Game Theory

Sam is joined by Jovan Buha to run through a bunch of teams' offensive/defensive starts to the season and wonder whether it's real or fake. Then they check in on the Lakers, Luka Doncic's MVP chances, what the Lakers must do to genuinely compete in the West, and more.

(00:00) Intro

(06:10) Rockets offense
(11:05) Warriors offense
(16:05) Knicks offense
(18:50) Nuggets offense
(23:35) Thunder offense

(29:10) 76ers defense
(33:15) Wizards defense
(38:15) Grizzlies defense
(42:25) Heat defense
(46:50) Suns defense

(51:05) Lakers check-in
(1:25:10) Potential Lakers trades

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Sam is joined by The Athletic's Andrew Schlecht to run through some weekly NBA awards including Team of the Week, Player of the Week, and Favorite Performance of the Week, before trying to figure out how the Thunder can whether the injury storm that just intensified with Chet Holmgren expected to miss 8-10 weeks.

(00:00) Intro

(05:00) Team of the Week

(23:25) Player of the Week

(29:50) Favorite Performance of the Week

(40:20) The Thunder’s Path Forward

Sam is joined by The Athletic Daily’s Dave DuFour for an early rookie check-in on Dybantsa (00:00), Peterson (18:51), Boozer (28:22), and Wilson (35:34). Plus, they discuss the Mavs as the most fun team in the NBA right now (47:43), the Jaylen Brown-Jayson Tatum Celtics drama (1:06:39), Tyrese Haliburton’s latest injury (1:19:28), and what the Pelicans are doing with Herb Jones (1:27:17).

Sam is live after Tuesday's NBA slate to react to games, as well as a slew of early-season injuries including Anthony Edwards, Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace, Jalen Suggs, and Jaren Jackson Jr.

(00:00) Intro

(04:20) Trail Blazers Beat Lakers

(14:20) Pistons Beat Knicks

(22:10) Injuries Ravage NBA

(30:50) Anthony Edwards out for possibly
two months?

(36:05) Jaren Jackson Jr out for up to two months

(40:10) Oklahoma City might be without Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace for the
year; do they make a trade?

(52:20) Voicemails!

(52:50) Cooper Flagg, How Many Players Would you take to start a franchise over him?

(1:01:40) What is Ron Holland's trade value?

(1:06:20) Nets, is there anything to be excited about this season?

(1:11:55) What is the Hawks ceiling with Onyeka Okongwu?

(1:19:20) Outro

After Sunday's NBA action Sam is joined by Tyler Britton to look back on the first week of the NBA season and hand out some awards including, "Best Player Performance of the Week", "Most Surprising Team", "Most Concerning Team", and more. They also talk a bit about the injuries to Jalen Suggs and Jalen Williams that looked pretty bad on Sunday night. 

(00:00) Intro

(02:00) Jalen Williams and Jalen Suggs injured; What does Oklahoma City do now?

(10:00) Houston Rockets, Team of the Week

(18:05) Minnesota Timberwolves, Team of the Week

(28:00) Paul George Best Performance of the Week

(29:55) Luka Doncic Best Performance of the Week plus Lakers Talk

(40:55) Ty Jerome, Favorite Performance of the Week

(46:35) Amen Thompson, Favorite Performance of the Week

(52:20) Philadelphia 76ers, Most Surprising Team of the Week

(57:10) Detroit Pistons, Most Surprising Team of the Week

(1:05:20) New York Knicks, Phoenix Suns, Most Disappointing Team

(1:10:20) Miami Heat, Most Disappointing Team

(1:29:39) Phoenix Suns, Most Concerned

(1:30:20) Golden State Warriors Most Concerning Team

(1:45:50) Outro and where to find Tyler Britton!