Hardwood Knocks

MAIL TIME. Hardwood Knocks sifts through questions from our caps-lock AWESOME listeners that have us covering Joe Ingles' injury and its impact on the Utah Jazz; what the Cleveland Cavaliers should do at the 2022 NBA trade deadline; Eric Gordon's market value; the Denver Nuggets' ceiling without Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr.; Nikola Jokic's MVP case; the San Antonio Spurs' future; hypothetical roster-building scenarios; out-of-left-field sellers; post-trade-deadline buyout candidates; an attempt to find the next 2021-22 Memphis Grizzlies and 2020-21 Atlanta Hawks; and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

Dan is joined by Hardwood Knocks' GREAT friend, Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes (@gt_hughes), to play a game of 'BUY, SELL OR HOLD AT THE 2022 NBA TRADE DEADLINE?' for every team in the Eastern Conference. If you didn't check out our Western Conference buy-sell-hold pod, you can do that here: bit.ly/hwkx550. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

Our 2022 NBA Trade Deadline primers roll onward! Next up, we take at look at whether each team in the Western Conference should BUY, SELL OR HOLD in advance of Feb. 10 with our GREAT friend from Bleacher Report, Grant Hughes (@gt_hughes).  TIMESTAMPS⬇️

MAIL TIME. AGAIN. NBA TRADE DEADLINE STYLE. Bryan Toporek (@btoporek) from Bleacher Report, Forbes and The NBA Podcast (@TheNBAPod) joins Dan for a super-duper-mega episode in which we answer all the questions you have leading into the trade deadline. Our journey covers the Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets, Toronto Raptors, Philadelphia 76ers and Ben Simmons, San Antonio Spurs, Sacramento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, LA Clippers, Indiana Pacers and MORE!

MAIL TIME. Our latest journey through the minds of you, our treasured audience, takes us through the Los Angeles Lakers, Frank Vogel and Russell Westbrook dumpster fire; the Utah Jazz's struggles; trade targets for the Dallas Mavericks; thoughts on Ben Simmons; 2022 NBA title contender rankings; Stephen Curry's offensive usage with the Golden State Warriors; Kevin Love's Sixth Man of the Year candidacy; the Charlotte Hornets' defensive uptick; Anthony Edwards' growth; Marcus Smart's down year(?); and sooooo much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

RANKINGS TIME. Major shoutout to Charles (@charles_swann_) for asking DMing us a question that inspired an entire podcast. And so, Adam and Dan will be ranking the NBA's top 10 players under 25 by career outlook...with a small twist. First, however, we'll begin by talking about Kevin Durant's sprained MCL, and how that impacts the Brooklyn Nets (4:11). After that, it's all kiddies (11:05)! Please listen to our criteria before you get mad at us. But, yes, then feel free to get mad at us. For now, let's wax poetic about Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Ja Morant and a whole bunch of other talented-as-hell youngsters. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

MAIL TIME. But first: A TRADE. Adam and Dan break down every angle of the Atlanta Hawks sending Cam Reddish to the New York Knicks. After that, they belly flop into a mailbag that covers the Memphis Grizzlies' ascent and playoff stock; the NBA's best defensive communicators; ideal trade targets for the Phoenix Suns; potential first-time All-Stars; RJ Barrett's recent hot streak; and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

STIZZATZ TIME. As we near the midway point of the 2021-22 NBA season, Adam and Dan have cobbled together one stat for each Western Conference team that they find interesting. If you missed the Eastern Conference editions of this podcast, check it out here! TIMESTAMPS⬇️

MAIL TIME. Our latest dive into listener questions covers the MVP race, a potential Portland Trail Blazers fire sale, trade targets for the Utah Jazz, LaMelo Ball's All-Star case, Stephen Curry vs. Nikola Jokic, a James Harden-Russell Westbrook what-if scenario, rookies who need more minutes, team-building philosophies, harmful high-volume players, RJ Barrett's role with the New York Knicks and much more! TIMESTAMPS⬇️

Andrew Claudio (@AndrewJClaudio_) from Knicks Film School is back for a deep dive into—you guessed it—the 2021-22 New York Knicks! He joins Dan to discuss Julius Randle’s struggles, RJ Barrett’s development, Obi Toppin’s improvement, Kemba Walker’s comeback(?), potential trade targets, Tom Thibodeau’s rotations, whether New York can salvage this season without a big move and much more! (NOTE: This pod was recorded BEFORE Julius Randle entered health and safety protocols.)TIMESTAMPS⬇️

With NBA rosters still in flux on a daily basis, Adam and Dan take the opportunity to unearth one stat they find telltale, intriguing, hyper-important, etc. for every team in the Eastern Conference. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

MAIL TIME! You asked. Hardwood Knocks answered. And this time, your questions left us talking about every NBA team's most underrated player; Charlotte Hornets trades; MVP hypotheticals for LaMelo Ball, Donovan Mitchell and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander; the Memphis Grizzlies without Ja Morant; Los Angeles Lakers trade targets; De'Aaron Fox's fit with Tyrese Haliburton; the Jayson Tatum-Jaylen Brown partnership for the Boston Celtics; the Cleveland Cavaliers' playoff stock; the Utah Jazz's title chances; and much, MUCH more! TIMESTAMPS⬇️

It's officially NBA trade season, so Hardwood Knocks naturally has targets for every single team in the NBA. We already tackled the Eastern Conference here. Next up: Trade targets for every Western Conference team! TIMESTAMPS⬇️

The Indiana Pacers have been making maaaany headlines over the past two weeks, so Hardwood Knocks did the only thing it could: turn to the one, the only, the legendary Caitlin Cooper (@C2_Cooper) from Indy Cornrows to break it all down. She discusses the fallout from the report that Indiana is open to tearing it down, Myles Turner's request for a bigger role or better "role clarity," Domantas Sabonis' usage and the national media's impression of him, Caris LeVert's up-and-down season, the Pacers' crunch-time struggles, Chris Duarte's ascension, the two-man synergy between Domas and Duarte, Indy's long-term outlook and so much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

Dan is joined by the ever awesome Tara Bowen-Biggs (@tcbbiggs) from the We Have A Take podcast to discuss everything in the world of the Portland Trail Blazers. Together, they cover the front office transition from Neil Olshey to Joe Cronin, Damian Lillard's future, CJ McCollum's health and play, Jusuf Nurkic's struggles, Nassir Little's breakout, defensive problems, lineup changes, Ben Simmons, potential trade targets and sooooo much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

With the unofficial starts of NBA trade season just around the corner, Adam and Dan are coming up with a handful of potential targets for every team. First up: All 15 Eastern Conference squads. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

Dan is joined by T.J. McBridge (@TJMcBrideNBA) from Mile High Sports to break down the short- and long-term outlook of the Denver Nuggets. They discuss Michael Porter Jr.'s potential season-ending injury, the Nuggets' shorthanded rotation, Nikola Jokic's MVP case, possible trade targets, Denver's defense, the team's future beyond this season and much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️

MAIL TIME. Our latest trip down You Asked, We Answered Lane covers potential John Wall trades, the Denver Nuggets' future following the Michael Porter Jr. injury, the New York Knicks' decision to bench Kemba Walker, Monte Morris' efficiency, Draymond Green's defensive value, Alperen Sengun's rookie year, early-season trends we're buying, a list of the most underrated players, a Mario Hezonja update and much more! TIMESTAMPS⬇️

Dan is joined by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes (@gt_hughes) to tackle the biggest questions they each have as the NBA nears the quarter-mark of the 2021-22 season. Their maze of inquiries covers playoff predictions for the Eastern Conference, the Sacramento Kings' future following Luke Walton's exit, the Toronto Raptors' direction, the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets, the Orlando Magic's starting five, the Phoenix Suns and Devin Booker and much, MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:16 - Intro  3:32 - The future of the Sacramento Kings 27:57 - Who's the fourth-best team in the West? 35:37 - The Lakers 38:51 - Predicting top-six seeds in the East 45:46 - The Cavs Favorite Players to Watch This Season⬇️ 48:02 - Devin Booker 50:18 - Evan Mobley 51:46 - Herb Jones 52:55 - Zach LaVine 54:06 - Ja Morant 54:32 - The Magic's Starting Five 57:04 - What are the Raptors? (Alternatively: WHY are the Raptors?) 1:05:28 - Utah's championship stock 1:10:40 - Do the Warriors need another shot creator?   Host: @danfavale Host: @f

In the second part of a super-duper-mega mailbag, Adam and Dan discuss Jonas Valanciunas' impact on the New Orleans Pelicans; the news about the Sacramento Kings being displeased with Luke Walton; their favorite guilty-pleasure league pass watches; DeMar DeRozan's MVP case; how the new foul rules could impact team-building in the future; the way analytics are presented to fans; and much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️