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A podcast with the purpose of sharing the love of competition with others. Its main focus is basketball and soccer and why if you are a fan of one you should be a fan of both!
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A podcast with the purpose of sharing the love of competition with others. Its main focus is basketball and soccer and why if you are a fan of one you should be a fan of both!
Comment
A podcast with the purpose of sharing the love of competition with others. Its main focus is basketball and soccer and why if you are a fan of one you should be a fan of both!
Listen to Dual Threat: Episode 1 by Kahlil Ballenger MP3 song. Dual Threat: Episode 1 song from Kahlil Ballenger is available on Audio.com. The duration of song is 35:05. This high-quality MP3 track has 676.855 kbps bitrate and was uploaded on 24 Jun 2024. Stream and download Dual Threat: Episode 1 by Kahlil Ballenger for free on Audio.com – your ultimate destination for MP3 music.
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Yo, welcome to Dual Threat! It's a podcast about basketball and soccer. In soccer, Germany is doing great, while Switzerland is a strong competitor. Hungary and Scotland are disappointing. Spain is dominating Group B, but Italy needs to step up. Croatia is struggling. England's coach needs to be fired, their team is not cohesive. Denmark is a favorite in Group C. Portugal is looking strong in Group F. In the NBA, the Thunder and Bulls made a trade, and it seems like the Thunder got the better deal. Alex Caruso brings hustle and confidence to the Thunder. Yo, yo, yo, what's good, everybody? Welcome to Dual Threat. I'm your host, Khalil. This podcast is meant to intertwine two of the most beautiful sports, basketball and soccer, in a way that celebrates both of these competitions and pushes people to enjoy both of these games as equals. I've grown up loving and playing these sports and hope to spread that love with you. Episode one. Welcome to episode one. We are gonna get started with our weekly recap, and since this was the week of the Eurogroup stages, I'm gonna start off with a little bit of rundown of how all the goop shaped out. Starting out with group A. Germany, I wasn't sure how they were gonna come into this tournament looking after a couple past disappointing international tournaments. But man, they are the absolute faves. I don't know if it was just Kroos coming back and putting on an absolute masterclass. I don't know, I think he missed three passes in the entire group stage. Something out of this world. Museolo is looking like a gem. Fulcrum with the two goals. They have the two leading scores of the Euros so far. They're the host nations. Germany should be your fave. They're my fave. The Swiss team, they look hungry. They put up a fight against the Germans. Honestly should have had a win. Lucky goal for the Germans there at the end. Swiss is gonna be second in the group, but man, do they look hungry. They should put up a fight in the round of 16 and people should watch out for them. Hungary and Scotland, not much to say. Disappointments. Loved watching McTominay, but that's about my only bright spot for those two teams. So moving on to group B. Spain, absolutely the best in the group. Looked like a team out there just doing what they need to do. They put on a show in all their games so far and they will top the group. Italy, after that match against Spain, I gotta say they looked a little bit disappointing. Still second in the group. Gonna qualify. They need to figure their stuff out. Croatia, all I have for Croatia in my notes is question marks, because what's going on? One point in Luka Modric's last ever international tournament. That can't be the way he goes out, but it looks like it will be. They need a result in this match day three. Albania, bottom of the group. Little bit more exciting than Croatia. They put up a fight in a couple games. Not much to say about them. On to group C. England, oh boy. What can I say? I gotta start off with Southgate. Fire him, get him out of there. Why is he their manager? What is he doing playing Trent Alexander-Arnold up in the midfield? He can't do that. He has the physical attributes to be a middie, but he just doesn't have the mental game for it. He can't play watching the game with game going on behind him. He needs to watch it all from the back and be able to go forward. He can't go backwards. That's number one with Southgate, his management. Ooh, just don't think he's the right manager for that team. They're not even looking like a team out there. They're looking like 11 players just on the pitch. They have so much talent out there. I do think they're an overrated team, and I think they need to figure out a lot before they're gonna be a scary, scary team. Denmark, they should be a fave to go through for this group. I think they're the best looking team out there. Maybe not the most talented team, but I think they're the most concise and well-cooperative team in the entire group. Slovenia and Serbia put up some fights. Not a lot to say. They might get a sneaky one in the third place qualifying, but I don't think they'll have it. On to group D. The Dutch team and the French team up there at the top together, they just played 0-0 draw. I do think the Dutch got lucky that there was no Mbappe, and that being said, the French team shows that they need Mbappe. He's the best player in the world for a reason. He brings the second level to that attack for them. He's the finisher for them, and they were missing that, and that Dutch team got lucky. The Dutch team still looks good, but they don't look like the best team in the group. Those two are gonna qualify, and Austria, surprisingly, should definitely qualify as the third-place team. This was a very top-three-heavy group, with Poland being the first team eliminated out of all the Euros. They were definitely missing Lewandowski. Sad showing for them. Hopefully, in the next round, they can look better. On to group E. This is the group of death. They are all tied with three points after two games, so going into the final match day, every single team there needs a result. It's all undecided. They're all tied up. Who's it gonna be? Belgium need to get a win against Ukraine. They can't get a result. They need a win, and then Romania and Slovakia. I think Romania might top this group. I think they're gonna put up a dominant win against Slovakia, and I think they will be number one in the group, and then it's gonna be whether Belgium or Ukraine. Who's gonna win that? I do think it'll be Belgium, but I'm going for Ukraine. Finally, on to group F. Here we are, the final group. Portugal finally figuring out, and man, that's a scary sight. They're getting decisive. They're figuring out their chances. They gave Liao some more room to run down that left side. They just let him get free, let him play that one-v-one that he needs to, and it created so much more, and then you had Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, and Ronaldo all just being the decisive leaders that they need to be, and we saw it in a clear, clear victory, made Turkey just absolutely look like not on their same level. After Turkey looked amazing against Georgia. And then Georgia, speaking of them, they had a chance to beat the Czech. They came out with a tie, at least. They did have a chance in that extra time to pull out a win, though. They are still at the bottom of the table, and they need a result in this final game against Portugal, which isn't looking too likely, so I do think Georgia's gonna be eliminated. I have Portugal, they're already top of the group, and then between Turkey and Czech, I do think Turkey's gonna get a win. Czech has a shot, though, so that's gonna be an interesting group. And now, switching to the NBA side, we got our first trade of the season, and that trade meant a little bit more to me. You know I'm a Thunder fan. This trade was between the Thunder and the Bulls. It was a straight-up player-for-player swap between Josh Giddey and Alex Caruso, and since it was a straight-up player-for-player swap, I do think that made the Thunder the overall winners for me, although, from the Bulls' perspective, it's not a complete loss. I do think it gives the Bulls a direction. They did make a move, and you know, they haven't had a direction for a couple years. We've been confused with what they're doing, trading for Brusevich, keeping Levine, picking up Der Brosen, having Kobe White, Patrick Williams, what are they doing? Old players, young players, we don't know. So I do think this is saying that they're trying to move on from some of the older players, rebuild, regroup, start young, start fresh. They also made a move, which they haven't done in a couple, in a while. They've just been resigning players, not doing much. But that does leave me to be a little bit confused on why they didn't choose to take the picks they were being offered at the deadline, and what, they decided for a mediocre end of the season with better than two first-round picks for Alex Caruso? That's a very weird decision, if that's what it was. But they had many other options, and Alex Caruso is an asset wanted by many, many, many contenders that have picks. Even the team they traded with, the Thunder, have thousands of picks, it seems like, and they couldn't get one of them, not even a second-round pick, let alone a first-round pick. So that being said, Thunder fans, I think you should be absolutely overjoyed. Josh is a great player, much love for him. Hopefully he does great stuff. But after having conversations this off-season with Dagnold, with Presti, with upper management, with the coaches, he wasn't really happy about how they wanted to use him. The Thunder wanting to use him in more of that sixth man, bring that spark off the bench, be the leader off the bench, be the leader for the young guys off the bench kind of player, and that's not what he wanted. He wanted to be one of the guys. He wanted to be the starting lineup. He wanted to have the ball in his hands. And so I do think this trade is giving him the opportunity to kind of rebrand himself after a tough season with off-the-court issues and on-the-court issues getting played off in the playoffs. This is gonna set him over to start fresh, and the Thunder are getting back an absolutely coveted, coveted asset without giving up a first-round pick. Steal for me. And Al Shkurtz, he brings that hustle. I've been watching some highlights of him recently because I'm a Thunder fan. I watch him, but I want to see a little bit more of what we're getting, what he's known for. And all of the plays that I'm watching are hustle plays, him diving out of bounds, tipping the ball back inbounds, tipping it off players, offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, blocks. He had more blocks than Vucevic this season, even though he was injured and he's a point guard. I think it was 70 to 60, 10 more blocks being a point guard and playing 600 less minutes, absolutely incredible. He is also that three and D with a confidence booster. He brings the next level of confidence to the entire team. He can also hit a big shot when you need him. He can make shots, he can slash. He has above average playmaking IQ. He can hold the ball, he can control the ball. And you know, I just think he brings that sort of mentality to the culture that the Thunder are already building. And he just adds to that, adds an extra layer. And he's not going to get played off the courts in the playoffs, which is going to be key because it means all five of our starters can end the game now in the playoffs instead of only four out of five. So in all honesty, I do think this is going to be a similar trade to like Iggy to the Warriors or Derek White to the Celtics, that last little push to get over the hump. And I think this was a win for all parties though. The Bulls get the direction, Thunder get a defensive shooter, and Josh Giddy, he gets his second chance. It is now time for your Game of the Week. This week's game is going to be NBA, higher or lower. How does that work? Well, the way this one works is I am going to be shown two players and I have to choose which one of those two players I think has a higher points per game average for their career. If I get it correct, I continue with that next player. And then I get a second player and I have to see if it stays the same or goes differently. And we're going to see what my high score will be. I'm going to give myself three to five chances depending on how well I do. And let's get started. The first two players are Pervis Short or Antonio McDice. You know, I like Pervis Short. I think his name's a little bit better to be honest. I'm not super familiar with either of these players. Pervis Short, an outstanding 17.35, Antonio McDice, only 12. So we're starting off hard. Now it stays with Pervis Short and the new player is Roy Henson. Pervis Short, 17.35. I'm going to continue with him over here. Stays there, Roy Henson only at 14.2. Now it is Roy Henson at 14.2 or Derek Harper. Give me Derek Harper. Oh, dang it. He only had a 13.3. All righty, so I got a two. And the next two players to restart after I just got the two. Starting over, I'm going to have Chauncey Billups or Jerry Stackhouse. Ooh, give me Chauncey. Give me Chauncey. Oh, I lost that one. So this is a tough score for me. Oh, I got an MUP, most useless player. Oh, this is embarrassing. All right, let's see if we can do better on this next round. Starting off the next round, my two players are George Mikan or Richard Jefferson. We got to go with George. 23.13, Richard Jefferson only had 12.6. George Mikan or Richard Hamilton. We are sticking with George, not Rip. Sorry, Rip, I know you had 17, but not quite there. Rip Hamilton or Maurice Lucas. We're sticking with Rip Hamilton at 17.06, and that is correct. Maurice only at 14.4. Now it is Maurice Lucas or Willis Reed. Willis, come on, bring it home, baby. 18.74. Willis Reed or Peja. Willis had it. I don't think Peja got quite up to 18.75, and that was correct, only 16.97 for Peja. Now it is Peja or Tom Heinsohn. I think we're gonna stick with Peja. Oh, damn, Tom Heinsohn with 18.65. All right, that is five. That is my highest score of the game so far. I'm gonna give myself two more chances. Let's just see how it goes. The next two will be Derek Coleman or Jeff Mullins. Let's go Derek Coleman, 16.5. Jeff Mullins, 16.19. Man, that was close, but we were correct. Now it is Derek Coleman or Dale Ellis. We're sticking with Derek Coleman. That is correct. That was also close. Dale Ellis had 15.72. Now it is Dale Ellis or Walt Frazier. It is Walt Frazier. 18.89. It was Walt Frazier. Walt Frazier or Zelma Beattie. I'm going Walt Frazier. Zelma only had 15.9. I gotta remember that. Zelma, what a name. Zelma or Thurl Bailey. Let's go with Thurl Bailey. Dang it, 12.8. I knew that. Zelma, 15.98. That was a four. I think that's gonna be it for today, folks. Thanks for joining us for NBA Higher or Lower. Moving on to one of the main topics of the episode. I have spent the past week going over the top 14 teams and the top 18 to 20-ish players and creating my own personalized NBA lottery mock draft. And here it is. I will give it to you. Starting out with the number one pick, it goes to the Atlanta Hawks. They came in with only a 3.6 chance at the lottery to get this first pick, yet here they are. The Atlanta Hawks, they got Trey Young, they got DeJounte Murray. What else do they need? I think they're gonna go big man. And I think that big man, although everyone wants Saar to drop to two to go to Washington, I think Atlanta's taking him up first. I think all the Richard Buzz is all just to hide what's really going on. And I do think the pick will be Alexander Saar straight out of Perth. He has an older brother who plays for the Thunder. He's coming in at 6'11", almost seven feet tall, 19 years old, weighing about 224, 225. His wingspan is an outstanding 7'4", standing reach 9'2", with huge hands, coming in at 10 and nine inches. His stats, he only averaged 9.4 points per game, but that was on 52% from the field. And I do think he's getting better at creating his own shot, over catching and shooting. His shot looks better. I was watching some videos of him shooting at the Combine. It looks smoother than it did on Perth. It looks like he's putting in his work to his shot, but I don't think it's quite there yet. I do think that's something he will get better on. I think he has an extremely high defensive upside with a chance to be a day one impact player. He can come out and make impact. His blocking, absolutely elite, absolutely elite on the defensive end. Super, super athletic, and that just helps with all of that. I think he has amazing O-board positioning while I was watching him. I think he knows where he can be on the court. I think he has pretty good court vision. He does lack some of that offensive versatility you would like. And there you have it for our first pick, Alexander Saar to the Atlanta Hawks. Now, Washington, you're on the board. Washington, they have a little bit more of an interesting team. They got Kyle Kuzma. They got Daniel Deja. They got Bilal Khulebadi. But I do think they are gonna be taking in. They have Jordan Poole. I do think they will be taking a guard, though. I think they want that more controlled, slow down the pace kind of ball handler. As we watch him, Jordan Poole, he can go a little bit all over the place. And that being said, I do think their pick will be Reed Shepard out of Kentucky. Coming in at 6'1", almost 6'2", weighing 182, a wingspan of 6'3", and pretty big hands for his size. He averaged 12 points per game, two and a half steals per game, four assists per game. And the most surprising thing to me was he had a 42-inch bird. That was number one at the combine. Number one out of everybody at the combine. Doesn't mean he's super athletic, but it does mean the boy's got hops. And 52% from three on 4.4 attempts per game. That's quite a lot of attempts per game, and he's making half of those. I do think that shot will translate to the NBA level. Catch and shoot looks spectacular. Watching his combine shooting, the man is a shooter. He does have the ability to play-make as an off-ball guard. I think it's gonna take some work for him to be the number one point guard. I do think he can bring the control next to Jordan Poole, and they can work well together. I think he's gonna bring the off-ball shooting. I think he's gonna bring the spacing that they need. And I think he will be the pick for them. Going on to number three, we have Houston. Houston, we have a problem. Maybe not a problem. Anyways, Houston, what do they have? They have so many young talents over there, from Jabari Smith to Jalen Greene, all of them to Alperen Sangoon. And they have Freddie as a point guard. So what are they gonna pick? I do think they're gonna pick a shooting guard to pair next to Freddie that plays a little bit different than all of their just pure scores that they have on that team. I do think the pick is gonna be Stephan Castle out of UConn, coming in at 6'5.5", weighing 210, wingspan of 6'9". Stats 11 points per game, 54% from the field. What Stephan Castle does bring, though, is he is a winner. He played for UConn. He has an elite mentality. He tries hard. He can guard multiple positions. He makes winning plays on defense. He has big hands. He disrupts passing lanes. High IQ. And he can handle the ball, and he can score when you need him to. That will be Houston's pick, Stephan Castle at number three. Then on to San Antonio with the fourth pick. Who are they gonna be pairing with their number one pick from last year? Mr. Wet Bananas himself, Victor Wemenyana. I do think they're gonna take Rob Dillingham out of Kentucky. 6'1", 164, 6'3", wingspan. Decent-sized hands, average 15.4 points per game on 44% from three, 47% from the field. Super quick player. Super, super quick. Jaw, Jared Fox-type quickness. Offensive nuke. Pretty good handles. Iso score. He does lack effort, though, and I can see it coming to harp him on defense. I don't know how well he'll play on defense. If he can figure out that effort, I do think he's gonna get better on that. It's just an effort thing with him. And so there you have it. The fourth pick of the draft, Rob Dillingham to San Antonio. Then the unluckiest team in the draft, the Detroit Pistons, had the number one odds. Odds were the worst team in the NBA last year, yet they dropped all the way down to five. What do they need? They have Cade Cunningham. They have a very interesting team. They've had some busts. They've had some good players. They had Wiseman for a little bit. They have Ivy. They have Beef Stew. I don't know. I do think their pick is gonna be a wing, and I do think it's gonna be a score first wing, and I think that wing will be Rissache out of France. He's dropped. He's a projected top three pick. I have him going five. That is my little thing. That's my own personal opinion. I'm not sure if that's actually what's gonna happen. I think this is how I would've ran the draft if I was all five of these teams' GMs, but we know that's probably not how it's gonna go. His outstanding stats are 10 points per game with four rebounds and 43% shooting and only 1.3 turnovers, but when you put that into a per 36, it is 16 points per game on even better shooting, 44% and 39% from three. I love watching his highlights. I think he is one of the best looking players out there. I think his shot is super clean. I think he plays good defense. I think he looks athletic. He can drive. He can slash. I just don't think any of the other teams need a wing right now. I think all of them have those score first players, so I do think this is where he's falling. Other than that, if he doesn't go five, I think he's going one to Atlanta. Then on to six, we have Charlotte. I think they are gonna be taking Donovan Klingin to pair up with LaMelo Ball. They just traded P.J. Washington. I think he's gonna bring that defensive anchor to the team, that lob threat to the team. Not super athletic. He has some good post moves, though. He's got a nice little post jump, post hook, and he is coming in at seven, 1.75, almost seven, two, weighing at two with a seven, seven wingspan, and his hands are about 10 inches. He averaged 13 points per game on 64% from the field and two and a half blocks per game. He also came out of UConn, so he is a winner with an elite mentality. He knows how to make the winning plays. He's an amazing rebounder and blocker with above average post moves, and what he does make up for all on that, he does lack in athleticism and stamina, and I think that's why he's not going in the top five. Going down to seven, we have Portland, who also has a bunch of amazing young players, just drafting Scoot Henderson last season. They traded for DeAndre A. and they also have Anthony Simons, they have Shaden Sharpe, they have quite the team out there, did really bad this year, so they're hoping to make an impact with this. I think their pick is gonna be Rob Holland III coming in at six, six, weighing 197, wingspan of six, 11, and his hands about nine inches. That's 18 points per game, 47% from the field on 2.1 steals per game. He was playing in the G League, he led his team in all the stats though. Huge motor, very athletic, good squad F shooter, not the highest IQ, has some playmaking and ball control issues, and he did choose to go to the G League, which we've seen hasn't panned out well for many of the players in the past couple years, so we'll see if it pans out better for him. I do think that'll be Portland's pick with number seven though, Rob Holland III. Right back to San Antonio, who are they gonna pair now with Dillingham and Victor Wendonyama? I do think it will be Matas Buzelis with a height of six, nine, weight 197, wingspan of six, 10. Stats, 14 points per game, seven rebounds per game, two blocks per game. He did have a down shooting year. His shot still looks pretty good though, I think it was just one bad year, I think it's gonna pick back up. Good spacing, moves well off the ball, kind of a bad playmaker, and he's lacking effort as well. I do think that's something that Pop will fix, and I do think he's the type of player the Spurs will take, and I think they're gonna make him into a great player. He will complement Dillingham and Victor very well, and I think that will be their pick with number eight. On to number nine, we have the Memphis Grizzlies. They're in an interesting situation. They had a horrible year that was mostly due to injuries, trades, and John Morant being out for the entire season, whether it be due to suspension or injury. That being said, I do think they're gonna be taking a little bit more of a project player. He could have some impact on the defensive end out of day one. I think that pick will be coming out of Colorado, Mr. Cody Williams. His older brother got taken a couple years ago out of Santa Clara to the OKC Thunder in the lottery. So now Cody will be joining him as a lottery pick. Cody's coming in at 6'6 1", 19 years old, weighing 178, a wingspan of 7'1". Incredibly long wingspan for his height. I think that's gonna help him on the defensive end. He averaged 11.9 points per game, 41% from three, and 55% shooting. He started off really slow, but started to pick it up toward the end of the season. He had a really good ending of the year. He's lengthy. He could add some weight to be able to match up against some of the bigger players in the league. But I think once he does that, he's gonna be an incredible defender. He has good rotation awareness, gets in the lanes really well, and I think he has potential to be a day one defensive impact player. And number 10, the Utah Jazz. What are they gonna do? They have a very, very interesting team. Just last year, picking Keontae George. He looked pretty good this season. They have Laurie Markkinen. They got a couple of good pieces. I do think that being said, I think they're gonna pick, it'll be a point guard who did get hurt at the start of this off season, which has lowered his draft stock. I do think it will be Nikola Topic coming at 6'5.75, weighing 203 with a wingspan of 6'5.5. I think he will be their pick. I think he will be able to be that number one point guard for them. Make Laurie Markkinen be a better player, take some of the pressure off Keontae George, allow him to just be the scorer, and I do think that will be their pick. Number 11, the Chicago Bulls. What are they gonna do? I think they are gonna be picking a big man to pair alongside next to Patrick Williams, and I do think that big man will be Tristan Da Silva. Height, 6'8.25, weight 217, wingspan of 6'10. Da Silva out of Colorado. You saw what he could do there. He has a decent outside shot. He can have some post moves. He has a little bit of a middy. He can play defense when he has the effort, and I do think pairing alongside Josh Giddey, Patrick Williams, and Kobe White, I think he will be the perfect fit right there. Now number 12, the Oklahoma City Thunder. I think their pick will be Yves Nissi. I think they need a bigger player. I think they need that big rim blocker, just someone else that plays a little bit of a different game than what Chet Holmgren brings. I think he's gonna be that bigger big that can come in, get those O boards, get those defensive boards, and match up against bigger, stronger players, help out Chet when he needs it, and I do think he is gonna be their pick. 13, the Sacramento Kings. I think they're gonna be picking Dalton Nett. Coming out of Tennessee, averaging 21.7 points per game. He is a fifth-year senior. He's been moving around colleges. He was playing at some smaller schools. People were wondering if the production wasn't quite up to standard. He moved to Tennessee, averaged 21.7 points per game, showed it wasn't a fluke, and I do think he's gonna be that scorer for Sacramento that they need, that secondary scorer that they're missing, and I think he's gonna be that number one. And then finally, the last pick of the lottery, the Portland Trailblazers once again, and I do think it is gonna be Devin Carter, coming out of Providence. He's a 6-2, 193 guard. He averaged 19 points per game on 40% from three, but he did shoot over seven attempts a game. He is a very good shooter. Catch and shoot shot is awesome. He's a pretty good slasher. He's intelligent. He's got intelligent off-ball D. His athleticism and ball handling, not quite up to par, though. I do think that's what's slowing his dress stock. He's a little bit older, had a little bit worse competition. He had a decent run in March Madness. I do think he will be their player. And that concludes it for your 2024 Lottery Mock Draft, hosted by Kahlil Ballinger. And the next segment of today's episode will be the NBA 2 UEFA Player Comparison. The first comparison we have is Ronaldo compared to LeBron James. The reasons I have for that is their longevity. These two players are playing at old ages, but nobody else could even think of playing highly competitive sports at, and here they are playing at the peak of their powers. The next comparison that we have is Jokic with Messi. This might not be the most traditional comparison, but I think it makes the most sense. They both go out there. They make it look easy. They barely look like they're trying. They almost look as if they're sleepwalking through the game. And then all of a sudden, boom, some magic happens. They do something incredible. You don't know how they do it. They make their teammates around them better. They make everybody just one level ahead of what they would be if they weren't playing with Jokic and Messi. And they're off the court, they're kind of the same. They're kind of funny, awkward, don't really love the interviews, homebodies, and just seem like genuinely nice, sweet people. The last one may be a little more controversial. I like it, though. It's Melo, Carmelo Anthony, with Romelu Lukaku, the Everton and Inter legend compared with Carmelo. The reason I think these two are comparable, they're both very confident, almost to the point of cockiness, very offensive-oriented players. Sometimes said that they lack some effort on the other side of the ball, but they can always put the ball in the net when you need them to. And lastly, they're kind of unlucky players. They haven't won a bunch in their lives. The biggest stages, they seem to make mistakes. They don't always perform quite as they should. And so that's why I think those two are similar. So there you have it. We have Cristiano Ronaldo with LeBron James, Nikola Jokic with Lionel Messi, and Carmelo Anthony with Romelu Lukaku. And the final segment of today's episode is gonna be five ideas that I have for the NBA on how to make their end-season tournament have more meaning and be more similar to the European soccer tournaments. The first idea I have is it would be a seeding-based tournament, so the bottom four teams wouldn't be allowed to compete in the end-season tournament for that year. And that would make it more like the Champions League. It would put a little more pressure on the teams that are in it because the bad teams are out. And the bottom four teams would instead of competing in the end-season tournament would play a quick little mini tournament out of the four of them and a competition for the first seed. The second idea I had would be the winner of the tournament gets a berth in the playoffs. This wouldn't affect the seeding unless the team would have otherwise missed the playoffs. So if the team that wins the end-season tournament ends up being the number one seed, it doesn't change anything. But if the winner of the end-season tournament ends up being the number 11 seed, then they automatically get bumped up to that seventh position and they are into the end-season tournament. If the winner of the end-season tournament is the eighth seed, they switch spots with that seventh seed and they are automatically into the playoffs. If they're the ninth, 10th, 11th seed. So that seventh seed, if they didn't win the end-season tournament and the end-season tournament winner is below them in the standings, they will switch spots. The third idea I have is that the winner of the end-season tournament would get an extra lottery pick for the next year. The way this would work would just be the first round would go to 31 picks and the end-season tournament winner would either get the 14th or the 15th pick in the lottery. And I think it would go, I don't know if it would be just a set 14th or 15th or if they would have the same thing and it would just be like the same lots as the 14th pick and it goes into the draft lottery the same way. I think that would honestly make more sense. But either way, there'd be 31 picks in the first round instead of 30 and the end-season tournament winner would be one of the lottery teams. Another one would be not having the final not being held in Vegas. As we saw from last year, the final two rounds were both held in Vegas, the semifinals and the finals. And it kind of took away from the atmosphere. The Pacers who had an incredible atmosphere all throughout the end-season tournament kind of died in the finals because they didn't have their fans behind them. They didn't have that Indiana camaraderie. They didn't have the people cheering for them in the background. They were in Vegas and it kind of took away from the crowd and home and atmosphere of the games. And my final thing would be the winner of the tournament gets more nationally televised games for the rest of the year. So maybe there'd be a couple games up in the air and if you win the tournament, you get those games for the rest of the year added to your national TV schedule. And so that could be incentive for teams like the Thunder or the Magic or the Cavaliers or the Timberwolves who have young rising stars but aren't in the biggest markets. So they're not getting put on national televised games and their stars aren't getting the recognition they deserve. So then by winning this tournament, it would push them into those nationally televised games, get them the more recognition they want and maybe help get them out of that small market feel. So those are my five ideas for what would make the NBA in-season tournament feel more and have more meaning like the European Soccer Tournament. And so lastly, I just wanted to give a quick shout to hockey. There's some historic stuff going on over in that sport and the NHL Finals and the Stanley Cup. Conor McDavid and the Oilers have come back for being down 3-0 against the Florida Panthers. They've tied it up 3-3. Tonight, Monday the 24th, game seven is at six o'clock mountain time. And if the Oilers can complete the comeback, it'd be the first Canadian team to win of this century and they'd be the first team to complete that comeback in hockey since 1942. In the Stanley Cup Finals, I just think it would be absolutely incredible if they do. I know I'm gonna be watching. I hope all of you are watching. And if Conor McDavid does this, it could put him in the GOAT conversations if he's not already there for you. All I know is he is one of the best players I have ever watched in any sport I've ever watched. Go watch some hockey tonight. Thank you all for listening. Love to have you. See you next week for the next episode. Bye-bye.
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