- 2 days ago
Antonio Daniels joins The Sports Junkies to break down the NBA playoffs.
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00:0013 years in the NBA, now an analyst for the Pelicans, host on Sirius XM NBA.
00:06What's going on, Antonio?
00:09Fellas, how you guys doing today?
00:10What's up, buddy?
00:11Hey, Antonio, before we get into the playoffs, because you covered the Pelicans,
00:14give me your grade on Derrick Queen's rookie season.
00:18He obviously played here at Maryland, had a nice run there in the tournament.
00:24Kind of an up-and-down rookie year.
00:25How did you grade him, and what do you expect from him going forward?
00:29Well, the thing is, number one, I love DQ.
00:32I love him.
00:33Like, I've had sit-down interviews with him, did a podcast with him this year.
00:38He's come on my Sirius XM NBA show.
00:41Love him.
00:43Very skilled.
00:44And I watched him play in college at the University of Maryland, but I didn't realize.
00:49Sometimes when you watch someone play in college, you don't know or understand how that skill set
00:54is going to translate to the next level.
00:57And he's, like, realistically, you know, and don't hear what I'm not saying.
01:02Please don't hear what I'm not saying.
01:04He has a lot of Nikola Jokic within him.
01:07A lot of it.
01:08Wow.
01:08Yeah.
01:09Right now, I would say he is, right now, after his rookie year, he is one of the best
01:14passing centers in the league by a long shot.
01:18Thinks the game like a point guard.
01:19Sees the game like a point guard.
01:21I would give him probably a B+.
01:24Okay.
01:24But the thing with him this season that, like most rookies, you'll tend to understand is
01:31the type of state you have to be in to play hard every single night.
01:36And guys don't know what they don't know.
01:38I am so interested to see what this summer looks like for him, working out with DeAndre
01:43Jordan, understanding the conditioning aspect, understanding the mental aspect of the game,
01:50and the player that he comes in in his second year next year during training camp.
01:56Hey, before we talk about some of these games, what was your take on the NBA and the proposed
02:04voting in May on this new anti-tanking proposal?
02:10Here in Washington, Antonio, I mean, and I understand that this was the reason they were losing,
02:16but they were unwatchable, giving up 155 points a game in a few games.
02:21I mean, that's just, these are professional basketball players.
02:24I know they're G-leaguers, but you can't be giving up 160.
02:28So, we understood why they were doing it, and there's other teams doing it, too.
02:32So, were you totally against the tanking?
02:35Do you think this will help?
02:37Well, here's the thing.
02:38Let's not, this is what bothered me about tanking this year.
02:44People, for some reason, are acting like tanking just started in 2026.
02:50Right, I know, I know.
02:51Tanking's been going on for a long time.
02:53You think about how the San Antonio Spurs got Tim Duncan.
02:56Yeah.
02:57You know, how the Dallas Mavericks got Derek Lively, who helped them get to the NBA Finals.
03:02How the San Antonio Spurs got Victor Wemenyama.
03:04Like, it happens.
03:06The biggest difference this year is that we've never seen tanking start in January.
03:14You know what I mean?
03:15That's what made it so different.
03:16Tanking start in December.
03:19That's what made it so different.
03:20And the concern that you have is, will there be an overcorrection?
03:26Will there be an overreaction to tanking that now has future ramifications?
03:31And by future ramifications, what I'm referring to is, now will it make it more difficult for small markets to
03:38now win in the future?
03:40Or bad teams to become good?
03:44That's the biggest concern that I had.
03:47Because tanking has happened forever.
03:49You can think about it.
03:50The Washington Wizards have tanked.
03:52The Utah Jazz have tanked for the last four or five years.
03:55So now, how does it look going, like, moving forward?
03:59Is this a solvable issue that can benefit all involved?
04:07I don't know.
04:08I understand the, you know, okay, let's flatten out the odds.
04:12I get that.
04:13To stop teams from tanking.
04:14But if that's the case, can you guys name one small market in the NBA that is a hotbed for
04:23free agency?
04:25Not really.
04:27So how, if that's the case, if no small market is a hotbed for free agency, how will small markets
04:35that aren't good at the moment get better?
04:41Yeah, I know.
04:42I agree.
04:42Well, what about people who think that just doing away with the draft and just having all these college kids
04:48as free agents?
04:49But a salary cap.
04:51Yeah.
04:51It kind of equalizes.
04:52I'm against that, but I wanted to get your take on it.
04:54No, I mean, I'm not, again, I'm not with the overcorrection.
04:59Yeah.
05:00I was drafted in 1997.
05:01Man, it was one of the best days of my life.
05:03Mm-hmm.
05:04I'll never, like, that's, no, I'm definitely not with removing the NBA draft.
05:11I don't really know what that does.
05:13You know, basically, so what are we saying?
05:16Let's remove the NBA draft and make these kids that are coming out of college now free agents?
05:22Yes.
05:23Okay, so now if that's the case, let's hypothetically say that's true.
05:27Mm-hmm.
05:28So now, again, now it comes to the highest bidder.
05:32Yep.
05:32And if it comes to the highest bidder, when have small market teams ever won that bidding contest?
05:40They don't.
05:41Yeah, that was my take.
05:42I mean, no one's going to want to go to Sacramento as opposed to going to L.A.
05:46It's like L.A. and New York is all capped out.
05:48But they're saying that, yeah.
05:49Yep.
05:50Yeah, but, yeah.
05:50Miami, Chicago, Boston, these teams that have a history of winning.
05:56Yeah.
05:56And not just a team that has a history of winning.
05:59If I have an opportunity to come out of college and go straight into a situation of winning,
06:05why wouldn't I?
06:06Yeah.
06:07I think that's probably the way it would happen.
06:09So I wanted to ask you about OKC.
06:12OKC, defending champions, they're dominant.
06:14They play a physical brand of defense.
06:17Really great defensive team.
06:19SGA won MVP last year.
06:20Probably going to win the MVP this year.
06:22And he's a great player.
06:23But as a fan, I get tired of the flopping around, the foul baiting.
06:29What do you make of that?
06:31Maybe you're OK with it.
06:32What do you make of SGA flopping around all the time?
06:36This is what I'll say about that.
06:38I felt like this year the Utah Jazz became the poster organization for tanking,
06:44even though they weren't the only organization that was doing it.
06:47And I felt like SGA, for some reason, became the poster player for flopping,
06:55even though everybody's doing it.
06:57Like, here's my thing with Shea Kildas-Alexander.
06:59If you sit and watch games with non-narrative glasses,
07:04you can't help but to marvel at his ability to make shots.
07:08Yeah.
07:09SGA is not a guy that lives on free throws.
07:15Watch this young man play.
07:17Watch him play.
07:18Look at the difficulty of some of his shots.
07:21Does he get the benefit of a whistle?
07:24Now, the question I'll ask you is, does Luka get the benefit of a whistle?
07:28Yes.
07:28Does Jalen Brunson get the benefit of a whistle?
07:30Does Denny Obia get the benefit of a whistle?
07:33You can go down the list of different players that get the benefit of the whistle.
07:37And here's what I'll say when we're having this discussion.
07:40I'm not mad at the guys that are, quote-unquote, flopping.
07:44The issue becomes with the referees rewarding the flopping.
07:48That's what I like about the postseason more than anything else.
07:51The flopping's been eliminated for the most part because they are allowed –
07:56the difference from game one to game 82, the way the game is officiated,
08:03and then from game 83 through June, you're talking about two completely different sports.
08:09During the regular season, teams are scoring 130, 140 points.
08:13And in the postseason, teams are struggling to get to 90.
08:17What happened?
08:18How was there a 50-point drop-off from the regular season to the postseason
08:22because of the way the game is being officiated and the flopping not being rewarded?
08:27But with the flopping not being rewarded, watch the display offensively
08:32that Shea Gildress Alexander continues to put on.
08:36I'm telling you, he is a tough stop maker.
08:39People choose to focus on the free throw attempts
08:43because that's the narrative that the social media has kind of ran with.
08:48But, again, if you're watching these games with non-narrative glasses,
08:52you can't help but to marvel at his ability to make and take tough shots.
08:57Now, they lost Jalen Williams at least for a while with the hamstring.
09:01We don't know how long.
09:02But just watching this first round, I find it hard to believe anybody's going to take him out
09:07except for maybe San Antonio who beat them three out of four in the regular season.
09:13So, OKC, likely to play the Lakers the next round.
09:16Don't know if Austin Reeves is going to be back.
09:18Looks like he might be back tonight.
09:19Seems unlikely Luka will be back.
09:21Do the Lakers have a shot?
09:23And if not, do the Spurs have a shot to knock off this Thunder team?
09:27Well, I don't think the Lakers do.
09:30Just because OKC, defensively, is one of the best defenses that we've seen in decades.
09:39They are really good defensively.
09:41And if we learn anything from the NBA finals last year between OKC and the Indiana Pacers,
09:50we learn, one, that it's a war of attrition, right?
09:53You've got to be able to get up and down.
09:56Two, depth and versatility have become king and queen of the NBA.
10:00And you know what OKC has?
10:03They have depth and versatility.
10:04They can put five guys out that you have to guard at all times, and they have so many
10:10different guys that they can go with as far as versatility and switchability are concerned.
10:16Listen, San Antonio Spurs are a really, really good basketball team.
10:19And they have a guy who is one playoff run away from being tagged the best player in the
10:25world in Victor Wiminyama.
10:27But I tell you what, the playoffs are a different animal.
10:29I don't put a lot of what teams have done against each other in the regular season.
10:35I don't really attach that to the postseason.
10:38Because like I said, when we're talking about game one to game 82, and then game 83 on,
10:43it's a completely different sport.
10:45So it would be interesting to see if these two teams do end up playing each other in the
10:50Western Conference Finals, how they do play out.
10:54All right.
10:55Well, appreciate the time, Antonio.
10:57We've got three more games tonight.
10:59Detroit's in trouble.
11:00Yeah, they're on the ropes.
11:01They're in trouble, but playing at home down three.
11:03Yeah, they are.
11:03Yeah.
11:04Cleveland should win tonight to take a 3-2 lead.
11:07And of course, you've got the Rockets-Lakers.
11:08But as these teams advance, and you're obviously going to see the better teams play really good
11:15matchups.
11:15So we're looking forward to seeing San Antonio play OKC and possibly Boston playing the Knicks.
11:21That'll be really fun.
11:23Yeah, for sure.
11:24I'm interested to see the Detroit-Orlando matchup.
11:27I think that's the biggest one for me because I felt like regardless of standings, this was
11:33the most ideal matchup for the Orlando Magic because you're talking about two teams that
11:38struggle to shoot the three ball.
11:40So it doesn't become a mathematical equation where you're playing against the Boston Celtics
11:44and you're a minus 30 behind the arc.
11:47So now you have to make those points up elsewhere.
11:49If Detroit goes 10-30 from three, Orlando goes 10-31 from three.
11:54So now it becomes about dominating in other areas.
11:58I am so interested to see the championship resolve from the Detroit Pistons tonight in
12:03game five.
12:04Good stuff, Antonio.
12:05We'll talk to you soon.
12:06Thanks, man.
12:07Thank you, buddy.
12:07Appreciate it.
12:08For sure.
12:08Appreciate it, fellas.
12:09All right, buddy.
12:09All right, pal.
12:09Always love the passion from Antonio.
12:1113 years in the NBA, non-analyst with the Pelicans.
12:15Bowling Green.
12:16And host on Sirius XM NBA.
12:18That's your mom's alma mater?
12:19My mom's alma mater.
12:20Very good.
12:21She loves Antonio Daniels.
12:22One of Bowling Green's finest.
12:24I've definitely never been to Bowling Green.
12:27I've been there one time.
12:28It bothered me that the grass need mowing.
12:32Whenever I go to a college campus.
12:33The whole university?
12:34Kind of.
12:35Whenever I go to a college campus and it's like in the summer or something and it's just
12:38a little overgrown, it bothers me.
12:40There's a Bowling Green in Ohio, but isn't there a Bowling Green in Kentucky?
12:44I don't know about that.
12:45I believe there is.
12:46What's your pops' alma mater?
12:50University of Chicago.
12:51Oh, okay.
12:52Oh, good.
12:53Yeah.
12:53Silly.
12:54Yeah.
12:55Chicago and Bowling Green.
12:56Chicago and Bowling Green.
12:57Nice.
12:58Match made in heaven.
12:58All right.
12:59Got to take a break.
13:00We're the Junkies.
13:00Keep it here.
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