FULL NBA TODAY | Giannis to Knicks? – Kevin Durant to Spurs? – NBA Finals Game 2: Thunder or Pacers?

FULL NBA TODAY | Giannis to Knicks? – Kevin Durant to Spurs? – NBA Finals Game 2: Thunder or Pacers?

with us now from OKC and Shay Gilis Alexander scored 38 points in game one However it took him 30 shots to get there What potential changes could we see in game two from SGA Wendy yeah it was a good Shay game but it was not a great Shay game And look during the regular season Amina he took 30 shots in a game three total times He’s done it twice in his last three games And he also want to point out he had three assists in game one that was his lowest of any um of any game in the playoffs thus far So look he’s a leading scoreer in the league He’s going to put up shots He’s going to put up points but they didn’t have a great distribution on offense in this game And it would not surprise me if you saw Shay looking to set up his teammates a little bit more take a couple fewer shots after the trend that’s happened the last few games Yeah definitely expecting SGA to be more efficient in game two Meanwhile the Pacers are 7-0 in games one and two of this year’s playoffs What did Tyresese Hallebertton say about their success early on in this series Yeah that 7-0 record sounds pretty impressive And then you hear that five of those games been on the road And so the key of the last two series for the for the Pacers has been they went up 1 with surprising victories in Cleveland and in New York and then they won game two And so Tyrese Hallebertton described how they’ve focused on doing that and they’ve basically as a team tried to block out human nature They’ve they they’ve said to each other in meetings and in the locker room Let’s not listen to what our friends and family say about the history when you get up one or two in a series Let’s not listen to what social media or ESPN says about what it means when you win the first couple of games on the road and try to focus on acting like you’re behind That sounds like a pretty basic game plan but whatever they’re doing it’s been working and they’re going to try to do something we’ve only seen a few teams in NBA history ever do which is go up 200 in a series on the road three consecutive times And Wendy I want to get your opinion on this The Pacers underdogs going into game one also underdogs going into game two tonight When you take a look at this Pacers team why do people keep underestimating them based off of what we’ve seen not only in the playoffs but also in the regular season Because Amina they believe that their play in these comebacks is fluky And certainly there are instances where you could look at this run and say “Yeah there’s some flukes involved.” But how many times in a row does a team have to you know outplay its opposition on the road in the fourth quarter before you recognize it’s their character It’s not a fluke And here we go again tonight with another opportunity to prove it Yeah that’s definitely in Indiana’s DNA at this point Pacers 13-0 when they score at least 110 points in this year’s playoffs 0 and4 when they don’t Brian Winhorse live with us from OKC Thanks so much Wendy away from game two and joined now by our NBA analysts Quinton Richardson and Anscapes David Dennis Jr Game one was a thriller We can all agree about that That game-winning shot by Tyrese Hallebertton that took over the internet after what happened in game one though Q how has your perspective changed about this series going into game two Morning guys My my my perspective has not changed I mean I came into this series I didn’t think it was going to be a sweep I thought it would be a five six seven game series but I still picked the win So for me nothing has changed I mean I’m if obviously if you look at the way the OKC has responded historically this season in this playoffs after a loss I feel like tonight the OKC Thunder might win by upwards of 15 or 20 points if I’m being honest with you guys Yeah I mean my perspective hasn’t changed as well along with Q but my perspective is not the one that needs to change It’s the Thunder perspective that needs to change What we’ve seen with this Pacers team is they’ve you know stolen a bunch of games They stole Cleveland stole York and they felt like “Hey we’re the better team but we let one slip away.” And look where they are now They’re sitting here watching the Pacers The Thunder have to realize that no we may think that we’re the better team We feel like we let one slip away but you have to have the urgency of a team that is down one zero because you do not want to go down two zero and mess around and find out like all the other teams that lost to this Pacer squad I like how you made it a TV friendly You said mess around Mess around He was quick with that one Exactly He was quick with that one The bases proved once again in game one that the game is never over until it’s over It was the fifth time in this year’s playoffs that Indiana came back from at least 15 down to win a game Was the 10th time in the league overall It was also the most in a single postseason since 1998 So Q how do you explain the amount of comebacks that we’ve seen this season in the NBA Three-point shooting A mean the three-point ball has become the ultimate ultimate just I can we can get back in the game If even if you look at this game the Pacers made six threes in the fourth quarter compared to the to the Thunder zero That’s 18 to zero off three-pointers So I mean now this generation with the analytics coming and exploding and everybody saying this either should be a layup or a three and guys running to threes on a fast break and just the volume of three-point shooters from top to bottom on the team That’s the ultimate equalizer Now you could be down 15 down 20 points and you can make four or five threes and be right back in the game So that’s just the new generation and how often we shooting threes now Yeah that’s a big part of it But also I think it’s the era that we’re in It’s the changing of the guard We’re in the post dynasty post greatness era post LeBron post We’re watching these young teams learn how to win in real time They’re trying to figure it out So you have these lapses where you blow leads or you may be up 2 0 and go on the road in game three and lose by 40 points like the Thunder doing These are young teams learning how to put teams away how to figure out how to tamp out runs and how to really assert their dominance So as we’re going to get to these points or they get greater they’re going to hold on to these leads a lot more but right now some of these leads are going to slip away Some of these series leads are going to slip away as they’re trying to figure out how to be great and how to be future dynasties in the NBA Yeah the in-game adjustments have been absolutely incredible in the regular season and in the postseason David Dennis Jr and Q getting you ready for game two of the NBA final the world I don’t know about that Well only time will tell Let’s round it out in New York because the Knicks they are the only team without a head coach after firing Tom Tibido on Tuesday That’s despite being two wins away from being here in Oklahoma City instead of the Indiana Pacers Our Sham Sharan is here who broke this news Shams where do the Knicks go from here I’m told Nick Knicks president Leon Rose and owner James Dolan have started meeting about the next steps with this coaching search which potential candidates could be possible for this role because you think about in the aftermath of Tom Thibido being fired The one thing that the Knicks made clear is we want a coach with championship focus That’s their singular goal So you think about a coach with title pedigree someone that’s adaptable someone that’s flexible with their offensive and defensive scheme We’ll see who out there fits that criteria But in Tom Thibido clearly the Knicks felt that they had reached their ceiling with him as their head coach They felt like they needed a new voice there And so I expect over the next several days there for there to be some more clarity about where the Knicks go here with their future Right I haven’t had a chance to hear your thoughts on this because when when Sham says that the Knicks are looking for a coach that has a championship pedigree okay but then they’re also looking for a coach that is flexible and the the names that come to mind over here don’t necessarily fit over there There’s a lot of work to do on the whole team They need to build out their roster a little bit more When they made the trades for Male Bridges and Carl Anthony Towns they hollowed out their depth So they do also need to address the roster a little bit this off season as well Ideally you want to have a coach who you can align with because one of the things that the Knicks did so well was aligning the players that they acquired to the way Tom Tibido wanted to play and that they had a lot of success with that So having that alignment reestablished between their front office and head coach is going to be important and that’s what these next couple of weeks are going to be focused on I think it’s a good job and it’s a dangerous job because the the bar to clear for what’s will be successful next year is pretty narrow and that’s why it caught so many people by surprise I think when they dismissed Tibs Is it just a change of a head coach That’s what the New York Knicks need to do to get over the hump here UD Yeah I think so And let me just tell you this This is the reason why when I retired I said hell no to coaching I wanted to know parts of it because I understood now this is about the players and it was a time where when I came in the league a coach would say I need this guy that guy this guy Now it’s in the reverse The co the players go and say we need this coach that coach this coach It’s a completely different ballgame So I agree with some of the things you were saying They do need to be a little bit more creative offensively One guy dominating the ball The game is uh the ball is finding energy now You got a lot of back door cuts pace and space different things like that But defensively ain’t no scheme for a guy just getting attacked There’s no scheme for that So at the end of the day yeah there’s coaching situations but we can always point at the coach We have to point at personnel And at the same time I always say this to whom much is given much is required You can’t just play one end of the basketball court and think you’re going to win a championship Do we have a timeline yet on when they want to have a new coach in place Shams typically under these circum circumstances you want to have a coach in place by the NBA draft You want your team president and your head coach in the same room for draft night But piggybacking off what Brian just said as far as there’s going to be some level of change to this Knicks roster Now do you go for a landmark player Do you try to look into Jansen Dumpo Do you look at Kevin Durant on Kevin Durant I I will say this the the Knicks there was some mutual interest between Kevin Durant and the Knicks at the at the trade deadline The Knicks made an offer for Kevin Durant at the NBA trade deadline Obviously there was no Kevin Durant trade We’ll see what happens in the next couple of weeks So do they go star hunting But at the bare minimum they’re going to have to add some more depth That’s going to be a requirement of this team this offseason What’s the ability that they have to go star hunting Well Jaylen Brunson taking that contract discount is going to be paying off for years into the future And so while the Cleveland Cavaliers are dealing with the second apron while the Boston Celtics are dealing with the unfortunate Jason Tatum injury and the second apron even the Indiana Pacers they have not paid the luxury tax in 20 years to keep this team together They will have to clear management to pay the luxury tax The Knicks have flexibility under the second apron because uh Brunson was willing to take less than the max he could have made that will enable them to have more flexibility both in adding players small play small contracts via free agency but also in trades The biggest thing about the being a second apron team and a first apron team is how you can assemble trades The Knicks are in better position to make a big trade than their Eastern Conference rivals I I’m just when you say Giannis or you say Kevin Durant how realistic are those possibilities Shs you you have to go and see where those uh where the possibilities lie with a guy like Giannis and DMPO But again we don’t know where his future’s at He’s open-minded he wants to see but a lot of that will be dictated by him Kevin Durant is more wide open just in terms of because we know sides in Phoenix and with with Kevin Durant they’re going to work together on finding a home So theoretically yes that is that is a very attainable path for the Knicks They they can trade for both but the bidding war will be tough Both in either either either or it can happen Hell out of me with that one Wendy Yeah we can get either or They could be in the market for either or And for the last couple of years we have heard the New York Knicks sort of be that team that comes up every single time They’re saving some of that capital They’re holding on to some assets so that they would be able to make a deal potentially for that big star They did in Carl Anthony Towns Could they be doing another run All right that’s going to wrap up our conference Shams what is the latest out of Phoenix Sources tell me the Phoenix Suns are hiring Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Jordan as the franchise’s next head coach that will be their fourth coach in the last four seasons And he beats out fellow Cavs assistant Johnny Bryant for this first head coaching job for him after being an assistant since 2012 And Sun’s leadership agreed on a after interviewing over 15 candidates for the job and obviously A and Johnny Bryant worked under coach of the year Kenny Atinson this past season The most interesting part though is really over the last 7 to 10 days Devin Booker the Suns franchise cornerstone was involved late in this process for the hire And I’m told Jordan Au was his top choice as well We know Devin Booker has had a ton of coaches over his 11 seasons in the NBA Eight coaches to be exact He’s on now And that partnership will be critical to the Sun’s future between Devin Booker and Jordan A Interesting So Shams as interesting to me as it is that Devin Booker was involved in choosing the next coach for the Phoenix Suns it’s equally as fascinating the name that you didn’t mention Kevin Durant What does this signal for his future Malikica conversations will now begin to pick up on a potential trade of Kevin Durant out of Phoenix Over the next two to three weeks conversations will begin to heat up I’m told the Suns will work with Durant and his business partner Rich Klyman on a trade home There’s expected to be a robust market for him Four to 16 seriously interested in Durant potentially ahead of the NBA draft But between now and that NBA draft later this month in June there’s going to be serious conversations about moving Kevin Durant and still one of the great players in the NBA right now An allNNBA caliber player still at the prime stages really of his of his play in terms of as a scorer So we’ll see where Kevin Durant ends up this off season Okay So in between now and the NBA draft certainly something that we’re going to be keeping an eye on and I agree with you as we have all these conversations Shams about who is a superstar in the league Kevin Durant firmly solidified and still is one of those superstars I want to bring it back here to set though for just a second We’re going to go back to you Shams in just a minute Perk hearing all of this your reaction Phoenix has hired a new coach and it’s Devin Booker Here we are again y’all Okay Everybody going right The Phoenix Suns going left Here we are again And I don’t care if Deon Booker was had anything to do with the hiring of the coach Damn it They need to blow it up Not only trading KD but trading Devin Booker And this is going to tell me a lot about Devin Booker Here’s why He has been activated You know why Because he’s 28 going on 29 So that means you think Chenet Maliki is what He’s just starting his prime His prime has been activated This team is not going nowhere This team ain’t going nowhere Nowhere They’re not even going to be a top six seed in in the West I don’t care who they trade for right now Right now And I’m just going off of right now The Mavs Lakers Nuggets OKC OKC Minnesota that’s five Houston that’s six And we could really keep going So Devin Booker I don’t want to ever get to the point where I look at him and call him a loser But if he come in a mind if he comes to to a place where he’s okay with being there and not leveling up to go to an organization where you actually could compete for a championship and you ready to just stay there basically for another rebuild I got a problem with that Whoa whoa whoa I need you to clarify Deon Booker and Loser is what you say I did not I did not call I said I don’t want to go there but I said if you look at the direction that this organization is going in well maybe losing benefits them by picking a direction right but like to me I differ from you in that Devin Booker you said he’s 28 going on 29 who’s still dropping 28 going on 29 like he’s someone that no matter what happens is like a a cornerstone that you can sort of build off of My issue is that like it’s the pick a direction You are no longer in the middle right now like you either are pursuing championships which we found that they are not going to be in that class of especially with Katie leaving and the restructuring or you’re going to actual restructure and rebuild but they don’t control their picks We have to remember they do not control their picks Yeah 2032 And and one thing and and I get what you’re saying Per because it’s so easy in this league to come in and just to fall into that that trap of playing 82 games and not winning the championship and going into your summer and before you know it five seasons have gone by and you’ve done nothing But Devin Booker has taken the first step getting involved in the coaching search Secondly it doesn’t matter who coached that team until you figure out what you’re gonna do with your players Chemistry Yeah You look at all those coaches that came before those guys Those coaches are guys that have won in other situations Why aren’t they winning in Phoenix Are we going to keep saying it’s to coaches or we going to keep saying that you’re not putting the right guys in the locker room And that’s where I go to Are you going to put the right guys in the locker room Because one thing about the NBA now today it’s so easy to go out and say the coach ain’t doing this the coach ain’t doing that Are you putting the right pieces around to really compete for a championship First and foremost I don’t think Phoenix had the right pieces to really say they were going to compete for a championship this year And that’s because the game has changed when you think about like the big threes trying to win right Like that was a microwave version of trying to find success The slow cooker we’re watching in NBA Finals where we see a slow cooker and that is probably the most beneficial room two teams that really are showcasing what can happen if you just stick with it and wait sort of for the long route which is what James Dolan said that he wanted to do with the New York Knicks which is why yesterday’s move was so was so fascinating So let’s shift back to New York A move that stunned the league The Knicks fired head coach Tom Tibido less than two weeks after leading New York to its first Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 25 years I want to bring Shams back in here How are the Nick Shams approaching the search for their next head coach and and what direction do they want to take to move this team forward Malikica I’m told Nick’s president Leon Rose is still going to take several days here to start that head coaching process I expected to be a methodical one and several candidates potentially in the next few days that Leon Rose and that Knicks front office will will turn to But you think about the qualities that the Knicks have laid out in their release They talked about the singular focus on winning a championship and ascending to the next level I’m told that the belief within the Knicks was they simply had reached a se ceiling under Tom Thibido that they felt he exhausted the most he could out of this team and they want a championship caliber upgrade now And so you think about coaches with title pedigree You think about coaches that are adaptable that are flexible as a head coach And so what coach out there has all those qualities as far as having championship experience the adaptability as head coach that they just felt they did not have with Tom Thibido So we’ll know more in the coming days and weeks Okay So he was hot He was hot He was out He was the first person out and he was pissed off And rightfully so right Like he he This is who this team is though They got a lot of pride And now I think it’s personal right We talk about that Canadian blood We saw him and Nimhard going at it Did you see him You see him Check this play out I ain’t lying I was watching I was in the arena Here it is right there Nimhar press the defender Look at this Watch Shake We never see Sh Look Hold on That what you doing Let me give you a shot Oh now I’m right back at you man Watch out Yeah whatever Whatever I’m with that Now here’s the thing right We know this Here’s another play going downhill Uh SGA tough late but they went back and forth Not them hard Watch him get in his bag He want the switch Watch this hill Woo Watch this here He want the switch All right Now it’s time for you to slide those puppies Canadian teammates Yeah I would like to have this dance I would like to have this dance I would like to have this dance Ah come here It’s a six-point game Yeah it’s a six-point game All of a sudden he cut it and now this Look look the hand checking It’s real beef there Now here’s the thing Now you know what I’m saying We talking about the MVP I’m not taking anything from them heart but it’s still a long series We sure you want to be poking that bear right Especially because you know that after coming back you you’re going to get OKC’s close to best shot in this next game But when you look at the box score Richard there’s about 51 reasons why it should have been OKC that won this game Well I I I look at no one for me I’m not worried about OKC I like you can’t get too high you can’t get too low and you can’t lose game two No no Well no you can cuz I’ve lost game two and I still have a championship ring Oh yeah Yeah So I just I’m just letting I’m just letting America know What happened here No but but I say that to say is that you’re going to get punched in the gut You’re going to get hit hard Can you get back up They lost in in to Denver They lose game six They’re forced to a game seven at home They answer that call The finals perk you lost in a game seven but I believe you also won in six before that So it’s like that’s multiple losses where you got to answer the call And I believe OKC is going to answer that call Now I tried to tell y’all yesterday the pathway to the Pacers success and the reason why the Thunder lost and were able to have this amazing comeback we saw uh by Indiana was literally the corner threes And y’all laughed at me but it is the truth Look at the numbers right here They shot 10 of 16 on corner threes The second most made corner threes by any team this postseason This is a team that loads up in the paint So far the Pacers have made the most threes in the postseason And guess what They found the one area of weakness and then they made it their strength And you think about it if you’re going to try to accomplish a huge comeback how do you do it faster than most teams How are you able to do the improbable four game tag or go ahead type of shots It’s because the threes get you there in an accelerator So you may not be playing well but it doesn’t matter when you shoot six for 10 from three in the fourth quarter It doesn’t matter when you’re going up against the Knicks and one of your players right there can knock down six threes in a quarter It may not be loud It may not be sexy but it’s sure as heck effective for them So I think if you’re if you’re the Thunder you’re looking like we’ve got to slow them down There’s perimeter shooting down Well two things One did we lower this table Because yesterday it was covering up my stomach I don’t like the way that’s that be a high table Fix that Here’s the thing right Here’s the thing What what it showed me about them hitting threes is that now the Thunder they’re they’re going to be in the Scotland report They’re going to respect those What I’m saying they’re going to respect them more Do we think Obi Toppin is going to be left open Do you think guys are going to Why you making a face I don’t think he should have been I get it Richard Let me answer the question You yell first What the speech Foreign speech Foreign speech Foreign speech We Foreign speech Foreign speech Foreign speech See I’m going to Foreign speech Foreign speech Foreign speech Huh Mother Foreign speech Foreign speech Foreign speech Another one down Fore Foreign Foreign Don’t feel it Get down What the They don’t Foreign speech Foreign speech Foreign speech I’m not for speech Get down Give me a No lock

FULL NBA TODAY | Giannis to Knicks? – Kevin Durant to Spurs? – NBA Finals Game 2: Thunder or Pacers?