Tag / dallas mavericks

Ben Simmons, Brooklyn Nets, RJ Barrett, New York Knicks, The Atlantic Files
by Alex Fischbein

Ben Simmons vs Paul Reed, RJ Barrett Struggling | TAF253

This week on the Atlantic Files podcast, Ben Simmons returned to Philadelphia to take on the 76ers, injuries are mounting for the Sixers with Tyrese Maxey also out, RJ Barrett has been struggling mightily this season, Giannis Antetokounmpo got in a fight with Montrezl Harrell and a ladder, Paul Reed has been balling, Kemba Walker is headed to the Dallas Mavericks, Karl Anthony Towns is hurt, and more!

We’re back after the Thanksgiving break so of course, we had to talk about the Philadelphia 76ers taking on the Brooklyn Nets and Ben Simmons‘ first regular season game back in Philly. The game should have been a blowout as the Sixers had their big three on the sidelines, but the sixers won easily. Simmons had a good game, but Paul Reed had an even better one.

Speaking of Paul Reed, he’s now on his victory tour again. Doc Rivers is finally listening to the hype as Reed gets more playing time and proves why he’s worthy of it. He’s had some great games with Joel Embiid out and even continued the defensive energy as a backup.

RJ Barrett has been struggling mightily lately. His issues are indicative of the whole team’s issues, however, a lot of this starts with one of their main three offensive options. Barrett hasn’t been able to shoot well at all and has new lows in a lot of categories across the board. Is this just a rut or will he continue to struggle in this system and lose more games for the Knicks?

Another older topic that we didn’t get a chance to comment on was laddergate with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Montrezl Harrell after the Milwaukee Bucks dropped a game in Philly. This has to be one of the dumbest and funniest bits of drama in the NBA. Everyone involved in this should have just gone home and called it a night, but instead, we had everyone talking bout who’s morally right or wrong.

Then, in around the league news, Karl Anthony Towns is out for 4-to-6 weeks with a lower leg injury. Also, Kemba Walker is coming back to the league as he’s joining the Dallas Mavericks. What are the impacts of both of these events?

Finally, we have our weekly fantasy basketball and whatchu got segments!

Timecodes:
00:00:00 Intro
00:02:46 Thanksgiving, favorite holidays, and more
00:10:17 Giannis Antetokounmpo, Montrezl Harrell, and Laddergate
00:24:38 RJ Barrett’s slump and the New York Knicks
00:37:00 Ben Simmons returns to Philadelphia to play the Sixers
00:58:43 Paul Reed shows Doc Rivers he should play more
01:03:22 Karl Anthony Towns injured for 6-8 weeks
01:07:13 Kemba Walker headed to the Dallas Mavericks
01:08:33 Big Sexy’s Fantasy Basketball segment
01:13:39 Top 5 favorite Thanksgiving foods
01:22:58 RJ Barrett’s interesting stat feats
01:27:20 Outro

Ben Simmons, Brooklyn Nets, JJ Redick, Ime Udoka, Boston Celtics, Atlantic Files
by Alex Fischbein

Ben Simmons, Ime Udoka, and Southwest Division | TAF245

This week on the Atlantic Files, we give our thoughts on the Ben Simmons interview on JJ Redick’s podcast, Ime Udoka’s suspension from the Boston Celtics, the biggest quotes and takeaways from NBA Media Day, and we continue our division preview series with the Southwest Division.

Ben Simmons finally came forward and gave his thoughts and explanations on all of the topics that Philadelphia 76ers fans and NBA fans alike wanted to hear. The topics ranged from the passed-up dunk against Trae Young, to what went wrong in Philly, to working on his shooting in Brooklyn after the debacle in the last 5 seasons. We reacted to our favorite quotes and soundbites of the interview.

The other biggest news coming out of the Atlantic Division was the suspension of Ime Udoka. Boston’s head coach was caught in a relationship with a female staffer and allegedly made unwanted comments toward women in the organization. Everyone who reported on the matter before anything was official, made the situation even messier. Reports said the relationship was consensual but then as more information came out, it sounded like the opposite was true. Now, the Boston Celtics start their training camp in turmoil instead of a team fresh off of a great Finals run with their eyes set on another.

Speaking of training camp and the start of the new season, teams around the league held their annual media day! Fans got to hear their favorite players talk about the upcoming season and any storylines still lingering. Also, we got to see any new players on their new teams. Media day is always exciting as it marks the coming days of a new season with a lot in store! We reacted to our favorite interviews, quotes, and more from this year’s media day.

Then, we continued our annual divisional preview series. This week, the Southwest division is on the docket. Will Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks take the division throne, or will the Memphis Grizzlies stay on top?

Finally, we had our “Whatchu Got” segment that ranged from pumpkin spice to Marcus Jordan getting spotted with Larsa Pippen!

Timecodes:
00:00:00 Intro
00:06:19 Reaction to Ben Simmons on JJ Redick’s podcast
00:33:52 Reactions and takeaways from NBA Media day
00:59:34 Ime Udoka suspended, situation got messy!
01:12:05 2022-23 NBA Southwest division preview
01:27:49 Marcus Jordan with Larsa Pippen now??
01:30:23 New Redeem team doc teaser with Kobe Bryant
01:36:41 Matisse Thybulle vs Ben Simmons in threes
01:37:38 Are you a pumpkin flavor fan?
01:39:33 Thank you for 200 subscribers!

Nikola Jokic, Dirk Nowitzki, Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Atlantic files
by Alex Fischbein

What does Nikola Jokic need to be better than Dirk Nowitzki all time?

The age-old debate of which player should be considered than the other despite playing in different eras continues! This time around, we’re talking about the best European to play in the NBA. Nikola Jokic is quickly making his case, but the one to pass is still Dirk Nowitzki.

During the latest episode of our podcast, Mike’s ‘Whatchu Got’ topic was based on Nikola Jokic. He asked what Jokic had to do to become the best European of all-time to play in the NBA. 

Usually, this is an absurd question because of how great Dirk Nowitzki’s legacy is, but in terms of Jokic and even Luka Doncic, it’s a fair question. Nowitzki’s 20 seasons with the Dallas Mavericks and plethora of accomplishments is a hard resume to beat.

Jokic now has two MVPs under his belt, some historical stat lines, and a few playoff runs. He’s one of the best big men in the last decade or so already and is constantly in the conversation among the top seven players in the league.

Yes, we know it’s still quite early in his career to make a judgment right now. What we can do is go off of his body of work and try to predict if he can keep that pace up.

What do you think, will Nikola Jokic ever pass Dirk Nowitzki as the best European player of all time? Plus, could Luka Doncic pass both of them?

2022 NBA draft, chet holmgren, paolo banchero, jabari smith jr, atlantic files
by Alex Fischbein

2022 NBA Draft Reactions and Analysis | The Atlantic Files Ep233

This week on the Atlantic Files podcast, we’re talking all things 2022 NBA Draft. We give all of our opinions and analysis on trades such as the ones involving Jerami Grant to the Portland Trail Blazers and Christian Wood to the Dallas Mavericks! The NBA Draft itself will be taking place as we’re recording so all reactions and takes will be live as they happen. We’ll also be talking about the weird Kyrie Irving rumors about not reaching contract agreements on top of sign-and-trade options.

The hottest topic in the NBA this week was obviously the NBA Draft. So, we decided to do a rare Thursday recording and we live streamed our reactions to each pick and trade in the lottery. The top three picks were known from the start, we just didn’t know which order, and things really started to shake up once it hit the New York Knicks pick. Right now, it seems like the Detroit Pistons stole the show. However, with free agency looming in the not-so-distant future, a lot of things can change.

Before the draft even happened, there were a couple of trades that we had to note. Christian Wood was sent to the Dallas Mavericks for a ton of filler and not much else. This bolsters the Mavs offense and especially defense down low. Then, Jerami Grant was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers for more filler type of returns. While Damian Lillard got himself a nice stretch-four, the Pistons cleared up some space for their prospects of Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren.

Finally, there is even more drama on the Kyrie Irving and Brooklyn Nets front. All sorts of smoke and rumors coming out of the Irving camp are saying that they haven’t reached a deal on a new contract and now he’s coming up with lists of teams he’d like a sign and trade to. If Kyrie then moves, everyone is worried about Kevin Durant moving right after him. That’s a lot of drama for a team who didn’t even have a pick in the draft.

Timecodes:
00:00:00 Intro
00:01:20 2022 NBA Draft live reactions
00:11:39 Christian Wood traded to the Dallas Mavericks
00:16:07 More NBA Draft reactions
00:27:44 Dennis makes a quick appearance!
00:46:50 Kyrie Irving drama with the Brooklyn Nets
00:54:20 Back to NBA Draft analysis

Boston Celtics, NBA Playoffs 2022, Atlantic Files
by Alex Fischbein

Boston Celtics NBA Finals bound? | The Atlantic Files Ep228

This week on the Atlantic Files Podcast, we talk about the absolute embarrassment of a Game Seven that the Phoenix Suns endured, the Boston Celtics taking down the reigning NBA Champs and looking like a surefire championship team, Ja Morant’s injury issues, previews of both Conference Finals, what the Philadelphia 76ers should do with James Harden, whether Doc Rivers or Daryl Morey are at fault for what happened to the Sixers, if Sean Marks was justified in calling out Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons, and more!

First of all, the Boston Celtics are the only remaining Atlantic Division team in the NBA Playoffs. They were the ones who started the season in the most disappointing fashion and after turning it completely around, they now look like they can really win a championship. Will they be able to pull off a win over the Miami Heat and then eventually an NBA Finals win?

In the West, the Dallas Mavericks are fresh off of a complete drubbing of the Phoenix Suns. Devin Booker talked his way right out of the playoffs as Luka Doncic laughed them right off the court. Now, he has to go up against the dynasty that is the Golden State Warriors. Are the Warriors a lock to make the Finals with their experience?

Ja Morant, after suffering a few injuries during the season, also was injured a couple of times in the playoffs. Is he beginning to be too injury-prone for Memphis to be considered a legit contender?

Since we have both Conference Finals series set in stone, it’s time to preview each one. We give our thoughts on the X-Factors for each series as well as our predictions for who wins in how many games.

Finally, we have a sort of grabbag of a handful of topics. The Philadelphia 76ers have a huge decision to make with James Harden and his contract, Doc Rivers and Daryl Morey are fighting to see who takes the most blame for this season, how would Mike D’Antoni fit in LaMelo Ball and Charlotte’s offense, Sean Marks comments about the Brooklyn Nets and Kyrie Irving, and whether the Celtics used a dirty tactic with Robert Williams III injury status.

Timecodes:
0:00 – Intro
2:48 – Phoenix Suns get embarrassed by Luka Doncic and Dallas Mavericks
17:36 – Boston Celtics took down Milwaukee, are they NBA Finals bound?
27:14 – Celtics acted shady with Robert Williams III injury status
30:34 – Would the Phoenix Suns trade Deandre Ayton
34:03 – Is Mike D’Antoni a good fit for Charlotte and LaMelo Ball
40:13 – Doc Rivers or Daryl Morey, who’s more at fault in Philadelphia
59:24 – NBA Eastern Conference Finals preview
1:09:09 – NBA Western Conference Finals preview

brooklyn nets, boston celtics, kevin durant, kyrie irving, ben simmons, atlantic files
by Alex Fischbein

Brooklyn Nets get swept | The Atlantic Files Ep225

This week on the Atlantic Files podcast, the Brooklyn Nets officially get swept out of the first round by the Boston Celtics, the Philadelphia 76ers are starting to look like the first team that will blow a 3-0 lead, Luka Doncic comes back and dominates, and the NBA playoffs roll on!

The biggest topic, especially for our podcast, is the Brooklyn Nets getting swept right out of the first round by the Boston Celtics. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving looked like deer in headlights and the Celtics now all of a sudden look like they’re championship bound. Ime Udoka has the boys in green playing like a superstar-level squad.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, you have the Philadelphia 76ers on the verge of making a bad kind of history. They went up 3-0 on the Toronto Raptors and the entire city of Philadelphia started talking their trash. Now, Joel Embiid is hurt and Toronto has won two straight. Scary times for the Philly fans.

Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry are hurt yet again, but the Miami Heat won their matchup with the Atlanta Hawks anyway. Are the Hawks that bad or are the Heat actually a championship-level team?

Chronicles of the Utah Jazz is taking place as they tank their series against Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks as well. It’s time for a blow up and rebuild job in the Salt Lake City!

All of that and more NBA Playoffs topics!

Timecodes:
0:00 – Intro
2:30 – Can the Toronto Raptors make history?
17:10 – Brooklyn Nets are a mess and Ben Simmons is still missing
28:39 – Are the Boston Celtics championship level?
32:42 – Are the Miami Heat that good or Atlanta Hawks that bad
37:08 – Thoughts on the Ben Simmons James Harden trade now
45:45 – Minnesota Timberwolves blowing leads and KAT fake tough
50:33 – New Orleans Pelicans are looking good!
57:50 – Golden State Warriors back in the title picture