Should Lakers pursue Giannis? What’s up w/ Rockets? Are Hornets for real? | 5 NBA Questions
Jason answers mailbag questions on team building after the NBA trade deadline including whether the Los Angeles Lakers should pursue Giannis Antetokounmpo to pair with Luka Doncic this offseason if it means giving up Austin Reaves, whether the Charlotte Hornets are for real, who the Houston Rockets should close games with alongside Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun, the ideal backcourt partner for Cade Cunningham with the Detroit Pistons, and more.
All lines provided by @hardrockbet
Timeline
0:00 – Start
0:45 – Should Lakers trade for Giannis?
10:50 – Are Hornets real?
20:32 – Kevin Durant’s season so far
23:27 – Rockets closing lineup
27:25 – East vs West
29:06 – Ideal running mate for Cade
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38 Comments
No. Next question?
Is it even possible to trade for Giannis without including AR?
We dont have the salaries to match Giannis 50 mill contract
So happy we get pistons questions on here now
10 times out of 10 it would be better to grab players from the Mavs that they don't see as part of the Cooper timeline because that team was quite literally built (successfully) around Luka. It basically just comes down to this unanswerable question of whether they would trade with each other again.
Example: Gafford and PJ. Both not really part of Dallas's future, Cooper and PJ on the floor together has been rough and forces Cooper out of position. I think Dallas might actually keep Bagley and Cissé is an intriguing big as well so they could part with Gafford. Both players extremely affordable for a Lakers team who needs many pieces to acquire.
No use the money on Peyton Watson and Tari Eason, this would make us top 2 in the league which we could sustain for years
Reeves is overrated. Can’t play a lick of defense. Y’all need to stop these nonsense takes 🙃
A 4-5 matchup in the playoffs is not an “upset” stop that narrative
Lakers need to move on from Lebron and look at trying to get someone like Bam.
What assets would the Lakers trade for Giannis? They’re not trading LeBron and I don’t see them parting with Luka. Do you think Milwaukee would want Austin Reeves and a whole bunch of other bench players? Reeves can score no doubt but he’s horrible on defense.
I wouldn’t want to get back a one dimensional guy like Reeves in return for the multi-dimensional superstar I would be giving up in Giannis. That doesn’t make sense to me at all if I’m part of the Bucks organization.
The Lakers need a reboot. Their GM has totally mismanaged their team and handicapped them big time. The majority of their team salary is eaten up by 3 player contracts and only 1 of those 3 (LeBron) is capable of playing defense. So you surround these players with a bunch of g league talent and draft picks that aren’t developing as fast as draft picks on other contending teams.
That’s not a formula for success unless your 3 star players are multi-dimensional.
When Shaq & Kobe were winning championships both of those guys were elite defenders while carrying the majority of the offense AND they had other good two-way players like Derrick Fish & Robert Horry around them.
No, the Lakers should focus on a great center and a starting 3&D. Giannis is a fantastic player, but not what the team needs. Sure, you can switch everything and restart with Luka – Giannis instead of Luka – AR, but it will take even more time to find the rhythm and pieces, and Giannis does not have that much time considering his game is based on him being a force of dominance.
Mailbag: whenever you bring up needing a top tier superstar to win an NBA championship, you always bring up unless you're the Boston Celtics because they had 5 $30 million contract players on the roster. I don't think there's anyone that would argue that Tatum was as good as those before him (Jokic, Steph, Giannis, LeBron, Kawhi, KD), but how come you only bring up Tatum and not SGA as if he was on a different tier during their championship run?
This was notoriously when Tatum had that weird hitch in his jumpshot that carried over into the Olympics. But despite that, and despite having those 5 guys who would make $30M+ on the open market, he became the 6th player to lead their team in points, rebounds, and assists on their way to a championship. Also, Tatum's underrated ability to guard centers during that run is what fully unlocked the Celtics defense. Again, not here to say that he was on the same level as Jokic the year before, but I think it's fair to say Tatum was as good as SGA or at least on the same tier as him during the Thunders 2025 run while the Thunder also had a significant talent advantage and was still pushed to 7 games twice.
2024 Tatum: 25/10/6 on 54.9%ts
2025 SGA: 30/5/6 on 57.4%ts
Hornets are scary this year
Luka Austin smart herb jones and nic claxton ! Bench Laravia Luke kennard Jeremy sochan Haywood highsmith Tobias Harris vando Hayes ! Adou and Kobe bufkin ! And Rookie Center Patrick ngongba or Henry vasaar or Aday Mara ! Honorable mentions John Collins , quentin grimes , Nick Richards and Isaac Bonga 🎉😂
And yet some how the lakers better than the rockets.. smh
MAILBAG: Hey Jason, its a bit of a long one so sorry in advance, I wanted to get your take on the Cam Thomas situation, which feels like one of the most bizarre roster moves in recent memory. We’re talking about a 24-year-old who averaged 24 PPG just last season, yet the Nets straight-up waived him mid-season because they couldn’t find a trade partner.
How much of this was a 'contractual checkmate' versus a 'culture cut'? By signing that Qualifying Offer last summer, Cam basically gave himself a no-trade clause, which clearly handcuffed the Nets' front office at the deadline. But even then, waiving a guy with that much scoring gravity for nothing is almost unheard of.
Is the league-wide lack of interest a sign that the 'bad attitude' and 'empty stats' narrative has officially tanked his stock? When a rebuilding team like Brooklyn decides it’s better to have an empty roster spot than a 20-point scorer, what does that say about how the modern NBA values isolation scoring versus team-first culture? Does he have a chance to rewrite that script with the Bucks, or has his reputation as a 'one-dimensional' player become a permanent ceiling on his career?" Thanks love the show always!
Man I wish the Lakers hired you Jason. Everything you say makes so much sense, but you know Rob will do the opposite.
Didn’t we just watch Reaves struggle against OKC AGAIN? Look it’s horses for courses..Reaves is a nice undrafted story but he will never be good enough to help the Lakers beat the best who were good enough to be drafted. There’s a reason the NBA has never had an undrafted player slot in as a #2 option on a championship team. Furthermore there’s a reason why we haven’t seen two Caucasian players lead a team to a championship since 1986. Stop trying to turn the Lakers into the University of Wisconsin.
Do you guys think it’s crazy to keep Austin and trade Luka for a crazy number of high level draft picks and young 2 way talent. This draft 2026 is crazy. We can draft the next cooper Flagg . AR is not a superstar but not far off. Just a thought. Just think AR/ Luka back court not athletic enough.
I’d be really happy with trading for Trey Murphy with the available pics and grabbing Mitch Robinson in FA.
Lol Lakers have nothing to offer
Man give it up with the Giannis stuff 🤦🏾♂️
Lamelo is the offensive engine. Can’t get rid of him
There are so many teams that can offer so much better packages then the Lakers
Every Year / A : The Lakers Wave The White Towel During The Season / B : Talking Heads Spend The Year Debating Their Next Big FA Target . Giannis is Now the Flavour of The Month / Jokic is Probably Next .
Giannis for late round picks 😂😂
No, will he even be traded? Can the Lakers even offer enough? Is it a complete con job? Is he a good fit? Can the Lakers build / fill a good roster after? Pick a question, the answers are all reasons to just move on.
You keep talking out of both sides of your mouth. The Lakers nor the warriors will EVER have enough to try and even attempt to ASK for a trade for GIANNIS
I take Luka + Giannis over Luka + AR any day of the week.
I love love LOVE AR… but I have no illusions that a Luka + AR front court will ever compete for anything.
Return of the mullet.
Hell no
Gianni’s not going to play with Luka waste of time
Hornets are young and building. They will get smoke in playoffs. Offensive rating is BS I just realized it accounted rebounding. Lamelo/Miller lack of physicality will get exposed and Melo inefficiency
Great job w/ ur episodes. Quality content
I wonder if the pistons could make a run at austin reaves.
Laker’s tonight
Honestly the West just conveniently gets the number 1 pick when there’s a generational talent available. Bobcats missed on AD, Pistons missed Wemby, Dallas gets an under the table deal to get Flagg. Just a couple to name
With Luka and Kyrie as the backcourt, the Mavs had to hit perfectly on every on the margins player. Elite role players around those two. Robber pelinka can’t do that, and Kyrie was a substantially better defender than reaves is now
I’d rather overpay for Tari Eason. Sign John Collins. Check in on Mitchell Robinson price. And go into the season with the picks and Luka Austin Tari John Ayton Smart Jake Vando Adou Bufkin
Austin will be making way less than Giannis too, he’s not getting 75mil on his extension like Giannis is about to start making. Then use those picks to make a move at some point for your big rotation. Maybe give them all to Brooklyn for MPJ and Sharpe both or Claxton MPJ and Sharpe for Picks plus Ayton. Or picks to pelicans for Missi and Herb both. Or try to steal Tumani and Clingan for the picks. Options! But I’d say at the moment Tari and Austin is priority.