- 20 hours ago
"OPTIONALITY"! What were your takeaways from the Brad Stevens and Bill Chisholm press conference? 40 minutes?!
Did Chisholm and Stevens seem to be on the same page? In your opinion, Is it about $ or strategy?
Did Chisholm and Stevens seem to be on the same page? In your opinion, Is it about $ or strategy?
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00:00Brad Stevens, full of optionality.
00:01How about that joke?
00:02What are we doing?
00:03Like, what was it?
00:0440 minutes.
00:05I'm pretty sure Bill Chisholm spoke, what, twice in the first 35 minutes?
00:09Yeah.
00:09He just sitting there looking pretty?
00:11And contradicted what Brad said.
00:14How long's Brad?
00:15In my opinion, Brad's got like one more year, and then he's getting fired.
00:18You think so?
00:18Yeah.
00:19Because they're clearly not on the same page.
00:21They didn't talk to each other before they got up there and said, hey, listen, you know,
00:25one guy's saying it's not about money.
00:27The other guy's saying it's about money.
00:28That's kind of a bad look.
00:29And the guy who's saying it's not about money is the owner of the basketball team.
00:33Yeah.
00:33Isn't that, though, just kind of the plan?
00:35Like, it's like the good cop, bad cop thing.
00:36Like, clearly the owner cares about the money, but just doesn't want to say it to keep his
00:40image looking okay with the fans.
00:43And so Brad Stevens has to be the bad guy and say, yeah, it's about money.
00:46It can't be about 70% of my cap.
00:48I would ask you this question, right?
00:50If it's about money, but the money hasn't changed.
00:53Like, the Paul George contract is basically identical to the Jalen Brown contract for the
00:59next two years.
01:00The only year the money changes would be that third year that if Jalen Brown would have stood
01:05here or you would have extended him, which maybe you didn't.
01:08So explain to me how it's about the money when the Paul George over the next two years
01:13is going to be like the same as paying Jalen Brown.
01:15So my understanding is that they're basically taking this Paul George contract for this
01:21year, and next year he'll pick up the player option, but he'll be such a rental then that
01:26they feel that there's going to be other teams who are basically in the same position that
01:30they are, where they're going to have other teams that are so handcuffed by the new CBA
01:35and teams not wanting to go up against the second apron that they're going to be able to
01:40flip Paul George because somebody else is going to have a player or assets or something
01:45that they need to move so they can take on that rental and then dump that salary quicker.
01:49Like, to me, it looks like it's kind of the Jalen Brown is the first domino of teams looking
01:55around and saying, we can't carry two guys with a supermax when they have three or four years
02:02left on that contract.
02:03So you're taking that Paul George contract for this year.
02:06He's going to pick up the player option next year, but he's such a short-term asset next year
02:12that they'll look around at other teams and be able to say, hey, you've got a guy who has like
02:16two or three years left on his contract.
02:18We'll flip you Paul George and then you can get out of that contract.
02:21They are betting, in my reading of the situation, that they're the first team that has to deal with
02:28this and the other teams around the league are very quickly going to find themselves in a position
02:32where they're also going to be needing to move off these contracts.
02:35So when they say it's not about the money, I think they're saying it's not us turning
02:43what they want to say.
02:45It's not us turning into a team that doesn't spend.
02:47So it's us up against a situation.
02:49We're the first team to do it and everybody else is going to have to follow suit.
02:53You're not going to have owners like the Phoenix Suns owner a couple of years ago who basically
02:57decides just to spend through the nose because I think what a lot of us have not anticipated
03:02is that a lot of these owners are going to look at this second apron now that it's really
03:07been in place for a couple of years and say, that's like basically a hard salary cap.
03:11So are they going to be, so then, but will the Celtics then be in the market for another
03:15Supermax guy?
03:16That's what I'm going to get to in my reading.
03:18Oh, okay.
03:18All right.
03:19Because it doesn't make sense if it's about the money and you're trying to say, excuse
03:23me, that you want to change it.
03:25Are you going to be in the market for another Supermax guy?
03:28Because then you're still going to have to pay the money anyways.
03:29Okay, guys, so I went to the Brad Stevens-Bill Chisholm press conference yesterday and I
03:35got to ask this of you guys.
03:38Is it okay for me to change my mind on something?
03:42No, you've got the right to change your mind.
03:44Okay, because sometimes in sports radio people are like, but you said blank.
03:49Well, is it a take or is it like that you were really kind of confident in or is it
03:53just
03:53an opinion you had that you're now changing on?
03:55When they traded Jalen Brown, I said, I believe, I think that there will be future two Supermax
04:03contracts on this team.
04:05That they will add another Supermax player around Jason Tatum.
04:09After yesterday's press conference, I don't feel confident in that.
04:11And I know that they technically have the two Supermax players on the team right now, but
04:17I do believe that the Celtics see themselves as the first team that's having to go into
04:23the wild west of this new collective bargaining agreement where so much of the league seems
04:32to be looking at the way that it's set up as they have a hard salary cap.
04:36I think that's how owners around the league are looking at this.
04:40And I think in the future, if you get another Supermax player that you pair next to Jason
04:46Tatum, that's only going to happen if it's a player that they legitimately think is a top
04:5110 player.
04:52And even then, those two may only be together for a couple of years.
04:56So like your Giannis is of the world.
04:57Exactly.
04:57And I think that that's why it's frustrating to look in hindsight.
05:01I didn't want them to trade Jalen Brown for Giannis.
05:04I like the pairing of Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown better because I thought over several
05:08years, that makes more sense.
05:10Looking at the way that the Celtics appear to be looking at this, that's like not a calculation
05:15that's going to exist anymore.
05:16I just think that they're going to continue to have Jason Tatum as the centerpiece of this
05:21team and try to support around that.
05:24And if that means bringing in a second Supermax player after they get out of this Paul George
05:30contract in the future, it's going to be somebody who they feel is as good or maybe better than
05:36Jason Tatum.
05:37So when you think, I think that's the only situation in which you're going to see that.
05:41So what's the NBA going to look like?
05:43Because when you say Supermax guys, right?
05:45So look at the New York Knicks, for example.
05:48You got Jalen Brunson, who took a little bit less money, but I think he's still making
05:53what north of $40 million a year.
05:56Carl Anthony Towns is their Supermax player.
05:58So are you saying that guys are now like, that would technically be Supermax guys and
06:03I'm making air quotes are going to be like, all right, rather than take that Supermax,
06:08I'm going to take one level down.
06:09I'm still going to be making an ish ton of money, but I'm not going to be considered a
06:15Supermax?
06:16Let me see what Jalen Brunson makes.
06:17Four years, 156 was his contract.
06:20I would ask you, Wiggy.
06:22Just under 40 a million a year.
06:24So I would ask you, Wiggy, because I think that the way what we're seeing the Celtics
06:29do, they're doing in part because they feel that they're the team that has to do this first
06:33and a lot of other teams are going to follow suit.
06:38What is going to happen with the Supermax deals?
06:40Because it's been kind of a foregone conclusion that when one of these guys gets all NBA and
06:47he's a young guy and he's up for his extension, you give him the Supermax deal because he earned
06:51it.
06:52We saw this with the Wizards and Bradley Beal back in the day.
06:55Like, you're kind of handcuffed.
06:57Either you got to get rid of your best player or you reward him with the Supermax contract.
07:01But in some cases, if you have somebody in there, the second best player, they may win
07:06everything they need to for the Supermax contract.
07:08And the team might be in a position where they look at them and say, yeah, but we're not
07:13doing two Supermax contracts anymore.
07:15So you think the Spurs are going to do that with Victor Weminyama?
07:18Because he's going to be eligible to make a ton of money.
07:21They're talking like $400 million or something stupid like that, right?
07:24Yeah.
07:25So are they now going to go, all right, Weminyama, you're $400 million.
07:29And now they still got some young players that are on the contract like Dylan Hopper and
07:34the Castle kid, right?
07:36Mm-hmm.
07:36So you're saying when they get to the point, they're going to have to let those guys go?
07:40No, I think they'll let Deere and Fox go.
07:44And then they'll give one of those other guys, you know, it might not be the Supermax, but
07:49whatever the next-
07:50A rich contract.
07:51Yeah.
07:51Like a Jalen Brunson contract.
07:52Yeah.
07:53Whatever the next step down is for-
07:54Yes.
07:55And you're going to see this with Oklahoma City coming up.
07:58There's going to be other teams coming through this.
08:00And quite frankly, like, I just don't see how this CBA keeps going forward the way that
08:05it does because aren't players going to be just so bothered by that, Wiggy?
08:10Well, I would think they would.
08:10If they're in a situation where teams are saying, sorry, we don't give out multiple Supermax
08:14contracts that way anymore.
08:16So it is what it is.
08:18It's basically like the league establishing almost a hard cap without actually putting
08:22in place a hard cap.
08:23So if you talk about Oklahoma City, are they then going to get rid of Jalen Williams because
08:30they already gave Chet Holmgren a Supermax and they're going to have to give SGA a Supermax?
08:37Yeah.
08:38Like they're going to have to make tough decisions, especially, no offense, but like a market like
08:42OKC is not as big a market as some of these.
08:45They're not the Lakers.
08:46They're not the Celtics.
08:47They're it's it's just.
08:49Oh, they did give.
08:50Excuse me.
08:51They did.
08:51They did give SGA a Supermax.
08:53So Jalen Williams is going to be odd man out.
08:55Yes.
08:56But or they'll have to deal away Chet Holmgren, theoretically.
08:59Right.
09:00Well, I mean, based on what Megal said, what some of these guys are going to have to go.
09:04And I don't like this is where years ago I said that I don't like this new CBA because
09:10I don't like the idea of this parody in the league.
09:12I don't know.
09:13I there's this is a popsicle headache, Mango.
09:15I think I honestly.
09:16I honestly think you're overthinking it.
09:18I think the teams are still going to spend on two Supermax guys.
09:22OK, I think that I think that it will be more rare for teams to have, as we heard so
09:31much
09:31yesterday, 70 percent of the roster tied up in two Super.
09:34Let me ask you the simple question.
09:35Do you think the Miami Heat are going to extend Giannis?
09:38Yes, they have to now.
09:40OK, so then they're going to have two Supermaxes in him and Bam out of Bayou.
09:43Yeah.
09:44So teams will do it.
09:45I think the Celtics, they're just they can use that 70 percent thing all they want.
09:50To me, I think that's BS.
09:52I think that's just BS.
09:54They got to the point where they were trying to upgrade from Jalen Brown because weren't
10:03there reports that they were would give Giannis two years instead of three years or something
10:08along those lines?
10:08So, granted, they might have been shortchanging him for a year, which was stupid on their part.
10:14And then I think once they didn't get Giannis, they were backed into a corner and they knew
10:19that Jalen was upset and they panicked, moved on from him and then try to spin it like where,
10:25oh, it's a money thing.
10:26So I don't even think that Jalen was upset, though.
10:29Like we listened to his Twitch stream.
10:30He didn't seem all that upset about the like about with the Celtics at all.
10:35And the way Brad Stevens makes it sound is like Brad was keeping Jalen in the loop.
10:41And then all of a sudden, all of the information was in the media, which is him clearly telling
10:46us that Jalen was telling people in the media who the who the Celtics were even talking to.
10:52And that's probably where that communication broke down that Jalen talked about in his
10:55stream where he's like, yeah, I wish Brad would have kept me in the loop more.
10:58And it's like, well, Brad, Brad clearly thought you were the leak, which is why he stopped keeping
11:01you in the loop.
11:02Right.
11:02But I think he was upset in the fact that where he wasn't keeping him in the loop.
11:05I'm not upset to the point where he's like, trade me.
11:08I'm not coming back.
11:08I'm like, clearly he was.
11:10I think like if Brad had said after the Giannis thing, if he had said, all right, look, I
11:14think we're just going to run it back with you and Jason.
11:16Like we're going to try and figure some things out.
11:18Maybe we'll figure out a couple other things on the roster, make the team a little bit
11:21better.
11:22Like, and then we'll circle back.
11:24I think Jalen would have been fine.
11:25And then a year from now, if you know, we're still not on the same page, then we'll try to
11:30deal you for a better player.
11:32I think this is where I think Jalen would have been like, all right, you know what?
11:36I got no problem with that.
11:38I think Brad hit the panic button.
11:40And this is why I said earlier in the show where I don't think he's going to be around
11:45longer, especially if this thing blows up in his face.
11:48And then he's basically over there saying, oh, it's about money.
11:51And Chisholm's sitting right next to him.
11:52The owner of the team going, no, it's not about money.
11:55Well, I think Brad was trying to justify that, hey, we're not, as he said, having 70% of
12:01the roster tied up in two guys who also play the same position are both ball dominant guys.
12:07And Chisholm's sitting next to him, probably not wanting to look like the owner who keeps
12:12shedding payroll.
12:13The cheap guy.
12:13So there's kind of like natural odds there.
12:16But I also.
12:18Because Brad's beloved in this town, right?
12:20Or he was prior to this.
12:22Oh, he's a GM of the A.
12:24He makes great decisions.
12:25So if Brad says it's about the money, then everything falls on Chisholm's lap.
12:30Oh, this guy's cheap.
12:32He's, you know, what are they calling him?
12:34Private equity.
12:35He doesn't want to spend money.
12:36He's got to make his money back.
12:37It looks like you just bought this team to then get it, potentially build a new arena
12:43and then sell it.
12:44So he comes off as somebody who's not really a true fan as an owner, just somebody who's
12:50looking at the bottom dollar and all that BS is going to fall on his lap, where Brad
12:56will, eh, it's a bad decision, but he'll kind of be untouchable.
12:59But that's why I think Brad isn't going anywhere, because he's just going to take all the slings
13:03and arrows.
13:03No, no.
13:03He's going to stand up there and tell you it's about the money, and everybody can be mad
13:06at me.
13:07But no one's mad at him.
13:08The slings and arrows are basically that.
13:09You don't think anyone's mad at Brad?
13:11Everybody's mad at Brad.
13:12No, they are now, but when Brad says it's about money, who then gets the brunt of it?
13:18It's the same way as with the John Henry situation, right?
13:21We, you know, Bresbach gets a lot of crap, but who gets the majority of the crap?
13:27John Henry.
13:29And Brad isn't in Bresbach's category, because Brad has done some good things and people really
13:34like him.
13:35People don't like what he did with Jalen Brown in this decision, but now when he goes
13:41out there and it says it's about the money, then people instantly going to go, oh, it's
13:46Chisholm, cheap, doesn't want to spend money.
13:49He got all these people telling him what he needs to do.
13:52Why did he even buy this team?
13:53They should have sold it to this guy or that guy.
13:55And he's the one who's getting the majority of the ish storm, where Brad gets a little
14:01bit for the Jalen trade, but it all falls on Chisholm's lap.
14:04He, Chisholm wants Brad to be like, oh, it's not about the money.
14:08We decided we feel like now it all falls on Brad's lap because Chisholm, now people look
14:14at Chisholm like, oh, he's willing to cut a check.
14:16Here's the big question that I have coming out of all of this.
14:20Did the Celtics overrate or underrate Jalen Brown between the Giannis trade and what they
14:27ultimately got?
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