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That's right. Season five of the Kardashians is here. Just when you thought life couldn't get any faster, they're punching it into overdrive. Chris, Courtney, Kim, Chloe, Kendall, and Kylie are back and continue to defy expectations in all their endeavors. So get ready to go behind the glitz and glamour of the most iconic family on television.
The all-new season of the Kardashians is now streaming on Hulu. Chris, how you doing? I'm doing good, JR. How are you? I'm excellent.
Thank you for taking the time to hop on. It's been about a week. It took about 30 minutes for the stories to come out about JB Bickerstaff. Was this pretty much a foregone conclusion before the season ended that, hey, if he didn't go real, real far, he was going to get the boot? I don't know that it was a foregone conclusion, JR. I think they wanted to evaluate everything about the organization and including everything about JB when the season ended. But I think there were plenty of signs throughout the course of the year that pointed to, was he the right guy for this step that this organization was trying to take?
Because he was brought here. He helped them rebuild the culture. He helped them put in an identity. He helped them recover from the post LeBron James years. And that's a big reason why they tabbed him to take over for John Beeline after the disaster that was John Beeline, is because that was something that JB had been known for throughout the course of his career.
That's something that the Cavs believed he was capable of. They're in a different situation now, right? There's more pressure.
There are more expectations. They're looking to become a championship level team. And I think there were questions throughout the course of the year from players, from people inside the organization. Is he the right X's and O's guy? Is he the right tactician? Does he structure practices the right kind of way for this kind of team? Does he develop the players the way that we need Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, and some of these younger guys to develop? Does he find a way to create a level of belief from different players within the locker room? All those things were questioned throughout the course of the year. And I think when they evaluated everything, they said, if we're going to take the next step as an organization, if we're going to compete for a championship, not just get to the playoffs, but compete for a championship, we need a new direction.
Chris Fedor is here with us. We know that there's a big question mark about Donovan Mitchell and whether or not he's going to extend. Is he going to be a lame duck?
Is he going to want out? Is this move pretty much a predecessor to keeping him? Do you feel he's going to stay? I certainly think, I think this helps.
I do. I think that the Cavs believe that the relationship between JB Biggers and Donovan Mitchell wasn't necessarily a positive one. And I think the confidence level from Donovan and from other players inside that locker room, that wasn't a positive either. So it's not a situation where Donovan said, JB has got to go, or I'm not possibly going to resign. But I think everything that the Cavs do this off season is going to be through the lens of what better positions us to keep Donovan Mitchell long-term. And I think there was enough of a sense from the front office and the primary decision makers that keeping JB for another year probably wasn't going to put a pro on that side of the ledger. You're trying to do everything that you can to show Donovan that this is the place where he should be, where he can compete for championships, and where there is no better basketball situation. And I think this obviously helps them from the category of potentially finding a better coach that could create a better rapport with Donovan and maybe a different level of belief with Donovan.
Chris Fedor is here with us from Cleveland.com. Now having said that, we see Darius Garland has had to take a step back. Jared Allen has been injured, certainly was injured at the end of the year. Who are some other players that we need to look at?
I would assume it'd be Garland, right? In terms of? In terms of is he going to want to stay? Is he content in his role?
Is he possibly moving elsewhere? Yeah, I think Darius is the one that stands out to me because, look, as you mentioned, he is the one who has had to sacrifice so much. This was his team, right? This was his offense. He was the face of the franchise. He was the guy who earned the richest contract in franchise history from this organization.
And this is a guy who was looking to create his own signature shoe with New Balance. And all of a sudden Donovan Mitchell comes in and Darius has to take a step back. His usage changes the kind of way that the Cavs used him within the offense.
That was different. The opportunities that he got off the court, those were different. The way that the leadership structure was put into place once Donovan arrived, that was different. So I totally understand why somebody within the Darius Garland camp would not be entirely thrilled with the possibility of Donovan signing an extension and Darius being, for the next prime years of his career, second fiddle, Robin, whatever you want to call it, a sidekick. Because I think there's a belief within Darius's camp that he can be the man.
He can be an alpha. He was at one point viewed that way by this organization before Donovan arrived. So I think those things combined with the fact that there's stylistic conflicts in terms of how both guys play, it's probably not the best for Donovan. And it's probably not the ideal situation for Darius either. In saying that, I don't think that the Cavs had the kind of season where they have to overreact or they have to panic or they have to make moves just to make moves.
And if they bring back Darius because they don't get the kind of return that they would want to get to take the next step as an organization, then they're just going to hang on to him and see if and see if a different coach can find a way to maximize the Darius-Garland Donovan-Mitchell combination in a way that J.B. Bickerstaff couldn't. NBA reporter Chris Fedor is here with us talking about a former Cavalier. He's currently on the Dallas Mavericks, helping them out in the Western Conference Finals. That's Kyrie Irving. When you listen and watch Kyrie Irving, it seems like we got a little bit more of the Kyrie that was back in Cleveland. What are some of your observations and what have you seen and what have you heard? He's just he's just balling out right now.
No distractions. Yeah, JR, it's interesting because when Kyrie came to Cleveland a couple of months ago, there was just a different feel around him. There was a different look that he was carrying. And I actually mentioned it to him as he was walking into one of the rooms for his postgame press conference. And I said, you look like you're at peace.
That's that's the way that I phrased it. And he even mentioned that during his postgame press conference that he was at peace. I think he's comfortable in Dallas, right? I think he's comfortable with all the people that are making decisions in Dallas and the most important and influential people in Dallas. And I also think that he's comfortable with himself at this point. He's accomplished a lot throughout the course of his career. Obviously, he wants to compete for championships, he wants to continue down that road.
And he's getting an opportunity to do that in Dallas. And that obviously helps when it comes to happiness. But it does feel like he's more at peace. And he's not worried about some of the stuff that maybe early on in his career, he was worried about that that potentially sabotaged different situations or potentially drove him to decisions that necessarily weren't the best for him at that particular time, although he didn't know it at that particular time. So I just sense a Kyrie Irving that is at peace, and that has learned how to be comfortable in different environments.
And something that he always used to say, Jerry, he always used to say, you have to learn how to be comfortable and uncomfortable situations. And I think Kyrie's been in enough of those to understand how to navigate those that you don't ever want to say that a player has seen everything in the NBA because then the NBA is going to throw something out at you that you don't necessarily expect. But it just feels like he has seen enough throughout the course of his career that he knows how to navigate a lot of different situations.
Well, given his experiences at this point, as you just mentioned, do you feel confident that these Dallas Mavericks will get past the Wolves? Well, I also feel like Kyrie's in a position, JR, where he doesn't have to be the sole driver. He doesn't have to be the sole creator. He doesn't have to be the table setter on the offensive end of the floor for Dallas. Luca does that.
And it's really important for Luca to do that. And in Cleveland, it was the same kind of offensive hierarchy where LeBron was essentially the table setter. And Kyrie could just be the killer, not necessarily Robin, because I think there were alpha tendencies that Kyrie had both on and off the floor. But the kind of guy who could just be him and do the things that make him so great and not be a team that is looking for him to do something more than that.
You know what I mean? And I think that kind of structure offensively has really, really helped him playing alongside Luca. And I do think Dallas has a legitimate shot at this thing against Minnesota. The way that Kyrie is playing, the level that Luca is playing. And the biggest difference to me is that their defense has taken a huge step forward here in the playoffs. Having Daniel Gafford, having Derek Lively, those guys protecting the paint, finishing possessions with rebounds. PJ Washington's been a really, really good addition for them. They are a borderline top five defense so far in the playoffs. And that's not something that you think about with the Mavericks, but they have gotten themselves to that level.
And that kind of defense that is complementing their explosive dynamic offense, that makes them really, really dangerous. Chris Fedor is here with us, NBA reporter. We got the Celtics and the Pacers going at it right now. Who do you have favored to win it all? Forget the East, forget the West.
Who do you have favored to win it all, Chris? Well, if Porzingis comes back for Boston and he can be healthy and effective. And I think that's an important distinction, right? Because some guys can come back and do a lineup and they're healthy enough to play, but can they be effective playing through the injuries that they're dealing with?
That's a separate question entirely. If Porzingis can be healthy and effective and he can be some level of the guy that he was this past year for Boston, then they become a cheat code. In a seven game series, they can do it all, offensively and defensively. They would be able to put lineups out there.
Every single lineup that they would use would have five shooters at all times. That level of spacing, that level of three point shooting, that level of upside offensively combined with what he does defensively, one of the elite rim protectors in the entire NBA. That takes Boston to a completely different level that we haven't seen so far in these playoffs anyway. Especially when you're talking about a guy in Porzingis who took them to a point where they were putting up numbers, advanced numbers that made them similar to the dynastic Golden State Warriors. That's the level that Boston was playing at throughout the course of the year. Half of their games, they've led by at least 20 points or more. That's ridiculous in today's NBA. That's a ridiculous level of consistency and dominance that they're able to reach with that guy in the lineup.
I just don't know that there's any team remaining in the playoffs that can match that in a seven game series if he's healthy and right and he can be effective. If that's not the case, then I think it's a little bit more open. Hey Chris, I know you tapped in in Cleveland. Final question.
It might be passe where you're at. LeBron James sitting around with a glass of wine, much to do about nothing, right? I think LeBron is relatively happy in Los Angeles for a variety of reasons. But you never say never when it comes to LeBron and you never say never when it comes to the NBA. I'll put it that way.
Hey, always a fact. Chris, thank you for the time. Where can people keep up with your work or written work on the radio? Fill us in, man. Yeah, you can catch me. Cleveland.com slash Cavs.
All of my content that is written appears there. I also have a podcast called the Wine and Gold Talk podcast. We do that five days a week, even during the offseason. So anybody that has any kind of questions when it comes to the Cavs or any kind of interest when it comes to the Cavs, you can check out the Wine and Gold Talk podcast. Also do stuff on 92.3 The Fan and you can follow me on Twitter.
It's just my name. Nice and easy. At Chris Fedor. Hey Chris, thank you so much. I'll catch you on down the line, okay?
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