Lakers Roster Outlook and Future

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For me, that's breaking down SGA film whenever I want and then talking about it into a microphone To learn how to put AI to work for people, visit serviceNow. com Did't expect to be doing another Zachlow show this week S shouldould have known better. The NBA, following an absolutely bonkers' day of LeBron announcing his departure from the Lakers and Cawi Lener returning to Toronto, decided How about we just one up that How about that? The Lakers started the morning with a flurry of moves highlighted by a massive gamble on Walker Kessler. That was pretty big. It's the Lakers. It's the glamor franchise in the Lague. Did they do it enough? Is this the whole team? They have no control over picks until when? what happened? Wh got how much money? Quintin Grindes is involved? What's going on? A littleittle blow in the day. Maybe went to the grocery store, maybe got a workout in, mayaybe it took a power nap saw your family and then boom The Jalen Brown saga suddenly ends with a shocking indivision trade sending Jalen Brown to Philadelphia Paul freaking George and two first round picks and two second round picks an absolutely earth shattering trade breaking up the most highly accomplished duo in the NBA, probably over the last ten years, Jayen Brown. and Jason Tatum. Holy smokes How bad b it have been inside Boston for that trade to be the trade that ends all this after the honest flirtation and everything else. Where was the rest of the league on this? Did they drop the ball or was this an actual proper evaluation of Jillen Brown? This just happened. Me Tquil is here We're shell shocked and Groggi. Tam USA is playing Bosnia as we speak. The Zach Low show is coming up. I hope it makes sense and you enjoy it Tw An emergency edition of the Zachloow show, Jayen Brown Selthix Legend, Finals MVP. The superstar who carried the Jason Tatumless Celphics to fifty six wins in a two seed half of a tandem that has defined a decade and a very profitable one of Boston Celtiics basketball has been traded. Rather suddenly and shockingly to in division rival recent playoff nemesis The Philadelphia seventy sixers. Paul George Two first round picks and twenty twenty eight one that is like half swapped prrotected twenty thirty one. A couple of seconds And that is the end the JZera in Boston. Mo Dequil is here to help us make sense of this and Mo, let's zoom out. and start here The Celtics in the past ten days I've had three different pathways to go down. Number one Do nothing Keep Jail and Brown and Jason Tata on your team Keep every pick, every swap, every young player you got and go back to battle next season T Trade foranna Sento Kumpo using Jalen Brown Probably three first round picks Hugo Gonzallees, ye have, Hugo, mayaybe Bayor Sireman, maybe not They did not do that We're assuming by the way that that's a that was a real opportunity and that the bucks owners weren't just going to say, you know what? We actually want Miam's deal no matter what because we don't want to be in a gahest situation in two years with Jalen Brown, but that path appears. to have been available to the Celtics and path three The one they chose shopping Jail and Brown around the league. Finding out that his trade value because of his salary more than anything else yeah, maybe some suspicion pererhaps somewhat analytics based that he is a hair overrated as a player And if he is a hair overrated, he's still a goddamn good player Finding little trade value settling As I as I warned just yesterday and then the day before, for a deal that was going to make Boston fans mad, a deal that was going to be centered around financially sort of resettling the future a little bit and maybe adding some draft equity, but one that would be unpalatable to Boston fans. They have chosen path three. Me to kill, your initial reaction I mean shocked like it was one of those things where that's all you can get for Jayalen Brown is Paul George on top of that trading him to not just like a division rival, but your rival, it feels like for the most part, the team that just knocked you out of the playoffs after coming back down three one. And I think, you know it's along those ways where it's like, wow, that's I was shocked at the price and I understand value of Brown goes down a little bit. I don't feel like the market was fully there for him But it's still sort of jarring to see because Paul George Generally in my mind, I don't believe Contracts are untradeable and this one proves it, but I felt like he was pretty untradeable I felt like it would have been really tough to get off that contract would receive something as good as Jalen Brown back. No no, spin it the other way, Mo. It would cost you a pick. Get off the ball, George So like the way to look at this trade from the Celtics perspective is one of the picks is for taking Paul George, which means you really only traded Jail in Brown for another first round pick, a single first round pick in a couple of seconds. And yes, the ability to employ Paul George on your team. who is still a very good player. but who plays, you know The last two seasons, half of each one and is aging fast. And I does nothing better than Jail and Brown other than shoot Thes, which is a very valuable skill for the Celtics. So he's a good player undeniably a step back for Boston And yes, that's part of why it's shocking is that the Celtics went out after falling short of acquiring Yanis which we will revisit and said, it's now untenable. We have to trade Jail and Brown. It must be so toxic internally And must be just the atmosphere is so negative and so broken Because ostensibally you would rather do nothing than do this. Yeah, the picks are nice. Again, one of them is for absorbing Paul George who has only one fewer year on his contract than Jalen Brown at a huge amount of money. It's about the one single year. That's the only financial relief You really getting here Doing nothing was clearly not an option And the market was clearly not here And so they landed here Absolutely stunning Um, And the Celtics are definitely worse next season. I don't think there's any question about that because Jalen Browns better than Paul George. And Um Paul George is much more injury prone. Jayen Brown is super durable And we'll see how good they are and we'll talk about the E in a minute. So they they've taken a step back to take a step forward. And the only way this becomes a winin for Boston or a non boss is All the onus is now on the next move. You passed up on Janis you and maybe part of the reason you passed up on Yonis was both the assets that were going to have to go out. to beat Miami's offer to convince Jimmy Haslam to do it. Three first and another young player in Ho Gonzallees plus Jelen Brown. All your optionality or a lot of it goes out the window. Then you resign Yanis and you're in a financial situation similar to what you're in now Clearly, I think they wanted some financial relief. And they got it here losing a year of big money The short term step back is relevant The blowback from the fans is relevant U and just the lack of any blue chip asset at all. comoming back is shocking It speaks to the absence of any other suitor. likeike I'm I think there's a way where this doesn't look as hereere's the way this doesn't look as bad as it looks right now The Celtics are a regular season wins machine Let's just say they win fifty two games again next year and they're in the top six and they're a successful playoff team And then in a year, Paul George is an expiring contract which Jianis was not going to be and Jalen Brown was not going to be And you pile that on top of all these picks and you get the next guy to pair with Tatum and zoom back into championship contention But there's a there's a freaking canyon between there and here and they got to build a bridge over the Cyon I mean, that's the hardest part Sometimes finding that second guy a pair with your young star at this point is the hardest part. And we also just have to recognize the fact Jason Tatum is still coming back from a torn Achilles. I know he came back incredibly early and you know, he had moments where he looked good. He had moments where he didn't. He didn't even finish the playoff series Like there's he's still coming back from a brutal injury I knock thought wouldood. I believe he's going to come back and be be fine, but it's still a long road with all of those injuries and everything. So now you've kind of put yourself in a position. you put a lot of pressure on Tatum to be ready and perform and I think he I think he will be, but it's still challenging. but finding the next star after this is also going to be very hard, right? Like We have to remember how they got these guys. It was because they turned Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnet the whole trrade to Brooklyn to get all those draft picks and that's how they ended up with these guys and creating that, it was almost kind of a not a stroke of luck, but it was a stroke of genius on Age's part to make this move. but it cost them a lot And now you have to figure out how you're going to do that again And it's hard to kind of predict what's going on in the what the NBA is going to look like a year or two from now in the picture and assuming that you know, Paul George can to rehab his his value in the next season It gets really interesting and challenging for Boston in this regard where it's like, what do you do next is going to be everything. And I do like that they have the picks, they have They have their picks, obviously that they didn't send out. You know, does this mean they're going to try to make another run at Trey Murphy or herb Jones or whoever and try to shore up their their their wings and things like that. It just I don't know where they go from here though, ack L like I A little bit still sort of shell shock Like, I'll be honest, I'm getting ready to move. I was packing up the car when I saw the trade and I go like, well, not doing anything today. This is the rest of my dayight U And I think that's where we're at And I'm just looking at it looking at the numbers and everything I don't know what's going to happen with Boston because I I'm very concerned about them for next season and then how they build going forward So The Janest path is clearly the best of the three paths for immediate short term contention for your title window for the next two years That's the one because Portis, you get Portis and he's a useful bench player You would still have the mid level exception. pererhaps you would not use it on Mitchell Robinson, which is a great signing for Boston, but you could use it on a representative center that fits well with Yanis. So that ship is still there And you lose Hugo. I bet they could have hun on to Shireman. And so your depth is a little worse, but not that much worse. Now short term, that's short term. Long term, you get expensive and a little older real fast Throw that path to the side. The do nothing path I think is clearly better than what they just did because This team and we' be better in the short term And you could you could have traded Jalen Brown for this in four months in six months in eight months. I don't know why there was a rush to take this deal becausecause even if you think you have to trade them at some point This isn't enough. I don't think And you could have opened it up to a team spirals a little bit at the beginning of the season and gives you a better return with more Optionality. But you have to ask yourself like If this was the best they could do Here's just the list of teams that I think either flirted with it and didn't go there or just didn't go there at all Charlotte, I don't think went in at all Detroit, despite the jail endurance standoff that I think is full of sound and fury signifying nothing didn't go there at all Cleveland didid not like I'm sure there was a hey, Evan Moby. yes. no. It was a quick no and that was it Houston, to my knowledge, just was not in period Brooklyn, I think there was a little flirtation with the Michael Porter Junior package that I had mentioned on previous podcast and it died. Toronto, no, Clippers no Denver I think It's just too seism make a move. Portland I'm not convinced it was ever really that in. I'm sure there were talks. I'm sure there were I'm guessing There were talks and conversations. I don't think they were really that in Atlanta appears to just be doing other stuff and it didn't have it in mind. New Orleans, I'm not sure ever really picked up the phone on anything. I'm not I'm not entirely sure. like there was I don't think the I think the league is underrating Jalen Brown a little bit for sure at large. Um I think the salary is just really prohibitive and it's hard to trade guys making this amount of money who aren't clear top five to eight players in the NA. And I don't think Jen Brown is a top five day player in the NBA. He's still awesome and this return is still I think a pretty crushing disappointment for Boston Um And they just again, the only spin is you kept your depth you basically like net plus five first round picks if you consider it would have been minus three to get Yanis and now it's plus two to trade Joen Brown for Paul George You better make something out of those and make something out of them in the next eighteen months or else this window is going to close too. Um I'm just, I'm absolutely shocked. I'm shocked and Like Paul George is good This is ten years after he was a prime trade candidate for the Celtics involving Jail and Brown. likeike I I don't know what it like I think this is still going to be a good team This is an undeniable step back. The return is disappointing and it just I just don't understand why they had to make this trade. I think You could make an argument, Mo. you could probably convince me that this is better in the long term than just going to get Janis at all costs. I would have actually I would have a hard time quite getting there because Janis is so good, but he's been injury prone to I just feel like this is the worst likeike the worst outcome poss of all of these pads. This is the worst possible outcome. and Like I get it if people want to try to convince us of the long term But this needed to be a win now move reallyally like it this is what I've been warning about for five podcastses like this move is going to come and it's it's going to be a move that is not going to satisfy anybody who It's going to be a step back now and it better be good later or it's going to be unpalatable to Celtics fans and it just is. That's all there was and the whole like for me, my belief of the I didn't think there was an ability to mend fences Like I didn't I feel clearly the fence got lit on fire like to taken away to a tornado. It's gone. There's a fence Well, I mean, like once I feel like once they cross the Rubicon where where they made the official offer with Jayen Brown you know, in the offer for for the bucks. I think that became that that's become an untenable situation. And even if he came back, I think eventually It slowly would have eaten away at that locker room one way or another you know, bad game from this guy or whatnot and things. It would have just manifested itself in different ways and would have eventually led to a problem But I still would have kept him if I knew this was my return Like it's it's I still would have found a way You know, in that way okay, I have at least uill the next trade deadline to figure this out And somebody at the next tradeeline is going to be desperate to try to make the big move I understand moving a contract that big is incredibly difficult. It's difficult in the regular season. it's difficult as we're seeing now, even in the offseason. I mean, ultimately the biggest winner besides Phy on this is the second Apron Right? likeike the cap and the way the CBA is set up It's crushed the Celtics at this point where if they had to kind of also make this move to create financial flexibility, not next not this year not I mean, not this coming season and not the season after that, but later and we've talked about the financial flexibilities and the things that they're going to have to do and the maneuvers they have to make. But this is just a brutal blow I think for Boston in the short term. And I think it sucks because this was a team that you felt Hey, like if everything was going, right We're going to be contenders and now you just look at it going This team's not a contender next season. They got significantly older When you look at Paul George for Jalen Brown in Age Ad Mike Conolly signing with them. I love the Mitchell Robinson signing, although I do worry also about his availability Like there's a there are going to be challenges within this roster. for next season just in terms of who's available on a night to night basis I think the only real way to read all of this taken together is that They did not have an appetite enough of one to take on Yanis' salary for better or worse. And what they really wanted was a little bit of financial breathing room and flexibility down the line and as little of a short term hit as possible. And I'm not sure they accomplished that at all U So here's where we are now with the Celtics Starting five Let's just, I mean, who knows, right? But let's just map it out Pyton Pritard Dererk, why I know Pyton Pridard went back to a bench role this year, J just go with me Paydon Richard, Derek White, Jason Tate I, Paul George Mitchell Robinson. It's good line up Off the bench, we still have Hgo, Sireman Hauser Walsh, Mike Connley's here. Kate is going to be here. Ron Harper Junior' here. Lua Garars is here. They got all their depth and they got a bunch of picks. Um I bet They'll win a fair number of regular season games. It's tempting to say that, you know, this was a two seed last year with Jalen Brown and without Jason Tatum now it's Jason Tatum and Noe Jal and Brown, but Paul Georgeia is placeace in a much better starting center You know, you mentioned that they're not contenders now I think getting exposed the way they did in the playoffs by Philly broke the Celtics and then like ran off with the wreckage basically. and I think the Celtics looked in the mirror and said, okay We maybe are at least somewhat the version of of ourselves that the skeptics saw before last season. like just not not a good team, but not a great team. Maybe that fifty six wins was fools gold. be realistic about ourselves and take a step back a little bit, but I can't believe that this was Um necessarily to step back. So that'll be a good team. Here's the thing about the Eastern Conference right now There are eight teams At least eight who if you ask them right now, they would say, Ohh, we're a top six team eightight is greater than six M. Yes. You' here. So if you want to like in if you're a Celtics optimist and again, I think this team's going to win a lot of regular season games and you want to say Oh we're still going to be a top six team Here Detroit New York Cleveland Boston, Miami Toronto. Philadelphia now has to be in the conversation In Indiana, remember Indiana, the team that was within a whisker of the championship. That's eight And we haven't even, you know, Toronto just got Kawai Miami just got yonest. there there' in the eight dimension. We haven't even mentioned Orlando who probably is like, Hey, what what are we? We can be a top six team didn't get to Atlanta and then there's a bit of a drop off, But like it's going to be hard to be a top six team in the East next year for Boston Um It's possible. It might even be likely. I'm curious to see what the over under is, but it's not It's not going to be easy and I just can't believe Paul George is where this landed. I really I't like And I love I've loveved Paul George's career. I love him as a player but this is thirty six year old Paul George whos played seventy eight games, I think in the last two seasons That's the thing that's most amazing. It's, you know, it We should have known better. It seems like it's always a team that comes out of nowhere in these types of situations and that's sort of what happened, but I just would have never fathomed alsoso just Boston making the trade with Philly I know rivals and things like that and we kind of get lost with that. but It just seems weird to me that that's that's where they went and now they're going to see him Four times next season. They're going to see Jayalen Brown four times next year. I'm calling my shot now. This is the Christmas day game. Jayen Brown's first return to Boston How about this Um He's like five days removed from saying All of this stuff is turning me into a monster Uh this this is a whole different level of stuff. This is your own team. and dealing you to the team that just eliminated you in the playoffs arguably Their second most storied rival behind the Lakers for Paul George who was good last year, but also was suspended for a huge amount of time and it has been just like a giant disappointment in Philadelphia. and a couple of picks If Jaalen Brown was becoming a monster before this deal, he's becoming like Godzilla plus King Kong plus Mothra right now. and you know he's coming for blood the first time they play. He is going to try to dunk on someone within it and this is one of the most violent dunkers in the league already. That is going to be absolute must CTV. Let's take a quick break and talk a little bit more about the other angles of this. This episode is brought to you by Micolob Ultra. How ready are you for the FIFA World Cup twenty six? 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Play as as any of the forty eight teams in sixteen in real world stiumidents included in your membership. Yeah Go to the games tab in your TV and play Fefld World Cup Lunch. Adition now Would you rather have just gone it all in for Yanis even if it took three first round picks and Hgo? Is that where we've ended up here, Mo I kind of think that's where they they would have been better off. in the long run. I think there would have been an maybe to bring you be able to hopefully get some vet minum guys or whatnot and things. But I think that's where I probably would have gone with it. You wouldn't have spent, you know so much to get Mitchell Robinson. You would have been able to reallocate that. You were talking about, you know, different center that would fit the need. But I think that's kind of where I would have gone And my only thing to Zak is like If you were going to enter the honest sweepstakes You needed to enter with the attitude of we're going to try to win it I think in thatessense And we might be and you said it in the beginning, you might be right. Haslam might have looked at it and said no, I want the Miami package. again, we don't want to be down this road two years from now with Jalen Brown. They still might have lost in that sense. but if you were going to make the offer You kind of had to go all go in to make the offer to try to actually Miami's offer instead of just saying, no, this is our offer and that's it and we're not willing to give up anything else. And if that was the case, then they it needed to immediately fly to wherever Jayalen Brown was and immediately start working on building the fence because the fence was gone And you had to rebuild the fence then at that point. And I think I still think it would have been maybe a little bit difficult, but you needed to start right of the way and you needed to kill any possible rumor after that of you're going to actually trade you're going to start shopping him now. By the way, apologies to the Charlotte Ornz who I forgot when I was listing all the East teams that are chasing a top six spot next season because my brain is adled and we're doing this like pretty instantly. I mentioned the first eight and then I said Oh Orlando, Atanta. Charlotte should be right in there too Like that's eleven teams chasing six top six seeds and the ten play spots like The East and then you have the drop off to Milwaukee, Chicago, Brooklyn, Washington. Wh who the hell knows Washington is going to be like Oh that's difference. Let's talk a little bit about Philly. I think I would actually rather have done nothing than the other two. I think nothing is a perfectly fine thing for the Celphics to have done. This is This is not like if you're like we're selling high on Jalen Brown after a career year and given his salary and all the the twwitch stuff if you that annoyys you. This is not selling high. I mean this is selling this is just selling. It's not selling high. It's just selling Can I ask you a question when you say you'd rather done nothing, like not enter the honest lef stakes at all? because that would have been my choice if that was the case Yeah, because you know it's going to get out and you know that there's going to be ramifications.. No, I think you have to enter it and and maybe maybe I'd have to really think harder if I think winning it is I think winning it is maybe better than this, but but it's I think that path is more thorny, risky and limiting in the medium term future maybe fans who are just giddy when they see a superstars they might realize spepeaking of superstars Philelphia I mean, they have to be taken seriously now. Yeah Here's their starting five Maxie, Edgecomb, Jalen Brown, Dean Wade, baby. Dean Wade and Joelen Bead. And the bench is it needs to be filled out. They sign hook forty as a backup five. They have Bona. They have Justin Edwards. They have L Baron Fyon who who they just drafted Daleen Terry is still here I'm probably forgetting someone. Let me look at their Jibari Walker Barlow, Th those guys are still here Um The bench needs to be filled out a little bit. They have not they I believe they have the biannual exceptions still left and minimums. They use the mid level. I think on Dean Wade. Most of it so ye, I think Ty Jones just reported at the athletic that they will be in pursuit. of Juan LeBron James should be noted that Mike Ganzy, the former Cavaliers' GM, not only just pulled Dean Wade out of Cleveland, but is very familiar with LeBron James and has a relationship with him Obviously I don't know how they get them. I don't know what the money is. I don't know the mechanics. If you can add LeBron James to that group and start him over Dean Wade and put Dean Wade to the bench becomes a real team I just here's the thing that's just unending Chellan bead is never going to be healthy for a full season and probably not for a full playoff run. It happened again this year And I just think as good as Maxie and Brown and Edgecomb are together, let's park LeBron to the side and assume he goes somewhere else because, you know, the field has a better chance of the Sers It's just like It amounts to the same thing that amounted to this year, which is you might get ten days in the playoffs of Hey, this is the team we envisioned. holy shit. It's good. We just knocked out a two seat And then it all goes to hell again and I admire them for taking a shot. Just literally yesterday, I joked about how I don't think about the Sixers that much as an off season team because I just think they're inMbied in Paul George jail. Well they just escaped Paul George jail And Jayen Brown's contract runs the exact same length as Jwellen Beat's contract. It's a natural reset timetable I like them going for it. I just I have a hardart it's unimaginable to me that Mbid will be healthy enough for them to make a real legit title run at any time I mean, if the cost is one extra year of salary and seven years younger and way better in the NBA player hierarchy and two picks. you lose some optionality, still some clippers draft thats that's to backstop it I think it's like a it's it's beyond a no brainer. It's a Mike Ganzy can't even fucking believe that that this traade is actually being executed and called into the league office. Yeah, I think it's a massive win for them. I think this is one of those thingsings where you look at where you're at You got everything you said, you got significantly younger You got the best player in the trade as well in the process. I think, you know, when you look at the way they're set up to, you just got better defensively And that's not just naturallya Paul George isn't the defender that Brown is And what Brown just did this whole this whole past season. was amazing. And now you add that with Tyse Maxi taking the leap. likeike the thing about the Sers that was so beautiful this season was they made the transition from an MB team to a retireree Maxi team And now really, I look at them as Maxie brown edge comomb in any however order and then inbidas What you get from him is the cherry on top. It does hurt them with their depath. their size. They got to start figuring out all that as they go through. But that's a great starting point. It doesn't hurt depth. They traded one player for one player. But I in general there the lack of depth they had anyways, but just like That's a great starting point to be at Right? I just talked about how hard it is for Boston to find the next guy They just found their guy. of a contract that most of us thought was untradeable By the way, we mentioned Mitchell Robinson, great signing for the Celtics regardless. Ht hurts the Kicks. and ye The East is a little bit of a cluster right now with teeams getting better, getting worse, doing weird things, doing crazy things The Nick still sit at the top But that's a real hole that they're going to have to fill somehow in a real weapon that they just like Mitchell Robbertsson was a hugely valuable part of their team And just did stuff that is really hard to find their offense all by himself with his offensive rebounding. became a really great defeensive center in the paint it hurts them, even if it's only twelve, thirteen minutes a gameer or when cats in foul trouble twenty minutes a game. it hurts them. they have to figure it But now he's on the Celtics For the Sixers, I just Home runun, no notes. I don't know is there anything else we didn't hit on this traade? I mean, this is intended to be like a short podcast and I feel like we've hit prettyt much anything except like I just can't believe I just feel like the Celtics panicked and acted too fast and I just can't believe no one else in the league stepped up to try to beat this. And I get the concerns about Jayalen Browns salary. I get the general perception around the league that he's a little bit overrated. I get it. I just can't believe this is the trade. I remain in shock even as I understand again The financial flexibility and trade flexibility that Boston has gained here and the long game that they're playing and how this could look very different in twenty four months and it looks today. I get all of that. I still am just sitting here in disbelief that this is the trade The other thing too for me just like kind of Why couldn't they just take a breath and doesn't he They could have made this trade july thirtieth you know, or whatnot likeike that's that's more kind of If you didn't like the offers you were coming in, just wait a little bit. Let free agency play out. someomebody's going to strike out. someomebody's going to want to do something, you know, I think they they idn't even have to carry this into next season. But they could have carried this further into free agency and just waited it out a little bit. I don't know what the upside was for making this trade on july one. And I think that's kind of my my big question. why not just take a break couldnt have made it at the end of the month, likeike just wait this thing out and see where you're at. Nobody was trading for Paul George we're going to have to worry about losing, you know, Philly as an option in that scenario. I think that that might have been something maybe a little bit more prudent. I do think they panicked a bit and reacted a little bit too quickly Okay, this we have a holiday weekend coming up. We have next week to settle in and do more stuff. So I don't want to do the full thing now. I just want to do a few minutes on the other major thing that happened today is that before lunch on East Coast time. Los Angeles Lakers had a completely brand new team highlighted by a massive sign in trade for Utah for Walker Kessler who is making four years one hundred thirty million dollars total, thirty two inchange a year And in exchange, Utah got two unprotected Lakers first round picks in a couple swaps and the Lakers have I think no control minus one swap of any first round draft asset through twenty thirty three. They then filled out the roster with Colin Sexton on let me bring it all up. so I get it exactly right. two years nineteen Mamu Th four years of the player option about twelve and a half a year Quentin Grimes four years sixty And obviously, Austin Reeves is brought back Um M You're Well you know what? I'll go first. And again, we'll do the full Lakers autopsy next week Here is my initial reaction to these moves They look like a team that has Next to no chance to beat the Thunder in the sppurs in a playoff series in the next two to three years and almost no outs at all to change their team other than maybe trading Austin Reeves in a year or two when this doesn't work I'm not like, I don't think the moooves are like horrendously bad The Lakers were trapped in a situation of use it or lose it cats space and a superstar who is a year away from potentially, you know, trying to exert a lot of pressure or able to exert even more pressure. And they needed a center This is an unbelievable reach for Walker Kessler who I think is good, but is for this amount of money being paid like a proven all star center is not a proven all star center. I think he will look very good with Luca his rim defense is legit. It's got to improve is a screen setter and a rim runner, but I think there's something there The rest of it is like Seon's an interesting bench guy, Grimes is an interesting bench guy. Like I don't even know who the other two starters on the team are other than Reeves, Luca and Kessler. And then it's like the bench or the the combination of the fourth and fifth starter in the bench is like sexton Grimes is Mam who the starting power forward. the guy who could barely play in the in the first round of the playoffs Jared Vanderbilt is still here. Aiton is here is a backup center car they just drafted Um like they'll be good because Luca is that good And Reeves is a really good second banana. and I think Kessler will fit well. I'm not saying Lakers going to be bad. They're going to be good I just look at them like I don't know how that is supposed to compete It for like a Western conference championship Now in two years in three years like and Lrabia is still here somewhere. Maybe he's one of the starters Um And just no to have that Be the roster and be completely tapped out of Cappace and Draft pickics going forward is like a little bit I was taken aback Maybe I'm just grossly underestimating the team, but that's my reaction It's a little bit nerve racking it when you when we talk about the no outs you know, they don't control any of their draftics for the next seven years Right? Like it's or it's something like that or they can't make any trades trade any graphics for the next seven years is You're right about the no outs situation I'm a little bit higher on it Though just because I think this is a team that makes more sense around Luca. No question. There's no question about that and in losing LeBron I think they had to kind of Rool everything and and figure out how this works I'm with you in that I don't think they they have a chance now to the thunder or the spurs are on that level. in that regard. I just also don't know what's out there that would have been I think in the long run, I think we'll see a situation where Reeves goes out to bring somebody else in in the in the long run, but I think that's two or three years down the road I just think this is a team that makes more sense so with the pieces. I like Mamu. I know struggled in the playoffs and whatnot. But I think the ability to spread the floor. I think he starts at the power forward area, you know, Kesler He barely played last season, but the year before showed a little more three point shooting in terms of averaging about one and a half threerees a game and things like that, But obviously having the rim rolling and then the rim protection from him goes a long way. I do worry about their perimeter defense still I still think that's going to be a large concern. there isn't anybody. Yeah. there isn't anybody. I think that's where I'm kind of a little bit worried. but I think for the situation for what was available to them. I think this was the move they had to make. and I think part of it too was selling Luca on the vision of like This is the plan. This is what we're going with. I also trust Mark Walters who, you know, owns the Dodgers He's competitive as hell is going to spend to put a winner out there. I know it's different in major League baseball versus DNBA the restrictions the second apron brings and the everything that comes with it But I think they're better off now than where they were you know, a week ago or once they found out LeBron not going to be there. they at least have an understanding of This is our team. This is the vision This is how we move forward. Now let's just see if they can execute in some way. I mean They were a pretty goddamn good team last year But they had LeBron Reeves and Luca And Look I mean, we could sit here and say whose choice really is it that LeBron is not a laker now is it LeBronze choice is it Delaker's choice They don't appar to have really made him an offer What would the offer have had to have been financially? to convince them to come back and how much would that have chipped away at their flexibility? So it's hard to sort of envision what that roster is versus what this roster is, but it's not like they were struggling. with LeBron. This is going to be a good team. It does fit better around Luca And to your point You're what you're essentially asking me is what are the other paths, right? Like what else could they have done assuming that Luca kind of had them over a barrel, which he does. And that's a fair point. what I would respond to is I think you just go shorter on the deals for Grimes and Mamu And the Kessler one I don't know. I'd have to really go back and try to think of team making this big of a bet. on a player who has proven so little in in like big scope terms in the NBA. There's not a huge sample of Walker Kessler playing really well. I mean's good. He was a rookie of the year candidate and all that. He's good. He's clearly good. There's just not a huge sample of him playing really well in games that actually matter for a team that's trying to win let alone good enough to make thirty two and a half million dollars a year Like how many centers are making more than Walker Kessler right now? It's a really short list Um And and the two unprotected picks, which could be, you know, something goes haywire with Luca All of a sudden, Utah, I think that's a I think Utah made out like a bandit in that trade. They have to figure out the center position. They've got Nirkich back. they've got Jackson Hayays back But I think they can now kind of play a little bit straddling two timelines pretty effectively. Pretty good now prettyty good setu for later for the next move U opens up maybe a starting spot, maybe not. We'll see what happens with Ace Bailey if he still comes off the bench and all that, but I just here's what I'm going to do it. I'm going to spend the weekend watching Walker Kessler film. spepecifically Rim running film, refresh my memory, lookook at some numbers. going to look a little bit more about how the rotation could shake out with Grimes and Sexton and who plays what role and sort of try to get a little bit better of what the vision is Um but on its face I just think given what they gave up, this is not a good enough team. but that's I reserve the right to change my mind. Mo, any final thoughts No, I just want to echo the Utah did make out like a bandit. They didn't want to pay Walker Kessler that much money. obviously and then they come back with these picks. And now they have a vault ready to go when they want to go when they figure out what the team is and when they when they see their whole team as a whole, you know on the floor next season and figure out where the holes are, they have the ammunition to go build up and go, you know, go get the guys they want. I think it' going to be pretty interesting to see for Utah. Like they did come out really great on this. I'm just excited to see what this looks like. And I think also the other element is L is one of those point guars that's going to make your your center look better that he has there size as well right He's and he's an amazing. Walker Castler is one of the three or four best offensive rebounders in the NBA. and that's another massive be important skill for all the sort of like they we could call them Kobbe assist if you want. Like Luca gets in the lane on the pick and roll, misses Austin reads. and you're kind to miss some of those twoos But the roller is going to be open to put him back in and he's real good at that and his rim defense is legitimately special. So I get the bet it's just A huge. Yeah. huge Huge bet. Okay, Mo, this time I mean it. You're not hearing from me again until the holiday weekend is over Thank you to Modeko for scrambling amid a move to come on the podcast. Thank you, Bud. You can always catch him on a double dribble podcast on Twitch, on Bleachher upport on the offffsides network All that. Thank you to Moe. Thank you to Jonathan, Mike and Billy on production for sccrambling late today and thank you all for listening to and are watching the Zach Low Show. I mean it. we will be back after the holiday weekend NBA. Chill the F out. Jayen Brown straighted the Lakers did some stuff. Thanks everybody twenty one one over in P president select states for Kansas an affilation with Kansas Star Casino or eighteen and over in Presididenton in DC, Kentucky, O Wyoming, gambling probleblem. Call one eight hundred gambler or one eight hundred My reset. Call one eight eighty eight seven hundred eighty nine seven seven seven seven or visit ccpG dot org slash chat in Connecticut or isis it MD gamblinghelp dot orga in Maryland. 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