Hardwood Knocks

Dan delves into the issues plaguing the Los Angeles Lakers and who's most to blame. Are they taking LeBron James for granted? Is this his fault? Should they trade Russell Westbrook already? After that, it's on to the Brooklyn Nets, who have a Ben Simmons problem. Is it time to panic, or will everything be fine? TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 1:30 - INTRO 2:25 - Los Angeles Lakers/LeBron James 13:32 - Brooklyn Nets/Ben Simmons JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/31z7eyI FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL⬇️ TWITTER/IG: @danfavale / @danfavale TWITTER: @gt_hughes TWITTER: @fromal09 TWITTER/IG: @HardwoodKnocks / @hardwood_knocks TIKTOK: @hardwoodknocks TWITTER: @SportsMathNet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/2916956/advertisement

MAIL TIME, PART 2. Dan plows through the second half of some truly amazing questions from our ever-awesome listeners. This batch of basketball queries takes us through the Minnesota Timberwolves defense following the Rudy Gobert trade, the potential for anti-tanking measures, an RJ Barrett vs. Wendell Carter Jr. debate and MORE! TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 1:15 - INTRO 2:33 - Can the NBA do anything else to prevent tanking? Is relegation a real option? 5:23 - The Lauri Markkanen-Era Dynasty in Utah 6:08 - The Minnesota Timberwolves defense 13:53 - Imagining Victor Wembanyama on the Orlando Magic? 17:55 - Is there any world in which Scoot Henderson gets drafted over Victor Wembanyama? 20:22 - F*ck, Marry, Kut from the team: Luka Doncic, Ja Morant and Trae Young 21:37 - With Chris Paul reaching 11,000 assists milestone, which player under the age of 25 is most likely to reach that benchmark next? 23:25 - Is Dan a monster for ranking RJ Barrett ahead of Wendell Carter Jr. in his "Top 25 NBA Players Under 25" article for Bleach

MAIL TIME, PART 1! In the first mailbag for the 2022-23 NBA season, Dan tackles questions that cover the future of the Phoenix Suns and Devin Booker without Chris Paul, his own personal logo and mascot rankings, player evaluation and, of course, Russell Westbrook trade rumors. TIMESTAMPS BELOW⬇️ 1:15 - INTRO 4:05 - Devin Booker/Future of the Phoenix Suns 15:46 - Best and Worst NBA Logos 18:10 - Best and Worst NBA Mascots 21:36 - How should we evaluate young players on bad teams? 29:48 - The case for the Los Angeles Lakers to NOT Trade Russell Westbrook 33:01 - Will any team trade for Russell Westbrook and ACTUALLY KEEP him? JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/31z7eyI FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL⬇️ TWITTER/IG: @danfavale / @danfavale TWITTER: @gt_hughes TWITTER: @fromal09 TWITTER/IG: @HardwoodKnocks / @hardwood_knocks TIKTOK: @hardwoodknocks TWITTER: @SportsMathNet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Networ

Dan goes through his *personal* rankings of the top 25 NBA players under 25 right now. Please notice the emphasis on right now. We're not doing any sort of projection here...at least not on purpose. If you want to go into further detail with this pecking order, you can check out the full article published on Bleacher Report. Everybody ready to get really mad? Awesome. Let's do this. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 1:15 - INTRO/CRITERIA 4:40 - No. 25  5:41 - No. 24 6:52 - No. 23 8:07 - No. 22 9:36 - No. 21 11:01 - No. 20 14:20 - No. 19 16:03 - No. 18 17:14 - No. 17 18:33 - No. 16 19:54 - No. 15 21:07 - No. 14 22:12 - No. 13 23:27 - No. 12 24:48 - No. 11 26:15 - No. 10 27:28 - No. 9 28:49 - No. 8  30:12 - No. 7 31:37 - No. 6 32:41 - No. 5 33:52 - No. 4 35:12 - No. 3 36:25 - No. 2 37:29 - No. 1 JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/31z7eyI FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL⬇️ TWITTER/IG: @danfavale / @danfavale TWITTER: @gt_hughes TWITTER: @fromal09 TWITTER/IG: @HardwoodKnocks / @hardwood_knocks TIKTOK: @h

Dan and Grant reconvene for an annual tradition unlike any other: NBA 'Truth or Trash?!' Sure, some might call this rebranded 'Fact or Fiction?' But those people suck. 'Truth or Trash?!' is super creative and unique and something no one else has ever thought to do. Anyway...Our cool, hip, trendier 'Fact or Fiction' will focus on some of our earliest observations for the 2022-23 NBA season. Are the Los Angeles Lakers doomed, even if they trade Russell Westbrook? Are the New Orleans Pelicans title contenders already? Is Doc Rivers on his way out of Philadelphia? We tackle all this...and more! TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 1:15 - INTRO 4:37 - Los Angeles Lakers/Russell Westbrook 19:05 - Cleveland Cavaliers 26:06 - Doc Rivers/Philadelphia 76ers 31:02 - Back to Russ for a sec 33:14 - New Orleans Pelicans 41:45 - Julius Randle 47:02 - Devin Booker 53:09 - Bennedict Mathurin, Paolo Banchero 55:59 - Charlotte Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers, Washington Wizards 58:03 - Lauri Markkanen/Utah Jazz 1:02:13 - Tyrese Haliburton 1:07:05 - Da

Dan bounces around the entire league for some good ol' NBA takeaways. Who cares that pretty much every team is only one game into their schedule? He sure doesn't! This was a fun one, and every batch of takeaways is delivered in roughly 60 seconds or less. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - BLOCKBUSTER TRAILER DROP 1:07 - INTRO 4:22 - Atlanta Hawks 5:05 - Boston Celtics 5:37 - Brooklyn Nets 6:46 - Charlotte Hornets 7:29 - Chicago Bulls 8:14 - Cleveland Cavaliers 8:51 - Dallas Mavericks 9:43 - Denver Nuggets 10:25 - Detroit Pistons 13:41 - Golden State Warriors 14:20 - Houston Rockets 15:19 - Indiana Pacers 16:27 - LA Clippers 17:27 - Los Angeles Lakers 19:37 - Memphis Grizzlies 20:24 - Miami Heat 21:17 - Milwaukee Bucks 21:59 - Minnesota Timberwolves 23:07 - New Orleans Pelicans 24:19 - New York Knicks 25:41 - Oklahoma City Thunder 25:45 - Orlando Magic 27:37 - Philadelphia 76ers 28:58 - Phoenix Suns 30:30 - Portland Trail Blazers 31:27 - Sacramento Kings 32:42 - San Antonio Spurs 34:22 - Toronto Raptors 35:48 - Utah Jazz 38

Dan is joined by Keith Parish from the Fastbreak Breakfast (@fastbreakbreak) and Grits and Grinds (@grizzliespod) podcast for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Memphis Grizzlies. They start out by covering the Grizzlies' decision to lean further into development over the offseason and getting into the impact of Jaren Jackson Jr.'s absence, as well as his offensive development. After that, they discuss the next frontier for Ja Morant, expectations for Desmond Bane and Ziaire Williams, the revelation that is Santi Aldama, the rotation, trade possibilities and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:46 - The offseason direction 9:49 - The next frontier for Ja Morant 16:19 - Timeline return for Jaren Jackson Jr./Defensive impact of his absence 21:30 - Jaren Jackson Jr.'s offense 24:41 - Year 3 expectations for Desmond Bane/Half-court initiation 29:57 - The development of Ziaire Williams  33:45 - Buy or sell Santi Aldama as an impact player 37:00 - Roles for Jake LaRavia and David Roddy 39:04 - Will Kenny Lofton Jr. get

Dan hops on for a solo pod to discuss why he's picking the Denver Nuggets to win the 2022-23 NBA title. After that, he makes his predictions—complete with a rankings ladder—for who will win Coach of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, Most Improved Player, Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and MVP. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:01 - Why I'm picking the Denver Nuggets to win the 2022-23 NBA title 22:10 - Coach of the Year 27:16 - Sixth Man of the Year 31:59 - Most Improved Player 41:07 - Rookie of the Year 46:32 - Defensive Player of the Year 52:51 - MVP JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/31z7eyI FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL⬇️ TWITTER/IG: @danfavale / @danfavale TWITTER: @gt_hughes TWITTER: @fromal09 TWITTER/IG: @HardwoodKnocks / @hardwood_knocks TIKTOK: @hardwoodknocks TWITTER: @SportsMathNet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, conta

Dan is joined by Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) from The Athletic for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Utah Jazz. They discuss the organization's decision to trade Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell, Bojan Bogdanovic and Royce O'Neale over the offseason, and what it means for the future. Then, they get into how the Jazz will play this year, the early rotation, expectations for Walker Kessler and Ochai Agbaji, trade candidates and much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:22 - THE OFFSEASON 5:59 - Was keeping Donovan Mitchell ever on the table? 7:35 - Play style under Will Hardy 9:05 - Will the Jazz tank? 15:59 - Collin Sexton's long-term value 20:08 - How to measure progress for the Jazz? 24:41 - Early impressions of Walker Kessler 27:56 - The value of Jarred Vanderbilt/Can he play with Walker Kessler? 29:12 - Will Ochai Agbaji be in the rotation? 31:10 - Nickeil Alexander-Walker vs. Talen Horton-Tucker 37:16 - Underrated strengths 40:34 - The future of Jordan Clarkson 41:41 - The 10-man rotation 42:37 - Go-to crunch-time

Dan is joined by Jabari Ali Davis (@JabariDavisNBA) from the Miles and Jack Got Mad Boosties (@MadBoosties) and NBA Finals File podcasts for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Los Angeles Lakers. They discuss Russell Westbrook, his role and the potential for a trade. After that, they dig into the Lakers' new addition, what to watch from Austin Reaves, a potential revenge season from Anthony Davis, the 10-man rotation, potential lineups and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:51 - The Russell Westbrook situation 9:27 - Russ to the bench? 12:19 - Best/worst offseason additions, The fit of Lonnie Walker IV, Importance of Juan Toscano-Anderson 20:15 - Impact of Kendrick Nunn 21:45 - Who gets squeezed out of the guard rotation? 26:48 - Anthony Davis revenge season incoming? 29:23 - Anthony Davis-at-the-5, Roles for Damian Jones and Thomas Bryant 34:42 - Year 2 expectations for Austin Reaves 36:50 - Underrated strengths 39:20 - The 10-man rotation 42:31- Go-to crunch-time lineup 43:54 - Weirdo lineups we want to see 4

Dan is joined by Matt Modderno (@MattModderno) from Bullets Forever and the Bleav in Wizards Podcast (@BleavinWizards) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Washington Wizards. They discuss the decision to give Bradley Beal EVERYTHING in free agency and whether he can have a bounce back year. From there, they get into Kristaps Porzingis and his fit with Beal, the development of Deni Avdija, Corey Kispert and Rui Hachimura, the ideal role for Kyle Kuzma, the rotation, over/under predictions and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:14 - The Bradley Beal decision 6:07 - Any concerns about Beal's 2021-22 season? 7:30 - Reflecting on the Will Barton and Monte Morris trade 10:31 - Kristaps Porzingis' impact/fit with Bradley Beal 17:03 - The fit and future of Kyle Kuzma 22:45: The Deni Avdija experience/His development 28:16 - What is Rui Hachimura? 31:58 - Development of Corey Kispert 34:06 - Role for Daniel Gafford 37:08 - Concern for Johnny Davis? 41:19 - Defensive ceiling 46:00 - Roster concerns 47:56 - Underrated

Dan and Grant are back together again to tackle their 2022-23 NBA Eastern Conference over/under predictions. To answer your question: Yes, we already hate ourselves. As always, we’re trying to factor in every imaginable and the most plausible outcomes for each while hitting these NBA win totals. And as a reminder, none of this should be taken as definitive betting advice, because we absolutely, positively, without question suck at this. Be sure to check out the Western Conference over/under pod, which you can find here or on your YouTube channel/where you get your pods! TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 3:20 - Atlanta Hawks 6:47 - Boston Celtics 13:16 - Brooklyn Nets 18:48 - Charlotte Hornets 22:48 - Chicago Bulls 26:31 - Cleveland Cavaliers 31:05 - Detroit Pistons 35:22 - Indiana Pacers 38:33 - Miami Heat 41:43 - Milwaukee Bucks 44:41 - New York Knicks 48:08 - Orlando Magic 52:32 - Philadelphia 76ers 54:13 - Toronto Raptors 57:11 - Washington Wizards JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/3

Dan is joined by Imman Adan (@Imman_Adan) from Yahoo Sports Canada and the Dishes & Dimes podcast (@dishesdimespod) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Toronto Raptors. They discuss the next phase of Scottie Barnes' development, whether Pascal Siakam can enter the MVP discussion, OG Anunoby's offensive potential, Precious Achiuwa going kaboom, the half-court offense, the defense, the rotation, Toronto's long-term future and so much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 4:16 - Offseason impressions 7:10 - Year 2 expectations for Scottie Barnes 11:10 - OG Anuonby's role on offense 15:49 - Does Pascal Siakam have another gear? 24:35 - The rise of Precious Achiuwa 33:42 - Role for Dalano Banton 37:30 - The half-court offense 39:41 - The future of Gary Trent Jr. and Fred VanVleet 43:07 - Impact of the "take foul" on the Raptors offense 46:55 - Early impressions of Christian Koloko 48:04 - Underrated strengths of the roster 49:18 - The 10-man rotation 57:11 - Go-to closing unit 1:00:12 - Weirdo lineups we want to see 1:

Dan is joined by Nets Daily's Matt Brooks (MattBrooksNBA) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Brooklyn Nets, a team that could be literally anything at this point. They discuss the offseason from hell, what's next for Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the fit of Ben Simmons, Brooklyn's defensive potential, the rotation, different lineup combinations, substitution patterns and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 3:10 - Is the offseason drama behind the Nets? 6:23 - Timeline for return on Seth Curry, Joe Harris and TJ Warren 11:56 - Early impressions of Ben Simmons' fit 17:00 - The Ben Simmons-Nic Claxton frontcourt/Ben Simmons-at-the-5 20:11 - New offensive identity? 24:42 - How should the Nets stagger their stars? 27:05 - Is there a role for Cam Thomas in Brooklyn/What about Kessler Edwards? 29:17 - Will Yuta Watanabe make the roster? 31:25 - Defensive identity 36:56 - Underrated strengths of the roster 39:12 - Biggest roster concerns 42:19 - Will the Nets be aggressive in search of roster upgrades? 44:43 - The 10

Dan is joined by Sam Esfandiari (@samesfandiari) from the Light Years podcast (@lightyrspod) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Golden State Warriors. Will Draymond Green punching Jordan Poole linger over the organization all year? Will Dray, Poole or Andrew Wiggins sign extensions? How much will the Warriors lean on Moses Moody, Jonathan Kuminga and James Wiseman? Is this team good enough to defend its latest title? What's the rotation look like? Dan and Sam tackle all this—and more! TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:45 - Draymond Green, Jordan Poole 5:13 - Draymond Green's future with the Warriors 8:36 - The Jordan Poole extension 11:43 - Where can Jordan Poole improve? 16:57 - Did they make mistake letting Gary Payton II and Otto Porter Jr. go? 18:58 - The fit of Donte DiVincenzo 20:15 - Will Andrew Wiggins get an extension?/Is his play sustainable? 22:35 - James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody 26:27 - The offense without Stephen Curry 27:36 - Will Steph play enough in the MVP conversation? 29:27 - Jonathan

Dan and Grant are back together again to tackle their 2022-23 NBA Western Conference over/under predictions. To answer your question: Yes, we already hate ourselves. As always, we're trying to factor in every imaginable and the most plausible outcomes for each while hitting these NBA win totals. And as a reminder, none of this should be taken as definitive betting advice, because we absolutely, positively, without question suck at this. Believe it or not, though, we have a few surprises in the top half of the West—including the Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Pelicans. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 4:32 - Dallas Mavericks 7:47 - Denver Nuggets 10:47 - Golden State Warriors 17:36 - Houston Rockets 21:03 - LA Clippers 23:44 - Los Angeles Lakers 27:53 - Memphis Grizzlies 31:47 - Minnesota Timberwolves 34:49 - New Orleans Pelicans 39:10 - Oklahoma City Thunder 42:11 - Phoenix Suns 46:17 - Portland Trail Blazers 49:24 - Sacramento Kings 52:23 - San Antonio Spurs 55:30 - Utah Jazz JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/disco

Dan is joined by Adam Mares (@Adam_Mares) from DNVR and Locked on Nuggets for a deeeep dive into the 2022-23 Denver Nuggets. They discuss Nikola Jokic and the defense, offseason additions, the health of Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., the rise of Bones Hyland, the bench, Michael Malone's rotation, optimizing Aaron Gordon and Bruce Brown, Zeke Nnaji's future, the potential for trades and firings and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:56 - Offseason impressions 3:23 - The Jamal Murray return 4:41 - The Michael Porter Jr. return 7:01 - Staggering MPJ from Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic 8:37 - Will Michael Malone ditch hockey-style lineups? 10:31 - Can a Jokic-led team be good enough defensively to win a title?/His wrist injury 16:29 - The preseason defense 17:53 - Is Aaron Gordon fully optimized on this roster? 20:38 - Year 2 expectations for Bones Hyland 22:38 - The Zeke Nnaji hype 25:46 - Davon Reed's role 26:36 - Christian Braun and Peyton Watson 28:08 - Underrated strengths 29:16 - The Bruce Brown fi

Dan is joined by Andrew Claudio (@AndrewJClaudio_) from Knicks Film School (@KnickFilmSkool) to dissect everything and anything about the 2022-23 New York Knicks. They discuss the Donovan Mitchell trade that wasn't, the impact of Jalen Brunson, how RJ Barrett can develop into a star, the future of Julius Randle, roles for Obi Toppin, Quentin Grimes and Immanuel Quickley, the future of head coach Tom Thibodeau, lineups, the 10-man rotation and so much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:30 - Is Andrew surviving the New York Mets' postseason elimination? 4:51 - Reflecting on the Donovan Mitchell trade that wasn't 12:59 - Impact of Jalen Brunson 18:28 - The biggest barrier separating RJ Barrett from stardom 21:11 - The Julius Randle discussion 25:17 - Obi Toppin's ceiling 29:38 - Isaiah Hartenstein's fit 31:20 - Can Mitchell Robinson expand his offensive armory? 32:37 - Playing time for Quentin Grimes, Cam Reddish and Immanuel Quickley 36:42 - How good is Quentin Grimes? 39:20 - The future of Immanuel Quickley 42:

Dan is joined by Boston Celtics expert Alex Kungu (@Kungu_NBA) to talk about—THAT'S RIGHT—the 2022-23 Boston Celtics. They discuss the impact of Robert Williams III missing probably the rest of 2022, the frontcourt rotation, the next frontier Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, Malcolm Brogdon's fit, possible lineups, Ime Udoka's suspension and much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:46 - Ime Udoka/Joe Mazzulla 4:38 - Did the Celtics need to learn anything from their Finals loss? 6:33 - Impact of Robert Williams III injury 8:24 - Danilo Gallinari injury/The frontcourt rotation 11:18 - The Malcolm Brogdon fit 15:23 - Does Jaylen Brown have another gear? 20:02 - The Kevin Durant pursuit 23:22 - Projecting forward for Jayson Tatum 27:27 - Roster concerns 30:01 - Underrated strengths of the roster/Sam Hauser hype/Payton Pritchard's role 33:09 - Will we see a Grant Williams extension? 36:25 - Are the Celtics built for a trade? 38:37 - The 10-man rotation 41:10 - Go-to crunch-time lineup 41:49 - Weirdo lineups we want to

Let's take a break from the 2022-23 NBA team lookahead train to have some (agonizing) fun with record projections. The over/under podcast(s) will go into more detail, but for now, Dan is talking himself through win totals for every squad next season. Buckle up, and enjoy the incoherent ride! JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/31z7eyI FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL⬇️ TWITTER/IG: @danfavale / @danfavale TWITTER: @gt_hughes TWITTER: @fromal09 TWITTER/IG: @HardwoodKnocks / @hardwood_knocks TIKTOK: @hardwoodknocks TWITTER: @SportsMathNet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/2916956/advertisement