Pro Basketball Talk On Nbc Sports Podcast

Giannis Antetokounmpo just played a historically great NBA Finals game.Then, he played an even better NBA Finals game.Antetokounmpo is enjoying this experience and Bucks fans should, too. He has even gotten Milwaukee within a game of the Suns.Dan Feldman and Frank Madden of Locked On Bucks discuss the NBA Finals and Milwaukee's longer-term outlook.

Is Phoenix-Milwaukee the ideal big-market NBA Finals?No.Do Dan Feldman and Mike Prada care?No.The Suns and Bucks are enjoyable teams that play hard, smart and together. This Finals matchup could be excellent – especially if Giannis Antetokounmpo is healthy.Feldman and Prada preview the series (with a look back on conference finals MVPs).

The shorthanded Bucks just beat the shorthanded Hawks in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.Without Giannis Antetokounmpo, could Milwaukee hang with the Suns in the NBA Finals? Even if Trae Young returns, could Atlanta?Dan Feldman and Kurt Helin discuss the playoffs ahead and behind (who should win Western Conference finals MVP?).They also cover the Clippers' outlook with (or without?) Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the Trail Blazers facing complications with Damian Lillard and Chauncey Billups and the Mavericks hiring Jason Kidd.

The Pistons haven't won a playoff game in 13 years.But their fortunes are changing.Detroit won the 2021 NBA Draft lottery, getting the inside track to Cade Cunningham (or Jalen Green???). The other big winner: the Raptors, who moved up from the No. 7 lottery seed to the No. 4 pick. Tanking pays, apparently.On the latest ProBasketballTalk Podcast, Dan Feldman discusses how the Pistons will handle their windfall with James Edwards III of The Athletic and whether Toronto's lottery luck will change the team's trajectory with Eric Koreen of The Athletic.

Wednesday was so insane around the NBA we barely talked about Kevin Durant having a game for the ages the night before. Chris Paul and COVID, Kawhi Leonard and his ACL, Stan Van Gundy out in New Orleans, then Scott Brooks out in Washington, Donnie Nelson out as GM in Dallas, and LaMelo Ball being named Rookie of the Year. It's almost too much to process, but Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports give it a shot — and they take a couple of listener questions.

The Trail Blazers have reached a crossroads.After making the playoffs eight straight years, Portland ousted coach Terry Stotts. C.J. McCollum could get traded. Damian Lillard almost certainly won't, but building around him is a major challenge.And Neil Olshey said A LOT at his end-of-season press conference (embedded above).Where will and should the Trail Blazers go from here?Dan Feldman and Danny Marang of NBC Sports Northwest and the Blazers Edge Podcast discuss.

The Celtics just went through a shocking shakeup, Danny Ainge stepping down as team president (though not necessarily retiring) and Brad Stevens getting promoted from coaching to running the front office.What's happening in Boston?Dan Feldman and Jared Weiss of The Athletic discuss the Celtics' new structure, whether they'll trade Kemba Walker or Marcus Smart, how they should build around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, comments Ainge made or may not have made on the way out the door and how prepared the Nets' defense – after stifling Boston – is for the Bucks:

The NBA playoffs began with three-to-four Western Conference teams – Lakers, Clippers, Jazz and arguably Suns – looking like championship contenders.All four have have taken dents to their cases:The Clippers might be imploding as they've fallen behind 2-0 to the Mavericks.Lakers star LeBron James has looked only relatively healthy (at best) with his ankle issue.Suns star Chris Paul is injured.The Jazz had a rough showing in Game 1 then a key defenseless stretch in Game 2.On the latest ProBasketballTalk Podcast, Dan Feldman and Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune give progress reports for the West contenders and assess whether Dallas belongs in the conversation.They also got into a Philadelphia fan dumping popcorn on Russell Westbrook, a Knicks fan maybe spitting on Trae Young, Kyrie Irving's comments about racism in Boston, fallout from Utah sitting Donovan Mitchell in Game 1, whether Jazz teammates Jordan Clarkson or Joe Ingles should have won Sixth Man of the Year and why Bojan Bogdanovic got a Most Improv

The Los Angeles Lakers struggled at points but went to Anthony Davis at center lineup when it mattered and evened their series with the Suns. The other Los Angeles team, the Clippers, look to be in serious trouble down 0-2 to Luka Doncic and the Mavericks, with the Clippers' defense falling apart. Another year without a battle for Los Angeles? No Hallway Series? Mark Medina of the USA Today joins Kurt Helin of NBC Sports to discuss the two Los Angeles teams and their playoff series, plus some talk of how aggressive the Warriors need to be this offseason to build a team around Stephen Curry.

Dan Feldman and Kurt Helin discussed their 2021 NBA award picks, including:MVPDefensive Player of the YearRookie of the YearSixth Man of the YearCoach of the YearExecutive of the YearAll-NBAAll-DefenseDan and Kurt also reveal their yet-to-be-published choices for Most Improved Player and All-Rookie, going especially deep on their indefensible, ridiculous, unwarranted, disrespectful, unfair, preposterous, ludicrous, revolting, unacceptable snub of Anthony Edwards for Rookie of the Year.

The first-ever play-in tournament at the end of a regular season (as much as you can call this season regular) starts off with a showstopper: Warriors at Lakers. We delve into why the Lakers are no lock in that game, plus look at the other play-in games: Spurs at Grizzlies, and in the East Washington at Boston and Charlotte at Indiana. From there, Dan Feldman and Kurt Helin of NBC Sports look at all the matchups in the first round, including why the Bucks facing the Heat is the most intriguing first-round series.

David Thorpe of TrueHoop is NBA media's foremost expert on player of development.So, he was the perfect person for discussing Dan Feldman's new concoction – Utmost Improved Player.Utmost Improved Player honors the player who has improved the most since his rookie season. The only ground rule: He must be having a career year.On the latest PBT Podcast, Thorpe and Feldman discuss their top five UIP candidates (Feldman wrote about his top 10 here).

Wizards coach Scott Brooks said Russell Westbrook would go down as the second-best point guard of all-time (behind Magic Johnson).That seemed extreme.But Westbrook is posting historic numbers, building his resume and helping Washington surge into the postseason.Dan Feldman and Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington discussed Westbrook's legacy and the NBA's hotly contested play-in tournaments on the latest ProBasketballTalk Podcast:.

There has never been and will never be anything again like the 2019-20 NBA season. From Kobe Bryant's death through the pandemic shutting down the league to the season being resurrected in "the bubble" on the Walt Disney campus in Orlando, it was unique. Ben Golliver of the Washington Post was on the inside and wrote about his bubble experiences in a new book, "Bubbleball," which covers basketball, mental health, social justice, and Kawhi Leonard in a golf cart. Ben joins Kurt Helin of NBC Sports to talk about the book, his experiences, and what we can take away from the bubble into the coming playoffs (will the Clippers fold again, or are they different?).

The Nets, Lakers and Clippers are deservedly championship favorites.But this isn't just a three-horse race.The Jazz and Suns – who've been the NBA's best teams so far this season – absolutely have title chances. Even if they fall short of that ultimate prize in the playoffs, Utah and Phoenix deserve even more commendation for their overall success this year.Dan Feldman talked with Jazz beat writer Tony Jones of The Athletic and Suns beat writer Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic about these high-quality teams.

Teams have about 10 games left and the Eastern Conference playoff chase is still both wide open and confusing. Can anyone explain Boston's ups and downs? How has defense fueled the Wizards' recent run? Did the Bulls miss on Daniel Gafford? Of the Bucks, Nets, and 76ers, which one comes out of the East? The Knicks turnaround has been brilliant, but are they are playoff threat this year? Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington and Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports and Celtics Blog join Kurt Helin of NBC Sports to break down the East playoff chase over the final 10 games of this condensed season.

The NBA regular season is about 80% complete. Some teams have established themselves as much as possible in the regular season and are just biding their time until an opportunity to prove themselves in the playoffs. Other teams are tanking strategically emphasizing resting good veterans and developing bad young players.But the regular season isn't over.There are still at least a few things to learn the rest of the regular season.Dan Feldman and J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star discuss with an emphasis on the Celtics, Mavericks, Raptors, Bulls and Warriors and MVP and Sixth Man of the Year races.

Stephen Curry is on the kind of roll that is getting the attention of fans, MVP voters, and opponents alike. What does that mean for the Warriors' playoff chances, and what does it mean for the franchise going forward as it looks ahead to next season and beyond? Drew Shiller, the Warriors outsider from NBC Sports Bay Area, joins Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports. The trio also discusses the wide-open playoff chase in the West, not sleeping on Utah or Phoenix, and does the entire conference come down to the health of Anthony Davis and LeBron James.

Who came out on top in a hectic NBA Trade Deadline day where we saw 16 deals in a span of hours? Did Denver make itself a legit title contender by adding Aaron Gordon to the mix with Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray? What about Chicago, picking up All-Star center Nikola Vucevic? Miami landed Victor Oladipo, but both it and Philadelphia struck out with Kyle Lowry, who stayed in Toronto. How much will Rajon Rondo help the Clippers? Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports break down all the big trades plus get into a discussion about the upcoming buyout market.

Who is likely to be on the move at the NBA trade deadline? LaMarcus Aldridge? Kyle Lowry? Aaron Gordon? Will Atlanta decide to move on from promising young player John Collins? Where will players such as P.J. Tucker or George Hill land? Kurt Helin from NBC Sports and Mark Medina of the USA Today talk about all of that, whether this is going to be an active trade deadline at all, which players are more likely to be bought out, and who will be buyers at the deadline.