"The Hoop Collective" podcast, hosted by ESPN's Brian Windhorst, releases episodes every Monday, Wednesday and Friday during the NBA season. Windhorst and his guests break down what's happening on and off the court, evaluating the trends you need to know and examining the latest news from across the NBA.
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Latest episodes:
Dec. 15 | Dec. 12 | Dec. 10 | Dec. 8 | Dec. 5 | Dec. 3
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'The Hoop Collective' episodes
Dec. 15: Are the Spurs a legit contender? Where do the Knicks stand in the East?
Brian was joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to discuss the NBA Cup semifinals following the New York Knicks' win over the Orlando Magic and the San Antonio Spurs' victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. The trio talk about the Spurs' impressive performance against the Thunder and debate whether it is proof they'll end up in the top four in the Western Conference. The three then discuss the Knicks as elite contenders in the East as well as the struggling Cleveland Cavaliers before Brian details his travels last week.
Topics:
4:25: NBA Cup semifinals reaction
6:43: Can Spurs-Thunder be an NBA rivalry?
29:08: Brunson leading the way for Knicks
28:25: Cavaliers' struggles continue to grow
35:06: Concerned with Porzingis' health in Atlanta
39:32: Update from Brian's international travel
MacMahon on the potential of a Thunder-Spurs rivalry: "And how about Spurs-Thunder for the next decade? And that's what we've got a chance to have here is a rivalry. And look, the Thunder are going to be a dominant team for a long time. [But] for the health of the league, you need some real challengers, some real rivals. And this has got that kind of potential.
[Saturday] was new for the Thunder. Look nobody over there is sweating being 24-2. Yeah, they didn't want to lose the game, but they'll study the tape and learn from it blah blah blah. For the Spurs though this was a real chance to kind of make a statement of 'Hey, we're here, you better take it seriously.' And they've got a chance to be a force for a long, long time to come."
Windhorst on the the Knicks' current form: "[Jalen] Brunson goes for 40 in another brilliant performance in leading the Knicks to a win over the Magic. I think they won by 12. And, the Knicks ... we know that there were times where we weren't sure how they looked early in the season.
[But] when they've got their full team, which they have at the moment -- because [OG] Anunoby is back and Josh Hart's playing well and, and [Karl-Anthony] Towns had, he's not going to shoot this well every game, but Towns had a good shooting game, you got Brunson doing Jalen Brunson -- they're an extremely formidable team."
Windhorst on the Cavaliers' trade potential: "I see this is a common thing for fans, when a guy goes out, they say, 'Well, we'll do this, sign this player, trade this guy.'
"It's not that there is a 0% chance that they're going to make a trade that's going to fix everything. But all these folks who I know who are Cavs fans are like, well, 'What about this? What about this?' And I just keep saying, 'I'm sorry to be the spoilsport.' I sound like the [Bontemps, but] 'Second apron, second apron, second apron, second apron.'"
Dec. 12: Do the Lakers need to make a move? And what teams to watch at the deadline
Brian was joined by ESPN's Vincent Goodwill and Bobby Marks to discuss the Lakers' weaknesses that were exposed by the Spurs in the NBA Cup and whether Los Angeles needs to address these concerns before the trade deadline. The trio also talked about how San Antonio's young talent is ahead of schedule before moving on to the challenges of an NBA rebuild and the chance that this Oklahoma City Thunder team will be historic. They then closed the podcast by discussing which players and teams to watch ahead of the trade deadline.
Topics:
2:32: Do the Lakers need to make deadline moves?
8:17: Is San Antonio ahead of schedule?
18:48: The challenges of rebuilding in today's NBA
26:02: Thunder's historic domination
46:21: Who to watch this trade season?
Windhorst on how the Lakers could improve after the NBA Cup loss: "I think in addition to what we're going to learn about the Spurs, which we'll talk about in a second, this is what the Lakers have to think about as trade season sort of opens on Monday. There was a time this year where I'm not sure whether the Lakers could have looked at this team and said, 'Yeah, we need to really try to do something to fix this roster if we're going to be contenders.'
"But they're playing strong enough that they should consider it. And [the NBA Cup loss] just drove home that they really need some wing athleticism, wing defense; if they were entering in a playoff series with the Spurs, that would be something where [they] would be pretty concerned."
Windhorst on whether trades will start happening Monday: "I don't think there's going to be trades happening next week, but it coincides with the point in the season where teams start to make some decisions about the ineptitude or ... some of the weaknesses of their rosters. And that's when things start to get going."
Marks on the trade market in December: "Eighty-two players starting on Monday are eligible. December is relatively somewhat of a quiet month tradewise. Certainly we start hearing more rumors, but we had a trade last year on the first day players were eligible and Dennis Schroder was traded from Brooklyn to Golden State.
"And I think going into Monday we'll have eyes on Chris Paul as far as to figure out ... if it eventually gets resolved here. But I think the total number is 90% of the NBA's trade-eligible as of Monday."
Dec. 10: The Knicks' chances in the East, and can OKC break the NBA wins record?
Brian is joined by Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to talk about the New York Knicks' and Orlando Magic's big wins in Tuesday's Emirates NBA Cup quarterfinals and if the Knicks have a chance to take control of the Eastern Conference. The trio then moves on to preview Wednesday's NBA Cup games (Phoenix Suns at Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs at Los Angeles Lakers) before discussing the Thunder could potentially win 70-plus games this season.
Topics:
2:11: Knicks advance to NBA Cup semifinals
10:37: Desmond Bane leads Magic to NBA Cup semifinals
22:19: Wednesday's quarterfinal preview
22:13: Do the Suns have any hope vs. the Thunder?
31:40: Suns improving the organizational culture
36:58: Expectations for Spurs at Lakers
48:33: Difficulty of the NBA schedule
Bontemps on the Knicks' momentum in the East: "OG Anunoby is back healthy. ... you look up and down the East, there's either main stars out like [Jayson] Tatum obviously in Boston or these other teams are a MASH unit. And that's again like the Knicks have a chance right now if they can have a good month or six weeks. Now, I think they could get some real separation at the top, and that could wind up making a really big difference for them, especially when a couple weeks ago when they were scuffling, it didn't look like they were going to have a chance. They might be right in the mix with all these other teams [now].
"And I think they've got a chance to really go on a run here. We'll see if Vegas can be a springboard for them."
Bontemps on whether the Thunder can win 70 games: "Of course, they can win 70. The question isn't 'can they win 70?' The question is 'will they win 70 and will they win 74?' I think at this point that's honestly the real question that we should be having... can they stake a claim to be the best team we've ever seen potentially? Because if they go 74-8 or 75-7 and they win the title -- which obviously the late the Warriors did not do the latter part... they're going to have an argument to be the best team ever, which is why I hope that they fully embrace this and go after it as the season goes on.
"Because... yes, I understand that the main thing is the main thing and you want to lift the trophy at the end. But there are very few teams in the history of any sport that have the ability to credibly say they're the best team ever. And this team through 24 games is on pace to have that kind of argument."
MacMahon on San Antonio potentially trading young guards: "Those guys are going to be in San Antonio, I believe, for a long, long time. I think they've got this generation's version of Duncan-Parker-Ginobili."
Dec. 8: LeBron turns back the clock and Boston's outlook
Brian is joined by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon to talk about LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers' bounce--back performance against the Philadelphia 76ers and why the Boston Celtics' recent success has opened the door for a potential Jayson Tatum return. They then discuss Pat Spencer's recent run with Golden State, the Chicago Bulls' current slump and the Memphis Grizzlies' turnaround before closing on the latest updates from the Terry Rozier situation.
Topics:
2:27: LeBron and the Lakers get a clutch win
15:34: Celtics starting to figure things out/Tatum return?
28:54: Spencer stepping up for the Warriors
32:17: Bulls' downturn
36:27: Memphis' recent form
44:00: The latest on the Terry Rozier situation and what it means for the Heat
1:06:41: "Where in the World is Windy?"
MacMahon on LeBron's role with the Lakers: "They need LeBron to be a really good third option, which tonight, [Austin] Reaves stunk and LeBron picked up the slack but I think it's silly to judge LeBron based on the standard that he's set over the previous two decades. He's not going to be that player. Honestly, the Lakers don't really need him to be that player. I would say, you know, they need defensive upgrades more than anything else at this point.
"But if LeBron is a good third option, then the Lakers are one of the league's more potent offensive teams, as long as Luka [Doncic] and Reaves stay healthy."
Bontemps on the possibility of Tatum's return: "The Jayson Tatum question becomes more interesting by the day if they continue to win games and look like they could be a team that could be a factor in the playoffs without him. And I think that like I said, I think that's more a symptom of the weakness of the top of the East. But these guys have proven playoff experience.
Basically none of these other teams do."
Bontemps on the Rozier situation: "I think if they believe that Terry Rozier were not able to be traded, they would just use the roster spot on somebody else.
I think the fact he's on the roster leaves open a pretty decent possibility that now maybe they will find a trade they like [or] maybe they cut him the next day and then they go after the trade deadline to go do something else with the roster spot. But my hunch is that if they find a deal they like, it'll probably work out."
Dec. 5: Why a Giannis trade is so challenging
Brian is joined by ESPN's Vincent Goodwill and Anthony Slater to discuss the likelihood of a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade in Milwaukee, including what teams would make the most sense for the two-time MVP and why a deal could be hard to make. Then the trio talks Cooper Flagg's continued improvement in Dallas, Chris Paul's untimely exit from the LA Clippers and Chet Holmgren's evolution since his injury last season in Oklahoma City.
Topics:
1:44: Latest on Giannis trade possibilities
7:02: Flagg impressing each day
8:26: Will Giannis leave Milwaukee?
23:22: Paul's unique Clippers exit
32:36: Injured Warriors limping along -- any hope for offensive improvement?
39:43: Holmgren's next steps in Oklahoma City
Windhorst on why a Bucks trade is difficult: "What I'm telling you is that when I talk to executives and these executives are not in trade talks with the Bucks or another for a star player right now, the mood in the NBA right now is not give up four first-round picks for anybody. ... This is how teams are thinking right now. They're a little freaked about the aprons. There ain't going to be no five first-round pick trades. I know that we saw those for a while. That's just not going to happen."
Windhorst on the Giannis trade market: "I can hear somebody out there listening to this podcast saying, 'What are you talking about? This is Giannis. Giannis will go for two star players and six firsts.' Maybe that will happen. I am just telling you, I talk to the guys who make these trades every day, all day long, and the appetite is just different.
"Everybody is feeling a certain way. I'm just telling you I could end up being wrong. I'm just reporting back."
Goodwill on the Paul fallout in LA: "I think it shows maybe the desperation of how they wanted to get out of the Chris Paul business. Like, one thing that I was that I was told was they had talked to him as much as maybe 10 or 11 times throughout the season about the stuff that he had been doing or saying or trying to hold like Shams Charania said in his report yesterday about holding everybody accountable.
"Can you imagine how to some degree insufferable someone has to be in your eyes for you to say, you know what, we're stuck here in Atlanta. You could just go home, like we're not even going to wait. It's not like Chris Paul is playing 30 minutes a night. Like it shows you the level of exhaustion that the Clippers have felt from this."