Tim Legler on fire Nikola Jokic drops double-double as Nuggets held on late to claim #2 spot in West

Tim Legler on fire Nikola Jokic drops double-double as Nuggets held on late to claim #2 spot in West

And he hangs out with us I want you to weigh in on a conversation we were just having we got into a brawl about Virginia right CC went there Tony Bennett is my favorite college basketball coach having gone to Wisconsin familiar with his dad Etc and

Pat costell back in our studio said well you can’t say this is a good program anymore and the three of us are saying okay give me a fiveyear stretch where I lose in the first round for all four years but win a title for a team like

That and we’d sign up for it would you uh probably but at the same time like to lose to you know the losses right a couple of the losses are just like inexcusable yeah right there’s just it’s hard to get past that when it’s that bad um when you’re a much higher

Seed and you lose in the first round that’s a little bit different but to trade all that in for one National Championship I think just about almost any program in the country you probably take that yeah I mean absolutely I mean it’s Redemption after we lost the UNBC

Coming back and winning the whole damn thing like we’re still basking in the glow of that because as you mentioned it’s Virginia we we’ll take a title in any Rec producing sport oh my gosh I would I would take that deal I wouldn’t even think twice about it where do I

Sign I went to Illinois so I’m still heartbroken over 2005 that North Carolina National Championship so the fact that I could guarantee a title even if I had to suffer and be bad for years after that I would take that hand especially for a program like Illinois that’s that’s pretty much always good

They’re always in the mix but they’re not ever getting it done like going all the way you know even though they’ve had really good teams so I get it I and I think people at L would probably take that too you think I think they would take that yeah all

Right let’s talk NBA last night we had a game between Minnesota and Denver unfortunately it was not the kind of game necessarily that was like massive stage because of the injuries all the bigs with Minnesota I’ve kind of taken that approach of ah whatever I can’t

Read too much into it CCE is saying well maybe you should glass have full Minnesota look what they did against Denver without their big guys what says you on that I think there’s something to be said for both sides of the argument there’s no doubt that that to me is a

Confidence building game for Minnesota to play that way to have a lead in the fourth quarter playing without three centers all three of whom are like highly productive players that eat up a lot of minut you’re not talking about some end of the bench type Guys these

Are these are impactful guys and you need size against Denver they didn’t have any and yet they have a lead in the fourth quarter now having said that when Denver got serious in the fourth quarter the Precision and the and the shot making when they had to have it was

Shows you like what they’re about don’t know no team guarantees quality possessions in close games more than the Denver Nuggets do even Boston nobody and that’s why when I watch Denver play more and more as we get deeper into the season I I think man these guys are

Probably going to win the whole thing again despite the year that Boston’s had so so yes it’s great for Minnesota to hang with them but when it was time to like okay time out go down three come out of the time out and it’s just one big shot after another by Michael Porter

Jr and joic pretty much yeah it’s not going to work out when you have Jaden McDaniel trying to guard yoke it’s just probably not not going to be great but I’m just asking at full strength I mean based on what they bring to the party

Like if you got if you got K if you got Rudy Gober if you got Nas Reed I mean of the teams in the Western Conference that could be Challengers for the nuggets are are the t-wolves about as good as anybody in terms of how this roster is

Constructed in order to compete with Denver they’re probably at the top of the list if they’re fully healthy in my opinion because of the size that you’re going to have to have to play against yic and the number of different guys that can run and here’s the other thing

Like if you asked me that question two months ago and they were fully healthy I wouldn’t have said Minnesota because I didn’t think Anthony Edwards had the Polish in his game and the the the Finesse and the maturity and the decision making to like end things and

You know be that guy in a big moment he’s really grown up a lot over the last couple of months um where I trust him now I trust that he’s going to get what he wants when he wants it I think last year first half of this year he would

Settle for a shot trying to like get the Home Run ball and a big possession a step back three that was not in his wheelhouse now he’ll he’ll counter move if you cut him off and he’ll get to a spot on the floor at 18 feet Elevate and

Take a much higher percentage shot so I trust him a lot more in late game situations and they have the size up front that it’s going to take to play against Aaron Gordon and to play against yage Tim we’ve got the Bucks versus the Celtics 7:30 tonight here on ESPN Boston

Looking for their seventh straight win but I want to focus on Milwaukee what are you looking for in the Bucks as we close out the regular season as we head into the playoffs what do you need to see from them it’s it’s totally an energy and a focus and a connectivity

Defensively that they have not had most of the year it’s been better over the last few weeks um you know doc came in to clean a lot of that up and at first the results weren’t there and it’s impossible to kind of change that on the

Fly as a head coach that they have so many things ingrained since September the way they’re doing things you come in as a coach it’s even harder as a coach than a player to have an imp right away so I I was going to be patient with it

They’ve been better I still think it’s going to take even more to play against a team like Boston and look that’s their measuring stick Nothing Else Matters to the Bucks except comparing them to the Celtics that’s why this game is so important for Milwaukee to prove that

They can slow down that buzs saw that because when Boston gets going and they get clicking and they’re moving the ball with all those three-point Shooters like there’s just so much separation in games you can’t recover from it Milwaukee needs to prove that can prevent that and

Defensively that they can hang with that team and that’s what I’m looking for tonight legs I think that the Bucks narrative is kind of crazy in my mind because I think it’s just if Middleton’s healthy like I think I don’t think people realize how good that guy is in

Those moments and not better than Giannis or Dame I just think in those moments if he’s there like they’re a different team they are the only thing I’ll say say about that is this there’s a difference between like healthy right and feeling great and being the same

Player you used to be because I think Chris midd has lost something with all of these injuries so even if he comes back and he’s out there and he has no minutes restriction and you say hey he’s healthy that doesn’t mean he’s the same guy that

He was when they won a championship I I just don’t think he’s quite as impactful defensively he’s lost a little bit laterally because he was like a legitimate 68 Wing Defender that could guard just about anybody he’s lost a little bit of that he gives guys more cushion now he’s more susceptible to

Guys shooting pull-up Jumpers in his face than he used to be he’s not quite as good and consistent offensively he’s still a very good player he’s not where he was because of the cumulative toll of all of those injuries so I do think that when you look compare them to Boston I

Do think that they’ve got an issue just matching their Firepower in a seven game series and but it does look like that’s where we’re headed in the Eastern Conference Finals I I would assume that that’s what we’re going to get that matchup if both teams don’t have any

Significant injuries the rest of the way Tim I I know he’s probably not going to win it but should we be talking about Jaylen Brunson as an MVP he’s got I mean to me he should get votes I don’t know what that means will he end up in the

Top five he could I mean I think I think embid going down kind of open the door for a lot of people because then it was wide open I think joic probably is in the lead right now I think Shay gilis Alexander is probably going to finish

Second um after that Luca’s going to be in there getting some votes brunson’s going to get some votes and some of it could determine on you know how these teams close the season you know the Knicks win you know 10 out of 12 to end the year and Brunson is getting 30 every

Night that well it’s like freshen your memory to make that vote same thing with Luca if the Mavericks continue to play as well as they are right now and he’s getting these 30 point triple doubles like nightly it’s fresh in your mind to make that V because I think embiid had

It he had the award in his hands when he got hurt and now I think yic is like slightly ahead of the pack and he’s probably going to hold on to it but there are definitely room in there for other Tatum’s going to get some votes

Like those guys are going to get the rest of those votes but I think yic will win it Tim has your opinion of Jaylen Brunson changed over the last couple of years since he’s been with the Knicks said this before I I’ve never ever missed the ceiling on a player as much

As I have Jaylen Brunson when he was coming out of I’ve I’ve never and I didn’t think the guy was like you know g-league bound I thought that he’s going to be a nice backup point guard on a good team or a starting point guard on a

Mediocre to bad team and maybe cap out at about 16 17 a game like that’s what I thought Jaylen Brunson was going to be and I saw him so much in college because I just didn’t know how that level of athletic ability translated to the NBA

It so what he has shown is the what footwork strength IQ and being built for the moment those four qualities that’s what that’s what you get that’s what you’re looking at right now so no question I was completely off on Jaylen Brunson and he is a legitimate Superstar

He is really I believe that he is I he controls a game not on a level of a yic or a Luca because they’re like one and two or even a LeBron when he’s focused in it’s playoff time but he’s on that next level terms of just controlling

Possession by possession and not being able to affect him defensively he goes wherever he needs to go whenever he needs to get there and there is no shot under any circumstance that he’s afraid of not to make this a Nick Centric segment with you but I got to ask this

Question as a followup because it’s fascinating what you’re saying do you believe that the Knicks can be a title Contender with Jaylen Brunson as a top two player on their team yeah I do as a top two player yes top two player if he is your best player like they can’t go

Out and add one big time free agent like a big time Wing right that’s a you know 20 to 25 Point per game scorer if they can’t add that they’re going to be a team that’s going to be in the mix every year maybe they’ll be a conference

Finalist type team but breaking through probably not probably not is there somebody in particular that you would like to add to that equation is there a name you were thinking about where you describe that person L they they they they they get in that mix every year I

Mean the guy that I think would would you know I think Elevate them tremendously be a guy like Donovan Mitchell right and that’s that rumors come up before I can’t see Don Mitchell staying in Cleveland his entire career like do you think that’s the guy I mean

He he to me I love Donovan Mitchell but isn’t he duplication with with Jaylen Brunson a little bit uh small guard offensive first I don’t know man like I mean in in in in the fact that they can get their own shot and they score and they’re like they’re like shot hunting

Guards yes but they don’t have an element like that playing opposite jayen Brunson like the pressure that that would take off of him to have another guy that’s capable of going getting and getting that offense um look that’s what they every year to Nick’s hunt that kind

Of player and they’ve been kind of striking out on getting that kind of player they got their point guard now you need to add a wing to go with with what you have at the forward spot in Randall and they’ve got they’ve got more than serviceable bigs all right Le let

Me ask you about a team that I don’t know that we’ve ever mentioned on our show in the six months we’ve done the show but it’s really to talk about another two teams are the Houston Rockets have won six games in a row could they surpass the Lakers of the

Warriors in the play in sure could they Sorry CeCe they probably ran out of time I mean it may be a little bit late for that uh ultimately I wouldn’t bet on that happening but they’ve been [Applause] spe spe foreign spee spee speech once an enemy always an [Laughter] enemy First

Blood an enemy has been defeated an ally has been [Applause] defeated an ally has been defeated your tower has been destroyed we will create a new world with our you have been defeated enemy ultimate our base is is under [Applause] [Laughter] attack [Applause] defeat for [Applause] s again for for for fore speee give you day gra V fire First Blood an ally has been defeated nowhere an enemy has been defeated you have defeated an enemy an enemy has been defeated you have defeated an enemy double kill a ultimate shut down an ally has been

Defeated your tower has been destroyed An enemy has been defeated an ally has been defeated on slau an enemy has been defeated out of nowhere has destroyed a tower ultimate

GET UP | Tim Legler on fire Nikola Jokic drops double-double as Nuggets held on late to claim #2 spot in West