John Hollinger & Nate Duncan discuss the ramifications of Fred VanVleet’s season-ending ACL tear and what the Rockets can and should do about it.  Then, they hit on the latest news regarding the Clippers circumvention case, Jonathan Kuminga’s saga with the Warriors, and Tyler Herro’s ankle surgery. Finally, a deal John thinks is underrated, and another he thought was underrated in how bad it was.

John weighs in on the Kawhi Leonard no-show contract that has the LA Clippers in hot water. He and Nate discuss the next steps for the league and possible avenues for this saga to turn down as the league investigates. Then, we catch up on the latest news including Cam Thomas taking his qualifying offer, PJ Washington extending, and Max Strus breaking his foot in Cleveland.

John Hollinger & Nate Duncan take a look back at the 2024 NBA Draft after Summer League and redraft the top-10 picks. Where does #1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher land? How about RoY Stephon Castle? What does Nate think of his top tier Reed Sheppard and Alex Sarr a year on? Which guys have moved up a lot? Then we give out a few more of our fake awards from Summer League, and attempt to answer the question of how many more championships OKC will win with this core?

John and Nate pick their standouts from summer league in the following categories: Who will be the best rookie this year, and who will have the best career? Who changed your opinion the most for the better? Most disappointing player? “I nailed this one,” guys who looked exactly like we thought they would Who are you worried about? Best defensive player? Best rookie in the 2nd half of the first round? Best “sleeper,” 2nd round or undrafted? Premature victory lap guy

Nate and John hand out their offseason superlatives across the NBA. They pick the best and worst trades, contracts, and minimum signings, and dig into what made those moves stand out. They also explore broader trends like the resurgence of bigs, the Rockets-Suns blockbuster, and the evolving financial pressures of contenders like Denver and Minnesota. Plus, a close look at the Thunder's strategy, a breakdown of restricted free agency, and their thoughts on Mike Brown landing with the Knicks. Timestamps: Best trades of the offseason, including Hawks/Pelicans and Heat/Clippers. 0:48 The league-wide return of size and physicality. 6:06 Cam Whitmore to the Wizards and Houston's rationale. 13:00 Washington’s overloaded roster of prospects and vets. 14:42 KD to Houston and how the Suns and Rockets made out. 16:51 Phoenix’s likely plan to waive and stretch Bradley Beal. 18:35 Denver’s financial outlook and the Cam Johnson trade. 21:32 Nikola Jokić not extending—should the Nuggets be worried? 23:45 Minnesota’s priorities: 32:13 Worst contracts of the offseason: 36:10 Sacramento’s puzzling offseason. 37:20 Thunder give Chet Holmgren the 25% max—did they have to? 42:14 Restricted free agent outlooks for Grimes, Thomas, Giddey, Kuminga. 45:18 Most surprising contract of the offseason. 48:11 Best minimum signings:. 52:05 Mike Brown to the Knicks—will it pay off? 54:17

John and Nate react to the shocking Desmond Bane trade from both Memphis and Orlando’s perspectives. They also assess where Kevin Durant might end up, and what kind of return Phoenix could realistically expect. Then it’s time for their final draft board discussion before the big day, including Cooper Flagg’s long-term upside, the rest of the top-5, and some of John’s favorite sleepers. What to make of Memphis trading Desmond Bane and what it says about their direction. 0:01 Why the trade is a big bet by Orlando on Franz, Paolo, and their defensive identity. 13:33 What Kevin Durant’s value is and which teams could plausibly trade for him. 18:13 Could Minnesota, Miami, or the Clippers be realistic suitors? 22:53 How Cooper Flagg compares to top past prospects and how he fits in Dallas. 29:54 Evaluating Dylan Harper and his unorthodox jumper. 35:00 V.J. Edgecombe’s unique strengths and concerns. 39:29 Ace Bailey’s upside and unpredictability. 43:01 John’s surprise top-5 pick: Kon Knueppel. 46:36 The electric upside and flaws of Jeremiah Fears. 50:00 Some of John’s favorite sleepers: Collin Murray-Boyles, Noa Essengue, and Carter Bryant. 54:10 Tre Johnson’s scoring chops and limitations. 58:26 Khaman Maluach. 1:01:33

Nate and John run through a long list of potential trade candidates for what could be a seismic 2025 NBA offseason. They start with the two biggest possible dominos—Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant—and what their availability would mean for their current teams and potential suitors. From there, they cover a wide array of high-level trade options, including Lauri Markkanen, Jrue Holiday, and Jaylen Brown, as well as some lower-profile but still meaningful players like Anfernee Simons and Walker Kessler. Giannis Antetokounmpo – 1:06 Kevin Durant – 7:31 Lauri Markkanen – 15:59 Jrue Holiday – 25:07 Jaylen Brown – 34:07 Walker Kessler – 38:11 Trae Young – 42:08 Anfernee Simons – 43:49

John and Nate continue their series assessing veteran-extension candidates: De'Aaron Fox – 0:21 Julian Champagnie – 9:55 Coby White – 11:24 Ayo Dosunmu – 11:24 Kevin Huerter – 15:06 Julian Phillips – 16:28 Darius Garland – 17:10 Craig Porter Jr. – 19:18 Dean Wade – 20:27 Kyrie Irving – 22:06 Daniel Gafford – 24:23 PJ Washington – 24:23 Rui Hachimura – 30:00 Dorian Finney-Smith – 31:10 Austin Reaves – 32:19 Norm Powell – 33:01 Karl-Anthony Towns – 43:13 Mikal Bridges – 44:50 Mitchell Robinson – 47:16 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – 49:52 Luguentz Dort – 51:16 Kenrich Williams – 56:01 Jaylin Williams – 56:01 Collin Sexton – 57:10 Jordan Poole – 1:01:07 Khris Middleton – 1:01:29 Kristaps Porzingis – 1:02:06

How did we get to a Game 7 in Denver vs OKC, and what will be the key factors in who wins? Golden State petered out without Steph. What do they need to get back to contention and how does the restricted free agency of Jonathan Kuminga impact that? 6:44 Why did the Cavaliers fall short, and do they need to make major changes to compete in the East? 16:38 How will Boston navigate the franchise-altering injury to Jayson Tatum?  27:13 What should Dallas do now that they’ll have Cooper Flagg, and what will they do? 31:20 San Antonio should be in the mix for Giannis. Does it make sense to trade the #2 pick for him? 36:41 With Joel Embiid and Paul George, how will the #3 pick fit into the mix in Philly? 41:26 Plus, how the new CBA has affected the NBA combine. 44:14

Nate Duncan and John Hollinger break down the first week of the playoffs, including standout teams, superstar performances, the best and worst coaching jobs, surprising players, and early lessons from the playoff crucible Who has been the best team of the playoffs so far? Would we change our overall playoff predictions based on what we’ve seen? The biggest change to our pre-series predictions after the first week. Grading the superstars' performances in the early going. The best prediction we made heading into the playoffs. The worst prediction we made so far. The best coaching jobs and the most impressive adjustments of the playoffs so far. The worst coaching jobs and most questionable adjustments or non-adjustments. The most surprising/disappointing players of the first week. The best game of the playoffs to this point. The worst game we've seen so far. The best individual performance in a single playoff game. Who would make the All-Playoffs First Team after one week? Revisiting our playoff preview categories and early observations. The playoff crucible: who thrived and who couldn’t hack it? Which rotation players withstood the pressure? Which players have turned to ash? Full Daily Duncs with links⁠ Giannis Antetokounmpo Defensive Player of the Year Cleveland Cavaliers Thunder-Grizzlies Detroit Pistons Knicks-Pistons Nuggets-Clippers Scoring Game 3s Alijah Arenas ⁠Full Daily Duncs with links

Nate and John take their unique look at the playoffs, discussing their picks for: Most interesting series Least interesting series Individual player matchup you are most interested in seeing Star player with the toughest matchup Star player with the easiest matchup Best coaching matchup Biggest coaching mismatch Series with the most variables Rotation players most likely to have their roles cut Deep rotation players who could emerge Most important non-star player who will affect the outcome of a series Best playoff defense Best playoff offense Plus, they give their picks for each playoff series winner and NBA champion. They also discuss Joe Dumars’ hiring in New Orleans and the ax falling for Michael Malone and Calvin Booth in Denver.

John and Nate go over their awards agreements and disagreements on Executive and Not-Executive of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and All-NBA. But first, they give their opinions on the NBA’s new European venture and discuss the future of the teams they think won’t make the playoffs. Plus, thoughts on Joe Cronin’s extension and the future of the Blazers. Full Daily Duncs with links NCAA championship game Trivia Kevin Durant Joe Cronin Trivia answer Seeds Awards No. 3 player Evan Mobley Rankings Full Daily Duncs with links

John Hollinger joins Danny Leroux and Nate Duncan to break down our rankings of the top players in the NBA. Jokic or Shai at number 1? Who takes the 3rd spot? Where do old lions Steph, KD, and LeBron fall, and how do they compare with the young superstar bigs? How about the bevy of star guards? Plus, we discuss the biggest risers and fallers, the hardest to rank, and the players we think could make us look stupid for having them so low.

John and Nate look back at their picks with Zach Lowe from last year of which stars were most likely to change teams by the start of the 2025-26 season. Then, the same exercise this year, as they pick which stars could be on the move between now and the start of the 2026-27 season. They also discuss whether the Jazz being fined $100,000 will cause them to mend their tanking ways.

John and Nate discuss our coach rankings! What makes a great NBA coach, and how can coaches be evaluated? Then, we rank our top group of coaches in the league. Full Daily Duncs with links Anjali Ranadive Domantas Sabonis Sacramento Kings De'Aaron Fox-Mike Brown Draymond Green/Karl-Anthony Towns Jalen Brunson Mark Cuban Payton Pritchard-Derrick White 3-1 lead 2005-06 SuperSonics Full Daily Duncs with links