'The Hoop Collective': Episodes of Brian Windhorst's NBA podcast - Alta Sports

" The Hoop Collective" podcast , hosted by ESPN's Brian Windhorst, releases episodes every Monday, Wednesday and Friday during the NBA season . Windhorst and his guests break down what's happening on and off the court, evaluating the trends you need to know and examining the latest news from across the NBA.

Latest episodes:
May 27 | May 26 | May 25 | May 22 | May 20 | May 19 | May 18 | May 15 | May 13

Quick links:
Schedule | Standings | Stats | Transactions

'The Hoop Collective' episodes

May 27: Major Wemby disappointment in Game 5, plus the latest on Giannis and LeBron

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to discuss the Thunder thrashing Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5, breaking down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 's statement game and Wemby's struggles. Then they pivot to a discussion on the future of the Cleveland Cavaliers and whether they'll make a play for Giannis Antetokounmpo ... and LeBron James .

Topics:

2:04: Disappointing game from Wembanyama
10:24: Thunder role players come up big
17:31: Keys to Game 6 between Thunder & Spurs
27:11: Where does Cleveland go from here?
40:24: Could Giannis be a target for the Cavs?
42:44: Is LeBron James a possibility for the Cavs?
57:20: Brian's perilous journey through the airport

MacMahon on Wembanyama's Game 5: "The Thunder scored 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting when Wemby was the primary defender, the highest field goal percentage with Wemby as a primary defender in a game this postseason. ... I get the physical challenge here. He's obviously the primary focus of the game plan, but look, it was a failure of a of a performance from him."

Bontemps on the Cavs' future: "So if the Cavs are nowhere they need to be and they're going to grind all summer to get there, to me that very obviously says Evan Mobley will not be on the Cavs next season. Or at least that he is not going to be on the Cavs if they do anything to the roster -- because that is the one lever they have to really pull to actually fundamentally change the team and truly get the player that is better than Donovan Mitchell on the roster, because that is inherently the problem the Cavs have.

"When the Cavs made the Donovan Mitchell trade, the idea was Evan Mobley would ascend and become the best player by about now and Donovan Mitchell would be a perfect second player with him."

Windhorst on LeBron's future with the Lakers: "From what I am told, the LeBron side is waiting for the Lakers to come to LeBron. They're not going to go to the Lakers and say, 'We would like ... ' Just like last year, they did not go to the Lakers and say, 'We would like a contract extension, please.'

"The LeBron side, from what I am told, would like the Lakers to come and say, 'LeBron, here's our plan for you.' Here's what we were offering. And if they're offering less than the max, here's why ... because we're going to use this cap space to sign these players and this is where you slot in.'"

May 26: SPECIAL EDITION: The Knicks are in the Finals!

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps to react to the Knicks' sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers , reaching the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999 .

Bontemps on Brunson: "The Knicks have maybe the greatest free agent signing in the history of the sport. Jalen Brunson is in the conversation for that. When you look at what he's done for this team, I mean, he's not ahead of Shaq, probably, but short of that, you look at what he's done here. He's up there in the conversation with guys like Shaq and LeBron and these guys who changed franchises. Jalen Brunson has completely transformed the Knicks franchise. ...

"They've just built a really solid team that can play different ways, that can guard, that's got a lot of two-way players, that's tough-minded, that's led by one of the most clutch players in the league, and a guy who is rock-solid as far as like everything you could ask for from a guy leading your team.

"And even still, a month ago, the Knicks were 85 games into the season, and we're seeing this as a disappointment and a frustrating team. And it's just the last month that is maybe the most unexpected month in the history of the sport."

May 25: Wemby and San Antonio crush OKC, Knicks on the brink and All-NBA

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to react to the Spurs' dominant Game 4 performance and the concerning injuries Oklahoma City is facing. Then the trio dives into the Knicks' remarkable playoff run and explores why a short series could be massively helpful for New York against either Western Conference foe. Then they discuss the three All-NBA teams and debate some of the more controversial selections.

Topics:

1:04: Spurs dominate Game 4 to tie series with OKC
6:07: Who needs to step up for the Thunder?
10:30: San Antonio came out with the right mentality
20:13: Knicks on the doorstep of first finals since 1998
24:44: Atkinson's interesting media day quotes
31:15: Importance of Knicks finishing this series quickly
38:12: Massive playoff emergence of Mikal Bridges
47:48: Main takeaways from All-NBA selections

MacMahon on OKC's injuries: "The Thunder, they've got some problems right now. Ajay Mitchell has a calf strain. He hasn't been ruled out officially of the series, but common sense tells you it's probably pretty unlikely that he'll be able to play again in the series. J-Dub has the hamstring. That's a lot of creation, a lot of playmaking, sitting on the bench in street clothes. ...

"The Spurs are an elite defensive team, and the Thunder are a wounded offensive team. And even under those circumstances, the Thunder did not play well."

Bontemps on the Knicks' historic postseason: "During this 10-game run, they have a plus-225 point differential, the greatest point differential over 10 games in the history of the NBA, regardless of the regular or postseason. ... It's incredibly impressive."

Windhorst and Bontemps on the first-team All-NBA vote:

Windhorst: Cade Cunningham had 414 total points. Jaylen Brown had 384. Cade Cunningham had 60 first-team votes. Jaylen Brown had 44. ... if you're a Jaylen Brown fan, you could say that Jaylen Brown got screwed and like I said, the vote was relatively close. I just don't think this vote is controversial."

Bontemps: "First-team All-NBA ballot was everybody's top five for MVP, and Jaylen Brown, who was sixth in MVP, was sixth in voting."

May 22: Can the Knicks sweep the Cavs? And an OKC-San Antonio Game 3 preview

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to discuss the New York Knicks establishing a 2-0 lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night, including whether the Knicks can now sweep the Cavs and what Cleveland needs to do to get back in the series. They then close with a San Antonio Spurs - Oklahoma City Thunder Game 3 preview and what adjustments each team can make ahead of Friday night's crucial game.

Topics:

0:46: Knicks take control against the Cavs
9:50: What do the Knicks need to do to win a title?
13:05: Windy Storytime: Knicks superstar fandom
19:52: How can the Cavs get back in this series?
24:14: Injuries flaring up in Spurs-Thunder series
32:19: Key adjustments to watch for in San Antonio

Bontemps on why the Cavaliers went down 0-2: "I sort of agree with what Donovan Mitchell's message was after the game. And Kenny Atkinson's message after the game, which was that this was an offensive loss for the Cavs. The Cavs did not hit shots. The Knicks scored 109 points. They didn't score 130.

"I think the Cavs, if you said before the game, 'Hey, the Knicks are going to have 109 tonight,' Cleveland feels pretty good about that. But the Cavs, in this game, were 9-of-35 from 3. That's 25.7%. They were under 40% from the field on a night when they didn't turn the ball over very much. And Evan Mobley didn't take a single field goal attempt in the entire second half of the game. He had 14 in the first half and was scoreless in the second. He was 5-of-8 from the field in the first half. Didn't take a shot after halftime. The Cavs just were not good enough offensively.

"The Cavs', as you've talked about the whole time, defense isn't great. They're built to be an excellent offensive team. And their offense was not good enough tonight. ... That is why it's an 0-2 series. This is a team that's supposed to be one of the best offensive teams in the league. And they did not get it done in this game."

Bontemps on whether the Eastern Conference Finals is over: "Like we saw in Game 1, the Cavs are more than good enough to win this series. They have the talent. I'm not saying they're going to win the series, but they have the talent to win the series. They can play with the Knicks.

"And if you let them off the mat they can come back and get you just like they did to Detroit in the last round. But if the Knicks are going into this game Saturday night, they have a chance to end this thing just like they did with (Philadelphia). Can they go in there and do the same thing?"

MacMahon on the Thunder's WCF adjustments: "Mark Daigneault basically admitted he screwed up the Game 1 game plan guarding (Victor Wembanyama), basically saying we're not going to have Hartenstein on the floor against him hardly at all. They completely reversed that and he basically went to Isaiah Hartenstein after the first game and all but apologized, saying 'I didn't love only playing you 12 minutes. You're going to be on the floor a lot more.'

And Hartenstein, he didn't shut Wemby down, don't get me wrong. Wemby still had 21 points, 17 rebounds and six assists. (But) Wemby had 26 points in the paint in Game 1, he had 10 in Game 2. He had 13 free throws in Game 1, had three in Game 2. Hartenstein, with his with his size, with his smarts, with his toughness, kept Wemby from being just an unstoppable force in the paint that he was in Game 1."

May 20: Knicks' historic comeback and how OKC can respond down 0-1

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to react to the New York Knicks ' 22-point Game 1 comeback against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night, including a breakdown of why Cleveland collapsed and how both teams will adjust moving forward. They then move on to the Oklahoma City Thunder 's Game 2 outlook and how they can step up in Game 2 against the San Antonio Spurs . Finally, they close on the Dallas Mavericks firing coach Jason Kidd on Tuesday.

Topics:

1:12: Knicks steal Game 1 from Cavs with epic comeback
4:20: Cleveland melted down late in this game at MSG
8:17: What caused this historic comeback?
14:45: How do the Cavs recover from this?
24:45: How does OKC bounce back vs. Spurs?
43:14: Mavs parting ways with Jason Kidd
47:20: What will Dallas do with its head coach opening?

Windhorst on the Cavaliers' collapse: "This is what happens when you have a collapse. It's never one thing. It's always multiple things.

"And so, the Cavs missed some free throws. They had some some possessions that were lost due to free throws. They also stopped driving the ball. ... (Donovan) Mitchell and (James) Harden started foul hunting. The referees didn't give it to them because they didn't deserve it at that point.

"And so it was their offense resting basically. In addition to the fact that they were just being plucked apart on defense, there were no active attempts to stem the tide. This is absolutely going to go down as a game that the Cavs lost."

MacMahon on what the Thunder need to do in Game 2: Despite the fact that (Wembanyama) had 41 points, despite the fact that starting with that, 30 footer, he outscored the Thunder 12 to seven to close the game, I don't think it was a terrible defense performance against him. Again, I think this game, and the Thunder, think this game, was lost because they weren't able to generate offense. And that gets back to they weren't able to get Wemby moving around.

"You have to make him move directions multiple times. Maybe you can catch him, if you're going to be driving, you got to be able to catch him on a hard screen. You can't have him just able to roam and challenge at the rim. You've got to be able to catch him a split second late on a rotation like Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) did on that dunk in overtime -- which, by the way, he had that dunk in overtime and that was his only points in the last two overtimes."

MacMahon on the Mavericks' coaching search: "(Mavericks president of basketball operations) Masai (Ujiri) is definitely trying to be very buttoned up and and tight-lipped.

"I did inquire with a source familiar with his thinking and I said, 'Hey, would Sean Sweeney's connection with J-Kidd eliminate him as a candidate?' because Sean Sweeney was J-Kidd's right-hand man in Brooklyn, in Milwaukee and then in Dallas. And I was told no, that that wouldn't eliminate him as a candidate, that they would consider him as an individual, not as J-Kidd's right-hand man.

"I don't have at this point a list of candidates. I would say a couple things there: There are names flying ... Masai's track record is not necessarily swinging for big names. It's trying to find the next great coach. You know, he likes discoveries."

May 19: EMERGENCY POD -- Wembanyama's huge statement in instant classic Game 1

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps to react to the San Antonio Spurs - Oklahoma City Thunder epic Game 1 on Monday night, including a breakdown of Victor Wembanyama 's historic performance and how Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder can bounce back in the series.

Bontemps on the Thunder's series outlook: "I would say if Victor goes for 41 and 24 for seven games in the series, yes, I think the Spurs will win the series. I would also say that the Thunder, as the game went on, came into the game, figured some things out and I suspect this is going to be a very long series.

"But, I mean obviously the overall headline is Victor answered the bell at every turn and the Thunder, despite playing very badly, had this game in the bag. And no one's going to probably talk about it because they're going to focus on Victor's play in the second overtime and Victor's 3-pointer that he hit on the break. But the Jalen Williams possession with about 40 seconds to go in overtime cost this Thunder team the game."

Windhorst on the Spurs' historic performance: "Wembanyama is the first player with 35 points and 20 rebounds in a conference finals game since (Charles) Barkley in 1993. Not first conference finals game, any conference finals game.

He is 22 years old. He passes Lew Alcindor as the youngest player ever with 40 and 20 in a playoff game. 40 and 20. I mean, it was so long ago that Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) was still Lew Alcindor. You've been a big believer in (Dylan) Harper ever since he was at Rutgers. I'm not saying that you were the only one. I'm just saying that you were an advocate of Harper before he was the No. 2 pick. But Wembanyama, (Stephon) Castle and Harper are the first trio of teammates 22 or younger each to have a double-double in a playoff game in NBA history.

May 18: Full conference finals previews and SGA's historic MVP

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to cover the Cleveland Cavaliers ' Game 7 win over the Detroit Pistons and why it was the most important win in Donovan Mitchell 's career.

They then move on to preview the Eastern Conference finals and Cleveland's chances against the New York Knicks , who are coming into the series off a sweep of the Philadelphia 76ers .

The crew then discusses Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 's second straight MVP and whether it will give Victor Wembanyama extra motivation in the Western Conference finals. They close on a full San Antonio Spurs - Oklahoma City Thunder series preview.

Topics:

01:28: Cavs dominate Pistons in Game 7
16:08: Previewing the No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 3 New York Knicks
28:40: Gilgeous-Alexander joins elite company with back-to-back MVP's
37:17: Why the Spurs-Thunder could be an all-time series

Windhorst on the Cavaliers' ECF outlook: "The Cavs obviously will probably try to lean on their frontcourt just as they did in (the second round) because the Cavs' frontcourt depth is stronger than the Knicks'. But the Knicks' frontcourt historically has given these Cavs problems, specifically Mitchell Robinson , who has kicked the Cavs in the backside numerous occasions. So that will be a key I think early thing to look at.

"The Knicks' offensive production has been impressive. I would argue that of the eight teams left in the second round ... They certainly have the weakest defense of the remaining teams.

"So, the Cavs' defense is going to be stressed against that New York offense."

MacMahon on what Gilgeous-Alexander told him after his MVP: "I said, 'You know, Wemby is going to see this and he's going to feel a certain kind of way' and, 'What do you expect going into that series tomorrow?'

And he said this, 'In this profession, in this league guys are extreme competitors. You don't make it to be this good in this league if you're not a competitor and if you're not super confident in your ability. If you don't think the highest of yourself, that's not how you achieve things. You have to think before you achieve it. It's no different for him.' He said, 'Obviously he presents things that you've never seen. So the challenge is obvious. Everyone knows the challenge and none of this stuff matters if you don't win.'"

Bontemps on the Spurs-Thunder matchup: "What ways can the Thunder sort of do different things to try to get Victor Wembanyama out of Shai's way and out of these other players' way to be able to create space? Do you do what a lot of times the Wolves did and try to get bodies on him? Do you try to play five out as much as possible and try to space the floor even more? There's just so many little tactical wrinkles in this series with these two teams with the amount of depth they have.

"The other thing that came up a ton was the sheer amount of ball pressure that the Thunder play with and the relentlessness they attack with on the perimeter with. And how the Spurs guards, and in particular Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper , will handle that because those guys have been incredible and their development has been a remarkable thing.

"For as incredible as Victor is, it's really the development of those guys is why this team is where they're at -- because those guys are so far ahead of schedule, maybe even more so than Victor. But this is a different challenge like going up against this Thunder team."

May 15: Major conference semifinal controversy and previewing two massive Game 6s

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to discuss the controversial no-call at the end of Game 5 in the Cavaliers-Pistons series, Then the trio outlines whether Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs can close out the Minnesota Timberwolves and has the latest intel from the NBA draft combine in Chicago, before talking about what the future might hold for the Philadelphia 76ers .

Topics:

0:53: Controversial ending as Cavs take Game 5
9:25: Keys to watch for in Game 6 in Cleveland
26:17: Close-out challenge for young Spurs in Minnesota
35:06: Reaction from the NBA Draft Combine
37:29: Takeaways from Bob Myers' 76ers news conference
43:03: The biggest question for the future in Philly
46:02: Will Jazz want to move up to get AJ Dybantsa?
48:12: Where does the top tier of draft drop off?

Windhorst on the Pistons-Cavaliers series: "This is something that I thought JB, in retrospect, could have gone after. There have been times where I thought JB has gone after the referees this year where I was like, 'I don't know what that's accomplishing.'

"But on this one, I'm not even talking about the call at the end of regulation. The Cavs have 100 free throws in the last three games. The Pistons have 54. It's a 46 [free throw] differential. That's a tough situation in a three-game spread."

Bontemps on the Daryl Morey firing: "I think the Jared McCain trade is why Daryl got fired, ultimately. It was the straw that broke the camel's back in Philly. Like, yes, they lost in the second round, but the trade, combined with Daryl's press conference when he said he sold high, and that became a sound bite that's been talked about for three months, I think played a part in him not having a job anymore."

MacMahon and Bontemps on the Jazz potentially trading up to the No. 1 pick:

Bontemps: "The question is, would the Utah Jazz be willing to pay a premium to move up to number one to make sure they can get AJ Dybantsa? Because that's really all you're talking about."

MacMahon: Would Danny Ainge be willing to be on the wrong side of a value proposition?

Bontemps: "And the answer to that, I feel very confidently in saying, is no. And I would refer back to the last time the No. 1 pick was traded, which was Danny Ainge going from 1 to 3 and drafting Jayson Tatum and getting another pick in return to allow the Sixers to move up from 3 to 1 to draft Markelle Fultz.

"So, I don't I don't think that Danny Ainge and Austin Ainge, his son, and the rest of the Jazz front office will be doing anything remotely like that this year."

May 13: Statement game from Wemby, did Mitchell save Cavs season, and big changes coming for Lakers and 76ers

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to react to Victor Wembanyama 's statement response for the Spurs in the Game 5 win over the Wolves including talking if San Antonio can close out Minnesota in Game 6. Then, the guys talk about a historic performance from Donovan Mitchell to tie the series with the Pistons at 2 before giving big keys for Game 5 in Detroit. Next, we discuss the Thunder's dominant sweep of LA prior to breaking down a major offseason for the Lakers with the future for LeBron James and Austin Reaves . Finally, we dissect how the news from Philadelphia that Daryl Morey out as 76ers president of basketball operations will impact the franchise moving forward before honoring the passing of two members of the NBA family.

Topics:

0:54: Bontemps special combine assignment
Spurs big response, down Wolves in Game 5
12:40 Mitchell's historic second half saves Cavs
18:06 Windy Storytime: LeBron 48-point special
24:50 Not the best showing from the Pistons
29:17 Main keys to Game 5 in Detroit
31:14 OKC finishes sweeping Lakers in LA
42:39 Does the Lakers future include LeBron?
52:12 Morey out as 76ers president of basketball ops
1:04:33 Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke passes away at 29
1:06:10 Jason Collins, NBA's 1st openly gay player, dies at 47

Bontemps on the Spurs' third-quarter run to take control of Game 5: "That is an extraordinarily mature and professional response from a young team in a big spot where they very easily could have got sideways when Minnesota made that run, and instead they completely flipped the game on its head immediately and slammed the door and put themselves back in the driver's seat."

Windhorst on LeBron's future: "LeBron does have the right to take as much time as he wants and consider all of his options. However, the Lakers need to know what he wants to do relatively quickly if LeBron is going to want to get paid significant money, because the Lakers have cap space. They may re-sign their own free agents, they may go out and do another free agent, but they're going to need to know by the draft whether LeBron wants to come back and probably have a pretty good idea of what they're willing to offer LeBron and what LeBron's willing to play for."

MacMahon on Daryl Morey: "Daryl's arrogance has backfired on him repeatedly over the years. He rubs people the wrong way and I would say his biggest failing as a basketball decision maker is he's never been a guy who valued, or even frankly considered, the human element. He does not believe in basketball chemistry."

May 11: Wemby's ejection, a historic Knicks run, and the biggest winners and losers from the lottery

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to explore what Victor Wembanyama 's ejection might mean for the Spurs-Wolves series, how the Knicks decimated the Sixers and whether New York should be considered the favorite to come out of the Eastern Conference. Then they run through the biggest winners and losers from Sunday night's NBA draft lottery.

Topics:

1:46: Wemby ejected in Wolves' Game 4 win
16:12: Knicks destroy 76ers to sweep series
25:28: Interesting Joel Embiid exit interview
34:06: NBA draft lottery reactions from Chicago
50:31: Bad luck strikes some key teams
55:41: Big wins for the Jazz and Bulls
58:08: Brutal situation unfolds for the Pacers
1:01:17: Excellent result for the Clippers

Windhorst on Wembanyama's ejection: "Just a complete loss of composure from Victor. We have applauded him on every front -- how he's mature beyond his years. It was an unacceptable choice, and it hurt his team. He will help his team and carry his team to many wins in the future. But he hurt his team, and he extended their series in all likelihood."

MacMahon and Bontemps on the Knicks' playoff surge:

MacMahon: "Their average point differential is 19.4 points per game. That's the largest going into the conference finals since it went to the 16-team format in '83-84."

Bontemps: "Yeah, I mean, look, they've had a couple close games. You know, Game 2 in this series could have gone either way. They had the two one-point losses in the first round, but since they changed their offense around after Game 3 against Atlanta, they have been just absolutely molten hot."

MacMahon: "One hundred eighty-five points is what they've outscored opponents by in that stretch. That is the third-best point differential in any seven-game span, period -- regular season or playoffs."

MacMahon on the Grizzlies' jump to No. 3: "I can just say the lottery results will have no impact on the approach moving forward with Ja Morant . They were going to try to find a home for Ja Morant regardless of where they ended up in the lottery."

May 8: Major injuries in the East and stunning developments across the league

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to discuss another disappointing game from the Cleveland Cavaliers and their stars, before talking about the Lakers' latest complaints about the officiating in their series against the Thunder. Then the trio transitions to talking about key injuries in the Knicks-Sixers series and massive developments in both Boston and Milwaukee, before ending with a discussion about the significant implications of Sunday's NBA draft lottery.

Topics:

1:09: Pistons overtake Cavs late, take 2-0 lead
2:24: Cleveland's stars continue to disappoint
14:43: Lakers upset with officiating in OKC
27:23: Big OG Anunoby injury update in Knicks-76ers series
38:16: Spurs respond with sound defeat of Wolves
47:24: Interesting Giannis quotes from Bucks ownership
57:24: Is Jaylen Brown 's future in Boston uncertain?
1:06:41: Why this NBA draft lottery is so anticipated

MacMahon on Harden's playoff struggles: "Let's be honest, man ... like, you say "checkered history" for James Harden in the playoffs. That's very polite. Some of these stats are nuts. This guy has more playoff games with four turnovers or more than 30-point performances. He's had 20 playoff games where he has shot 25% or worse from the floor. I mean, he's a bad playoff player."

Windhorst on the Lakers' gripes with the officials: "The Thunder beat you on the court and they get you out of your game and out of your head because you're so obsessed about the calls. And it really is to their advantage. I'm not debating that the whistle that they have established is not an advantage, but you cannot play into it. You just cannot. If you're going to climb the mountain and beat them, you're gonna have to manage the way that they play."

Bontemps on the potential implications of the lottery: "Truly, if the Thunder move into the top four, I genuinely wonder if it has an impact on lottery reform. Because that is exactly the kind of thing that will be much more likely to happen under these new systems. And I I could see it really having a dramatic impact where people are looking around going, 'Wait a minute. This team, already the best team in league, goes from 12 to one or two or three or four in this draft and adds another awesome player? Like, this is what we're signing up for now going forward?'

"Like, it might just be damn the torpedoes. We're going to push these rule changes through no matter what. But the NBA has proven to be fairly reactionary on this stuff and the reaction to that would be immense."

May 6: " Never overreact to Game 1"

Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Vincent Goodwill to cover what the Cleveland Cavaliers need to do to bounce back from a Game 1 loss against the Detroit Pistons , including what they need from James Harden and Donovan Mitchell to win this series. Then, ESPN's Tim MacMahon joins the podcast to discuss the New York Knicks ' rout of the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday in Game 1 and whether it will lead to changes for the 76ers in Game 2. They close on the standout game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and San Antonio Spurs as well as the Oklahoma City Thunder 's "imperfect" Game 1 win.

Topics:

1:30: Pistons close out Cavs late in Game 1
23:57: Windy Storytime: Ben Wallace interaction
28:02: Knicks demolish 76ers in Game 1
30:55: What can we expect for the rest of the 76ers-Knicks series?
38:28: Timberwolves win epic Game 1 in San Antonio
54:02: OKC's 'imperfect' performance
1:03:46: Takeaways from Masai Ujiri's Mavs intro

Bontemps on why the Pistons have an advantage against the Cavaliers: "I just think Ausar Thompson is going to wear down Donovan Mitchell over the course of a series, which we've seen happen before. And that's going to leave James Harden to have to make plays.

"If it's Cade Cunningham versus James Harden, I'm taking Cade Cunningham to win that battle. And James got them to the precipice (on Tuesday), but when they got it tied up -- it was kind of like watching Game 7 of the Sixers series, where I thought if Boston hit any of those shots and got ahead, these guys might just roll downhill and get there -- Cade immediately came back and hit those two buckets, (Jalen) Duren and got him a little bit of separation. They just never fell behind and stayed ahead and got a big win."

MacMahon on the 76ers' concerns against the Knicks: "The Knicks present some massive problems for the Sixers, especially for Joel Embiid on the defensive end.

"Embiid is not a guy who's comfortable moving his feet and having to close out to shooters out on the perimeter. I said (Karl-Anthony Towns) has got to make him swim in those perimeter waters. And it's not just KAT's numbers, although he had 17. He shot it well. There was the one play in particular where it was catch-and-go and it looked like Embiid was wearing concrete shoes out there on the perimeter -- KAT goes in for the easy bucket. But when Embiid is out there, there's no rim protection. The floor is wide open."

Bontemps on why it isn't surprising the Timberwolves won Game 1: "They are able to rise up and play at a level in the playoffs consistently now over the past few years that frankly they don't during the regular season. It's part of what makes them a maddening team. They have these lulls every year in the regular season where they lose some inexplicable games or have these meltdowns in the fourth quarter and lose and you're like Minnesota, you guys are really good. What are you doing? How is this happening?

"And then they get to the playoffs and like you said, MacMahon, Jaden McDaniels , Rudy Gobert ... Julius Randle had huge moments last night. Like these guys are just tough-minded and physical. They take it to the opposition."