I think they're a really good team. I think they're deep. I think they're young and athletic and explosive. But I don't think they're a contender to win it all this year. But again, who knows? And a move like this kind of gives them that confidence and that, you know, that leadership in the locker and moving forward and going into a playoff with a guy with a championship experience. Yo, Shoms, who is Danny Green's agent? Because he's good. He's smart. He's watching the league. The Cleveland has had this hole at the three all season long. And it's a real opportunity for him to grasp that. They need a shooter on the wing. They need somebody who can help defensively. It's really the perfect spot for him. And I completely understand why he went there. And winter's almost over. So Cleveland won't be as bad as it typically is. And you know, have a great rest of the season there. Smart job by that guy, whoever his agent is. I'm assuming he's great. Channel loves Cleveland. I'm assuming. By the way, I'm in Cleveland right now. It's sunny and not that bad, which for me to say is a really big deal. I swore I'd never return. Shoms, you are the real MVP of the trade deadline. We salute you. Thank you for all your hard work. Safe travels back. And we will also take a quick break right now. But these guys aren't going anywhere. Next up, Celtic Grizzlies on Sunday. Are Celtics still the favorite? We'll discuss when Run It Back returns. That man has a family precious. My dog, Walker. Bust my guy. Bust my dog. Another white boy. Another white boy getting pestered. My guy got punched on. That hurts. That hurts. I've been watching Precious for quite some time. He punted Kevin's dunk attempt in the Olympics. So he's got a little vendetta, but this is worse. Can't punt on my guy, Walker. Kept him. Well, I mean, look, I don't know if he... Go ahead. I was saying, this is a dream scenario, too, for a dunker to kind of drive middle and kind of... He's kind of protected with the left side of his body. And this is the risk you take as a big guy when you try and block everything. Things like this are going to happen. Oh, funny you should say that. Same game. Different dude. Chris Boucher on Kelly. That might be words. Oh, my goodness. And, man, we just watched Boucher. That is one tall, skinny dude. Did he travel, Chandler? Yes, he most certainly did. One, two. All right. This is tough because Kelly already can't really launch a more jump. And he taught him back. But he tries. He taught him back. Purple shoes. I feel like we've had a few of these Kelly Olenek moments, so maybe maybe we leave him alone for a second, poor guy. John Collins with a... Hey, wait a minute. No, I didn't approve this. No, sir. Zach Collins. Yes, Collins on Collins crime. That's how he dunked. I feel like all... I feel like this is all I ever see happen is that Collins like he elbows guys and then he gets shot to block. Pardon? This is tough. What's that? First of all, that's not all that Zach Collins does. Thank you very much. I am surprised to know about the magic we hit John in the face here. Right. You guys, Zach is just scrappy. Leave me alone. Leave him alone. Rim blocked him. That's all. Well, the good news is you're going to get a lot more Zach Collins now that Pertle's gone. So you're welcome. Lori Markinon on Jericho Simms. And Jericho Simms has bunnies. Right. Lori's poster tour continues. He's got a nice collection this year. He's got a nice collection. Woo. Yeah, it really does timed it. Also, I know I just saw John Collins. Isn't it funny that all the rumors of the main guys that we're going to get traded? None of them got. Oh, John Collins. All these guys that have we've been hearing about all season long and a lot of them didn't get moved. No, the only one that moved my goodness did witty on Joelle. Oh, I like this one. This is big time. Joe gave it a real attempt to that's like that's and it was in crunch time. That was tough. By the way, Tobias Tobias, just just give him the middle. Just go ahead, bro. Like, what was that? That's how I play defense. Two hand, two handed stuff to two hands. That's how I put it. If they block you with two hands, you are falling on your back. So it is risky to go up. I like that. Just just the names alone. Look, there was basketball. It's weird that there was basketball yesterday and feel like it, but there was a presuperable showdown between the Grizzlies and the Celtics. Boston shorthanded. They beat Memphis. Don't tell John Morant. He's still very confident. 16 points only, though, from Tatum. Look, they've been the best team for most of this season, Chandler. So your confidence level, everything that happened through the trade deadline. Where's your confidence level still on this Boston squad? I'm still super high on them and a lot of teams did make moves and the Celtics didn't really make moves, but they are who they are. They're so solid. They have their two headed monster. They have vets. They have young guys. And most importantly, they play defense and they play the right way. They play unselfish. They are a loaded team and you see they're outside of the Bucks. Maybe the Sixers. I can't see anybody giving them a hard time and last night just completely banged up. No Jaylen Brown, no Brogdon, no Smart and they still get it done at home against the Grizzlies. That's just who they are. It's next met up mentality. They're super deep. They're super balanced. And again, they really can lock in defensively and kind of bog the game down for you. So the Celtics are in a really good place. Hopefully they can be 100% healthy moving towards the end of the season and the playoffs. And they are going to be a really, really tough beat and come the postseason. Yeah, look, that's a great win by them. Early morning game, Super Bowl Sunday. Nobody's pumped to play this game. That's a good team they're playing against. Yeah, they're missing a few guys. The Grizzlies missing a few guys too. Jayson Tatum shot three of 16. It didn't matter. Eight guys scoring double digits. They hit 21-3s. They shot more 3s than 2s. They've really embraced this style where they spread out. They kick it around the horn and they find these guys open shots. They're a tough team and they're going to be even tougher in the playoffs when they shorten their rotation, when the guys are playing through their injuries and they have their full bevy of players. And hopefully Jayson Tatum is back online with his shootings at rough week or so. But that's a tough, tough win for them and they just continue to impress. For all the noise about all the other teams in the Eastern Conference, for as good as Philly has looked, for as strong as Milwaukee's coming along, for all the conversation about the Nets and we were just talking about the Cavaliers, they're still the number one team in the Conference. They still got the best record in the league. It's been an impressive season from the Celtics and if Tatum could shake off these shooting walls, they'll look even better. They get Jalen Brown back soon. They get Marcus Smart back soon. They're going to be looking like the Juggernaut they looked like in the early, in the beginning of the season. Ah, I love that word Juggernaut. Look, Chandler, if you could, pick the best suited team out of the Western Conference to put together for this finals against Boston. If in fact that is what happens, who are you picking out of the West? To me, it's either Nuggets or Clippers. I think those are both the deepest teams. I think the Clippers gives, you know, defensively. I think they match up really good with the Celtics. I think that would be the toughest matchup for Boston. You know, I think when you look at the Denver Nuggets, defensively their holes there, they won't really be able to guard Tatum. They won't really be able to guard Jalen Brown and the Celtics are very good defensively. So to me, I think the best, the best matchup would be Boston and L.A. Look, so this is the Grizzlies on the other end with the loss. I just want to say to John Morant, just never, never let it down because he's still very confident in his team. Despite this loss, however, his coach maybe has a little bit of advice for them because they are, what, 11 and 17 on the road. They're still second in the Western Conference, so we're good there. But he did say that his guys need to be more confident together on the road for whatever that is, Chandler, a young team going out on the road, as confident as they seem to be or at least through John Morant. How difficult is it for them to thrive when they're traveling? Yeah, it's difficult. And look, this is a young team. They are most likely going out on the road. They're enjoying themselves. They're having fun. And this is what you do at this point in your career. But they are still a very good team. They're still very fun to watch. They still have a lot of different pieces, a lot of different ways to hurt you. But when you look at the Western Conference and you look at the moves that Dallas made, you look at the moves that Phoenix made, the yoke of the moves that Clippers and Lakers made. A lot of teams kind of upgraded their roster and the Memphis Grizzlies really didn't. And I don't think that changes much. We know that they like their team. We know they ooze with this arrogance and this confidence all season long and they've embraced the villain role. And they're going to be in the playoffs and they're going to be a tough matchup. And they're going to grit and grind you and then they're going to dance and they're going to talk trash. And it's going to be an exciting series. I just think a lot of other teams in the West made some really, really big moves and the Grizzlies didn't. So we'll kind of see how it pays out for them for the rest of the season. Yeah, look, they're the villain in the league right now. They're getting that treatment and they haven't won a title. They've kind of done it to themselves. So they're getting everybody's best shot. They're getting every road crowds best shot as well. And it seemed to have a little bit rattled. Like I don't think they lack for confidence but that does add up throughout the course of the season. And they've kind of created that for themselves. And I think they'll be able to work their way through it. We've seen them win road playoff games. This is still a great team. They're nursing some injuries. They're waiting on Big Steve to come back. Hopefully we get the true Grizzlies come to playoffs and we get to really find out if they find out West as Jamarra said. He didn't even care about the trade deadline. He said they're still fine out West. So we'll see. Coming up next, we try to make you some money. We are going to try our best on the flight parlay when we return. Well, we last saw you. It was Wednesday of last week and we left you with our hot, hot, hot three leg parlay trying to get you some money for the weekend. And the only one that came through for you was Eddie. Chandler, we're awful at this. Awful. I mean, this was the map. Didn't have their team. Tyree doesn't really play defense. And Paul George faces me. Not 24. It's a bad beat. So what do you want from me? It's a bad. Well, and also, America, this is why you never bet on your own team or try and bet with your heart. Because that's what I did. And I will not do it again. But we start fresh. It's a Monday. We get another shot at this until we don't. So Eddie, what do you have for this evening? Look, it's tough being the resident gambling expert here, obviously. I'm going to the Nets plus three at the at the Nix. They've won nine straight against this team. I think it's going to continue. I also want to say, can we get Sons vs Mavs like a prop for me and Chandler? Can we do that, Richard? Jason, can we make that happen? Because I'm going. I'm definitely going Sons the rest of the way. Put it on the show. Make it a sponsor. Do something cool with it. But yeah, Nets win their 10th straight against the Nix. I like that. I told you they have the same record at home record. So we could just start right now. Eddie, I got. I like this. I like it. It's a side thing every time. All right. I like this. I think it's a good idea. Chandler? What do you have for me? This is confusing to me. We got the number one team in the West who I'm looking at the injury report. Maybe guys, the game time decision on Murray and Gordon. But they're getting points at the heat. And you look at the injury report on the heat. Everybody is a game, a game time decision. So who knows? Maybe my guys are out. Maybe the heat guys are in. But give me the best team in the West where it's getting points anywhere, let alone a banged up Miami Heat. Yeah. And you locked it in at point and a half. I guess it's one now. I'm going to go with some Dallas action, but it's Puka Duncich under 32 and a half. I have zero reasoning for that other than I just feel it. But if you can go by any of my feelings lately, good luck. It's like, you know, he's got, he's going to split it now. He's got somebody to split it with. So all right, Chandler. Best party of the weekend was? Drinks. He was, it was a real dude. And he performed for like a solid hour. Which will allow Bruce Spring's laughing at you right now. An hour. What is that? It was 2 a.m. But yeah, an hour to do. That's it for us. We'll be back tomorrow at 10 Eastern. And this is run it back. See you then.