On the NBA Beat

The Utah Jazz are in the midst of a tight race at the bottom of the Western Conference playoff picture as the regular season comes to a close. Andy Larsen, a beat reporter for KSL.com and managing editor of Salt City Hoops on ESPN's TrueHoop Network, joins us to explain why making the playoffs this season is especially important for this young, up and coming Jazz team. He delves deeper into whether Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors still have room to grow, how sophomore Rodney Hood has exploded onto the scene and the next steps for the Jazz in trying to become a championship contender. Finally, he discusses Jerry Sloan's legacy in Utah and how one of the all-time great coaches in NBA history might even still be underrated. Excerpts below: 2:11-3:10 on how making the playoffs is especially valuable for the Jazz: “Obviously you hope that playoff experience gives them some idea of how much room there is to still to go… you kind of show the young players how much work there is left to still be a championship caliber team. I think that’s valuable even if you do get swept or lose in 5 games… I think it’s helpful for free agents to see that they are a playoff team on the rise and can be part of something good… Then you look at Gordon Hayward, who can opt out of his contract next summer. I think you have to start to put together a case of why he should stay on the Utah Jazz and that starts with multiple playoff appearances.” 4:12-4:52 on the Jazz’s potential first-round match up against the Golden State Warriors:  “You look at [the two close losses to the Warriors during the regular season in Utah] and really both games they were one shot away. I think what’s really interesting is they didn’t need a bad shooting game from the Warriors in order to get it… They actually shot 35%, 40% from 3 in both of those games, it’s just the Jazz were able to lock down the inside shots and play some good switching defense on the outside and that kind of frustrated the Warriors… I think that would give you hope for maybe being able to steal one at home and maybe play the Warriors better than the other teams at the bottom of the Western Conference would.” 11:05-11:48 on whether Gordon Hayward still has room to grow: “This is honestly the level he played at last season as well. There’s kind of a leveling off as you’d expect from a 25-year-old player… I think he will probably add some more skills, probably become a little better on the post, driving, mid-range… maybe get a little bit smarter defensively. The kind of improvements players make from age 25 to 28, but not game-changing improvements… I do think he’s probably one of the 30 best players in the league. I don’t know if he’s ever going to be a top 15 player.” 12:31-13:22 on Rodney Hood’s surprise sophomore season: “What surprised people is his skill from the mid-range and he’s such a smart player. He’s got sort of a old player’s game where he’s so good at going off of the pick and roll, getting the defender on his back and taking advantage and reading that situation, taking advantage from the mid-range in a what that not a lot of players do in the NBA. Where the Jazz’s player development staff has really helped is on the defensive end, a definite liability at the college level and then immediately in his rookie season he was… average for NBA player, which is great.” 14:50-15:25 on the importance of Exum’s continued development to the franchise’s future: “So much still depends on how good Dante Exum is. If he’s the player he was his rookie season, where he’s quite frankly afraid to go into

On the heels of Minnesota’s exhilarating, nationally televised upset of the mighty Warriors, Steve McPherson (Rolling Stone, Hardwood Paroxysm and A Wolf Among Wolves, among other outlets) drops by to talk about the young Timberwolves and why their future is so bright. The conversation spans from Karl-Anthony Towns’ many talents to Flip Saunders’ grand legacy and virtually everywhere in between. Some of the show’s highlights can be found below: 3:45 - 4:05 on Karl-Anthony Towns’ many skills: "You see how difficult of a matchup Towns is going to be for years. You see him both stepping out to defend Steph Curry and shutting him down on a possession, which is amazing for a guy who is 7 feet tall, and then also being a threat on the other end, both shooting and closer to the basket." 9:45 - 10:35 on Andrew Wiggins’ development in Minnesota: "They are still trying to figure out what Wiggins can do…The Wolves are very conscientiously showing him different things to see what he can do on the court…They want to give him the ball in a way that he gets to see the court a bunch of times a game and then makes decisions, and then they can see how he deals with that and what he has to work on." 15:50 - 16:45 on how the Timberwolves develop their young talent: "The organization is very concerned about developing their young talent and in a way that they haven't been before…These binders that they keep on all the players now and they basically had nothing like that prior to Flip coming back to the team in terms of tracking what guys are doing. In these binders, it talks about all the work they're doing off the court in terms of strength and conditioning, recording their reps on different exercises, their results from 3-point shooting drills…They have Arnie Kander now, who is a guru of physical fitness…and has a very holistic approach to the body and keeping these guys healthy." 18:33 - 19:45 on Kevin Garnett's impact on the young Wolves roster: "KG's impact has been huge, and it is also one that you will feel more as these guys grow up a little bit. Look at how much KG has instilled in them…It's a lot about communication and understanding the schemes, and KG brings a lot of that and from a place that a coach cannot…He's constantly coaching." 29:35 - 30:30 on Shabazz Muhammad's fit and potential: "I don't think he's going to be a star. His best role is as a sixth man or a guy off the bench…He just never stops, and that's good and bad. When he gets the ball, he wants to put the ball through the hoop and sometimes he doesn't see other people…I'm not sure that Minnesota is the right situation ultimately." 31:52 - 32:40 on Ricky Rubio and his future: "He's been here for four years and has had three coaches in that time. That's a lot of changeover. He's one of those guys, where (with) the right guys around him, he will elevate their games and they will make him look better...Rubio commanding the floor (and) organizing a young team can be a really good influence on how that team plays and how good that team looks." 35:05 - 35:33 on the late Flip Saunders' legacy: "When you talked to him, you knew that here was a guy who had forgotten more than you were ever going to know about the game…You couldn't help but respect his knowledge and love for the game. It's informed the way the roster is built right now and the team is trying to keep his spirit and vision for the team alive, while also adapting to changes that he

The Brooklyn Nets and new GM Sean Marks certainly have a difficult road ahead trying to turn around a struggling team without having control of any of their own first or second round draft picks for the next 3 years. Devin Kharpertian, managing editor and founding partner of The Brooklyn Game on the YES Network, joins us to explain exactly how the Nets got themselves into this situation, the current state of the team and why there might be glimmers of optimism after an overhaul of the front office this season. Exciting excerpts below: 1:55-2:40 on what new GM Sean Marks must do going forward: "The thing that they have to do is wield some of their power in free agency this year. Now the problem with that is 25 of 30 teams are able to sign somebody to a max deal… It's a really tough avenue for (the Nets), because the only thing they can do, is something that almost every other team can do and almost every other team is in a better position to do, because the Nets just don't have the talent to compete. It's going to take some magic from Sean Marks." 3:58-4:11 on whether any Nets player is off limits: "Brook (Lopez) and Thad (Young) are the centerpieces right now, and Rondae (Hollis-Jefferson) is a piece of that as well. But, I think for the right deal, they're 21-52 at this point, nobody on that team is untouchable." 6:04-6:26 on the Nets' huge trade with the Celtics in 2013: "Obviously it's all fallen apart and the house of cards has come tumbling down, but, at the time, you could very much see the rationale of bringing in two Hall-of-Famers who are going to complement a re-energized Deron Williams… Brook Lopez and putting them next to Joe Johnson. It obviously didn't work out, but that was supposed to be a great team." 13:54-14:09 on Bojan Bogdanovic: "Looking at pieces for the future that fit into what the Nets are trying to do, you can very easily see Bogdanovic fitting in as either the third or fourth-best scorer in the starting lineup or the first guy off the bench who provides you with that offensive spark." 14:28-15:01 on Rondae Hollis-Jefferson's strengths and deficiencies: "He's an incredible defender. From Day One, you could see it… On offense, he's a good cutter to the basket, a good slasher, but his biggest weakness is the thing that is changing the game right now, which is that he can't hit a shot outside of 15 feet. You can see a noticeable hitch… He's going to have to completely rework his jump-shot." 25:28-26:25 on Brook Lopez's unheralded brilliant season: "Brook Lopez is really having a great season. He's having one of the better seasons of his career, and it's a shame that he's surrounded by a bunch of talent that is trying to prove it belongs in the league, rather than guys who have established themselves. He's an incredible post-up scorer, a great pick n' roll scorer, a better rebounder than he has been before… He’s the kind of guy who is very loyal. He's been peddled on the trade market since the day he was drafted and still he re-signed here, he likes being here, he's moving to Brooklyn, getting a condo in the summer… He's improved his passing this year. If you're not watching the Nets, it's hard to appreciate Brook Lopez, because you think he's just putting up stats on a bad team." 28:55-29:07 on the Nets' head coaching search: "If I had to guess who the next coach would be, I would bet on Ettore Messina, if only because he has connections with Sean Marks and Trajan Langdon and he also has connections with Mikhail Prokhorov. I

Although the Milwaukee Bucks fell well short of expectations this season, Frank Madden, founder and managing editor of SB Nation’s Brew Hoop, explains why the team essentially got what it was looking for with the development of young bucks/Bucks Jabari Parker and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Frank provides more insight into the Greek Freak’s “weird athleticism,” Parker’s post-All-Star-break emergence and Greg Monroe’s tenuous fit on the roster. Head coach Jason Kidd’s second season at the helm is also discussed, among other topics. Highlights can be found below: 4:27-4:57 on Antetokounmpo's recent dominance:  “In spite of the fact that the last month in many ways has been one of his worst shooting months, it hasn’t mattered. He’s playing at a (high) level and with so much confidence in his ability to get to the rim and make plays for other people and get out in transition and use his size and length and weird athleticism. It’s just so overwhelming to most NBA defenders that it doesn’t matter if you play off him a little bit.”    12:55-13:22 on his overall assessment of the season:  “With the turnaround of Jabari and Giannis,you probably have gotten more or less what you wanted from a development standpoint,which I would argue is the most important thing from this season. But with the expectations coming from last year, there was a lot of hope that this team could certainly at least be a playoff team and maybe be better than that. And obviously for a lot of reasons – I think a lot of it dating to youth and maybe some of the pieces not fitting as well as you’d like.”   15:30-15:45 on Khris Middleton proving his worth after signing a five-year contract in the offseason:  “When you look at the group they have, with Giannis and Jabari, I think this year we’ve really seen Khris solidify himself as the third guy in this sort of new big three that people are looking at in Milwaukee. And certainly that contract is looking better and better.” 18:06-19:49 on Parker's offensive evolution, particularly after the All-Star break:  "Coming back from the All-Star break, just seeing him kind of re-energized. I don't know if being around great players in Toronto and taking part in the Rising Stars Challenge...I don't know if something flipped, if his confidence, his aggression came back a bit more, because I think that was one of the things about him the first half of the season: he seemed to be trying to figure out how to fit in. He was a guy that a lot of times just seemed to pass right back to a guard or hand it off as soon as he touched the ball and wasn't trying to exploit mismatches...(Earlier in the season), Jabari's kind of running around, looking like, 'Oh, I don't want to take too many shots. I don't want to be selfish. I want to pass and do all this stuff,' and I think Bucks fans are looking at him and thinking, "Hey, Jabari. It's OK to shoot. You were drafted to shoot. That's your skill. Do it...' He's a savant offensively. Stuff comes natural to him. I don't know if he's a super-high basketball IQ guy at this point, but he knows how to work the baseline, his off-ball cuts. He just understands how to play the game."        21:26-21:38 on where Parker fits in the big picture:  “I don’t think he’s in Giannis’ class in terms of overall upside, but certainly as a No. 2 guy he’s an exciting young guy to have and a major building block obviously for the franchise.” 24:20 – 25:11 on what has gone well for Jason Kidd:  “His willingness to hand Giannis the ball and make that move. I don’t know how many coaches do that, right? I think that’s a certainly an encouraging thing…He clearly has a lot of gravitas with young players and his past as a player, and I think his style so far has generally been a very good thing. It certainly seems like guys like Giannis and Jabari ha

Following OTNB's two most recent team interviews, Aaron and Loren riff on the state of the Pacers and Mavericks. Each team features a key player returning from serious injury and is fighting to earn a spot in this year's playoffs. Such postseason pursuit is discussed, as well as the philosophy of tanking. The conversation also expands to the future of the Chandler Parsons-Wesley Matthews pairing in Dallas. Music: "Who Likes to Party?" by Kevin MacLeod

After dropping seven of their last 10 games, the Dallas Mavericks are in jeopardy of missing the playoffs. Tim Cato of SB Nation and Mavs Moneyball joins us to dissect the team's recent struggles, the impact of Chandler Parsons’ injury and legend Dirk Nowitzki's future. He also examines head coach Rick Carlisle's unorthodox coaching strategies, finds hope in Wesley Matthews' long road to recovery and explains why the team did not opt to rebuild after whiffing on DeAndre Jordan and other prized free agents in the offseason. Juicy excerpts below: 2:19-3:28 On the team-wide effect of Chandler Parsons’ knee injury:   "It's definitely a concern. The Mavericks rely on his shot-making and his playmaking. The past month or two, he's really gotten into a good groove, where he's been making plays and finding his rhythm in the offense. (He is) definitely worthy of being a max player coming up… As the Mavericks have moved to a small-ball offense, he was really thriving. It's definitely a loss on both the offensive and defensive ends… (They) also don't have a clear backup to replace him."   4:03-4:22 On Dallas’ recent struggles and unsustainable luck enjoyed early in the season: "It was a lot of close games swinging the other way after having too much success or an unsustainable amount of success in close games early in the season...The team (wasn't) playing too much worse. They had a couple really bad games they should have won, but mostly it was the same level of play with some bad luck mixed in."   8:52-9:56 On lineup versatility and coach Rick Carlisle adapting to Parsons’ absence:   "Without (Parsons), Carlisle is absolutely a mad genius, a mastermind. Sometimes too much for his own good. He'll try something absolutely crazy and everyone on the court will see it… He'll try some wacky lineups and some super-small-ball, where he'll put Wesley Matthews at the power forward. There's gonna be more "big ball" than we've seen in the past few weeks… He's going to fall back on those three-guard lineups…but, at the same time, we'll see more traditional lineups that, at the peak of the small-ball lineups, we had not seen at all." 11:42-13:18 On the state of Dirk Nowitzki’s game and how much he has left:  “As he gets older, he really knows his spots. He knows where he wants to go. He knows where he can get his shots off. And he’s highly, highly efficient, not just with his shooting, but with his movement… He’s got one more year left on his contract. He’s definitely going to play that out. Frankly, beyond that, he could play two, three, four more years just as a specialized shooter off the bench. I don’t think his jump shot’s pretty much ever going away. The question is whether his defense is still playable. It’s already getting pretty tough to hide him defensively right now, and as we go on it’s only gonna get tougher. But as a shooter, as an offensive player, he’s good enough that he could set a number on how long he wanted to play…Realistically, I see about two more years at the most, perhaps just one.” 17:51-18:15 On Carlisle’s relationships with his players: "There was some animosity with the Rondo thing, but for the most part Carlisle does a very good job sustaining relationships with players and they love him for the way he is–being hard-nosed and tough, stiff, but he can be a really caring coach and really show (compassion). Every once in a while, you can kind of see through that shell, that armor."  18:21-18:40 More on Carlisle: "There’s flaws that Carlisle has at times, definitely. He’s not a perfect coach. I still say he’s the No. 2 coach in the league behind (Gregg) Popovich…And there’s times where I

As we enter the stretch run, the Eastern Conference playoff picture is wide open, with ample room for jockeying. Jared Wade of Fansided’s 8 Points 9 Seconds stops by to illuminate the Indiana Pacers’ postseason prospects. The team boasts a healthy Paul George, as well as brand new contributors Monta Ellis and Myles Turner and a “defensive genius” in Frank Vogel. If you ask Wade, the rest of the East, outside of Cleveland and Toronto, better watch out! Choice cuts below:   2:05-4:05 on the difference between last season and this for the Pacers: "Obviously Paul George… It's changed the whole team him being there. Monta Ellis has been a big lift… The defense is still strong, even with the lack of Roy Hibbert and David West they've changed to a more turnover-forcing defense and they get a lot of points in transition… Myles Turner has proved that he deserves to be in the starting lineup and he’s been a force." 5:10-6:43 on how Paul George has recovered from his devastating injury: "I think he's as good as he was. In some ways, he's improved… He was arguably the second best player in basketball through December 1st.” 8:50-9:05 on Paul George's biggest weakness: “They’re turnover-prone. [For Paul George,] that’s probably his biggest flaw. He just throws some cavalier, careless passes. It's mind-boggling at times that someone as good as him can throw some of the nonchalant, terrible passes that shouldn't even be happening in a JV game." 14:55-16:25 on George Hill: "He's a little bit of a passive guy. Earlier in the year, that was actually paying dividends, because he was just camping out in the corner and making a lot of 3s… He's maybe not a point guard, but he's a very, very good basketball player. He can do everything. He's a good shooter, he’s a good passer, he knows the offense, he runs the plays, he’s a fantastic defender in many ways… He's a really smart, heady player." 19:00-20:15 on Ian Mahinmi’s growth since Roy Hibbert’s departure: “Mahinmi actually is an athletic, large body, but he can move laterally and get out there and defend the pick ‘n roll in ways that Roy Hibbert just can’t…But his fatal flaw: he had the worst hands I’ve ever seen in my life. He just could not catch a pass… And now, I have no idea how it happened. He catches everything. He catches the ball on these dump-off situations, and he does up-and-under moves on the other side of the hoop. He catches balls sprinting in transition and just dunks. He’s getting to the point where, if he had someone to throw him better lobs, he’s almost like a poor man’s DeAndre Jordan right now. He’s finishing incredibly around the rim…He’s not young. He’s pushing 30, so I don’t how someone changes that at this stage in their career.”      22:20-23:10 on part of Monta Ellis’ team-wide impact: “He’s supposedly the locker-room leader in a way that you wouldn’t think that Monta could be. He’s not the most vocal guy, but he has been more talking to the younger guys on the team, coaching people up. And what’s been big for the Pacers is they’re kind of a bunch of whiners, low key…whereas I can’t recall ever seeing him get demonstrative with the refs and stuff. It’s obviously not the biggest thing in the world, but it seems as though his personality is kind of rubbing off on the team a little bit. They seem to be whining a little bit less.” 27:00-27:20 on Frank Vogel’s primary strengths: “(Despite having a number of players not traditionally thought of as defenders), he still has them pretty high (third in Defensive Efficiency), and he’s transformed it (the defense). They’re forcing more turnovers. He’s letting them gamble more, going for steals. They’ve transitioned a little bit how they’re

The wait is over. Jonathan Abrams’ highly anticipated book ”Boys Among Men: How the Prep-to-Pro Generation Redefined the NBA and Sparked a Basketball Revolution," is finally out! In it, he expertly chronicles the impact of the players who came to the NBA directly from high school before the rule was changed after the 2005 draft. Aaron spoke with the author in detail about the book and some of its most fascinating takeaways. To get you in the mood, here are some sexy clips transcribed: 9:37-10:07 Abrams on how he set out to humanize larger-than-life NBA players: “I don’t think there’s that much of a challenge if you just look at these people as human beings, which they are. They all have stories and origin tales of where they began. And I try to look at each story almost like, ‘OK, how did this guy become who he is today? What influenced him and what made him become that person?’ You just start from there and try to unravel the tape and figure it all out.” 13:55-14:48 on the challenge of structuring the narrative: “It was difficult. That was one of the things that I struggled with for a little while. The first thing I did was try to do as much as reporting on the subject as I could. Try to talk to as many coaches and players and agents as possible. And then I tried to construct how the book was gonna flow. And yeah, it was difficult at first. I didn’t want the same story over and over again in different chapters, and I didn’t want the chapters to seem all disconnected. And I think the one thing that did make sense was to try to connect it through kind of how the NBA grew up and matured, because back when Kobe and KG were entering the league, Michael Jordan was still king and NBA salaries weren’t anywhere near where it is today. So you can almost say that the NBA grew up during this time with these players as well.”    24:25-24:58 on how Tyson Chandler was able to avoid early pitfalls that could have derailed his career and life: I think he was one of those guys who recognized pretty early on that he has to play the system before it plays him. He had one of my favorite quotes in the book, where he said that all the people he saw in the AAU system trying to take advantage of him were kind of the same people he saw on the streets growing up in San Bernardino. And, to me, that really made a lot of sense because it was the same type of game being played in both areas - people trying to take advantage of his talents, and he recognized it for what it was.” 40:05-40:49 on ending the book with the story of Tony Key: “It just felt like a natural ending because here was a guy who was in his early 30s now, who was still trying to cling to this dream, who had once been thought of as a guy who could jump from high school to the pros, who the system had kind of taken advantage of somewhat, but also some of it fell of his shoulders. And I wasn’t sure if he was ever able to completely mature as a man, even in his young 30s, and he was still chasing this dream. So that’s why I thought it would be good to end on it because it’s good to have dreams and good to be able to chase them, and who’s to say when to give up on it? But at a certain point, you have to be realistic in life.”  Music: "Who Likes to Party?" by Kevin MacLeod

After three straight team interviews, all of which you can find at On the NBA Beat's Team Interview Central, your hosts are back with some banter as they delve more deeply into specific topics surrounding each of those teams. For the Pistons, they check in on the early returns from the Tobias Harris acquisition and also try to make sense of the situation surrounding the voided Donatas Motiejunas trade. On the Knicks, the discussion is centered around Carmelo Anthony and his increasing frustration with the Knicks' losing ways. Finally, the Blazers talk focuses on Damian Lillard's emergent superstardom and how the team might be able to find postseason success. Music: "Who Likes to Party?" by Kevin MacLeod

Hovering just around .500, the Detroit Pistons are probably the streakiest team in the NBA this season, amassing long winning and losing streaks alike. However, for all the team's inconsistency, Detroit remains in the thick of the playoff race. Dan Feldman of NBC Sports' Pro Basketball Talk joins the show to dissect Andre Drummond's historic dominance, Detroit's team-building strategy under Stan Van Gundy, Reggie Jackson's continual growth and so much more. Choice excerpts are below: 4:25-6:00 On Andre Drummond’s free-throw shooting and where he fits in the modern NBA: “I think a lot of fans get worked up on, ‘How could you give a max contract to a guy who makes 40 percent of his free throws?’ I just think it’s just nitpicking one thing because it’s so easy to diagnose… It’s so much harder to assess the other things he does well that I think the free-throw shooting has taken an outsized part of assessing his game… But it’s so helpful to have one guy you can run the pick and roll with, who can finish at the rim, who can defend the rim. He really fits as this modern center if you have the pieces around him. He’s definitely someone you can build around.” 7:15-8:05 On the short- and long-term effects of acquiring Tobias Harris at the trade deadline:  “It’ll take some adjustments to make him an ideal fit in this system. He’s going to have to become a better 3-point shooter, and I think he can. He’s been somebody who’s been streaky. But I think once there’s a comfort level… in the long run, this could really work… It was probably the biggest steal of the trade deadline week.” 13:35-14:45 On the Pistons’ strategy of acquiring key players via trade:  “When your goal is more modest, I think it’s a strategy that makes a lot of sense. But if you’re really trying to break through and become a contender, you need to get a star or more. I think the Pistons are on the right track with Andre Drummond; the issue is how do you get a second star?...It’s a good strategy for right now for what their goals are, but if their goals get higher… at some point, you’re going to have to reevaluate.” 15:40-16:05 On Stan Van Gundy’s general principles on offense: “Everything in Detroit starts with a [Reggie] Jackson-Drummond pick and roll. The ideal is to get Drummond rolling to the rim and set him up for a lob… and then they like to get shooters to space the floor around them.” 16:45-17:13 An explanation for the Pistons' league-worst assist percentage this season:  “[Everywhere other than Jackson], they have below-average passers for their position. The ball has to be in Jackson’s hands so much. He dictates everything. When defenses are able to take that away from him and put pressure on him, there’s really not a second playmaker on the court, and that’s where they run into trouble sometimes.” 17:58-18:23 On Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's defense: “It wasn’t that long ago when Pistons’ fans were really overrating [Caldwell-Pope’s] defense, because he was their first good perimeter defender in years… but he’s gotten better at that end. I don’t know if there’s a player who’s defended Stephen Curry better this season.” 27:00-27:15: On the importance to the organization of making the playoffs this season:  “Making the playoffs is probably important to the owner. It’s important to Van Gundy because it’s important to the owner. But as far as the i

Following a brutal season the New York Knicks would much rather you forgot, the team jumped out to a solid 22-22 start this campaign. Unfortunately, the team subsequently experienced a bitter downturn in which it fired its second-year head coach Derek Fisher. And the struggles continue. On both sides of the ball, however, No. 4 overall pick Kristaps Porzingis has shown early signs of brilliance at a mere 20 years old. Plus, there are other promising developments, such as the continued improvement of Lance Thomas. To discuss these complex Knicks, Seth Rosenthal, SB Nation editor as well as the editor for SBN's Knicks site Posting and Toasting, stopped by. Seth didn't sugarcoat things, providing the good, the bad and the ugly. The highlights can be found below: 1:48 - 1:53 on the Knicks’ season: "The worst thing that happened to them is that they started the year that strong, 'cause now they look so terrible in comparison." 3:47 - 4:24 on Kristaps Porzingis: "A lot of people assumed he would be a big, weak shooting big man kind of stiff, not a great defender...he's been a very versatile scorer. If anything, his outside catch-and-shoot game is the weakest part of his scoring repertoire. He's been a really solid defender...if he continues to grow...if he stays healthy, he's going to have an extremely well-rounded game." 6:23 - 7:14 on the precipitous decline of the Knicks after a promising start: "On the court, it was palpable that the team wasn't quite responding to (Fisher) the way they were before...The offense you have to play as a team, running the triangle, depends more so than other teams' schemes do on brute effort. If the Knicks aren't cutting...dribbling over screens, using their screens and attacking the glass, that hampers them more than teams that are more open in their structure and more athletically gifted...Guys were starting to flag a little bit...Increasingly, within the team, (this) became attributed to Fisher." 7:38 - 7:57 on why Derek Fisher was fired: "He perhaps (was) still not taking the time between the games totally seriously...which may have rubbed players and the front office the wrong way and may have contributed to guys not willing to give their all for him." 8:26 - 8:50 on the differing styles of Fisher and Kurt Rambis:  "The primary difference is that Fisher...made a point of being very short with the media, very serious, sort of fatherly and protective of his players, and Kurt Rambis is just running his mouth...There's a happy medium...The media certainly appreciates not being condescended to, which was their perception of Fisher's relationship with them." 12:08 - 12:15 on the team's next head coaching hire: "It's totally unpredictable with Phil (Jackson). If it were any other team, I'd assume they would go hard after Thibodeau. Jackson might not even interview him." 13:03 - 13:42 on the Knicks' greatest weakness: "They desperately need guards. This team isn't terribly far from being decent, but they need an NBA-average point guard. They were interested in Jeff Teague...and Ricky Rubio, and just found that, without a pick that they were comfortable dealing...that put them out of those sweepstakes. They will remain active on that trade market this summer...probably do their best to get Mike Conley Jr., but it wouldn't take a major signing to upgrade at that position." 15:14-15:32 on Jose Calderon's impact...or lack thereof:  "Calderon can shoot the hell out of the ball and has nothing else to offer. Really nothing else. He’s like a mini-Steve Novak, which is a player you can have on your team but you don’t want starting at point guard.” 20:23 - 21:07 on Carmelo Anthony’s season: "He's been at his best rebounding this season, he's passing the ball better than I've ever seen...He's hol

After a summer of roster upheaval, highlighted by the departure of LaMarcus Aldridge, the Portland Trail Blazers have been finding their way on the fly. Since falling to the Warriors by 20 on Jan. 8, they've caught fire, winning 15 of 18 games, including a blowout of those same Warriors. The knowledgeable Dane Carbaugh hangs with the guys to explain Portland's scorching play, C.J. McCollum's emergence, Damian Lillard's excellence and so much more. Located in the City of Roses, Carbaugh has worked for SB Nation and Sporting News, among other outlets. He's a skilled NBA video analyst for Vox, Blazer's Edge, Hardwood Paroxysm and FloHoops. The Renaissance man, whose videos appear here also has his own podcast with Yu Miyagawa called "Between Me and Yu," which can be found on iTunes. Some particularly noteworthy clips can be found below: 7:15 - 8:10 on Damian Lillard's underdog mentality: “(The underdog mentality) is definitely a part of his process… and what has happened to him by choice… He has the loyalty factor. He wants to put on for the city. He got MVP chants while he was at the free-throw line the other day." 8:45 - 9:35 on C.J. McCollum: “He's been obviously crucial to the offensive success. They're (Lillard and McCollum) one of the top offensive scoring duos in the NBA...He took what was good both per 36 numbers and per 100 possessions numbers in his first couple years in the league and adapted them into starter's minutes… He’s really adapted to the fact that he now has a different role when he starts versus when Damian goes out… I'm not super-convinced he's the Most Improved Player. My vote is still probably going to go to Will Barton." 11:20 - 13:00 on Portland's front office: ”Neil (Olshey) has been getting bargains anywhere he can… Good for Neil for finding value. I think Paul Allen picked the right guy with Neil and Neil has stayed with Terry Stotts this whole time. And it's really panned out. The Blazers have been unlucky historically, but grabbing Damian, having CJ pan out, having Allen Crabbe pan out, whether he stays in Portland or not, even the development of Meyers Leonard as a 3-point shooter last year… a lot of those are positive things (for a) organization going in the right direction." 14:45 - 15:05 on the Blazers’ overlooked continuity in a season in which they lost four starters: "You have players that have been in the system… they know Terry Stotts' offense in and out!"  16:30 - 17:10: "Allen Crabbe works his butt off. There’s stories that he walked to practice his rookie year. He has tools that are built to succeed. He's 6-4… Among NBA shooting guards, his wingspan is in the 90th percentile. He loves to jump passing lanes. It's hard to block his shot. He really knows how to get around those screens." 20:05 - 22:10 on Portland's playoff hopes: “They have one of the hardest strengths of schedule to close out the season. Portland just needs to do what they're doing. A big thing for them would be staying healthy… They’re in a good position, because the West isn't as good as in years past… It was the perfect year for them to come on the way that they did. If they can hold on and Memphis keeps dropping lower, there it is, playoffs." 23:45 - 25:40: “Do they have a chance against any of those first two teams? No. Golden State and San Antonio are both having historic seasons, so absolutely not. Let's be realistic about it. The team (Portland) is great, but not in a seven-game series… Golden State would defensively game-plan for him

Following the interview with Doug Branson earlier in the week, Aaron and Loren continue the discussion about the surging Charlotte Hornets who have outperformed expectations and won nine of their last 12 games. They further discuss how the team has shown such a drastic increase in both 3-point attempts and percentage, but also look into the factors that have led to them having the largest disparity between home and road winning percentages among projected playoff teams. In the second segment, the co-hosts look into some of the biggest deals that went down before last week's trade deadline. All of the big names stayed put, but smaller moves like Channing Frye to Cleveland and Jeff Green to the Clippers could have an impact on how the rest of the season and the playoffs play out for those teams. (Editor's note: we discuss a trade sending Donatas Motiejunas to the Detroit Pistons. Since recording, that trade has been voided because of the Motiejunas' back issues mentioned in the episode.) Music: "Who Likes to Party" by Kevin MacLeod

The crew interviews Doug Branson, host of Hive Talk Live, on the state of the upstart Charlotte Hornets. He expounds on the various factors that have led the team to overachieve this campaign after self-destructing near the end of last season. Chief among these are the play of Charlotte's most valuable players, Kemba Walker and Nicolas Batum, the invaluable contributions of glue guy Marvin Williams, remarkable bench play and the team's 3-point shooting makeover.  1:40 - 2:30 on Courtney Lee replacing the unstable P.J. Hairston: "Courtney Lee provides a consistency at the starting wing position that the Hornets did not have with P.J. Hairston…There certainly were issues ever since he (Hairston) has been here with staying in shape, with having a professional attitude, with consistency on the court in terms of his 3-point shooting and defense…(He) was a situational starter in there to guard the other team's best wing to basically give Nic Batum a chance to play well offensively in the fourth quarter."  3:35 - 4:25 on how ready the Hornets management is to win: "Let there be no doubt: the Hornets are definitely in win-now mode. They were in that mode last season, and they were just hit with injury after to injury to key guy after key guy. We've seen the sequel to that movie this season, but, fortunately, Kemba Walker has been able to stay healthy...The goal has always been to win a playoff series. That's step one, because the Hornets haven't won a playoff series since the early 2000s...You can't attract the free agents you need to take the next step (otherwise)."  5:15 - 6:05 on coach Steve Clifford: "Steve Clifford has been the model of stability for a franchise that hasn't been known to be very stable when it comes to coaching. The Hornets put most of those whispers to bed when they extended Clifford in the offseason...The ownership has a lot of respect for Clifford's style of play…If anyone was on the hot seat this season, it was probably Rich Cho and the general management...there's still a lot of pressure (there) to make wins happen."  8:10 - 8:55 on Michael Kidd-Gilchrist: "A lot of these injuries have been freak injuries...the stats don't lie: the Hornets are much better when he's on the court and healthy and then the eye test. The little things that he does, energy-wise, that impact the team are just off the charts. Guys are fueled by his energy and intensity, and it was certainly a killer when he went down again.”  12:15 - 13:30 on Kemba Walker’s hard work: "He's a gym rat…He spent an enormous amount of time in the offseason focusing on getting his 3-point shot to the point where it had to be respected…The Hornets lost their shooting coach in the offseason, Mark Price, who's now the head coach of UNC-Charlotte… Price worked with Kemba Walker two years ago to help improve his shot, and it's a testament to the coaching staff that they were able to keep that work going despite the loss of Mark Price… Both Kemba and MKG live in the gymnasium, and it's paying off big time."  13:50 - 15:20 on Nicolas Batum’s importance to the team: "The Hornets will do everything they can to keep Nicolas Batum, within reason. Despite whatever struggles he's had game to game with shooting, he has brought an element of playmaking that he Hornets had missed since they lost Josh McRoberts… He's been just as valuable as Kemba Walker this season…His playmaking ability, his ability to pass and drive the lane, and that dribble handoff play that the Hornets run over and over with (him) have been crucial parts of their offensive renaissance this season."  15:50 - 16:50 on the Hornets' remarkable improvement in 3-point shooting from last season: "Clifford recognizes where the NBA is going, and that is towards 3-pointers and getting to the line...they overhauled their

Spend some of your All-Star break with your favorite fellas as they discuss the Miami Heat and All-Star Saturday night. The co-hosts revisit interviewee Josh Baumgard's thoughts on Hassan Whiteside's impact and future with the Heat, the team's handling of Dwyane Wade's usage, and the degree to which Chris Bosh's injury matters. Next, Joshua and Loren guide you through the most exciting NBA All-Star Saturday night in recent memory. On a busy basketball weekend that featured Timberwolves domination, a retooled Skills Competition featuring big men and thrilling three-point and dunk contests, On the NBA Beat has you covered. Music: "Who Likes to Party" by Kevin MacLeod