- 1 day ago
Steiny and Guru are FIRED UP ahead of tonight’s do-or-die Play-In game against the LA Clippers. Steve Kerr joined Willard and Dibs and dropped a bombshell: Brandon Podziemski is the only player capable of playing heavy minutes right now. Does that leave the Warriors dead in the water? Steiny explains why he’s lost faith in a deep playoff run, while Guru searches for a reason to hold on. Plus, a look at Draymond Green's "82-game vs. 16-game player" philosophy and what it means for tonight.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00All righty, Warriors in the play-in tonight against the L.A. Clippers.
00:04Yes, sir.
00:05On the one hand, they'll be as healthy as they can possibly be.
00:11They won't have Butler and Moody, but we knew that.
00:15But Steve Kerr was on with Willard and Dibbs yesterday,
00:19and this was the part that has some Warrior fans a little bit troubled.
00:25Other than Brandon Wajemski, I'm not sure anybody is even capable of playing more than 35 minutes.
00:31I mean, Steph just came back, obviously, didn't quite get to 30 the other night.
00:36Draymond's been around 28 to 30 all year.
00:39Kristaps and Al kind of mid-20s.
00:41So that's just who we are right now as a team.
00:44And with Jimmy and Moses out, obviously, it puts us in a bind in terms of the minutes we need.
00:52So we'll play our bench.
00:54We'll play guys, and the game will tell us what we need to do,
00:58but we've got to be ready to use our whole bench.
01:01All right, so that was Steve Kerr yesterday with Willard and Dibbs
01:04saying that there's only one player on the team that can play 35 minutes right now,
01:08and it's Brandon Wajemski,
01:11which means that he doesn't want to play Curry or Draymond or anybody 35 minutes or more tonight.
01:18And the thing to me that I want to bring up and compare and contrast, if you will,
01:25so I'm reading The Athletic today, and Nick Friedel, guru, wrote something on Draymond Green
01:30and how Draymond Green views the NBA.
01:34And he says certain guys are 82-game guys, and certain guys are 16-game guys.
01:40And the 16 games means the playoffs, obviously.
01:44And, you know, Draymond says, number one is you have to have a certain focus level.
01:48You have to meet a certain level of physicality, blah, blah.
01:52You know, and he expounds on that.
01:54The foul calls are pulled back a bit.
01:57I think one of the beautiful things the NBA does, and referees do too,
02:00is you have to go win.
02:01You're not going to get bailed out.
02:03And then he says if you're someone that can't lock in on the game plan,
02:07you can't be a 16-game player.
02:11And my question to Draymond and the Warriors and to Steve Kerr is,
02:16do you really have 16-game players if you don't have anybody that can play 35 minutes?
02:24No, that's a phenomenal question.
02:25And the answer to me, and it's disheartening to hear, is his truth and Kerr's is no.
02:30I mean, how can you go out guns blazing if you don't have all your bullets?
02:35And, you know, that was, you know, those are words.
02:38And maybe, you know, in the midst of battle tonight and the game were to go overtime,
02:43we see Curry and Draymond or whoever play over 35 to 40 minutes.
02:47But just hearing that, it's kind of somber.
02:50But then it's also just a state of what you've accumulated, you know, via the roster.
02:55And I know Jimmy's out and Moody are out.
02:59But, man, you know, I was asking Evans when you left, Evan, when you left the green room,
03:03do we see Bassey?
03:04People call him Darryl Gassie Johnson.
03:06But do we see Bassey?
03:08And you hearing that sound by, hell yeah, we're going to see Bassey, Stiney.
03:11We might see Leone's.
03:13And it's like, wow, you're, you know, Guy Santos can't give us 35.
03:16And I know he didn't want to go down the whole roster.
03:19But how am I expect or Dub Nation to expect us to shock the world?
03:25And we can't shock the world because we got fighters that can't go 15 rounds if need be.
03:31It's kind of disheartening to be at this juncture and still Stiney needs his Geritol.
03:38Evan needs his Rolaids.
03:40It's like, damn, man, but we put this together.
03:44And maybe that will go.
03:45You know what?
03:46I am truly fired up about this game.
03:48I'm being real.
03:49And last night had a lot to do with it, too.
03:52Maybe I'm hanging on like Van Gundy this old morning's leg.
03:57Maybe in the midst of the fire, that will go by the wayside.
04:02And there will be opportunities, situations we'll all be seeing together, watching.
04:07And maybe that will just go by the wayside.
04:10And the training wheels will come off.
04:12And guys will be out there if need be more than what we thought.
04:16You know, maybe it's just too much wordplay and I'm hanging on to every word that occurs saying.
04:21I'm speaking for myself.
04:23But I hope tonight, you know, the game is not over and Steph doesn't play 30 minutes.
04:30And Draymond's not close to it.
04:32Then I would feel like, especially in a loss, we didn't put our best foot forward.
04:37Yeah, I think, you know, the way I look at this year, and I'd love to know what some Warrior
04:43fans think.
04:45And, you know, they won in 2022.
04:48They kind of ran it back to next year.
04:51It didn't work.
04:51And we've heard a lot of talk about where the Warriors are and the goal for the Golden State Warriors
04:59over the last three years has been to try to manage the regular season, get into the playoffs healthy, and
05:07then make some kind of run.
05:09And to me, this year, everything failed on every front.
05:16So you didn't manage the regular season because you were 37 and 45, and maybe you couldn't manage it because
05:24of injury.
05:24But that's the reason you can't manage it because of, you know, because of injury.
05:30So they can't manage the regular season, and now they've got to go in as a 10 seed.
05:36But they're not even healthy when they go in as a 10 seed.
05:39They're missing two players, and now we hear that only one guy on the roster can play 35 minutes.
05:46That was odd, man.
05:46So, you know, when people, you know, want to just kind of keep this thing going, I mean, it's kind
05:54of crumbling in a few different ways.
05:58And one is they're now at the end of the season as a 10 seed, and they're not healthy.
06:06So we didn't accomplish either goal.
06:09We didn't manage the regular season, and we're not coming into, you know, the postseason or play-in game or
06:15playoff healthy.
06:17So when I look at that, I don't really see how they can make any noise in the play-in.
06:26I think it's a real long shot for them to win two games.
06:30Well, I'm hoping, and we all are, and I hear you.
06:32I have nothing to rebuttal.
06:35I feel that premise of what you're saying and how you're laying it out.
06:39And my frustration is, okay, tomorrow was always supposed to be the day.
06:45That's how I was surmised this season, from the beginning.
06:48And I brought this up.
06:49I'll do it again.
06:50Oh, we're going to be in our beds.
06:52We got dealt a bad hand in regard to the rodeo.
06:54But now I'm watching Steph Curry, and I'm happy as all, as happy as I can be that he came
07:03back this season
07:04because I thought he was going to be shut down.
07:05But now, Stiney, I'm being honest.
07:07I saw him against the Kings up close.
07:10I saw him against the Clippers, and it's not his fault.
07:13But there's no way he's 100%.
07:15And when he made his debut, it looked like he was 100%.
07:19So I get, you know, you can't just run him in the ground.
07:24But at what juncture this season has been, you know, showing caution paid off the next day or the next
07:32week?
07:32So I'm hoping today will be a new opening night.
07:37But that kind of, that rug got taken out from underneath me, and I fell down and hurt myself like
07:43a bam last night
07:45because the coach is telling me, Gu, hey, I know we're rooting and we're trying,
07:50but we got guys that can't go the 15 rounds.
07:53Like, that was just a blow before the game.
07:56And I'm hoping that was just wordplay, but I'm with you.
08:00And I'm going to say this to you after what you just said.
08:03What are you holding on to?
08:06Because you talked about it.
08:07Three of the last six years we've been part of the play-in, and we got ran twice.
08:12What are we holding on to?
08:16You're holding on to not doing anything tonight that could jeopardize Steph Curry next year.
08:25That, you know, that's the one thing.
08:29But there's no guarantee that the chef will be fine or immune from injury next year.
08:34Right.
08:35I know.
08:36That's why they're in the same boat next year.
08:39Exact same boat.
08:41They're in the exact same boat next year.
08:43And, you know, it's funny because I've heard a few people now talk about,
08:46and Fitz said it yesterday, and we love Fitz.
08:49Yeah.
08:50How it's such a big offseason for the Warriors.
08:54Is it?
08:55How can it be?
08:56Well, if you were to bring in a big fish or a whale like LeBron or Kawhi.
09:00Yeah, I don't think it's a big offseason at all.
09:02I think next year is the big offseason.
09:05And the reason is because they've put themselves in a position to have money at the end of next season,
09:12not this season.
09:13So, you know, when I look at this roster of Butler and Curry and Draymond,
09:19I just, I wonder how much they can do in the offseason.
09:23I think this is going to be a relatively uneventful offseason.
09:28So, just about tonight, shout out DJ Quinn.
09:31Do you give them much of a chance?
09:33I do.
09:33I do give them a chance tonight.
09:36Portland is something I don't want the Warriors to see.
09:39And they proved that just by beating them three times.
09:42Portland this year, beating us three times.
09:44But watching them last night, I'm like, oh, they got dudes.
09:47They got length.
09:48They got athleticism.
09:50They know who they are.
09:51This thing has just been guerrilla glue, duct tape.
09:55But do you give them much of a chance tonight?
09:57Because I look at that Clipper team, and I've been impressed throughout this year at times.
10:01But it starts and ends with Kawhi, and if Draymond and company can just make it difficult for him,
10:08I do give, okay, Darius Garland, you know, Bonte left out of here like he didn't have the best April.
10:14Garland, that is.
10:15But he looked active Sunday night.
10:18And I'm just, do you give them much of a chance?
10:21The Warriors tonight, Stiney?
10:23I mean, yeah, I think they could win tonight.
10:25But I'm looking at two games, you know, that they're going to have to win.
10:30And now they've got to go to Phoenix on Friday if they can win tonight.
10:35Check that off.
10:36I mean, like, what's the line tonight?
10:40Five?
10:41Five even.
10:42Five and a half.
10:43Five and a half.
10:44I put some, I don't have much on the Warriors.
10:47Like, this has to mean something for Steph and Dre and Steve Kerr, because we are, I'm going to say
10:55it,
10:55we are at the end.
10:56And now the end can be a while, but, you know, these moments aren't coming around.
11:01And I'm thinking, I swear to you guys, I have no proof.
11:05I have no way to prove it.
11:06Last night I'm watching the game and I'm thinking, what is Dre?
11:09What's Steph?
11:11What's Guy Santos?
11:12What is, because everybody's watching these two games.
11:15I got to believe they got a pep in their step watching those performances by the four teams.
11:22Now, now they're up.
11:23Did the Clippers get a pep?
11:24I agree that.
11:25I agree that.
11:26You know.
11:26I agree that.
11:27But you know what I mean.
11:29I don't give the Warriors any, like, that's.
11:34So, Steph and Draymond and watch the game last night, now they're super revved up any more than the Clippers.
11:41Like, I just, you know, I think this is where it works the opposite.
11:46You know, you look at the Charlotte Hornets, they've never been there before.
11:49They're in their first play-in game.
11:51They played like it.
11:52But I'm not convinced that we are going to see some kind of all-out effort that becomes obvious that
12:00the Warriors are playing harder than they've played the last couple months.
12:04They'll probably play better than they've played the last couple months because they'll have Steph and Draymond and Porzingis, etc.
12:11But I don't think I'm going to see them playing in a way where you say, oh my God, now
12:20you can tell this was a big game.
12:21And I went off yesterday about Porzingis and I like what, like, he has nothing to prove basketball-wise in
12:28regard to his talent.
12:29But this is a game, and I'm asking Dub Nation, can the Warriors win on the road without Steph going
12:36Michael J. Fox and Dean Wolfe?
12:38Can he have an okay game but Porzingis have a game of his life in the offs?
12:44Or Horford and Pods and Guy Santos?
12:48Can other guys outside, not name the chef, have a game or have an out-of-body experience to where
12:55we can attach our wagon to them and they can bring us home?
12:59Does it have to be Steph like it always seems like it has to be?
13:03Or can other guys show up tonight and we beat the Clippers?
13:11It's probably going to have to rely a lot on Steph, I would think.
13:15Is this true?
13:17Yeah.
13:17The Warriors have beaten one team with a winning record in their last 25 games?
13:21Does that sound right?
13:22Yikes.
13:23That's on the text line.
13:25Well, we had lunch yesterday, you having an eye after the show, and the stats of all stats were when
13:31Draymond went up to the podium, and so did I, after the game we went to in the suite against
13:36the Kings when the Warriors hosted Sacramento.
13:39And we were talking about the Kings tanking and not being a part of that, but to find out in
13:43the second half of the season the Kings had more wins than the Warriors, that was one that I drove
13:49home in the caddy.
13:49Like, I didn't even turn the music on.
13:51I just sat back and sat on that nugget about, hey, no excuses, but you talk about putrid basketball?
14:00That is a stat that is, wow.
14:03And again, that may mean nothing tonight, but could you imagine if somehow we win it and pull it off
14:08tonight and get a game Friday?
14:11Like, I want it.
14:13And also, we'll be all in, partner, if we win tonight, lose Friday, and are part of the lottery.
14:19I, you know, I look at tonight's game, and obviously the Warriors can win the game.
14:24I mean, it's an NBA game, but I do think that sometimes in these situations you kind of pay the
14:32price for the kind of year you had, and whether we like it or not, you know, the Clippers didn't
14:37get off to a great start, and they've played pretty well for 50 to 60 games.
14:42And the Warriors just have never really gotten it together, which is understandable after Jimmy Butler.
14:49I do think that this is going to be, this is going to, this is going to be a tough
14:56game.
14:56I don't, I would not bet on the Golden State Warriors to win this game tonight.
15:01Wow.
15:01I just wouldn't.
15:02No, I get it.
15:04I do get it, man.
15:05The Clippers have just been better start to finish than the Warriors this season.
15:11And do I think that they can beat the Clippers in a game?
15:14Yes, but then they're going to have to go beat Phoenix, who's been better than them all season, too.
15:19And this team's not a great road team.
15:23And they're not, I don't think they're firing on all cylinders, obviously, right now.
15:28They've never been whole to get that cohesiveness that was talked about all year.
15:33And I'll use a baseball term.
15:35We know the Giants are stinking it up right now.
15:37But just hearing Steve Kerr tell Willard and Dibbs that a guy can't, or guys can't play 35 minutes, not
15:42named Pods,
15:43that was like a game seven and the manager saying, hey, our starting pitcher, he can't go deep into the
15:50game.
15:50I mean, in fairness, sometimes that happens when you use a pitcher in a game six, and you just can't
15:56use him in a game seven.
15:59But, you know, my big thing, and I don't necessarily want to get into it now,
16:03but, you know, I just can't assume that next year they're going to get all this good fortune injury-wise
16:13at their age
16:14and kind of turn this season or turn it around next year.
16:18Let's go to Nico.
16:19Nico. Nico's in Sacramento.
16:22BTO.
16:23Hey, Nico, what's going on?
16:25Yo.
16:26Yo, what's up, guys?
16:27Hey.
16:28I got to say, I mean, I love the rejoin.
16:31Every time it plays, you guys have been playing it for the past couple weeks.
16:34I heard it yesterday.
16:35I was like, man, I got to call in.
16:37I wasn't feeling so good, so I didn't call in.
16:39I love the rejoin, man.
16:41I love hearing myself on the radio.
16:42It's freaking awesome.
16:44Congrats.
16:46Let's get in on these warriors, man.
16:47I don't understand why we're praying on someone to have a good game,
16:53like a Buddy Heal-type game last year, to win a play-in game.
16:58We're in the play-in, bro.
17:00Like, what are we talking about?
17:01Are we really going out here and praying for someone to do good,
17:05like a Guy Santos, to help Curry get over the top
17:10and then go play another game on Friday?
17:13Come on, man.
17:14This is just ridiculous.
17:17Like, last week you said I was negative,
17:19and this past week you've been so negative, bro.
17:23And, like, how am I the negative person when I just see that we're trash,
17:26and I'm a real fan that understands that we have nothing in the tank.
17:32But I'm not being negative.
17:33I'm being realistic.
17:34I'm not sitting here saying we're going to win championships.
17:37We're not that good.
17:38I mean, the season win total, we blew the under, like, easily.
17:44The team is not good put around Curry.
17:46The staff is good, but we don't have anything on the court.
17:51So it doesn't matter if it's Kerr or Popovich or anybody that's coaching.
17:56We don't have talent.
17:57I mean, our best player after Curry and Pajingas is Guy Santos,
18:01and everyone at home is who this.
18:04No one knows who Guy Santos is.
18:05He's not a name, man.
18:07It doesn't make any sense.
18:08So we're praying on these guys to do something for us tonight.
18:13Just keep praying, bro.
18:15And Nico.
18:15I love the show.
18:16Y'all have a good one.
18:17Nico, I'll leave you with this because, you know,
18:20Friday did something to me after the show.
18:22I went up to sack, watched the game, and watched the Warriors up close,
18:25and they were whole.
18:27And that, to me, and I love hard,
18:29I tricked myself into thinking this is a dress rehearsal.
18:33And, again, the game had no meaning in regard to the standings,
18:36but what I saw, Neat Clifford and Devin Carter do to the Warriors,
18:41I got emotional,
18:43and I'm hoping somehow they can flush that out of their system
18:46and show up tonight.
18:47But, you know, it is what it is,
18:49and I don't like the wordplay that's coming out of Warrior World right now.
18:53And, you know, we'll talk to you later, Nico,
18:55but I'm just telling you, Stiney, that story about, you know,
18:59I don't want to take the show off the tracks here,
19:01but, you know, I go to bed or wake up this morning
19:03and read the article about upper management might not like the verbiage
19:07or the words that Steve Kerr used in regard to fading dynasty.
19:11And I'm thinking to myself, and I said it to you,
19:14when we got to see Steve up close and personal,
19:17I felt something off his body.
19:19It was real.
19:20It was like this is a truth teller.
19:23It's his version of it, and I appreciated it.
19:27And now here we are, a do-or-die game,
19:29and articles are being written about the head coach.
19:32Those words might be too harsh for some in the organization.
19:36And then I'm taking a step back, like,
19:37if that is true, because it was written, if that is true,
19:41how the hell can we go shock the world
19:43when we got disconnect all around our franchise?
19:48And the coach's telling his version of the truth.
19:54And I bring that up because those are things
19:56that I think can keep us from winning.
20:00I mean, Steve Kerr's saying it's a fading dynasty.
20:07I mean, he said that, hello, what?
20:11They are.
20:12Yes, that's what I'm saying.
20:13Okay, so he gets, so why did anybody get mad at that?
20:15I don't know.
20:17I don't know, like, I couldn't believe it was,
20:19I was reading this article like that.
20:21Well, this is what Steve Kerr said to Guru and myself
20:25about two weeks ago when we were over there.
20:27And I asked him about, you know, this dynasty
20:33and his sense of urgency.
20:35I've been, you know me, I've been quite honest
20:39about everything.
20:40We love it.
20:41Much to the chagrin of some of the people I work with.
20:45You know, when I say we're an aging dynasty,
20:48I'm just being honest, that's what we are.
20:51Like, you know, and I, like I said,
20:54not everybody's thrilled when I say that.
20:56Right.
20:56But I just believe in no BS.
20:59Like, let's not pretend.
21:02Let's actually deal with what's here.
21:04That's how I coach.
21:05That's how I speak to the media.
21:08I respect him for calling it like it is.
21:12And I know some in Dub Nation blame him.
21:14But he's telling you, don't blame me.
21:17You know, I'm not working with a lot.
21:19And here we are going in tonight's game in L.A.
21:22I'm all in as a fan.
21:23You know it.
21:24But, man, he's telling you, he's not working with much.
21:27And the fact that you got one guy on the roster
21:29that can play 35 minutes in a do-or-die game,
21:32I mean, if that's not symbolic of where we're at,
21:35I don't know what is.
21:37888-957-9570 is the number.
21:41I kind of want to get more into that.
21:42I'll play it again on the other side.
21:45Steve Kerr saying that when he called the Warriors
21:47a fading dynasty, that there were people in the organization
21:50that really didn't like it.
21:53And I think we can assume Joe Lacob was one.
21:58But my question to Warrior fans is why?
22:00Why did that bother Joe Lacob?
22:04And would it bother you if you were the Warriors' owner
22:07and you heard your head coach saying that?
Comments