Conference Semifinal Check-In, Boxing Preview, and the Hundred

Speaker 00s - 24.2s

This is Danny Hyfitz PERSON here to remind you that it's never too early to start thinking about football. Join me with Danny Kelly and Craig Korbeck on the Ringer Fantasy Football Show all offseason. As we dive into the biggest news and topics are in the 2024 NFL season, also we probably get into really stupid arguments too. That's the Ringer Fantasy Football Show on Spotify ORG. It's the Ringer Gambling Show, presented by Fandle ORG.

Speaker 124.4s - 81.5s

The road to the NBA finals starts now, and Fandle ORG is the best place to get in on the action. Right now, you can check out the new and improved quick bets, which are back, and better than ever for the NBA playoffs on Fandle ORG. Find what you're looking for faster and easier with more props right at your fingertips. You can check out live bets like three-minute markets and exclusive live bets like quarter player props, player assist combos, and more.So download the app today and bet with Fandle, official partner of the NBA ORG. The ringer is committed to responsible gaming. Please visit rg dash health.com to ORG learn more about the resources and help lines available and listen to the end of the episode for additional details. Must be 21 plus 18 plus and present in select states. Gambling problem.Call 100 gambler, visit RG.com. Welcome back to the Rastradamus PERSON show.

Speaker 381.76s - 111.18s

It's yours truly Rahim Palmer, aka to Roshidamus PERSON. So we got my main man in the building. Zach Cran from the Ringer ORG. How you doing today? What's good? I'm good.Nice to be here. Thank you. No doubt. So we got an exciting NBA ORG postseason going down right now. How are you feeling about some of these series? Because, I mean, I think we're seeing some shockers.And the biggest shocker right now is that the Minnesota Timberwolves are up two games to nothing over the Denver Nuggets ORG. Do the Denver Nuggets ORG have a chance of coming back?

Speaker 2111.74s - 139.52s

The Timberwolds win in game two is the most shocking single game postseason result in quite a while for me. Not that Denver is struggling in this series because we knew Minnesota ORG was good. I actually wrote a piece in the first round about how Denver ORG was struggling more against the Lakers ORG than I expected, and it maybe gave me some concerns going forward. But losing the way they did in Game 2 EVENT, losing the composure the way they did in Game 2, the fact that Minnesota blew them out without Rudy Gobert PERSON, it was just shocking to me.

Speaker 3140.02s - 215.32s

So, you know, Kevin O'Connor PERSON says something interesting on his podcast. And it's something I thought about because I actually took the Denver Nuggets in game two. They were five and a half point favorites. When Rudy Gobert was announced out, that line moved to about seven. And a lot of times in the NBA ORG, I think what people don't realize is that it's not a situation to where you pull this star out of the lineup. And then all of a sudden, you just have this big advantage. Sometimes you pull this star out of the lineup and then all of a sudden you just have this big advantage.Sometimes you pull that star out of the lineup and now you're playing a completely different game. So, like, typically when Rudy Gobert is in the lineup, we know that Yokic PERSON becomes a score because they try to stop him from, you know, passing all the time. So I think a lot of they pulled out Rudy Gobert PERSON from the lineup. And I think that completely changed the game plan for the Denver Nuggets ORG. Like, imagine you're your coach, Coach Mike Boulon PERSON. You're preparing all this time for a Wolves team with Rudy Gobert and Carl Anthony Towns PERSON.And then a couple hours before the game, it's announced that he's not playing. And that changes things. So I think that might have actually hurt them. Now going forward, do you think in game three, Denver Nuggets are three and a half point underdogs here, do the Nuggets ORG havea chance of coming back in this series?

Speaker 2215.92s - 288.72s

I think possibly the best thing that happened to the Nuggets ORG was such a long break between games two and three. There were three days off when every other series you're just getting one game off at a time. And of course, that's because Nuggets Wolves ORG started earlier than everyone else. They wanted to get them more aligned because both of those teams won so early in thefirst round. And that doesn't just give them three days to work on a game play and figure out how to attack this wolf's defense. It also gave Jamal Murray three more days to potentially rest his leg because he has been less than effective in this series. And really this entire postseason, right? He made the two game winners against the Lakers, but is making fewer than 30% of his three-pointers. He doesn't seem to have the same burst that he usually does and really gives them a chance to reset mentally becauseit wasn't just, you know, Murray throwing things onto the court in game two. It was Aaron Gordon getting a technical foul. Contabious Caldwell Pope PERSON screaming at the ref after picking up fouls. So I think, like, this probably is good for them in terms of giving them a complete reset in the middle of the series. Granted, they haven't looked good in either game so far. So I'm not sure if that will be enough to give them the victory in game three, but I think they have a better chance now than they would have if it had just been like your standard 48-hour turnaround. So one of the biggest concerns

Speaker 3288.72s - 305.12s

for me about this Denver Nuggets team. I know a lot of people are saying, oh, the Denver Nuggets ORG, they don't have the same bench that they don't have. They don't have Bruce Brown PERSON. They don't have Jeff Green. Well, I'm looking at this starting lineup in the first quarter of the postseason. They have a minus 43.8 net rating. Terrible.

Speaker 2305.56s - 321.96s

Yeah, like, offensive rating of one of 81, defensive rating of 125. And you look in the first quarters for this Nuggets ORG team, ninth and field goal percentage, 41%, 15th and turnover percentage.So, and then I think Kevin Peltin

Speaker 3321.96s - 345.92s

actually did an article on this as well. He said, you know, them in the first half, they have a net rating of minus 17. And that only ranks ahead of the heat who got blown out by the Boston Celtics ORG. What do you make of their first quarters in their first halves? And like, is that just shooting variants or just turnovers?Like, is that something that can be turned around because it's just stunning for me to see that?

Speaker 2346.42s - 413.2s

I would like to see a little bit more aggression early on from Yokic PERSON, who we know loves to pass. And I think especially the way Minnesota ORG has been playing him really wants to get his teammates going. But he hasn't been shooting as much as he frankly needs to, given how good Minnesota ORG's perimeter defenders are.So I'm curious to see if he comes out with more aggression in game three. I also like I feel like there's an athletic disadvantage. And Minnesota ORG, from the opening tip, is trying to assert itself and saying, we are faster than you, we are longer than you, we are more athletic than you. There have been a lot of comparisons given for this series right now, right? Like defending champions who go out in an unexpected fashion, the series that keeps coming to mind for me, especially when I go back and rewatch tape of game two,is the 2012 Western Conference Finals, which is when San Antonio was 10 and O in the postseason to that point. They won the first two games. And then the Thunder ORG said, actually we're younger and more athletic than you. And they won four in a row and they weren't really that close. And it just looked like they were playing a completely different sport. That's the sense I get from the firsttwo games and I think Minnesota ORG, like because they know they have that advantage, they are saying we are going to ram that down your throat from the opening tip.

Speaker 3414.54s - 453.22s

Interesting. Because it's just, you definitely see that advantage as well. And like I think you see it with, you know, in game one, you look at the fact that Aaron Gordon, they typically put him in the dunker spot.And Rudy Gobert PERSON was cleaning that up. And then without Rudy Gobert in game two, he was able to, you know, get some easy buckets. But Yolkich, I've never seen Yokish PERSON get sped up the way he is. And then with Jamal Murray playing on one leg, it just feels like this team is playing one hand tied behind their back. So, like, for me, I just, I think we're going to know what this,what game three is, five minutes into the game.

Speaker 2454.22s - 492.26s

That's a perfect example, though. Because, you know, Aaron Gordon, like you said, he was able to get some easy buckets at the start of game two, but you don't want Aaron Gordon leading your team in shots, which is what he did in the first quarter of game two, right? He was five for seven. The rest of the team,I think, took 12 shots combined. Aaron Gordon's a fine player, but we've seen throughout his entire career. He works better as a role player. So if Minnesota ORG can say, all right, Aaron Gordon beat us, I think they're in a good position. So you think this series is over? I don't think this series is over, but I do think that something major needs to happen, like in this three-day period, Denver ORG needs to figure something out. And frankly, I don't know what that something is.

Speaker 0492.4s - 504.86s

I think the thing we haven't talked about enough, and frankly, in general, we've been so focused on Minnesota ORG's defense because it's so remarkable the way they've been playing. Minnesota ORG is also tied for the best offensive rating of any team in the playoffs so far.

Speaker 2509.26s - 557.7s

So, like, even if Denver ORG figures out a way to score on this awesome defense, can they slow Anthony Edwards PERSON down? Because KCP isn't strong enough and Aaron Gordon isn't fast enough. So then what do you do with him? And I feel like Edwards, obviously, he is on this ascension to superstardom. When Towns PERSON got injured near the end of the regular season, I feel like that was the best thing that could have happened to Edwards PERSON, because you look at the before and after for when Towns came back. And Edwards PERSON, during that period, when defenses were giving him so much attention, I feel like he took a leap in terms of knowing how to make the easyplay when teams double him or trap him. He gets the ball out to Conley or McDaniels, or now Towns PERSON, and those guys can make the defense pay when they have open space. So Edwards PERSON has just become such a smart distributor in addition to an unstoppable score that unless he slows down, even if Denver ORG starts scoring, I'm not really sure how they get the advantage back on both ends.

Speaker 3558.34s - 569.86s

Yeah, that's really fair. And you know, the one thing I've been noticing too is that, look, we know Carl Anthony Towns PERSON. Like, he's a guy who just has dumb files. He has dumb turnover.

Speaker 1570.88s - 575.1s

And you saw in game two, it was just like, all right, there was none of that.

Speaker 3575.66s - 586.66s

And if he's playing at a point to where it's just like, all right, he's giving you 27 efficiently. And Anthony Edwards is doing what he does. It almost feels like this Nuggets ORG team is drawing dead.

Speaker 0586.86s - 595.82s

So I'm going to watch the first five minutes of this game and kind of see if the Nuggets respond with some type of tenacity or just, you know, they throw a punch back.

Speaker 3596.4s - 630.32s

But I can't bet the Nuggets ORG here at all. So, but I'm not going to bet a sweep because I just, you know, Rudy Tom Janovis PERSON said you can never underestimate the heart of the champions. So I want to move on to another series. We got Boston Celtics ORG. They lost last night against the Cleveland Cavaliers ORG.What do you make of this team? I mean, this team is 14 and 14 in their last 28 home games at home. I attribute last night to shooting variants, but during the Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown error, they keep putting up these stinkers. At some point, it has to catch up with them.

Speaker 2630.7s - 640.46s

So it was partly shooting variants. I also think that it was less about shooting variants than when they lost game two to the heat. That was just the heat making every three-pointer last night. The Cavs ORG beat them in the paint, too.

Speaker 0641.02s - 666.96s

And I'm like a big data guy, right? I look at the numbers and the metrics. I feel like a lot of it has to do with urgency with the Celtics because realistically, when is the last time they played a game they needed to win? Last night, Cleveland needed to win that game. When was Boston's last must-win game? They basically led the East the entire regular season. And sure, they got up for, you know, the games against Denver, but they didn't really have to break a sweat against Miami in the first round.

Speaker 2667.6s - 688.9s

Realistically, they shouldn't need to break a sweat to beat Cleveland ORG in this round. And even going into the conference finals, right? Like, who knows how many players on the Dix ORG will be left by that point? So I think it doesn't really concern me about Boston's ability to beat Cleveland ORG, but it does concern me going forward because if they get to a team that is more even in quality, then you can't just give away a game for free.

Speaker 3689.42s - 731.04s

Yeah, that is a huge concern for me. Like, I, you know, like, to me, I keep hoping for this team to show that they're truly great because I think truly great teams, they just, they step on a gas pedal. Like, or even look at Minnesota ORG.Minnesota ORG, they could have been content with just a split, but they went in there and, you know, punched the Denver Nuggets ORG in the face within the first five minutes of the game.And I thought we were going to see that from the Boston Celtics yesterday, and we just didn't. And, you know, Evan Mobley PERSON, he looked kind of soft in game one, but in the game two, he comes back.And, you know, at any given point, it's crazy to say this, but at any given point, Donovan Mitchell can be the best player in the game two, he comes back. And, you know, at any given point, it's crazy to say this, but at any given point, Donovan Mitchell PERSON can be the best player in this series. And I think that scares me.

Speaker 2731.84s - 767.22s

Yeah, I think Mitchell PERSON has that ability. But if I were Boston, I wouldn't be as concerned about Mitchell PERSON. I think what Mitchell did really well yesterday was distribute. It wasn't just 29 points. He also had eight assists, which was different when Cleveland was struggling to score against Orlando in the first round. Mitchell looked great, but none of his teammates did. And what concerns me last night about Boston's defense is Evan Mowley got going for 21 points. Karrisselavert got going for 21 points. Isaac Okoro scored 12 points. You can't let the role players beat you. If Mitchell wants to go for an inefficient 40 points going up against White and Holiday PERSON, go for it, but you can't let him distributeand let the other guys get going to.

Speaker 3767.7s - 772.22s

Yeah, I agree with that. So Gutfield PERSON in this series, do you think this is probably over in five?

Speaker 2773.14s - 796s

I would say five probably. Maybe Cleveland ORG gets another game because of shooting variants. Also, Boston ORG has a little less margin for error without Porzengis because their bench does get kind of shallow,especially at the front court positions. I like Luke Cornett, but not as a sixth man. So I think Cleveland still will probably lose in five or six, but going forward, hopefully this is the wake-up call that

Speaker 3796s - 809.24s

Missoula and his guys need. Yeah, it was really troubling for me that they got out rebounded last night. Like, that was really troubling for me. And, you know, that can't happen. And then I think you'll see a better defensive effort in game three for the boss of Celtics ORG.

Speaker 2809.44s - 809.86s

Definitely.

Speaker 3810.62s - 830.28s

Oklahoma City, Dallas Mavericks ORG, because this is a series where to me, I felt like the Oklahoma City Thunder ORG were being undervalue coming into this series. I felt like they were the better team. They won game won rather easily. But then last night, the Dallas Mavericks pulled off, then upset 119, 110. What are your thoughts on this series?

Speaker 2830.74s - 880.46s

So I completely agree with you. I thought Oklahoma City GPE was being undervalued. They won the one seed for a reason. They won easily in the first round. They have a legit MVP candidate and Chey Gilchis Alexander PERSON. And everyone was saying, well, these two teams are basically even quality.And I don't think that's true, especially when Luca PERSON is hampered by his injury. Granted, Luca looked great last night. But I think what surprised me is that, you know, the role players, right, PJ Washington, scoring 29 points, Tim Hardaway, Jr. and Josh Green PERSON contributing off the bench. And from one perspective, if you're Oklahoma City, you say, sure, those guys aren't going to make 12-3-pointers. Again, we can chalk that up to shooting variants. On the other hand, Kyrie only scored nine points.So if PJ Washington doesn't score 29 again, Kyrie also isn't going to score nine again. And to that point, I think Kyrie, even though he wasn't scoring, he was awesome last night, right?

Speaker 0880.8s - 903.9s

Distributing 11 assists, maybe the best defensive game I've ever seen him play. So I'm not surprised this series is one-to-one. I still lean in Oklahoma City's favor, but I do think they have some rotational tweaks to work on. Number one, you know, how many more minutes to just get he play in the series?Minus 27. He only played 11 minutes last night, which was his lowest in any game this year. You'd be shocked if you started game three, right? Yeah, I'd be

Speaker 3903.9s - 920.48s

very, I mean, they didn't start him in the second half, and they made that run with him on the bench. And it was just like, damn, like at some point, why is he even playing basketball at this point in time? Like, maybe he should be out of the, I mean, obviously, you don't want to pull a guy like that out of rotation too fast, but I think you really got to

Speaker 2920.48s - 951.42s

start thinking about that. Single game plus minus is, you know, very hit and miss. It's kind of fluky depending on shooting variants. It doesn't seem like a coincidence to me that they're minus 27 with Giddy PERSON on the floor in this series and plus 40 with him off. So whether it's Isaiah Joe or Wiggins or Wallace, I think one of those guys needs to join the starting lineup and get more minutes.And maybe you can play Giddy when SGA ORG is on the bench just to give them kind of the lead ball handler in those minutes. But SGA is playing 40 minutes a game, so that doesn't leave much time for him.

Speaker 3951.9s - 992.02s

Yeah, I think they, like, that's something that you, you, they really have to look at doing because it was just like, when they made that run with him on the bench in the third quarter, it was just like I felt like they were going to win that game. But, I mean, it's just, I'm wondering how much Luke PERSON it could hold up because, I mean, he got it going yesterday. But at some point, it's just like you're watching them.And it's just like it just feels like I don't know how he gets through this series. So this is a tough series for me. I mean, like I'm looking at Fandole ORG sportsbook right now. And obviously the Mavericks ORG, they took home court. But the Mavericks ORG are now minus 134 favorites,which is like insane

Speaker 2992.02s - 994.04s

to me. I would still

Speaker 3994.04s - 996.02s

pick Oklahoma City GPE straight up. And

Speaker 2996.02s - 1029.82s

with the Luca injury question, that's kind of the reverse of what we were talking about with Denver ORG, where they get three full days off for Jamal Murray PERSON to maybe rest. They're back in Dallas, Oklahoma City. Game three Saturday afternoon. So that's like a day and a half for Luke to rest. And obviously, he's playing a high impact game, hitting the floor multiple times ingame two. So I wonder if that's also something OKC dials up more like Lou Dort PERSON, I know he's been in foul trouble, but pressure Luca PERSON full court just make him work a little more because maybe that won't matter right away in game three or right away in game four, but pressure Luca PERSON full court just make him work a little more because maybe that won't matter right away in game three or right away in game four, but over the course of a long series, just try and wear him down

Speaker 31029.82s - 1102.98s

more. Yeah, I totally agree with that. Now, I think the biggest thing I'm struggling with this series is because Oklahoma City GPE is just so young, and there's just no precedent for a teambeing this good. And you can't necessarily quantify this, but Luca and Kyrie PERSON, he had the pedigree. And you said it. I mean, Kyrie, what he had, like nine points yesterday, but he played probably one of the best games that I've ever seen in terms of like completeness, in terms of defense, in terms of, you know, playmaking. I've never seen that from Kyrie PERSON. And now he's delivering it.And you look at the fact that they're going to have the rebounding advantage in this series. They got the big guys up front in Daniel Gaffer PERSON. I'm thinking that this is going to be a longer series. I did take Oklahoma City to win this series, but I also took the over five and a half games. And I'm kind of hoping that Oklahoma City GPE wins game three because I kind of want to come back on the Dallas Mavericks, you know, plus two and a half games or plus one and a half games because I just don't see Oklahoma City wrapping this series up early despite being the superior team.

Speaker 21103.4s - 1113.44s

Yeah, especially after they split the first two games, I'd be given how close these two teams are, even if I think O'KC is better, I'd be surprised if one of these teams went three and over in the next three games.

Speaker 31114.1s - 1150.1s

So I got one more series to talk about New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers ORG. This is a frustrating series for me, because you look at the New York Knicks ORG. Like, you have to wonder how long does this team hold up? They're playing like six to seven guys. O.G. Annanobie PERSON is banged up. We know Thives.He likes to play his guys heavy minutes. And it feels like that's catching up to him. Do the Indian Pacers have a chance to come back and win this series? And you're looking at them right now in Fandul ORG's Sportsbook. Indiana Pacers ORG, they are what? What are they now? They're plus 270 to come back andwin this series. Is that a bet you would make?

Speaker 21150.44s - 1209.3s

I mean, come game five, they might need to bring like Stefan Marbury and Patrick Ewing PERSON out of the crowd to lace on their shoes because they're just running out of guys. So I think it's kind of a weird series to analyzebecause on the one hand, you would say, the Knicks are up two to zero. They're a better team. They have home court advantage. They're the clear favorites in the series, but it's just so hard to project when they have five and a half guys they trust, especially their front court. Their front court is so depleted. Randall PERSON's gone.Robinson PERSON is gone. Anadobie PERSON is gone. Like Isaiah Hartenstein, precious Ochoa PERSON, and who else is going to play minutes in the front court? And that might not stop Josh Hart from grabbing 20 rebounds a game, but I do think we're in somewhat uncharted territory with a team playing this banged up this many minutes. We didn't even mention Brunson missed a lot of game two getting hurt. So who knows his status going forward?I think Indiana has a decent chance to tie this up two to two. Although, given the way the Knicks ORG have survived this far, I wouldn't be surprised if they steal one of the next two, go home for game five.

Speaker 31209.74s - 1217.12s

Yeah, this is crazy to me because I said this on East Coast Bias ORG. It feels like the Knicks ORG have been outplayed in pretty much eight playoff games,

Speaker 01217.36s - 1218.36s

and they're six and two.

Speaker 31219.72s - 1233.02s

I'm not saying this because I'm from Philadelphia and I'm a little bit biased, but it just feels like this team is just pulling a rabbit out of a hat. There's no reason why, at minimum, the Pacer ORG shouldn't be cominghome, Todd 1-1.

Speaker 21233.5s - 1281.62s

And yet they're up. And we can talk about the refereeing, right? There was the obvious mis-kicked ball call, bad moving screen call at the end of the game one. But I think this series has turned into a lot of debating about refereeing with Indiana submitting, I think, 78 missed calls on video to the league.And yes, Indiana has had a bad whistle in the series. They also would be tied one to one, if not winning two zero, if they could just box out guys, they're five inches taller then, right? Or prevent Jalen Brunson from beating them on one leg. Or not taking T.J. McConnell PERSON out when he's looking like their best player, right? So I think there are ways that Indiana ORG can improve. The question is just if the Knicks ORG have been out hustling and out rebounding teams all season long in the first round, now in the second round, can Indiana ORG actually prevent that tide from washing in once more?Yeah.

Speaker 31282.16s - 1343.16s

And like I look at the series and I feel like this has been Indiana ORG series. You look at, you know, game one, 95 possessions, game two. It's just been a very fast-paced series. This is not a series that's played to the Knicks ORG pace. Like the Knicks play the slowest pace in the NBA this season. And you don't expect these high-scoring games.So for the paces be playing at their pace, for the Knicks ORG to have all of these injuries and still be down two games to nothing. It's just, it's absolutely stunning. So this line has gone up from, you know, Pacers minus four and a half.You're now looking at Pacers minus seven tonight, which is just an outlandish line. And I get it because the Knicks ORG are just, you know, bombed out and depleted. But at some point, with the way this Knicks ORG team plays, they don't give up games.Like this is not a game to where the Knicks ORG are going to come into us and say, you know what, we're going to take this game. They're going after it. So I don't even want to play the Pacers ORG at this price.

Speaker 21344.12s - 1363.92s

Tim, the thought of saying, okay, we took the first two, let's rest guys with Ananobia. There's no way Tibbs PERSON would ever do that. And I wonder, like, let's say Indiana is up, you know, 12 points with six minutes left. Does Tibbs say, okay, let's pack it in for game four? No, he's going to keep pushing his guys because I don't even think he knows the name of the 11th guy on the bench.

Speaker 31364.42s - 1369.88s

At all, at all. So we covered all the series. What's your hottest take for the NBA

Speaker 21369.88s - 1409.78s

postseason going forward? Oh, that's a good question. Here's a hot take, which I don't think would have sounded that hot going in, but especially given the way they've lost their two games so far. My hottest take is that the Celtics ORG are still the favorites for the championship. They haven't looked as good as Minnesota ORG. They possibly haven't looked as good as Oklahoma City GPE either. They might not have looked as good as the Knicks ORG,but I just think they have so much talent and, frankly, a much easier path where even if Minnesota dispatches with Denver ORG easily, they're not going to have an easy time with Oklahoma City or Dallas. So I would take Boston ORG, which also has home court advantage throughout the playoffs and just hope that once they face like an opponent on their level, they play up to that.

Speaker 31410.22s - 1442.9s

I agree with that. And if you look at Fandualsports record right now, the Boston Celtics are minus 340 to win the east. And, you know, that's a substantial number. But they're taking on a Cavs ORG team, which they should be. And then after that, you're taking on either the New York Knicks who just have all these injuries or the Indiana Pacers ORG who they just don't have a playoff quality level defense.And, you know, at minus 3.40, you're saying that the Celtics have a 77% chance. I actually think that's a bargain. Like, they probably have.

Speaker 21443.52s - 1445.3s

Yeah, it's much higher than that.

Speaker 31445.3s - 1466s

And then, you know, interestingly enough, if you look at the Celtics ORG odds to win a championship, it's minus 115. And I think they would be favored over anybody who came out of the West outside of Denver ORG. So that is probably a good bet.And, you know, interestingly enough, they have the Celtics minus 115 versus the field. I'm taking the Celtics ORG.

Speaker 21467.12s - 1494.2s

Which, I mean, I don't think this would sound a hot take before we saw a game two last night. But just the way people are talking about them and saying, oh, they did this again, they can get away with one of those in a series against a bad team. I would like to see them, you know, beat Cleveland like they did Miami GPE now, where they beat Miami by 70 points in games three through five. But I think they have the quality to do that.And I think they have the time to let Porzingis PERSON rest and rehabilitate before they actually need him.

Speaker 31494.58s - 1547.54s

So I have a bet that I like. And you could tell me your thoughts on it. So they have NBA finals MVP up on Fandall ORG's sportsbook right now. And there's two Boston Celtics ORG, which I think they provide the best value on the board. Jalen Brown at 12 to 1 to win finals MVP and Derek White at 20 to win one to win finals MVP. I like both of those.And I think if you were to take those now, you would be putting yourself in good position. And look, a lot of people, they always kill me for this because I refer to Jason Tatum as NBA Brock Purdy. But I need more from my star than what Jason and Tatum is giving me right now. What is your thoughts on those two bets? And how do you feel about Jason Tatum going forward? Because I think he's the concern for the Celtics ORG once they start playing top tier competition in the NBA Finals EVENT.

Speaker 21547.84s - 1619.94s

So I didn't even have the odds pulled up, but as soon as you said a bargain for finals MVP, I thought in my head, I hope he says Derek White PERSON. Because he's been the team's best, right? If he's been the best player in the playoffs so far on the team that we think is favored to win the finals, how can we not think he has a chance? And granted, I would say Jason Tatum is a betteroverall player than White PERSON, but over the last seven games, or I guess six games, because White wasn't very good last night, White has been their best player. I think he could play a key two-way role in the finals, right? Defending and opposing, you know, Shea or Anthony Edwards or something like that. At the same time, I think he's been one of their best offensive players. And he provides a key role both scoring when he's making threes and distributing. And we've seen examples in the past of guys who win finals MVP, even though they're not the team's player, right? Steph Curry controversially did not win finals MVP in 2015 because Andre Aguadala, people thought he defended LeBron PERSON really well, even though LeBron still went off that series, and he contributed on the offensive end, and Steph PERSON didn't have his most efficient series.So I wouldn't expect it, but at 20 to 1, like if Tatum doesn't have his most efficient series, and somebody like White PERSON does, I could totally see a world with that happens.

Speaker 31620.44s - 1676.42s

Yeah, and you know, it's just, it's like Tatum at this point in time, he doesn't have to beat Anthony Edwards for his team to win games. And I think that opens up the door for a Derek White or a Jalen Brown to come through and really steal this MVP WORK_OF_ART award. And, you know, Bill PERSON said it on his podcast. I think over since the Miami series of last year, Jason Tatum is just 22 of 88 from 3. So if he's going to have these poor shooting nights and, you know,Derek White PERSON can step up and be the team's best defender or, you know, continue his hot streak from 3. I think it makes way for that. So, yeah, I think we've covered pretty much everything that we want to cover right now. Is there any – I know you're not the biggest bet, but is there any bet if you had to make a bet on anything NBA ORG-related that you would bet going forward?

Speaker 21677s - 1722.2s

I have the MVP finals odds pulled up right now. And I don't know, Jalen Williams from Oklahoma City at 170 to 1. Like, if Oklahoma City GPE is as good as I think they are, I think they have a chance to make the finals and potentially beat the team they play there. And of course, SGA ORG has very good odds for that reason. But Jalen Williams, I think if the Oklahoma City Thunder ORG get to that point, he's going toneed to take a leap in this playoffs. I picked him when we did like a staff post for the ringer.com before ORG the playoffs started, we had to pick a breakout player. And I picked Williams PERSON. And he's been good in the playoffs so far, but not great. And I think he has the potential to take that step forward. And I don't know, 170 to one seems like a long shot, but you'd make a lot of money if you get it right. I like that one. That's a good one.

Speaker 31722.38s - 1745.9s

I really like that one. So who's your finals matchup? I mean, now I think it would be silly to pick against Minnesota Boston, but before the playoffs started, I had Oklahoma City Boston, just because I thought Oklahoma City was being underrated. They had home court. And with a lot of young teams that I think are maybe under, don't play as well in the playoffs as they do in the regular season. It's because they don't have that very top level talent.

Speaker 21746.2s - 1762.48s

A team like the Grizzlies a couple years ago where John Morant PERSON was great, but he wasn't MVP level. Shea PERSON is that kind of player. So I think they had the potential to go to the finals. But Minnesota's up to zero and Oklahoma City's tied one-one. So the odds say Minnesota ORG right now.I'm not mad at that. Yeah, I want to thank you for coming on.

Speaker 31762.48s - 1764.08s

Let the people know where they can find your work.

Speaker 21764.68s - 1775.34s

Zach Cram PERSON, follow me at Zach Cram, Z-A-C-R-A-M on Twitter and read my work a couple times a week at the ringer.com. No doubt, man. Thanks for coming on. We definitely want to have you back.

Speaker 31780.14s - 1782.16s

Thanks again to Zach Cram PERSON for coming on.

Speaker 21782.68s - 1784.38s

Had a great basketball discussion.

Speaker 31785s - 2111.04s

Right now, we got some boxing picks this Saturday. Vasil Lomachenko PERSON is taking on George Cambosz Jr. to meet for the vacant IBF ORG lightweight title. You can find that on ESPN, ESPN Plus, and Australia GPE. Very, very interesting match. You look at Vasil Lomachenko, 17 and 3, 11 KOs, probably a future Hall of Famer.He's taken on George Campos Jr., 21 and 2, 10 KOs. And you look at these two guys. I mean, look, Lomachenko PERSON is a huge favorite. Minus 750 Cambosis is a plus 460 underdog. And I like Lomacheico PERSON in this match by decision. You look at Lomachenko, he really hasn't knocked anybody out since 2021.He is 36 years old. So this is, I mean, he's getting up there in age. But when you look at George Cambosus Jr., this is a guy who is probably a one-hit wonder. You're talking about a guy who beat Tio Fima Lopez PERSON and since then he really hasn't done anything. This is a guy who's living off for that win against Tiofima Lopez. He lost twice to Devin Haney PERSON, came back and beat MaxiHughes late last year, but he's just not in the same class as Loma Chenko PERSON. So we're going to lay the minus 162 on Lomachenko PERSON to win by decision. I think this goes 12 rounds. When you look at what Fandu has right now, will this fight go to distance minus 290 to go to distance? And I think the over under is 10 and a half rounds. It's juiced to the over at minus 400 for a reason.I'm not expecting a knockout here. I think the only way we see a stoppage is if, you know, Lomachenko PERSON just completely boxes it off. And it's just an accumulation. But I don't see that happening. George Campos PERSON is the bigger guy.But Lomachenko PERSON should be just be able to outbox this guy rather easily. So we're going to lay the minus 162 on a Lomachinko ORG's decision. Now it's time for the 100. We are 44, 49 and 1, minus $983. It's been a rough goal of it this year. Haven't had this success that we've had last year.We split last night one and one, but we're going to try to keep this thing moving. We're going to go with the Indiana Pacers ORG. Team total over 114 and a half points. I mentioned earlier this Indiana Pacers ORG team. They are laying seven to the New York Knicks ORG. I think that's pretty steep. I don't want to catch the worst of it. You look at the Pacers ORG, they play eight playoff games, and they've gone over this total in six out of their last eight games in thepostseason. You look at their playoff totals, 94, 125, 121, 126, 92, 120, 117, and 121. They've hit this total in all four home games. So let's go. They've hit this total in all four their home games. So let's go. Indiana Pacers team total over 114.5. Next, let's go. T.J. McConnell, over 16.5 points plus assist.He's going over this total in three straight games. Game one, 18 points, three assists. Game two, 10 points, 12 assists. They know they need T.J. McConnell PERSON. I don't expect him to be on the bench like he was in game 2 to close this game. So they need this game.So I expect T.J. Conno to have a big, big day. And then let's go to tomorrow. Boston Celtics, minus 7.5 in game 3. A lot of poor shooting variants from the Boston Celtics end game two. They also weren't focused. I think they come back tomorrow and take the Cleveland Cavaliers ORG into the deep waters and drown them.So let's lay the seven and a half with the Boston Celtics ORG. That's our place for the 100. Anyway, that's our show for today. It's been Rahim Firmus PERSON, the Rashidamus. As always, y'all know how it's going down. You make sure you check us out, East Coast buyers every Monday and every Thursday.Spotify, Fandall TV, the Ringer ORG. Y'all know how it's going down. Must be 21 and up and 18 and up in D.C. And present in select states. Fandu is offering online sports wagering in Kansas under an agreement with the Kansas Star Casino LLC ORG. Gambling problem.Call 100 gambler or visit fandu.com slash RG and Colorado, DC, Iowa, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and Vermont GPE. Call 1,800 next step, or text next step to 533, Tennessee, Virginia, and Vermont. Call 1-800 next step or text next step to 533, 4-2 in Arizona GPE. 1-888-789-777 or visit ccpg.org slash chat in Connecticut GPE. 1-8009 with it in Indiana ORG. 1-8502-470470 or visit KSgamelandhelp.com and in Kansas GPE. 1877-77070 stop in Louisiana GPE.Visit MD gamelahelaheorg in Maryland GPE. Visit 1-800 gambler.net in West Virginia or call 1-800 522470470 in Wyoming GPE. Hope ORG is here. Visit gambling helpline in May.org or call 800327-50 for 24-7 support in Massachusetts or call 18778-8-8-N-York or text Hope, New York GPE, or text Hope, New Yorkin New York GPE.