A Rocky Start

[00:00:00] The Blucifer Brothers are back. We have the nuggets, the Timberwolves, the Thunder. We're breaking down. Who we think is gonna get the one seed? Who gets the two? Who gets the three? It's confusing for a lot of people but we've got it going. Then we're gonna get into this depressing Rocky situation. Is this the worst team we've ever fielded in a litany of bad teams and what can change here for the Rockies? All that more. Dan, play that funky music.

[00:00:30] It is springtime officially Ryan. The grass is green, the Rockies are losing, the abs and nuggets are going to the playoffs. This is a beautiful thing brother. Today was the first day I wore long sleeves and I was hot when I went outside in the afternoon.

[00:00:54] It felt good out there. We got 70s tomorrow. It's a great time to be in Colorado. Great gearing up for playoffs stretches. How has this week treated you buddy?

[00:01:05] Yeah, I mean new complaints on my end. I don't think the Rockies have been terrible which we're gonna get into. So the start of spring is always sort of marred by the baseball season beginning.

[00:01:21] But yeah, other than that it's been an enjoyable week.

[00:01:25] Yeah, I mean at this point I would compare the Rockies to like a really bad...

[00:01:37] There's just having a bad date and being in a bad marriage and being in the Rockies is like a bad marriage but on some level it's predictable.

[00:01:47] Because you're like, oh well I mean they've never gotten me flowers. Why would I expect it today? You know? They've never been fun before. Why would I expect it today?

[00:01:59] And so there is some comfort in that. I find it hard at this point to get worked up. I'm seeing all these people being like, oh my god the Rockies suck. I'm like, oh yeah I know. That's true.

[00:02:13] Every year pretty much usually they... I feel like they kind of fool us. I mean they don't fool anyone who actually cares about the Rockies but they get off to like weirdly better starts.

[00:02:23] Remember last year when they were like projected to be like one of the worst teams of all time and then they got off to kind of an okay start.

[00:02:29] They're on the worst teams of all time. But this year it appears that their commitment to being shitty is gonna be pretty unparalleled.

[00:02:40] And I really appreciate that from them. It's great work from Tricky Dick there but before we get into them Ryan, I did want to get into the nuggets.

[00:02:52] They are as of right now. They're the one seed. Losses are the only one that matters. They cannot stay there. Now officially up in the lost column on the Thunder so they control their own destiny for the two seed.

[00:03:07] They do not control their own destiny for the one seed. I know it can get confusing when you see the half games. The nuggets have just played a game more than the Timberwolves by the end of the season.

[00:03:17] They will have the same and I guess they do control their own destiny because they play the Timberwolves again at home.

[00:03:24] So I want to get into that Ryan. Can I to start this conversation off? Can I first go through the nuggets schedule and you just give me rapid fire reaction, win loss.

[00:03:40] We'll kind of break down the nuggets. They're in a weird spot with this but I'll just let you break it down and then we'll see kind of and then I can give you the other teams schedules

[00:03:53] but let's start with our beloved nuggets first. All right, so tomorrow they are in LA for the Clippers. It just got released a few hours ago.

[00:04:03] Quiet Leonard is not expect it will be out. So obviously that is huge. The Clippers not tons to play for other than they've just been playing terrible and I can't remember if it was two weeks ago.

[00:04:19] Yeah, I think it was two weeks ago that Tyler called his team soft and it appeared to be like pretty frustrated with them.

[00:04:27] So it doesn't appear that Tyler is trying to take his foot off the gas and be like whatever we're a four or five seed.

[00:04:33] We're not going to get caught for the six. We're fine. We'll be okay. It does appear he's concerned but Kawaii's not going to play. What do you see there in LA tomorrow?

[00:04:44] I mean, if we didn't own the Clippers then I would be worried about this as a potential trap game. Just like getting sort of punked by a team that you shouldn't really walk in there now that they've announced Kawaii's out like you sort of go in there with the different feeling but I think we win this game.

[00:05:06] Perfect. Then we have Saturday at back at home, the Atlanta Hawks are coming to town. Of course they're without Tray Young. The Hawks are playing for stuff and weirdly since Tray Young went down.

[00:05:20] Dejante Murray has been a little bit better right? And he does feel like the kind of guard that can cook against the nuggets but you said win.

[00:05:28] I just don't think we're going to lose to the Hawks at home. So yeah, I think that's a win.

[00:05:36] Yep. I would agree with you thus far. I do think we're two and a half. Then we have the jazz on the road. What's a here?

[00:05:48] They're like pretty actively tanking so they're probably going to lose but they could be frisky. They're always sort of playing us while they always just love to fuck about and give us a game.

[00:06:05] So I actually could see us losing these next two games but I'm going to say we split them. So whatever you want to do there like we play the timber wolves for the next game for the listener.

[00:06:19] So I think we split those two games. I'm not positive which one of them we lose and which one of them we win but they are back to back too so we may rest somebody for one of these.

[00:06:31] I just think we're losing one of these games and we win one of them.

[00:06:35] Yeah, it's a classic here. We've got the three days rest into the back to back.

[00:06:44] The worst case scenario here is that we lose both of these.

[00:06:49] Yep, yep. That would be rocky. And then like you mentioned the timber wolves I kind of feel like and it's hard to break the timber wolves gave down without knowing where Jamal Murray is in that process.

[00:07:11] Because without Jamal Murray I do not think that we have anywhere near the firepower to compete with the timber wolves. I think we saw that in that game.

[00:07:21] I think that they're hard match up for us on a fully loaded nuggets team and then they are pretty actively, pretty actively better than us without Jamal Murray to keep people honest against Yoke kitchen that.

[00:07:39] So I that I'm giving them the loss there. I do think if we're still in the hunt for the one seed, I think if you're alone you rest Murray against the jazz so that he's available.

[00:07:56] You don't do the Joel and B thing and go drop 60 against the jazz and then sit out versus the good team that's actually important to your team.

[00:08:06] And then we've got the spurs on the road. What's a there?

[00:08:11] I mean the spurs at home was not the most fun I've ever added a game in terms of it being close so I'm not putting anything past one B.

[00:08:23] So the question is will Wembee be shut down at that point? Well, he he have a mysterious you know, oh, it's fathered him a little sort of a thing because I agree with you.

[00:08:35] Like the spurs already shut down Vassal and so on. So at this point, this is the part of the season where it's hard to project.

[00:08:44] They have a two game lead on the next Western conference team at the bottom. So I don't think they're going to be I think they just want him to play.

[00:08:53] So I think as long as he's remotely healthy, he's probably just going to play the rest of these games that I think he likes playing.

[00:08:59] So it seems to like playing with you. I don't yeah, I could see us losing this game but again, it kind of depends on how the games before this play out like if we lose to the jazz and then beat the Timberwolves, I could see us losing this game.

[00:09:18] If we beat the jazz lose to the Timberwolves, then I don't think we lose to the spurs of the road. So yeah, you're I don't think we lose this game if we beat the Timberwolves, I guess because to me at this point and we'll go through the Timberwolves, but I think that if we beat the Timberwolves, I think we will be in play for the one seat and I think Malone can get the guys up enough and kind of they got the scare last night.

[00:09:44] We're like, honestly, they probably should have lost that game down the stretch. There were some horrific mislapes with about a minute left for the spurs that would have given him a two point lead and changed kind of the game.

[00:09:58] And obviously Porter hits that big three. But and then nuggets Grizzlies, the nuggets are better than the Grizzlies that Grizzlies should not be playing anyone in this game. If it means something to the nuggets, then I think will win if it doesn't mean anything that I think this will be the Huff show and the Strother and you know all the all the

[00:10:27] all the bench guys for all the teams are going to come out. So I think so I think we had on their two losses officially you said like, hey, there could be a third in there just like sneaking or I'm sorry, we said one loss officially. Are you calling this birds a loss? Do you want to?

[00:10:51] I think there's two losses in these games.

[00:10:54] It feels like to and it doesn't feel like potentially we've been playing well enough to justify being like, oh they're going to close out on defeated or they're going to close out and win you know nine and

[00:11:12] oh or something like that. So so let's say down the stretch, the nuggets they have six games left. Let's say they go four and two. Okay, let's look at the thunder now the thunder. They play the

[00:11:28] Pacers and that's Friday. They're on the road again. The Pacers are team just because of their pace, but yeah, if she plays and Jalen plays it feels like they tanked this Celtics game so they could

[00:11:43] go beat the hell out of the Pacers and they knew that like, hey, we might lose the Celtics even at full strength, but a full strength will beat the Pacers and they feel very equipped to bother

[00:11:53] Halibur and all of the fast-paced actions the Pacers want to run. So I agree with you on that one. Now we've got them at the Hornets, that's probably win. It's a weird time. It's at 4 p.m. out here on a Sunday.

[00:12:12] So that's just a 1 p.m. or a 2 p.m. start in Charlotte. Yeah, yeah, yep. And that's a Sunday or that's a 6 p.m. There because this will be not because I see this is not.

[00:12:27] Oh, yeah, yeah. So it's still a little bit early. I feel like for the Thunder's clock because you got to remember then we've got things at Thunder. I'm assuming they're going to be on the East Coast this whole time.

[00:12:42] Yeah, yeah, they've been out there a little bit. I suppose. Yeah, they lost the 76ers Celtics. God, they should have lost them next to. But that's another story. Anyway, the Kings are at home for the Kings. What are you giving there?

[00:13:01] I think they're winning that game if it matters. Yep, they get the spurs at home. Another win if it matters. Yep. The bucks at home. I don't see how this matters for the bucks. No way. It's not so win.

[00:13:20] Yep. And then the Mavericks at the Thunder, there is a world in which this is the difference between home court or not.

[00:13:33] There is a chance that that bucks matters by the way. If the calves are still sort of close to them, I don't really trust the calves to make that a thing. But if they really care about that two versus three.

[00:13:47] But I think they have won loss.

[00:13:58] Okay, here's my question in this. If you were the bucks, wouldn't you throw that if you think that the

[00:14:11] if there's any way that the that you're going to get the 76ers because the 76ers are going to play the either the heat or the paicers.

[00:14:23] And there so if you think there's a way that you can get the heat or the paicers, wouldn't you rather do that then in bead?

[00:14:31] I mean, yeah. But yeah. I mean the heat aren't fun as a six don't get there's still just there's four games before we get there. I just think it's like.

[00:14:43] Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's hard. It's hard. Things that could happen.

[00:14:47] Yep. And then as far as the West, the Mavs are two back of the clippers so they could definitely be there and they're tied with the pelicans.

[00:14:57] So I don't think the Mavs want to see the thunder. I think that's a bad matchup for them. I think Lou doer Jalen Williams can at least give them problems. And I think that they

[00:15:08] Mavs are also not equipped to take advantage of the thunder size, you know, like problems that they have rebounding and all that.

[00:15:17] So I think that's a good matchup for them. But yeah, so you think we've got one on there.

[00:15:25] So in your world if the nuggets lose two, the thunder lose one then the thunder will be in fact the two seed there or be ahead of the nuggets and then Timberwolves quick.

[00:15:39] Timberwolves play the sons on Friday on the road. That should matter.

[00:15:45] Then they are at the Lakers on Sunday. What do you think about those two games? Timberwolves sons, Timberwolves Lakers both on the road.

[00:15:59] They'll split them. I couldn't tell you which one they'll win and which one they'll lose but I think they split those two.

[00:16:06] Hey, the sons are quietly looking a little bit scary. I want a sidebar that I've been kind of impressed with the sons. They've come into Denver twice now.

[00:16:16] Obviously no more eight but it feels like they figured out the like hey, Booker instead of just cashing 19 footers can you cash threes?

[00:16:27] They just don't have cashing mid-age. They have no bench. They have no point guard. I give what you mean and they've looked better but I just don't think that in a playoff series, they have enough depth or stability or health to really like.

[00:16:47] I don't, I wouldn't love to see them as the nuggets but I just because they really own or maybe the only team that offensively if all three of those guys are scoring can like truly keep up with what.

[00:17:04] With what the nuggets offensively can do like down the stretch especially.

[00:17:11] Yeah, NBA fans would be should be rooting for a son's nuggets first round matchup. The fan bases don't like each other the players have a history and then also every game would be insanely entertaining like they it'd be played in the 120's but I do think if you're a top team, the sons are the team you want to avoid.

[00:17:31] There's a chance there are a game back of the pelicans because the West is insane. So they're tied with the kings currently and lose that type of record so they're an eight but they could get up to six or fifth pretty easily.

[00:17:48] Well, not playing spot as like it's important so.

[00:17:53] Yep, because right now the play in teams are king sons, Lakers warriors and if I'm a nuggets fan, the sons is the one you don't want to play.

[00:18:02] That's the hardest first round matchup every other first round matchup I'm taking the nuggets pretty, pretty handily and pretty confidently.

[00:18:10] I'm still taking the nuggets against sons to be clear but I am going to poop my pants multiple times and not enjoy Twitter after some losses because those sons fans are chirpy.

[00:18:23] And I think that series goes six or seven.

[00:18:28] The then the Tim rolls have the stupid back to back that the nuggets have they play Tuesday versus the wizards who somehow beat the box.

[00:18:39] That's funny but the wizards suck they're going to win that game right and then the nuggets I think they're going to beat the nuggets.

[00:18:50] It's interesting that they were on a back to back to it's so dumb.

[00:18:56] Like literally this should be able to be flexed by the league like the league should be able to be like hey Monday night.

[00:19:05] Sorry guys, you're playing Monday wizards all them I get it you can't do it but like this is this could be the most important this could be for the one seed and we're going to have players out of back to back stupid.

[00:19:20] Wizards and jazz do the right thing for fit to game you guys want to lose anyway they are just but I'm saying don't put any miles just pull like a Hoosiers thing where the ref was like hey don't you want to sub in a guy.

[00:19:41] He's like looks good to me out there and he didn't somebody but he ended up played with four I think you just do that but you just get all of yourselves ejected.

[00:19:50] You just do the Kelly Ubrei walk up to the ref and just European European European and say hey toss me out of here let's no one wants to see us play.

[00:20:04] And then they close out at home versus the suns which is a Timberwolves have the crappiest game I guess the Mavs game if the Suns game matters the Mavs game probably matters so both of those suck.

[00:20:23] But compared to the nuggets but what if you said they split do you think there's a right now we have them with one loss I think we give a second here yeah.

[00:20:38] So Timberwolves so in our scenario Timberwolves have two nuggets have to thunder have one and I believe correct me if I'm wrong I believe that would give Timberwolves the one thunder the two and nuggets the three.

[00:20:52] I think I would give thunder the one Timberwolves the two and I'm pretty sure the wolves the wolves that would come down to Western conference record and that's why the Timberwolves beating the nuggets was important it clinched the tiebreaker for them due to Western concert and give him a game of leg up the head to head.

[00:21:15] Oh you're right head head would be first there and OKC is a bad match up for Timberwolves I feel like they have smoked amounts on this year.

[00:21:24] You are correct I think what I saw was the was the thunt the nuggets tiebreaker potential was dead with that Timberwolves loss yeah that I believe so my apologies.

[00:21:40] But regardless in our scenario the nuggets are third yeah.

[00:21:47] In any any way shape or form obviously we hope that this team is the one but really to me it is get Murray right but then keep him healthy like let him have a good game I don't care who it's against and let him get some game speed stuff going but then keep the minutes down keep it up.

[00:22:09] Everyone healthy and we're good to go there I think is the move yeah yeah I mean I don't think you have to I don't think you have to sacrifice health at this point like you're guaranteed one of these top three and honestly the West is good like the makers of warriors are going to be applying for a spot and to play the seven or eight.

[00:22:39] I don't think it's the right way to get into the playoffs like the West is just good so I don't think it's it's crazy there yeah the the Lakers won today but they're still a game back of the eight so right now it be Lakers versus Warriors for a chance at the eight seed.

[00:23:07] And you know depending on how you feel about the Kings I feel worse about them now that there's no Malik Monk so I think one of those teams is getting in over the Kings I think the Kings would be the odd man out in that scenario but you never know we will see that's for sure and it would be a revenge spot for the Kings it that is the Warriors which would be a cool cool thing to see because I do think deer and Fox gives.

[00:23:37] The maximum amount of F's is that's how many deer and Fox gives and you cannot tell me he was not this.

[00:23:46] Subbonus also I think Dremont kind of did Dremont stuff in that series and gotten his head a little bit.

[00:23:55] It's always weird to say that because it's like oh yeah Dremont stomped on him like yeah that would that would get anyone's head.

[00:24:01] I do think that would bother people but they thousand insane series between the Kings and Warriors last year so I'd be down to watch that for a chance to get into the playoffs I think that'd be fun yeah the mountains are all gonna be pretty interesting I think yeah yeah.

[00:24:19] Going into that if I last thing and I know there's like you said there's so much to be determined at this point but if I told you you could play the Mavericks you could play the Mavericks Pelicans Kings sons.

[00:24:47] Or Lakers Warriors who's your number one choice there if you are the nuggets Kings Kings is my number one as well then I think I go that I think I go Warriors.

[00:25:05] Yeah the Warriors might be first so yeah and then I think I don't know man yo it's just eight subbonus up the last time they played and subbonus had a little bit in the playoffs I mean I think they could have moved on if subbonus didn't have a little

[00:25:25] Jared Allen quote like yeah the lights were brighter than I thought out there it's like you added plaster a little tougher out there buddy because he did not look like the player that he was in the regular season and I think if he does I mean they were not guarding him 15 feet from the basket

[00:25:43] like there's just like oh yeah that's fine we'll just let you shoot jumpers and he was clanking him so that was that was interesting to see and then like I said I think the sons are the team you want to see the least and then the second for me would be the Pelicans depending on where Ingram is if it's just Zion I'm fine he is going to do that would be like a first round series like Anthony Edwards where you come out of it and you're just gonna be like yeah that guy was

[00:26:13] unbelievable he did not have the sporting cast with him but God did he give us the business so I think there's there's something to that that could be tough but if they have Ingram and Zion then I think they can do they have some like to bother the nuggets in Ingram just loves playing the nuggets so yeah that would be that be a team I'd like to avoid if possible yeah

[00:26:41] I think the last thing I wanted to do on the nuggets before and this is I guess a good transition to the Rockies because it's a little bit sad.

[00:26:50] I don't know about you the form has been you know record wise they're okay but they pretty much laid neck against the Tim Rawls

[00:27:01] They didn't give enough effort to really be in the game the Suns game they got out worked and then the Spurs

[00:27:10] I think because they won a lot of the talk was like oh my God when be unbelievable Yokech unbelievable

[00:27:17] There's no way that that should have been a game

[00:27:21] Like in the fourth quarter before Yokech came in that no point gar lineup had the lead to 11

[00:27:27] You put the Spurs away there

[00:27:30] If you're in form and this becomes a 20 point laugher

[00:27:34] But it does feel like

[00:27:36] And I don't know why I don't know if they just like made their push and now they're kind of coasting

[00:27:43] And they're just kind of ready for the playoffs like we saw last year but to me

[00:27:50] I'd love to have home court throughout the Western Conference

[00:27:53] We saw it last year teams did not enjoy coming here

[00:27:57] And the only game we lost was because we forgot to try against the heat like

[00:28:05] It

[00:28:07] It's pretty hard to play here and if you can have four home games here, I think it puts

[00:28:13] Undo pressure on other teams. So what have you thought of the form?

[00:28:18] Of the nuggets so far and

[00:28:21] I guess two part question and then I'll hang up and listen off air

[00:28:27] But do you

[00:28:30] Do you think Reggie Jackson is in the playoff rotation because there's been a lot of Christian Braun point or no

[00:28:37] I'm Keon and Braun

[00:28:39] Christian Braun

[00:28:41] at point guard and

[00:28:44] I don't know that I hate it and Reggie Jackson has been

[00:28:49] pretty aggressively bad

[00:28:52] On defense and I don't know what you're doing with shorter rotations. I don't know what he gives you

[00:28:58] I mean the nuggets so to the first point about the form

[00:29:02] The nuggets are 11 and 3 in the last 14 games

[00:29:06] So it's like yes, I understand like the form is not excellent

[00:29:12] And I wish they looked better

[00:29:15] But I wish they looked better last year too. We also had the one seed sewn up

[00:29:19] Which makes it feel different, but I don't know that they care that much

[00:29:23] I mean all like yeah, they want the one seed

[00:29:26] I think you're right. It's like a pretty big advantage in the playoffs especially with

[00:29:31] The home court and the altitude and all that jazz but at the end of the day

[00:29:37] If we play Jamal Murray

[00:29:41] For these last three games

[00:29:44] I think we win

[00:29:47] More handling especially

[00:29:50] So assuming that isn't gonna be like a long-term thing which I don't get the impression that it really is

[00:29:55] It's more of just like

[00:29:58] Yeah, this is like kind of sucks

[00:30:01] But there's also

[00:30:04] If it was the playoffs. I don't think we'd be in this situation

[00:30:08] so

[00:30:11] I think I'm not super worried. I'm trying not to be I wish I was a little bit

[00:30:20] I don't know more

[00:30:23] I guess I was talking myself into it on a walk yesterday

[00:30:27] I think where I was just trying to tell myself like

[00:30:31] You were so good about not freaking out about the little things throughout the season

[00:30:36] Like there's really no reason to freak out now

[00:30:39] Like we know a couple things to be true

[00:30:42] We know Nicole Yochich is the best player in the world

[00:30:46] That's pretty comforting when he's on your side

[00:30:50] We know that the supporting cast has actually been playing like the starting supporting cast has been playing better

[00:30:57] I think this year than they have been last year and down the stretch

[00:31:01] I couldn't I think that's definitely been true

[00:31:05] I mean Aaron Gordon's been hitting three is like

[00:31:08] MPJ has been absolutely like

[00:31:12] unconscious

[00:31:13] Like that guy has been playing out of his fucking mind

[00:31:16] So he also interviewed a porn star on his podcast. I don't I haven't listened to it yet

[00:31:22] But I'm excited about that former porn star

[00:31:28] so yeah, I

[00:31:30] think

[00:31:32] Yes, I'm a little like yes. I wish we looked better but at the end of the day

[00:31:36] We do have to remember that I mean

[00:31:39] you know

[00:31:40] We have one of the best

[00:31:43] What we're in the top 10 and defensive rate on and off and subrating like all of the things all the boxes are getting checked on the way to like

[00:31:52] being an elite playoff team

[00:31:54] so

[00:31:55] That is the goal at the end of the day and to be honest

[00:31:58] I'm not that scared of the Timberwolves or the thunder like I wish we had home court

[00:32:03] But if if it came to a case where we're playing one of them in the Western Conference and we didn't have home court

[00:32:10] I don't care

[00:32:11] Like I wish we had it but at the end of the day like I'm not scared of them neither so I

[00:32:17] think it's

[00:32:20] It'll be an interesting last six games here because it will I think tell us a lot about

[00:32:27] both

[00:32:29] Maybe the character of some of these guys who are about to get run that maybe I haven't typically been getting run

[00:32:35] Which I think we've seen in the last couple of games even with the deeper rotations

[00:32:41] And I guess to address the Reggie Reggie point. Yeah, he's definitely getting minutes

[00:32:47] He debt free for sure is

[00:32:49] It's I

[00:32:52] Think that

[00:32:53] Malone is getting to a point where he is trusting those bench guys more and more outside of Reggie and I mean

[00:33:01] the amount of run that like

[00:33:04] Somebody like holiday who I've sort of been talking up this whole time has been getting in the last couple weeks has been notable

[00:33:11] Because I think at the end of the day Malone knows that those guys are gonna do the right thing and make the right play and that is super valuable

[00:33:19] So if somebody's gonna get their minutes eaten I think it might be

[00:33:25] On that front as opposed to like Christian

[00:33:28] I mean the nice part about having Yokech is that he can run the point guard when you don't want to play one

[00:33:35] so it's not like you have to

[00:33:38] Christian can be technically your point guard and really it's like

[00:33:43] Nicole was bringing the ball up the floor. So

[00:33:49] Yeah, I I have to say I think you're right in that that is what Malone will do

[00:33:54] He's shown pretty consistently that he's pretty loyal through his typical rotations in the playoffs

[00:34:00] Now if Reggie has a string of bad games Malone has also shown that while he'll give you a chance

[00:34:07] He won't

[00:34:09] hesitate to once he goes away

[00:34:12] It's pretty quick and it's like yeah, you're you're not gonna play man like you just don't play anymore

[00:34:18] and

[00:34:20] To your point, I do think the Justin holiday is invaluable and

[00:34:24] The other thing that I think a lot of times through the grind of the season

[00:34:29] gets overlooked is

[00:34:34] The nuggets peaks and really all great teams right who are championship level contenders

[00:34:41] The peaks that they will hit over the course of an 82 games season

[00:34:47] are insane and so when you compare

[00:34:51] The nuggets in those two Celtic games

[00:34:55] versus the nuggets in the spurs game

[00:34:59] The gap of that is always gonna be wider than maybe a team like the wizards who you're like

[00:35:06] Yeah, you pretty consistently suck. So there's some games where you aggressively suck and some games where you normal suck

[00:35:14] But that's a smaller window then like

[00:35:17] Holy crap. What did we just watch?

[00:35:19] That was the most insane game of basketball I've ever seen

[00:35:22] Like those Celtics games were beautiful beautiful basketball on both ends and same thing for the Celtics right like they've blown when they below that

[00:35:31] Hawks game

[00:35:32] It's a bigger deal to people because they watched them beat the hell out of teams or play that nuggets game

[00:35:37] And it's like how is that the same team and so sometimes you have to

[00:35:41] Be like hey the reason we're freaking out is because of the peaks and because of the where that is but

[00:35:48] The this team has shown that they can sustain

[00:35:53] That kind of peak effort

[00:35:55] Over the course of a series. That's not said they won't have minute stretches where they play stupid or play lazy or do whatever

[00:36:01] They will and we saw that even in the NBA finals you and I were joking about it in the clinching game at halftime

[00:36:07] Because you had all this new money coming into section 372 and they were all like wait

[00:36:14] I thought we were gonna beat the hell out of them

[00:36:15] And it's like yeah if we tried the whole game we probably would but this is

[00:36:19] The team knows that they should beat them and knows that they're better so

[00:36:23] There this is the nuggets man. They mess around and that's kind of the thing

[00:36:28] They usually end up winning in the end and end up out executing but

[00:36:32] You don't you don't get tons of 30 point laughers

[00:36:36] Not as many as the Celtics have you know and that's just not the DNA of this team for better or worse

[00:36:42] So I agree with your points, but I will say

[00:36:46] If I was alone I would be

[00:36:49] seriously

[00:36:50] looking at

[00:36:52] The the Reggie Jackson minutes

[00:36:55] I'm just not sure what he provides because you're not gonna play a DJ

[00:36:58] You're not gonna play a Zeknaji

[00:37:00] So you have enough offense out there almost all the time like you're gonna have Murray or Yokech on the court all the time

[00:37:08] and

[00:37:09] What does Reggie give me off ball?

[00:37:12] Like you know like he's not like a stand stand still

[00:37:16] Three-point shooter. He can make that but that's not you know, he's not knocked down in PJ or he's not even

[00:37:22] Like a role player like Tobias Harris or someone who that they're used to playing that role of I stand in the corner

[00:37:28] I stand in the wing and I knocked that down whereas it appears to me just in holiday

[00:37:34] To his credit by the way has realized that's the role he's gonna have and looks very comfortable in that role of

[00:37:41] I'm not taking dribbles. I'm not taking anything if I'm open

[00:37:44] I am shooting if I'm not I'm moving the ball quickly and I won't do dumb things on defense like you said

[00:37:50] He is defensive stuff be the cause of a rage time out

[00:37:54] His defensive stuff he's gotten into a rhythm and he's just versatile like that is his biggest strength is that you can play him basically one through three

[00:38:05] And he's pretty comfortable some fours even like especially the smaller teams like he's not gonna get bullied

[00:38:12] He's he's a skinny dude, but he just knows how to play defense and

[00:38:17] Yeah, I think he's gonna have some spot minutes

[00:38:20] But the point is like when we need offense when that second unit stalls out even when you kitchen Murray are out there with them

[00:38:28] That is when you'd need Reggie Jackson because he scored 30 points in big playoff games on those clippers teams

[00:38:34] Like he just has that DNA in him and that is why you play him in playoff series

[00:38:39] So I think he's gonna have the trust to get that run and

[00:38:43] It might not always be pretty in this least will the leash will probably be shorter

[00:38:49] But I think he's still gonna have that spot

[00:38:54] All right, we wanted to talk about our

[00:39:02] Our call right Iraqis they lost a game to the Cubs they came storming back

[00:39:07] It was eight to three they scored five runs in the seventh

[00:39:13] Or I'm sorry in the eighth and then yeah top of the eighth and then gave up on

[00:39:19] Just a terrible catching play the game what ended up being the game when he run

[00:39:25] 90 this team has been really really aggressively bad

[00:39:30] And my question is I feel like

[00:39:34] Locally, I've seen more discourse about how aggressively bad they are

[00:39:40] I think there are three credible theories for why this could be

[00:39:45] the first is

[00:39:49] The or why fans are more in the discourse about how bad this started is the first is

[00:39:58] our

[00:39:59] Players that people probably know their names or who have accomplished something are now very old and

[00:40:05] Are no longer the reason you should be excited because like you get excited about old players when you're in contention

[00:40:11] Right like oh this guy knows what it takes to get there like

[00:40:15] If you're the rockets

[00:40:17] You're not excited about Jeff Green the way that the nuggets were because

[00:40:22] You're not going to need Jeff Green to show up at playoff series like he did last year

[00:40:27] for you as an ice fan

[00:40:30] The second thing is the the second credible theory is like attrition like

[00:40:37] To go back to the relationship analogy like the first time someone is you know, maybe a jerk or they miss a date

[00:40:44] Or they don't remember something or don't do it

[00:40:47] It's pretty easy to be like hey to air is to be human. It's okay

[00:40:51] boom-boom-boom but then after you know a month of

[00:40:56] Bad partner behavior then you're gonna be like hey dude

[00:41:00] Come on like hey, what are we doing right?

[00:41:04] And for those wondering that is what I call my wife dude

[00:41:09] I when I'm when I need her to pick it up. I really just say hey a friend

[00:41:16] Hey, homie hey buddy and that really is the key to a lasting marriage

[00:41:21] Not really don't call your partner dude, but

[00:41:25] So I think there is something of like just being fed up

[00:41:30] About the attrition of badness

[00:41:33] I think that that world series run maybe brought bought the nuggets a little bit more time and then the third one is

[00:41:41] The apps in the nuggets are gonna compete for championships

[00:41:44] so I feel like both the Broncos and Rockies are

[00:41:48] Kind of the third dragon with their tongue out

[00:41:52] As far as you know that meme goes and so when you have like oh my gosh, okay

[00:41:59] Are the apps gonna make a Stanley Cup run like oh my gosh?

[00:42:02] The nugget's gonna go back to back. Oh my gosh. Yo, it's third MVP in four years

[00:42:07] Oh McKinnon is he the MVP. Let's go

[00:42:10] Is you know do we have the greatest defenseman in McCart is Jamal Murray more important nugget than

[00:42:18] Carmelo all of these kind of conversations

[00:42:22] That are fun to have fun sports conversations and then you're just like well

[00:42:28] Like before in researching this podcast I

[00:42:32] Have already started looking at the mock drafts for who we're gonna take for the Rockies

[00:42:37] To see if I can be excited about any one in 2025 because the 2024 one is already done. It's very weird

[00:42:43] They have they like do the draft during the season

[00:42:46] but

[00:42:47] But

[00:42:49] Like it is weird, you know to do that so my question to you is of those three theories that I've presented to you

[00:42:57] Which one do you think

[00:43:00] Is most attributable to the fact that

[00:43:03] It kind of feels like we're reaching a critical mass with this dick monfort

[00:43:11] regime and

[00:43:13] While there has been noise in past years it feels like this year

[00:43:17] It's just like this is aggressively incompetent and everyone is kind of pissed and it's not just like a

[00:43:24] Whatever, it's it's a fun place to go. Yeah, I mean I think

[00:43:29] When the secondary sports get raised right and like the Bronco suck

[00:43:35] People start looking other places for that entertainment and

[00:43:40] The Broncos have been bad for basically the same amount of years as the Rockies have been bad

[00:43:47] and I think

[00:43:49] Nobody's really excited about that

[00:43:52] But it does probably go to your first theory of just like this is now time like you can't be this bad for this long

[00:44:00] like

[00:44:01] I was reading a quote earlier that was talking dick monfort gave some quote that Chris Bryant was gonna be the reason that we

[00:44:10] Chase down that ever elusive world series and

[00:44:13] You you just can't be a sentient human being and think that that's a thing to say out loud

[00:44:20] Like that is some of the stupidest shit. You could put like we didn't have a roster

[00:44:25] When we got him

[00:44:27] There was consistently making the playoffs like there's no reason for any of that to be in your head

[00:44:36] And I think

[00:44:38] You know if I'm really gonna get on my soapbox here and I truly hate the monfort ownership more than I

[00:44:47] To me it's not that they're just incompetent like incompetency is all over ownership in sports

[00:44:54] Like that we could name 10 owners and every league that are just genuinely incompetent

[00:45:00] Maddish be a look at you maddish be a slash Isaiah Thomas, but there's

[00:45:06] There's Michael Jordan

[00:45:10] He's not known or anymore, but he was terrible at doing it

[00:45:14] So I think great Ryan now he's gonna take this personally. I hope he does

[00:45:22] I think

[00:45:25] I'm just that

[00:45:28] The incompetency goes so deep that it's they don't even know

[00:45:34] necessarily that what they're doing is stupid they

[00:45:38] think and they're spending money

[00:45:42] Like they have a competent roster and they have never proven the ability to do that

[00:45:48] They've literally only proven to be decent real estate developers and

[00:45:56] Like meat packing or whatever they got their money from originally like they're not

[00:46:02] Compton baseball people and they they are doing the worst possible job

[00:46:08] It's like Mark Cuban who came into the NBA and shook things up and was like I'm gonna do things differently

[00:46:14] And they've just come in and essentially

[00:46:18] stayed the exact same done nothing different and

[00:46:24] Then like sort of taking a piss on the fans back and told them it's raining like oh, it's just around the corner

[00:46:30] It's just around the corner just around the corner. It's like what corner? What what why am I following you around this corner when I know that

[00:46:39] There's another hundred Ls on the other side of it like I don't want to do that anymore

[00:46:47] so

[00:46:48] it's

[00:46:51] It is in any other

[00:46:54] Business in any other

[00:46:56] Scenario the person running the franchise would have been fired

[00:47:02] You don't get to be bad at your job for this long and this important and

[00:47:10] Money-making of an operation and get away with it except if you own a sports franchise

[00:47:16] You can just be wildly incompetent over and over and over and over again

[00:47:20] And nobody can really do anything about it and nobody cares necessarily other than the fans who get screwed out of

[00:47:26] Watching good baseball which you know, we've never really seen in Rockies history

[00:47:33] We've we've had teams that have gotten hot

[00:47:37] But I don't think those teams. I don't think we've ever had like a stretch of five years where it's been like wow

[00:47:43] This is really gonna be awesome to watch

[00:47:45] I mean there was the Blake Street bombers, but like they weren't necessarily winning a lot of games. They were just awesome and fun

[00:47:53] Yeah, I mean

[00:47:54] I do think that the collection of talent on that world series team was like it was a class

[00:47:59] It was almost like to make a cross-port comparison

[00:48:02] It was almost like a like the young okay C teams that teams have had like that you had some veterans in there

[00:48:09] Obviously Todd Hilton the iconic photo

[00:48:12] That is the greatest photo in the franchise's history of him with the ball and on first place, but like

[00:48:20] a ball though

[00:48:22] Granted to your point of it being kind of a flash in the pan one he went to another team, but two

[00:48:27] That guy was electric that year and then Francis was electric

[00:48:33] And they just kind of got a lot of contributions. So I do think they're pretty good that year

[00:48:38] Um

[00:48:40] Follow a question is this the worst team we've ever fielded

[00:48:45] And and like you said there have been some low lows

[00:48:50] Are people overreacting early in the season and we're gonna look back and we're gonna go

[00:48:54] This was a run of the mill terrible rocky season or

[00:49:00] Is this the worst

[00:49:03] Worst team we've ever seen

[00:49:05] Uh in our lifetimes

[00:49:08] I don't I well, I think this team I think we'll lose the most games in

[00:49:15] Rockies franchise history

[00:49:17] But I don't

[00:49:19] Necessarily know if that means they're the worst team

[00:49:24] They're just the division is awesome like they're we're gonna get our asses kicked like

[00:49:30] 60 times a year

[00:49:32] Just baseline like and I'm talking dropped

[00:49:36] Like truly bent over and show Heydotani

[00:49:41] Uh and

[00:49:43] Listen, it's I think they're gonna be some brutal brutal losses

[00:49:48] But I don't know enough about like the talent of some of those other

[00:49:53] Things to really give you like an idea of is if this is the worst talent team

[00:49:58] But yes, I think this team will lose the most games in Rockies franchise history

[00:50:04] I tend to agree um

[00:50:06] I think that the pitching is bad the hitting is bad the fielding is bad

[00:50:09] And you used to be able to count on having some exciting hitters and we used to have like no one or

[00:50:15] Tulo are those guys were like

[00:50:17] At least you could see someone do some unbelievable fielding

[00:50:21] Instead of the three stuages that we have out in our outfield right now who just let the ball go between their legs

[00:50:28] And like honestly when I saw that clip against the cubs of him just letting the ball go between his legs

[00:50:33] I was like, you know what? Honestly for the Rockies. That was pretty good

[00:50:37] He didn't run into the wall head first and hurt himself like I thought that's where the clip was headed um

[00:50:43] And so it's not

[00:50:46] Um

[00:50:47] You know that

[00:50:50] There's nothing really for this team to like be excited about

[00:50:54] um and

[00:50:56] Because we

[00:50:58] Normally this would be the part where as a baseball fan you go well

[00:51:02] But because they traded away Nolin Air Nato

[00:51:04] Maybe it's a year or two away

[00:51:06] But they have all these farm prospects uh, we have all these things

[00:51:11] Nope

[00:51:12] Not the case uh, we instead just paid them money and didn't get a lot of stuff

[00:51:16] Back for them that is useful in any way shape or form

[00:51:20] So it's not even like I can be like oh okay. There's just got a triple A that's gonna come up in a year or two

[00:51:26] Like we knew when Todd Hilton came up on this team

[00:51:30] We were like oh this guy supposed to be really good. You knew when Tulo came up

[00:51:34] Ah, this guy's supposed to be really good. This is fun to watch Tulo

[00:51:38] At short stuff. This is fun to watch these guys at bat um

[00:51:42] You know you could go walk around the stadium the rest of the time

[00:51:45] But you wanted to see Tulo you wanted to see Hilton you wanted to see Matt holiday um

[00:51:51] And that is

[00:51:54] Whoo not the case anymore

[00:51:56] so

[00:51:58] To me it's i agree with you will probably have the most losses, but also this just feels the most depressing

[00:52:04] Insofar as there's not like

[00:52:06] Like if I'm a spurs fan to make that like unlike okay

[00:52:09] We have lost a ton of games

[00:52:11] But I get to watch wembee every night and that's awesome

[00:52:15] And that's a pretty fun process honestly like having been through it with yokich and mary where you're like

[00:52:21] Oh my gosh like our team isn't there yet, but these guys have something and there is

[00:52:27] Electric nights with these guys where you're like okay, dude even if we lose this was an awesome

[00:52:33] entertainment experience

[00:52:36] To your point and it doesn't feel like there's any entertainment value here

[00:52:40] This feels like

[00:52:45] Film that came out and I can't think of the last one that did this

[00:52:49] um, but like a film that was trying to be an Oscar film

[00:52:52] Which is like the world series comments from dick

[00:52:56] And there's no worse movie experience that a film that's trying to be really deep and good and really sucks

[00:53:02] You can watch a crappy romance a crappy action movie if it knows it's a b movie

[00:53:08] But when a movie is like oh this is an a plus film you got to really lock in for this one

[00:53:14] And you're like oh

[00:53:17] I

[00:53:18] Pearl Harbor

[00:53:19] Glee like is this those are terrible viewing experiences, right?

[00:53:24] I understand I'm dating myself a little bit that those are the first two I could come up with but

[00:53:29] That's all I got so

[00:53:31] yeah

[00:53:33] I think that's that's all we have this week. We want to give the people a rundown we are gonna be doing

[00:53:39] Obviously if the Broncos make a trade or something like that

[00:53:43] We'll we'll break that down for you here. We have the draft coming on the 27th

[00:53:49] and

[00:53:50] Diggs and it feels like there's a lot of movement in the NFL and that's

[00:53:55] A cool thing

[00:53:57] on offseason

[00:53:59] Huh who do you want them to take? I mean, I want them to get

[00:54:06] I want them to trade up and I want a quarterback

[00:54:09] Okay

[00:54:13] at

[00:54:14] So I need to know that I can get May or Daniels. I do not want JJ McCarthy

[00:54:21] I will talk myself into May or to Daniels

[00:54:25] And can't wait to do so

[00:54:27] But that's

[00:54:29] Yeah, I know I've been the driving the train of this whole roster sucks don't sacrifice anything

[00:54:36] but I

[00:54:38] I

[00:54:40] Do think that the more you see it with

[00:54:45] Ryan Edwards had a great tweet today where he was talking about it in relation to this to fond eggs deal

[00:54:51] Where he's like this why I want the Broncos to be aggressive

[00:54:54] Because the biggest and we talk about it all the time on this show the biggest cheat code in the NFL is having an unbelievable rookie quarterback

[00:55:01] Yeah, you have one a rookie deal and you just get to cheat the salary cap basically because you have a top 10 guy

[00:55:07] But you're paying him peanuts

[00:55:09] So that's awesome

[00:55:12] So I want us to take a swing

[00:55:15] um

[00:55:17] I would even be fine. I know it'd be later around but

[00:55:21] I think you know me well enough Ryan that if uh if penics is the move

[00:55:26] I will absolutely talk myself into some penics

[00:55:30] I think there could be two or three unbelievable years of fun with him before his whole body explodes

[00:55:37] um

[00:55:39] In a in a catastrophic way but

[00:55:43] Two to three years that I don't have to watch

[00:55:46] terrible

[00:55:47] veteran quarterbacks rotate through here

[00:55:49] But anyway 27 so that's a few weeks from here at the NHL playoffs and NBA playoffs uh get going

[00:55:56] Two weeks from now so next week

[00:55:59] We're either gonna do abs or nuggets it kind of depends on which matchup is more solidified

[00:56:04] So like Ryan said, it's really hard in both divisions the abs are three games back of the stars

[00:56:10] They're four up on win-a-peg

[00:56:14] The nuggets obviously we went through them today and that's a

[00:56:17] God only knows what we're doing there. So

[00:56:22] It'll be interesting to see

[00:56:24] I think that um

[00:56:27] it's

[00:56:29] So we'll see which is a little more solidified and we'll probably playoff preview that team next week

[00:56:34] And then the other team

[00:56:36] The following week and then we're gonna have playoffs. We're gonna have NFL draft. This is gonna be

[00:56:42] For those who've listened to the podcast this was this is really

[00:56:46] um

[00:56:47] If you haven't told a friend if you haven't had a chance to share the podcast with somebody

[00:56:53] Uh now's the time

[00:56:54] Because this is gonna be

[00:56:56] It's the most fun time to talk about sports. I love you know the one-off and it's a fun

[00:57:02] Fun thing I've been enjoying the women's tournament men's tournament. I enjoy the NFL playoffs

[00:57:06] But there's nothing more fun

[00:57:08] Especially the way that Ryan and I consume basketball

[00:57:11] Then being able to be like all right, this is the adjustment this teammate. This is what they got to do we have

[00:57:18] Dom of course our hockey expert who we checked in earlier with this season

[00:57:22] So we can get him in here to break those things down for us that maybe we'll miss with hockey

[00:57:29] To get some nuance educate us there. So that'll be great

[00:57:33] um, so exciting time coming up uh

[00:57:37] Please like subscribe spread the word uh

[00:57:40] We're gonna be getting in the wheelhouse here and uh and really start cooking so uh Ryan

[00:57:46] Wonderful work anything else you you wanted to share with people

[00:57:50] Yeah one last thing um

[00:57:53] Under the monfort's tenure uh the Rockies have made the playoffs four times

[00:57:58] And have had five winning seasons from 2005 to 2023

[00:58:04] So congrats to them

[00:58:07] Seems good seems good

[00:58:11] Well on that note

[00:58:14] Five stars

[00:58:17] Just like the monfort's ownership group five stars

[00:58:22] Um, all right. Well we'll talk to you next week uh thanks to our super producer Dan man for producing this

[00:58:28] Thanks for ride for coming on and we'll chat with you next week

[00:58:35] Oh

[00:58:38] Blue Super Brothers is a crab shell media podcast