On this week’s episode of The Atlantic Files, the New York Knicks are shutting down the Cleveland Cavaliers with ease, Jimmy Butler flipped his playoff switch against Milwaukee, the Philadelphia 76ers swept the Brooklyn Nets so what do they need to do this off-season, Ime Udoka got the job with the Houston Rockets, and more!
Both the Knicks and Jimmy Butler have flipped the playoff switch lately. New York is on a high right now as they took a 3-1 lead over the Cavaliers as the series goes back to Cleveland for Game 5. Many analysts, including us on this podcast, didn’t believe in the Knicks winning a series against a Donovan Mitchell-led Cavs team. Yet, here they are on the cusp of advancing to the second round! Then, there’s the tale as old as time in playoff Jimmy. Butler has taken the Heat to the edge of a huge upset over the first-seed Milwaukee Bucks after he put up a historic performance in Game 4.
Now that the Brooklyn Nets have been swept for the second time in two years, what do they need to avoid the same fate for a third consecutive season? How do they build after moving on from the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving experiment? Well, a good start is having players like Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson, that’s for sure! It’s time to talk about the pieces they need around those two.
Ime Udoka’s name has been thrown around rumor mills for every single team that needed a head coach. Finally, two teams fired their coaches and then it became a contest of which one could hire him quicker. Reportedly, he didn’t want the Toronto job, so he ended up taking the Houston opening. Does he immediately make them a playoff contender, or is there still a long way to go for this squad?
Finally, we go over the other playoff series around the league and talk about the hottest topics. Dillon Brooks is regretting poking the bear, the Minnesota Timberwolves finally won a game, the Los Angeles Clippers are injured again, and more!
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:02:56 2023 NBA Playoffs observations 00:46:32 New York Knicks making the ECF 01:03:31 Joel Embiid sprains his LCL 01:16:58 Brooklyn Nets changes they need to make in the off-season 01:30:08 Ime Udoka heading to Houston 01:34:15 Outro
The NBA Playoffs and Play-In Games are in full swing, and fans across the world are excited to see their favorite teams compete for the championship. Two of the teams in the spotlight this year are the Atlanta Hawks and the Los Angeles Lakers. In this episode, we’ll take a look at the past and present of the Atlanta Hawks, recap the NBA Playoffs and Play-In Games, provide predictions for the postseason, and discuss some of the off-court drama involving NBA players.
I. Atlanta Hawks: Past and Present
The Atlanta Hawks franchise has a rich history that dates back to the 1940s, but they have yet to win an NBA championship. Despite this, the Hawks have made several playoff appearances in recent years, including this year’s Playoffs. The Hawks are led by Trae Young, who is widely regarded as one of the best young players in the league. Young has been instrumental in the Hawks’ success this season, averaging 25.3 points and 9.4 assists per game.
II. NBA Playoffs and Play-In Games: Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Lakers
The Play-In Games were introduced to the NBA this year, and they have already provided some thrilling matchups. In the Eastern Conference, the Atlanta Hawks faced off against the Miami Heat in a tense battle. The Hawks emerged victorious, thanks in part to Trae Young’s 25-point performance. The Hawks will now face the Boston Celtics in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Lakers have also had an eventful season, with several injuries and lineup changes. Despite this, the Lakers managed to secure the seventh seed in the Western Conference and earned a spot in the Playoffs. In their recent game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Lakers came out on top, with LeBron James leading the charge with 30 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists.
LeBron James has been a force to be reckoned with in the NBA Playoffs throughout his career, with four championships to his name. James has won a total of 172 playoff games, which is the most in NBA history. The Lakers will face the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the Playoffs, and fans are eagerly anticipating another dominant performance from James and the Lakers.
As for predictions, it’s anyone’s guess who will come out on top this year. The Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, and Milwaukee Bucks are all strong contenders, but the playoffs are known for producing unexpected upsets and breakout performances. One player to keep an eye on is Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies, who has been making waves with his electrifying play.
III. Off-Court Drama: Kyle Kuzma and Spencer Dinwiddie
In addition to the on-court action, there has been some drama brewing off the court involving NBA players Kyle Kuzma and Spencer Dinwiddie. The two players have been engaged in a feud on social media, with Dinwiddie calling out Kuzma for his lackluster performance on the court. It’s unclear what sparked the feud, but some speculate that it may have to do with Kuzma’s recent breakup with model Winnie Harlow.
IV. Coaching Changes in the NBA
This year has also seen several coaching changes in the NBA. The most high-profile of these changes was the firing of Nate McMillan from the Atlanta Hawks. Other coaches who were let go include Dwane Casey of the Detroit Pistons and Stephen Silas of the Houston Rockets.
There has been some discussion about whether there is discrimination among NBA coaches based on their race. In the 2020-21 season, only seven out of 30 NBA head coaches were Black. This has led to some criticism of the NBA and calls for more diversity and inclusion in coaching positions. Now, head coaches seem to be trending toward fewer white candidates as more and more coaches get their first shot with teams at all different points of competition level.
The NBA Playoffs and Play-In Games have provided fans with plenty of excitement and drama this year. The Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Lakers are both in the mix, with the Hawks looking to make a deep playoff run and the Lakers hoping to defend their championship title. Off the court, there have been some interesting developments, including the feud between Kyle Kuzma and Spencer Dinwiddie and the coaching changes across the league. Regardless of what happens, fans can look forward to a thrilling postseason full of surprises and standout performances.
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:06:44 Atlanta Hawks vs Miami Heat play-in game 00:29:49 Los Angeles Lakers vs Minnesota Timberwolves play-in game 00:42:28 Toronto Raptor vs Chicago Bulls Play-In game preview 00:49:43 Oklahoma City Thunder vs New Orleans Pelicans play-in game preview 00:50:18 Spencer Dinwiddie and Kyle Kuzma beef 01:07:14 Dwane Casey and Stephen Silas no longer head coaches 01:09:08 Are NBA coaches getting fired due to race? 01:28:14 Lakers or Hawks, who is more likely to pull off an upset 01:30:01 Remember this guy? 01:36:03 Outro
This week, on The Atlantic Files, Ja Morant is watching a lot of his money and opportunities disappear, the New York Knicks are hitting a hot stretch at the right time, the new CBA could use games played to qualify for major awards, Draymond Green and Dillon Brooks are in a big time beef, Kyrie Irving says gambling is taking away from basketball, and Fred VanVleet opens up the referee can of worms!
The hottest news and memes on the block are all related to Ja Morant. That’s not good news or memes either. Morant is now away from the team as he seeks counseling after losing a sponsorship or two due to more and more allegations coming out about fights, guns, and all sorts of things. He needs some help making decisions and navigating the world as a young man with tons of money.
Once again, on a hot streak, the New York Knicks are making people believe that they’re a dangerous team again. Knicks fans are revving up their engines to match the levels they were on when they ended up playing the Atlanta Hawks in the first round a couple of seasons ago. Can the world handle that?
There are rumors swirling around the new CBA that could entail a game played minimum for major awards like MVP in the future. This is something that a lot of people would love to see, but are there players and teams that are going to game the system and still get their guys rest days by playing them for a minute? This could be another sad attempt at getting people to stop with load management.
The beef of the ages is happening between Draymond Green and Dillon Brooks. Two people who aren’t very relevant this season when it comes to outstanding play and winning awards. They sure know how to keep their names in the news and everyone’s mind though!
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Kyrie Irving went on another rant. This time it was about how gambling and sports betting are ruining the sport of basketball and how he doesn’t feel free right now. Yikes.
Finally, Fred VanVleet has finally spoken up about some unfair officiating and other players around the league are starting to agree with him. Could this launch some sort of investigation? Probably not, but it makes everyone wonder.
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:03:24 Ja Morant’s off-court drama 00:26:24 Draymond Green vs Dillon Brooks beef 00:36:03 New CBA and games played minimum for awards 00:45:49 American White guys are not good at basketball 00:55:38 Kyrie Irving rants about gambling and basketball 01:04:58 New York Knicks are getting hot at the right time 01:09:55 Fred VanVleet vs the NBA Referees 01:17:58 Remember this guy? 01:20:56 Outro
On this week’s episode of The Atlantic Files, Kyrie Irving gets shipped off to the Dallas Mavericks while Spencer Dinwiddie comes back to Brooklyn, Pascal Siakam and Bones Hyland are rumored to be on the move amongst others, fights broke out between Donovan Mitchell and Dillon Brooks plus Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers, we make our own NBA All-Star picks and talk about the snubs, plus more!
The biggest news in the Atlantic Division right now is obviously Kyrie Irving demanding a trade and then getting shipped right out to the Dallas Mavericks. He and Markieff Morris are on the way to Texas while Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, multiple second-round picks, and a 2029 first-round pick are headed to Brooklyn. Dinwiddie may not want to get too comfortable as there are already rumors that the Nets could then flip him over to Toronto for Fred VanVleet.
Other players that are rumored to be on the trade block right now include Bones Hyland, Pascal Siakam, Cam Reddish, and Furkan Korkmaz, among others. Who is most likely to get shipped to another team and who would benefit their team more if they stayed and had some pieces around them?
In non-trade news, fights have been popping up across the league at what seems like a very high rate. Not only are they entertaining because fights rarely happen, but the one between Austin Rivers and Mo Bamba was just straight comedy. Dillon Brooks and Donovan Mitchell also got into a scuffle after Brooks took a cheap shot which didn’t surprise many people.
Finally, we talked about the 2023 NBA All-Star snubs as well as the players that were selected that probably didn’t deserve to be there. So, we picked our own All-Stars! Let us know which ones you think deserved to be in the All-Star game.
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:09:58 Kyrie Irving traded to Dallas for Spencer Dinwiddie 00:35:15 Bones Hyland, Pascal Siakam, and other rumored trades 00:46:46 Donovan Mitchell vs Dillon Brooks plus more NBA fights 01:06:13 2023 NBA All-Star snubs and we pick our own 01:30:07 Outro
On this week’s episode of The Atlantic Files, Rui Hachimura has been traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, Shannon Sharpe beefs with the whole Memphis Grizzlies team, Kyrie Irving tries to keep the Brooklyn Nets afloat, Dejounte Murray airs some grievances against the San Antonio Spurs, Stan Van Gundy makes some points about player health today, and the Atlantic is leading the East! That plus much more!
Rui Hachimura was shipped away from the Washington Wizards after he voiced his feelings about wanting to play more for a bag of peanuts. Kendrick Nunn and a few second-round picks were all it took to get the Lakers an upgrade at the forward spot. The big question will be whether or not he sees more playing time and actually improves from it.
In case you haven’t hear about it yet, Shannon Sharpe got into a yelling match with Dillon Brooks and the Memphis Grizzlies when he was sitting courtside at one of their games. He kept saying that Brooks didn’t want the smoke and by the way he acted, it sure seemed true. Sharpe is not the type of guy to mess around with.
Dejounte Murray went on the All The Smoke Podcast and talked about his time with the San Antonio Spurs and his relationships with Coach Popovich and Tony Parker. Some of it was a surprise, but the parts about Parker seemed to fit the narrative from players that have played with him before.
Then, Stan Van Gundy took to Twitter to ask about the current era’s health issue and why medicine hasn’t evolved enough to keep guys from getting hurt. He pointed out how there are many more small injuries holding guys out and how there are even some big ones that take people out for a whole season. Kevin Durant seemed to agree and we do too.
Finally, the Atlantic Division is leading in the Eastern Conference. Are they the true kings of the East? Kyrie Irving is trying to keep the Brooklyn Nets afloat with Durant sidelined and the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers just keep on rising to the top.
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:08:38 Shannon Sharpe fights with Dillon Brooks and the Grizzlies 00:22:33 Rui Hachimura traded to the Los Angeles Lakers 00:34:14 Dejounte Murray’s comments about the Spurs and Tony Parker 00:53:28 Stan Van Gundy’s comments about player health 01:05:07 Is the Atlantic Division King of the East? 01:24:32 Choose one: Fast food and desserts 01:28:24 outro
On this week’s episode of The Atlantic Files, the New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors are headed in separate directions as the Knicks are on a hot streak and the Raptors are sinking fast, Anthony Davis and Stephen Curry both get hurt while Joe Ingles is set to return, James Harden reveals a lot in his interview about why he left Brooklyn, would Mexico City be a good expansion city for the NBA, and more!
The Toronto Raptors were on a big losing skid before a 52-point game by Pascal Siakam finally allowed them to break it. As of right now, they’re barely hanging on to a play-in spot at the 10th seed. Is it time for this team to finally hit the panic button and look toward the trade market, or do they still have what it takes to make a deep playoff run?
On the opposite end of the spectrum, the New York Knicks are on a big win streak right now. They’ve shot all the way up to the sixth seed in the East. Their core guys are all contributing in big ways and Tom Thibodeau’s job looks secure for now. There’s always plenty of time for the Knicks to pull a Knicks-ish move before the season ends.
James Harden sat down for an interview to give some insight on why he decided to ask for a trade to get out of Brooklyn. He brought to light a lot of things that people were speculating about and a couple of surprising facts about the rest of the team. He ended everything by asking if he was still a quitter if the main superstar on the team also asked to get out of there.
There have been a few major injuries and some returns that have taken place recently. Anthony Davis, Stephen Curry, and Brandon Ingram have all either been out or are out now for an extended period of time. Joe Ingles is making his return to his new team after his torn ACL and Markelle Fultz has returned too. What type of impact do all of these things have?
Finally, Adam Silver talked about how Mexico City was putting in a lot of work to get an NBA expansion team in their city. Should Mexico City even be near the top of the list to get a team, or are they a few more American cities that need a team before they start looking internationally?
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:09:46 Time for the Toronto Raptors to hit the panic button? 00:27:47 Are the New York Knicks a playoff team? 00:44:06 NBA creating a Mexico City expansion team 00:53:50 Why James Harden really wanted out of Brooklyn 01:09:29 Major injuries and returns: Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, and Joe Ingles 01:14:33 Outro
On this week’s episode of The Atlantic Files Podcast, Scottie Barnes continues to have a rough sophomore season for the Toronto Raptors, James Harden struggles in his return from injury, Anthony Davis is dominating the league and staying healthy, Bradley Beal admits that no winning teams gave him an offer, Trae Young and Nate McMillan aren’t seeing eye-to-eye, and more!
Many basketball pundits and Twitter basketball “experts” have been commenting on Scottie Barnes’s lackluster season so far. He was expected to take a huge leap in his sophomore year but has struggled from time to time as he gets used to teams writing up game plans against him. He’s going to be just as fine as he has shown improvement in other areas of his game whether his scoring is down or not.
James Harden returned to the court with the Philadelphia 76ers after around a month of sitting out. Against his former team, the Houston Rockets, he certainly showed a lot of rust. He didn’t shoot well and turned the ball over in crucial moments during a double-overtime loss.
Anthony Davis caught a lot of flack from us on this podcast. His health was always in question and he was missing more games than he was playing. This season, however, he’s been playing through almost anything and he’s returned to a dominant force. Seeing him dominate again has been a great sight for the Los Angeles Lakers fans.
In a surprising quote, Bradley Beal admitted to not getting any offers from winning teams in the off-season. Usually, players of his status don’t admit something like that. There’s not much surprise to go with that statement though. Winning teams often don’t have the money to sign a star player to hundreds of millions of dollars.
Finally, there was some fighting between Trae Young and Nate McMillan. The two of them aren’t in agreement in terms of the ways that Young was treating the team and the coach. Some analysts have compared the situation to Zach Wilson with the New York Jets which is very alarming.
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:04:27 Scottie Barnes Sophomore Slump, concerned or not 00:16:16 James Harden returns and plays like crap, Philadelphia 76ers lose 00:37:54 Anthony Davis is out here dominating 00:47:29 Bradley Beal didn’t get any offers from winning teams 01:04:51 Trae Young and Nate McMillan have beef now 01:17:20 Mike calls into the show from the road 01:23:27 Outro
This week on the Atlantic Files podcast, Kyrie Irving was suspended after last week’s episode and then was given a list of initiatives to finish before he can even come back to the Brooklyn Nets, Jacque Vaughn gets upgraded from interim to head coach instead of Ime Udoka, James Harden and Pascal Siakam are both out for an extended time, and Kawhi Leonard has a cloudy path back to playing.
Some of the biggest non-basketball news has been unfolding before us and all of Brooklyn. After Kyrie Irving promoted a controversial video that had anti-semetic tropes, he was suspended from the Brooklyn Nets and now he has a laundry list of items to fulfill before he’s allowed back to the team. The NBPA is expected to appeal the suspension, but Irving has also been meeting with front-office members of the team as well as the NBA’s commissioner. This whole sideshow drags on as Nets fans have to watch their team try to finally live up to expectations.
In a smarter move from the Nets, they ended up not going with Ime Udoka as their next head coach. Former assistant coach, Jacque Vaughn, received the promotion to head coach for at least the rest of the season. Since he’s been there for the last five-to-six seasons, the players all know him and he can connect the pieces of the roster. His last tenure as a head coach in Orlando didn’t go too well though.
Kawhi Leonard continues to sit out more games than he plays since getting to Los Angeles. Now, he’s out indefinitely yet again while the recovery process doesn’t go as planned. What exactly is happening with all of this? Did something happen that caused a setback? Nobody seems to have any answers.
Finally, James Harden and Pascal Siakam both suffered injuries that are going to keep them out for an extended period of time. Can both of their teams stay afloat until they come back? Will this missed time set them back into a hole? We discuss this as well.
Timecodes: 00:00 Introduction 01:12 Kyrie Irving suspended, given list of things to do to be allowed back 17:32 Jacque Vaughn officially head coach of the Brooklyn Nets 28:56 What’s up with Kawhi Leonard? 35:56 Pascal Siakam and James Harden to miss some time 43:12 Outro
This week on The Atlantic Files, we have regular season basketball to talk about! With that being said, we dove into each Atlantic division team to see how they’re doing three-to-four games into the season. Then, we gave our biggest takeaways from the rest of the league so far into this first week or so.
First, we have to bring up the Philadelphia 76ers due to how much hype they were receiving coming into the season. So far, they’ve delivered the exact opposite of the expectations that were bestowed upon them. Joel Embiid has looked pretty awful, James Harden has actually looked phenomenal, and the rest of the team can’t play defense.
The Boston Celtics, on the other hand, are looking like the team that made the NBA Finals last season. Jayson Tatum is looking like an MVP candidate while the rest of the team is seemingly coming together with some great chemistry. Once their schedule ramps up, we’ll find out a lot about this team.
Then, we get to Brooklyn where the Nets are also underachieving just like the Sixers. Ben Simmons has fouled out twice already, Kyrie has already yelled at him to shoot the ball, and they also have only won one game so far.
Let’s look up to the north at the Toronto Raptors next. Their defense is looking as good as ever and Nick Nurse has them playing well together yet again. This team is going to make some big noise when it comes to playoff time.
Finally, even the New York Knicks are looking more scrappy and energetic than the Sixers and Nets. What world are we living in right now?!
Timecodes: 00:00 Intro 02:54 Sixers look like butt, James Harden has done well though 17:05 Jayson Tatum is looking like an MVP 23:23 Brooklyn Nets still figuring things out with Ben Simmons 31:33 Toronto Raptors are looking good to start the season 35:12 New York Knicks are getting somewhere! 47:11 Observations around the NBA 55:37 Thanks for watching!
This week on the Atlantic Files Podcast, we give our 2022-23 NBA season and award predictions, finish off our divisional preview series with none other than the Atlantic Division, Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole get extensions, Russell Westbrook is coming off of the bench, Ben Simmons admits that he and Joel Embiid aren’t friends, plus we debut our new fantasy basketball segment!
As we record this episode we are on the cusp of a new NBA season! We finally made it to the 2022-23 season and we couldn’t more excited! So, you know that that means, predictions and previews galore.
We finished our divisional preview series with the Atlantic Division and then gave all of our predictions for the new season. Awards, playoffs, the eventual winners, we’re giving our thoughts on everything.
In case you haven’t heard yet, Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole both got big-time paid! They inked extensions with the Golden State Warriors despite all of the drama surrounding Poole and Draymond Green. That should set up some very interesting drama with what the Warriors will end up doing with Green.
Then, the Russell Westbrook and Los Angeles Lakers saga continues! Westbrook is shunning the team huddle these days. On top of that, coach Darvin Ham has been experimenting with bringing Westbrook off the bench for the first time in his career. There’s no possible way this could end badly, right?
In an interview, Ben Simmons talked about how he and Joel Embiid were never really friends. Finally, it confirms something that everyone suspected based on body language and on-court chemistry. They don’t have to fake since they’re not teammates anymore.
Finally, we have our weekly ‘Whatchu Got’ segment as well as a new fantasy basketball segment! Hopefully, we can help some of you out there with your fantasy basketball leagues!
Timecodes: 00:00:00 Intro 00:13:17 2022-23 NBA Rookie of the Year predictions 00:26:09 2022-23 NBA Sixth Man of the Year predictions 00:34:34 2022-23 NBA Most Improved Player of the Year predictions 00:38:50 2022-23 NBA Coach of the Year predictions 00:43:55 2022-23 NBA MVP predictions 00:49:36 2022-23 NBA Champion predictions 00:58:06 2022-23 NBA Atlantic Division Preview 01:16:07 Ben Simmons admits he’s not friends with Joel Embiid 01:17:57 Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins sign extensions 01:22:25 Russell Westbrook not joining Lakers huddles 01:25:43 Who will rebuild better, Thunder vs Rockets vs Pacers 01:32:09 2022-23 fantasy basketball advice 01:40:32 Outro
