Which NBA team are we waiting to see what their ceiling is?

We have LeBron versus Nikola Jokic, although it's not really LeBron versus Nikola Jokic.

I get it. It is more Anthony Davis versus Nikola Jokic. So LeBron at age 30, 100, is in basketball years, just decided to do that in a closeout game against the Warriors.

We run out of adjectives. So your thoughts on what he has done in this postseason and what the Lakers can still do. I mean, I said this before in March when I saw the Lakers play against the Bulls. I said that, look, I truly believe that this team has a chance to win the whole thing.

I still firmly believe that. I think Denver is a better team, but I mean, it wouldn't shock me if the Lakers beat the Denver Nuggets. I think LeBron at this stage of his career is, we kind of gave the analogy as, you know, he's the driver of the car and it's fair to say that AD is the engine of the car and, and big defining moment of series or games. LeBron has the ability to take the game over. He is one of the most special talents, a game of basketball has ever seen at him. And the fact that we are here in a year in which they were 13th in the Western conference in the year that, you know, he was focused on scoring the scoring title, which nobody gave this team a chance. And by the trade deadline cheers to him, Rob Lincoln made some pretty gutsy moves and getting really hot Tamara and being at people like Dennis Schroeder and D'Angelo Russell and Malik Beasley. And, you know, where this team is now, I just think they are a complete team.

Things still need to bounce their way to go, right. But they have a legitimate shot to win an NBA championship. Jay will is joining us here.

Jay will key Sean and max every morning on ESPN radio. Here's the way I looked at him is that when, if I was playing against them, I would force LeBron and Anthony Davis to be offensive players. I would force them to score their points. I wouldn't let Austin Reeves or D'Angelo Russell, all these other guys, because if you allow LeBron and Anthony Davis to concentrate more on the defensive end, I think that's where you lose.

You see, I'm with you, man. I think those two guys, look, I'm not sure AD is actually going to guard Jokic. I think AD, they may try a Rui. We'll see what happens in game two when Obama potentially can play. I think you may see a dose of LeBron James on Jokic.

Wow. I think AD may be better suited as a secondary defender. Somebody come over from the weak side and block shots. Um, but I, I agree with you that the more they can keep those guys involved, the more they keep them active. I mean, at the end of the day, it comes down to the cast of characters and also conditioning AG. I think it's gonna be important just at this stage with the minutes that all these guys have logged playing in the mile high city. I know people fans hear about it, but it's a different beast when you're actually playing in there, man.

Like to gather yourself, to not get winded multiple times. Um, now there's more lag time in between these games now to give help for conditioning. But I think that'd be interesting to see as the Lakers try to steal one in Denver in the first two games. Is that series about the best version of Jamal Murray?

That might be enough for Denver. If they get great Jamal Murray in that series, then they're the better team. I think that you need, well, you need Aaron Gordon to be the best version of them sharp defensively going against Ron. Um, you know, there's, but I, it does feel like the personality for his demonstrative and as great as Jokic is, it does feel like you're waiting for this team to truly find out what their ceiling is based upon which version of Jamal Murray you're going to get. Now he hasn't been as vile, Tom, um, as other players, I think he's been pretty consistent, but still like, this is the time now that we've been waiting all year to find out in this moment of truth. Jokic doesn't really falter. We he's been consistent for this team to reach the pinnacle. We need to see the best version of Jamal Murray.

No question. All right, let's move on to the other series. And like I did in the beginning, this is not identical, but playoff Jimmy versus Jason Tatum, who turned into playoff Tatum in game seven with 51 points. I can't explain how much fun it is to watch Jimmy Butler play.

Well, we got this, we got this question today on air. Who do you trust more? And when I look at the offensive skillset of Jason Tatum, it's truly special. It's one, it's one of the, it's one of the best there is in the game of basketball. And I know Jimmy can rise up for moments as well, but the complete package of Jason Tatum is different than Jimmy Butler. Oh yeah. I trust more like in, in critical game situations in the trenches.

I would trust me, brother. Now can Jimmy Butler get his team there individually against a high octane offensive exploded team who can throw multiple bodies at him differently than a Milwaukee or differently than, you know, the, the New York Knicks. Good.

Yes. I mean, Jalen Brown, Marcus smart, a lot of different bodies at Jimmy Butler, but I will tell you this, Adam, if Jimmy Butler is able to pull this one off, then I, you know, I'm on the Miami heat band wagon for the rest of my life. I'll just think I know right now, I, I, I will fly down games. I will buy a Jimmy Butler, 22. I've never worn another man's Jersey or another best 22 Jersey.

I will put it on this man 22 dirty because he was able to do that. He's already special, but it will catapult him in every conversation of the basketball words that we've ever talked about. See, we sit here. I'm in hockey country right now, Jay. And so we look at playoff hockey as being a gritty grindy.

You got to get in the middle of it and muck things up. And that's the Miami heat. That's the way Jimmy plays. That's he has play. He is a hockey player playing basketball. He does.

He may not, he may not even know this. Uh, and I love the fact that they make it such a grind and I love Spoelstra man. The, uh, the elevation of him, the Ascension of him as one of the best coaches in the NBA is awesome. Cause I don't think he had that respect early.

Well, this is every year though, Adam. I mean, this is every, he's been great for a long time. There's no question, but he is one of the best.

I think he, you can make a case that he is the best in NBA. Um, I mean, look, you have multiple guys, not one, not two, a multitude of guys who are undrafted on this team. Undrafted. So Tina's down two of their Tyler here on Victor Le Depot, but yet they're in the Eastern conference finals.

I don't care who the hell they had to get through. They were playing a three, two matchup zone against New York and New York was like, they had no idea what they were doing, but it was more of an, so I, you know, look, I just give him some credit. Like they, they are winning the coaching advantage here against the first year head coach that, I mean, what did I say against doc rivers that he was able to figure that out against the Philly team that had a closeout game in game six at home?

Yeah, that's where they blew it. You can't, you can't let, you can't let Boston, uh, up off the mat. Um, all right. Let's, uh, let me get to coaching real quick. And this is not really about coaching as much as it's about. I think ownership that thinks that they know better matters. Be a bought the Phoenix sons and he wanted Kevin Durant so badly that he traded all of his depth to get it. And then when they got to the playoffs and they got into the second round and they needed that depth, there was no depth. So who pays the price?

Monty Williams after, I think he's a wonderful coach, but he has lost two closeout games by 30 points and back-to-back years at home. Uh, and he gets fired by Matt, but he didn't do it. He had, he had no guts to do it.

He had James Jones do it. Uh, I don't know. I hope I didn't frame your, uh, your argument here, but what do you think about that? I'm torn on this because I know a lot. And when you know a lot, right. You know, Monty Williams is one of the, is a good coach.

I think he has gone through so much in life. Um, but it's your ability to coach everybody on the team, Adam. And one of the things that won't get picked up in the national media is that the Jay Crowder situation was really weird.

Yes. It didn't play for the whole year until he got traded to Milwaukee. Jay Crowder and Monty Williams did not see on eye on a lot of stuff. Jay Crowder has always been a professional to me.

I've heard a bad rap about Jay Crowder, uh, going all back to all the way back to Marquette days. Um, Aiden is an interesting person. You know, when Aiden signed his deal, Monty Williams wasn't there.

Monty Williams didn't call him, didn't acknowledge him. So when you start hearing about how fractured the locker room is on how they work with Monty, and when you look at critical pieces, when you hear people say, well, I'm dying for Deandre Aiden to live up to his contract, just to show me it. And granted you want certain players to, to, to persevere regardless of circumstance, but like that, that inability to connect to a player that is so pivotal towards your team success in those moments and not having certain players ears, that is the responsibility of the head coach, whether they like it or not.

It's your job to connect with Aiden in any way possible. And if you fall short of that, then that has to fall on you to a degree. So when you start hearing about how tied he is to CP three and there were the, you see CP threes style leadership wise, run people the wrong way.

Sometimes right. Injury history, Devin Booker, who is a prolific player who doesn't really voice himself all the time. He's a little bit more, you know, demure in his approach and, you know, will go off by his own.

You need a figure who can manage everybody. And when that figure can't manage everybody and you'd have Kevin Durant now in a short window that you need to win and you're looking at trading CP three, it's time for a change. So like the, the good guy thing and him falling on the sword, like that to me is just people not knowing the innuendos or the nuances of some of the troubles that were happening on his team combined with blowouts in game seven. And you wondering about the identity and combined with at times you're watching this team, Adam, and you're like, are they to Dallas Mavericks? Is it Kevin Durant's go and your go Devin Booker.

And I know that's a lot to ask with Katie only playing a certain amount of games, but schematically, you know, I've seen coaches build different schemes where it looks very, very different than what Monty had. So I think they were right in their move. I think this window now that you have with Devin Booker, you revamp, you build a team around him, you put the ball in his hands, you get pieces that are gritty that can, you know, you trade CP three that comes off your books or you wave him and you add some additional pieces that can play alongside this faster approach of the ball being in Devin Booker's hands from the jump. Yeah.

They were, they were faster when, uh, when CP three left the lineup and they, they absolutely need the Andre Aiden. All right. Uh, final thing, uh, canes and the Florida Panthers, who you got, Jay?

I'm always going to roll with the canes. All right. So what we need for you to do is get down here and wind the siren.

I need to do what Adam? You need to come down here and wind the siren at PNC arena. I mean, I'm down to do that if I'll be accepted. I mean, I'll come down.

Oh no, you'll definitely be accepted. They don't hate Duke in that building. They just hate Carolina in that building. Your, your guy, Vince Carter on set with you today, uh, he would get booed at PNC arena. You would not.

So I can hear Carolina get booed and then I can get a little bit more adoration. I'll take that. You're the man. I appreciate your time, bro.

I'll talk to you soon. All right. Like it's not necessarily a pro Duke building. Yeah, no, but it is definitely not a pro Carolina building. Yeah.

A little too close to home. It's just, I don't know. It shouldn't matter.

No, it shouldn't. But it's, it's one, it's like a phenomenon of, I don't know, life of, but apparently you walk in that building. Maybe it's just all the red. Maybe. Triggers them. It just, yeah.

I mean, every, if you're wearing a tar, like anything, tar heels. Yeah. You're getting booed. I would say, say this, or if you were attached to the tar heels, I believe it was a pretty good reception for Marquise Williams, a former North Carolina quarterback who is an enormous hurricanes fan. Yeah.

I prolific tweeter about the hurricanes. Anyway. I think I, I don't think Jay would get booed. It's close.

It's close. I wouldn't want to steer him wrong. Just as long as you sound the siren good that, you know, you got that going for you. You have to bring it. Then you don't have Corey LaVallette judging you either. Cause Corey will judge you if you don't do it good. C- on the second intermission siren. I wonder what he gave Skylar Brindamore.

Ah, yeah. That's a good question. Having done it once, I will tell you, it's not easy. It just isn't easy.

And the best will just go celebrity that I have seen do it. NC State head coach, Dave Dorn, who crushes the siren, crushes it and loves doing it. It's a lot of pressure. It's a lot of pressure. It is. It's also on wheels. So if you don't get off to it, you could get away from it. Oh yeah. You can get away.

It could get away from you. Somebody broke it not that long ago. They did. Yeah. Yeah. I think we have, we have a new siren.