Pro Basketball Talk On Nbc Sports Podcast

Who was the MVP for the first half of the NBA season: Joel Embiid? LeBron James? Nikola Jokic? Is LaMelo Ball running away with Rookie of the Year? What about Coach of the Year, should it be Quin Snyder with the Jazz? Tom Thibodeau with the Knicks? Don't sleep on the job that Gregg Popovich is doing with the Spurs. Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports dive into both of those and the rest of the major NBA awards at the mid-point of the season.

The 2021 NBA All-Star Game is happening March 7 in Atlanta, whether the players want it or not. But which players will get selected? Who should get picked, both by the fans (and media/players) as starters, and as reserves? Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports lay out their picks and debate both the starters and the fringes of the team, where arguments for a number of players likely to just miss the cut can be made.

We are a quarter of the way into this NBA season, and there have been surprises — Memphis, Cleveland — and there have been disappointments, such as Dallas and Miami. Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman from NBC Sports discuss those four teams and more, and delve into what got them there and if they can sustain it/turn things around.

The Brooklyn Nets pushed all their chips into the middle of the table in a trade for James Harden, forming a super trio with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving (when he returns). Is that enough? Can these three stars get along on offense, and the bigger question, will they have enough defense to win at the highest levels? Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman from NBC Sports break down the trade, what it means for Brooklyn, where Houston goes from here, and why Indiana and Cleveland did well. The duo also talks about the coronavirus and its impact on the league and season.

Is Giannis Antetokounmpo going to repeat as MVP, or can a first-timer such as Luka Doncic pick up the award this year? Is No. 1 pick Anthony Edwards going to be Rookie of the Year? And is there any team in the West — or the East for that matter — that can rise up and knock LeBron James and the Lakers off the mountain top? Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports dive into all of this, make their predictions (and yes, both of them have the Lakers going back-to-back — but it's not going to be easy).

The Washington Wizards' clear goal is to make the playoffs this season, and they are banking on Russell Westbrook to help lift Bradley Beal and the rest of the squad up to that level. Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington joins Kurt Helin of NBC to talk about what Beal wants if he is going to stay in Washington, and if a team with Thomas Bryant, Davis Bertans, and Rui Hachimura can become a solid playoff team in the East. The pair also then discuss all of the Eastern conference, from Milwaukee and Miami at the top through an interesting to watch but not very good Charlotte team.

Giannis Antetokounmpo has chosen to stay in Milwaulkee, which is fantastic for the Bucks, maybe good for the league, but bad for the free agent market next summer. The Bucks are title contenders this season but will they keep spending to stay at that level? Were does Antetokounmpo's decision leave Miami, Dallas, and other teams interested in him. Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman from NBC Sports get into all of that, then jump into previewing the Western Conference and discuss if any team can knock the Lakers off the mountain top.

It's a draft with far more questions than answers: LaMelo Ball, James Wiseman, or Anthony Edwards for the top pick? Does someone trade up to snag Wiseman? What do the Bulls do at No. 4? The Hawks at 6? Does a potentially strong player like Isaac Okoro or Onyeka Okongwu slide down the board and make some team very happy. There's a lot of solid talent in the draft, not a lot of star talent and Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman break it all down. They also digest the latest James Harden rumors.

There is something captivating about the three-peat Lakers of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant — the way they feuded, the way they won, and ultimately the way they came apart. One of the best sportswriters alive today, Jeff Pearlman, joins the NBC ProBasketballTalk Podcast to talk about that team and his new book, "Three-Ring Circus: Kobe, Shaq, Phil, and the Crazy Years of the Lakers Dynasty" (now available wherever books are sold). We delve into the team and discuss how Kobe's and Shaq's attitudes about how to approach life impacted their rocky relationship, the rough early years they were together, Phil Jackson's role, and ultimately how it all came apart. Pearlman provides fantastic insights and fascinating stories about these legendary players and their iconic team that is now part of Lakers' lore.

It may be October heading into November, but the NBA offseason is here and there are a lot of questions: Will Giannis Antetokounmpo lock in with the Bucks? Will Victor Oladipo get traded? What about Chris Paul? Will the Timberwolves or Golden State trade out of one of the top couple picks in the NBA draft? Which teams made a smart hire with their new coach. Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports are joined by friend of the podcast Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports/Real GM/Celtics blog to go over all of that and more — there is even Jakob Poeltl talk. Listen and you will be better prepped for the coming NBA offseason.

It's moved from June to October, and rather than cross-country flights everyone will be in a bubble in Orlando, but the NBA Finals are finally here: The Los Angeles Lakers vs. the Miami Heat. The Lakers are the heavy favorites but Miami posses some matchup challenges, starting with Bam Adebayo on Anthony Davis. Add in Jimmy Butler checking LeBron James for stretches, and the Heat shooters such as Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson, and this is not going to be a cakewalk for Los Angeles. Mark Medina of the USA today joins Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports to break down the Finals, talk about what it would take for Miami to pull off the upset, and discuss how this matchup could influence how other teams build out their rosters in the future.

In the wake of Tyler Herro looking like the best offensive player Miami has seen since some guy decided to go back home to Cleveland, the question becomes what players have helped themselves the most in the bubble, and in the playoffs in particular? Not coincidentally, Miami and Denver have a lot of those players. Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports get into that, talk some Boston/Miami series, and also talk about the recent coaching carousel including Billy Donovan to Chicago and the fact no team has hired a Black coach this offseason.

What happened to a Clippers team that played like it was entitled to a trip to the Finals? Does the gritty, surprising Denver team that came back on Utah and the Clippers have a chance against LeBron James and the Lakers? Seriously, what happened to the Clippers? Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports discuss all of that, plus get into the start of the Boston and Miami series in the East, what Mike D'Antoni and the Rockets might do, and also, what the heck happened to the Clippers?

The ping-pong balls bounced the Minnesota Timberwolves way, they now have the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. Now what? Do they take Anthony Edwards or LaMelo Ball, seemingly the consensus top two picks? Do either of them fit next to D'Angelo Russell at the point, and with Karl-Anthony Towns at center? Just how bad would Minnesota's defense be with Towns, Russell, and either Ball or Edwards on the court together? Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports discuss all that, plus how badly the Warriors may want to trade out of the No. 2 pick, and what happens with Charlotte at No. 3 and down through the lottery, all the way to Boston at No. 14 (and the end of the Celtics run of using other team's picks).

What is life like inside the NBA's restart campus at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, is it all just basketball and Mickey-shaped ice cream bars? Mark Medina of the USA Today is one of the reporters in the bubble and he spoke with Kurt Helin in this latest PBT Podcast about life and food in the bubble. They also discussed the scrimmage games, the opening of the NBA season, players kneeling and taking more than just symbolic steps for Black Lives Matter, who is going to win it all, and much more.

Which team is going to win it all? Which is the biggest threat Milwaukee and Giannis Antetokounmpo in the East? Which team will be the biggest surprise? Can anyone catch Memphis for the eighth seed? The NBA is back and Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman from NBC Sports make their restart predictions on all of that and more in this podcast, plus they talk about the likely sale of the Timberwolves.

The NBA is back! Or will be in July, at least, when 22 teams report to Orlando to play in a format that will see eight "seeding" games followed by potential play-in games for the eighth seed. After that it's a regular playoffs — no 1-16 seed but still East and West — with seven-game series each round. Kurt Helin, Dan Feldman, and Keith Smith break down the format and whether this is a format that provides enough safety to the players and staffs in Orlando.

For the third straight season, Rob Dauster of College Basketball Talk collaborated with Kurt Helin of Pro Basketball Talk for a full mock draft. Rob knows the prospects better than anyone. Kurt knows the teams and their needs better than anyone. The result is a unique listening experience breaking down who will be picked where based on fit.The first ten picks are on this podcast. Picks 11-30 can be found over on the College Basketball Talk feed.Here are the time-stamps for each team:11. San Antonio Spurs: (Open)12. Sacramento Kings: (5:52)13. New Orleans Pelicans: (8:58)14. Portland Trail Blazers: (13:50)15. Orlando Magic: (19:01)16. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Brooklyn Nets): (21:32)17. Boston Celtics (via Memphis Grizzlies): (25:53)18. Dallas Mavericks: (28:10)19. Milwaukee Bucks (via Indiana Pacers): (30:30)20. Brooklyn Nets (via Philadelphia 76ers): (36:54)21. Denver Nuggets (via Houston Rockets): (40:34)22. Philadelphia 76ers (via Oklahoma City Thunder): (44:27)23. Miami Heat: (46:10)24. Utah Jazz: (49:0

To get inside the Jordan-era Bulls and the documentary The Last Dance, we went to the guy who wrote the book on Jordan. Literally. Author Roland Lazenby wrote "Blood on the Horns" about these very 1997-98 Bulls, plus he wrote "Michael Jordan: The Life" and he joined Kurt Helin of NBC Sports this week. They talk about the tension on that team with GM Jerry Krause, how Michael Jordan's upbringing made him competitive, and his time in baseball — all with inside details you're not going to hear anywhere else.

LeBron James or Giannis Antetokounmpo for MVP? Zion Williamson or Ja Morant for Rookie of the Year? Can Rudy Gobert three-peat as Defensive Player of the Year? The entire team at NBC Sports' NBA page — Kurt Helin, Dan Feldman, and Keith Smith — talk about their picks for end-of-season awards, and the controversy isn't always where fans might expect it.