The Jason Smith Show with Mike HarmonBest of The Week on The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon!
This week Jason and Mike celebrate the greatness of the Indiana Pacers as they pull off the comeback win game one of the NBA Finals! Plus, the Knicks decide to fire their head coach after they were defeated by the Pacers, and so much more!!!!
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This is the best of The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon on Fox Sports Radio.
Greetings, Welcome inside, Happy Monday, The Jason Smith Show with my best friend Mike Harmon.
I'm not mad, uh huh, I'm just disappointed. Okay, Well, it would be your team screwed me. I didn't tell you to bet the n neck. No, they screwed me, because tonight I tell you we should be right. I mean, we still have Mets Dodgers, right, but we would have had a game seven to where all of that. I'm fine, I'm fine. I would have been tested on a high level. Yeah, to say, your Las thing, Rossberg poking the bear and Mary just wondering what the hell she got herself into, and instead they go down like a bunch of I was gonna use a word.
I can't soft this soft ending.
This is why I said everything was great, because all they had to do was get to Saturday, and if they win Saturday, great, Monday is.
Going to be incredibly off the hook.
And if they lose, it's over.
Yeah, I was gonna say it.
It's two days ago. It's like we're moving on. We had other big things happening, as you said. We got Mets Dodgers. Man. Yeah, I know, it's it's Tom It's Edmund Bobblehead day, and we.
Don't don't bring his name up. See what I did there, I just brought you back to a world of hurt.
Yeah, we got all kinds of great stuff. And the next day it was two days ago. I can't believe people still remember it was so long ago.
Got hard to take him back to a world of hurt.
Oh well, I mean, look, it's it's a constant reminder. We've got it on on four monitors. I might put out of my iPad just so we have five. Yeah, you're gonna make him wear an l on all five?
All five. Yeah. So because there's no game tonight now, we put Mets Dodgers on every single television in the.
Studio Mets owner Bubblehead night.
It is, Yeah, Tommy, yeah, you know, I know.
I'm telling this to Harmon before he goes, and I walk in Harmon, you know, like like he can't just come in and say hi, right, Harmon's got to come in and just be a jerk right away. It was a story. I go, hey, what's up. I don't even get a hello Ian. I go hey, what's up? And he goes, you know, it's Edmund Bobblehead night tonight, and like I wanted to slug him, Like I think if I hit you, nobody would say go because you know, I didn't go to the World Series, not because of show Hey o Tani, not because of Freddie Freeman, not because of Mookie Bets. I didn't go because Tommy freaking Edmund decides ten hits in ten runs, scored ten RBIs in the NLCS. He gets a huge fifty million dollar contract because a one seven day span where the guy plays out of his shoes, And you wanted to bring that up when you still had no idea how I was after the knicks. I should have hit you. I could have hit you. You could witfter the knicks. Well, I was finding because it was good.
I'm convinced that if you need it had a videotape. I did say, hello, we exchanged some slight plays.
First thing, you know, Edmund bubblehead. First thing he said out, even because.
His kid was warming up to throw out the pitch. Why is it the first thing you need to tell me.
You don't need to.
I know it's about a kid.
You could defense it's kind of important.
It's not.
It's not, it's an important detail.
Started it's important?
Is so uh so base?
I mean I was going to an elevated form of conversation. Hey, you know, and they're going to stick the needling you here with the Edmund bobble.
There's also the fact that on your side, if HR were to find out about you slugging him for that, I think they would understand.
Yeah, no they would.
One time you could have knocked his lights out.
Oh he said that. Yeah, this is open and shut. I'm sorry, mister Harmon, but we'll still validate your parking.
But don't you love that they had Edmund Bobblehead night for when the Mets are in down.
We see what I've been going over the last like three minutes, last three minutes, babble ahead night. Yeah, okay, yeah, imagine I needed that's playing in the finals, so like it's all coming up Smith. For over forty years, Tirereck's been helping customers find the right tires for how what where they drive ship fast and free back by free Road has a protection with convenient installation options like mobile tire installation. Tireraq dot com is the way tire buying should Jason, Yeah, Frostberg, guess what?
Yeah, the game has started looking everywhere? Man, Yeah, I need some help. Well, what are you looking for?
Justin? Can I help you with something?
What time does the nickname sir?
Yeah? Okay, you know, after after the Lakers completely flamed out and threw up on themselves. Not once did I say to you what times Laker game tonight? Not once did I say that to you? Not one time?
Oh, winning championships isn't easy.
Not okay, listen, just because you last won five years ago and we last won fifty two the little bit earlier, just a little it earlier. It's not like jen Xers are even gonna remember that. It was on the back of the fish rap. What do you want? Yeah? Phil Jackson won for US. Oh really yeah as a player, Yeah, it was at seventy throwing some bonyolo. Did Phil win when he took over?
Is it? No? No? No?
Did Phil coaching it?
No?
No, no, what he played for that when he took over? It was one of the worst time ago, except for it was one of the worst runs. Said, it was a long time ago. Uh so that's where we sit right now. Yes, Mets Dodgers on the way, big Civil War night here. But let me say, because since you wanted to do the Knicks and we had the open for the Knicks, and I'm like, maybe I'm stupid thinking, oh, by the time we get to Monday night, the games like two days. No, no, no, what what else are you gonna talk?
I I'll tell you it is a big, big deal.
Yeah.
I honestly thought they were still playing. Here's maybe they are somewhere kind of disappointed they're not.
Maybe they're playing a scrimmage somewhere and they're teaching Karl Anthony Towns how to play defense. Maybe that's what's happened, And there could be we got a great pickup game going again. Lakers have been there for months. They got to be running the court right now. Yeah, it's odd and great. It was the fact that it.
Ends just like that with you still calm and level headed.
Whatever. We didn't get this game seven. The whole thing is, I'm watching the game game six, and I'm going, this is every reason why I wasn't excited, why they had to just get to get Look, all they did was buy themselves an extra couple of days and win game three. They win game five because I'm watching everything come home to roost. They can't guard the Pacers get open threes, They're making open threes. They can't keep up with the pace because they're terrible defensively. The Pacers have what five fast break layups after Nick like, it was every It was every reason why. I'm like all these people on social media coming at me and go, oh, you know what a real nick figure. No, I'm just realistic, man. I know how it's gonna end, and you know what, You'll be better off if you understand this is how it's going to end. If they win, great, but understand that they're not gonna get over and still as good as I am right now, and I realize now I'm getting little upset. I'm a little a little man, I'm a little messed up, a little messed up here. No, I'm much more okay than I expected because I thought this is how it's going to end. They clearly weren't the better team in this round. Indiana was one hundred percent. Was the better team. Clearly they were. But the one thing that keeps getting out every time I say I'm okay, like I feel like I'm eighty five percent, but like that fifteen percent from Game one, like that's never gonna leave like that loss is and people understand that loss is going to live for Everett Simmers under again, no one in the history of the NBA ever blew a loss like that nine points with fifty seconds left to go. They only go back to ninety five. But I guarantee you no one did it before, because before there was no three. People didn't make threes like they No, no, no, nobody ever had done that. I mean, that's never going to go away. Just when I thought, well, eventually they'll stop show on the Reggie Miller the choke saying no, no, we're just gonna show Halliburton making that shot and the choke sign, and that's gonna just absolutely bleep and live forever. Like that's just like the Reggie Miller thing is he makes the shots, the three in a row in like eight and nine seconds, eight point nine seconds and the choke sign. Okay and nope, the same thing here. He makes the shot then does the choke sign, and that's what I did. Like that is never going away. Like that is one of those things where it tags you as a fan and you're like, boom, well I got it. Oh no, you mean I can't remove the stinger Nope, but stays in you. It's like when they track you in one of those sci fi movies and the trackers stay. You can't even cut it out with a knife. I gotta cut this out. They know where we are. That's how they're following us. Cut it out, use a knife. No, there's no, you can't cut that out because that loss never goes away. Now, last year losing when everybody got hurt and Nenmark hits the miracle three, Okay, you know what, I could let that go. I mean obviously, it's but this this one that this stays in. This is like in my bloodstream. Now, it's like eventually it's gonna activate because I have I've gotten I gotten to my blood cells now, and I mean it's like I'm a radioactive spider like that that never leaves. That fifteen percent is always gonna be there. I just have to manage it now for the rest of my life. Well, depending on which message board thread you read, that might be real.
Anyway, Moving on the idea I'm cutting out, you just can't cut But it got to the point where the stat that you cited, the layups and fast breaks off made baskets over ran the what was it, thirty to ten or thirty to twelve fast break margin overall because the incredulity of how are you falling asleep that poorly after a made basket to where you don't have the two seconds to start retreating.
You were show hal Tani against the Yankees falling asleep after made baskets like you are you are them?
And hey, I'm out man, I'm tough to hit two home runs.
I Judge gave two runs and he gave you what you came though. Now the other Max month see and now, So it helps to not dwell on it with have anything like you know, I'm not just gonna sit home and watch cable television and you know, just be like Ben Stiller at the end of Dodgeball, I'm just gonna stay eating.
Hey, you want something for the ride home? Here you go my milkshake, rings on the bulls.
Yeah, was that you Saturday night?
Beyond?
As far as you know, I get a chicken. But I will say that because now moving on, right, like what like what's next here? And I'm not knee jerk, I'm not prisoner of the moment, but it's clear and I've never seen a team in the Eastern Conference finals that has had so many flaws exposed, Like you get to, okay, we just missed. Well, retool for next year. Like you could see that the Knicks were not near to what the Pacers were, any team with any kind of depth, And you get late in the playoffs and look at what they did. Right, They're rolling guys off the bench, and Matherin has a couple of incredible games, mccatton like everybody's contributing, and the pace was just killing you. And the bottom line is this, The Knicks defense was awful, right, it was absolutely awful, And no matter how you cut it up, you can't have Brunson and Towns playing at the same time. Right, that's what's killed the Knicks because Towns is a very bad defensive player. Brunson's bad too, but Brunson's the franchise, right, Brunson's offensively is one of the top five players in all of the NBA, right, so he stays Towns the whole thing. The experience with Karl Anthony Towns, it was fine, but it wasn't quite what was expected. And I said this all through the series that if they lose this, this is gonna be Karl Anthony Towns in one year and done with the Knicks, simply because they're gonna need some sort of adjustment to get more athletic, to get better defensively, to take the pressure off of Jalen Brunson, and he's the guy that's gonna bring the most back in turn, because Karl Anthony Towlens is a really talented player, right, really, but that combination of him and Brunson it's just not gonna work. Right, So that's why they had to put Mitchell Robinson in the starting lineup. So this offseason he's gonna be dangled out there and if the fit was great, I would say, well, they'll figure things out and go. But you already have anunobian Bridges who are really good perimeter defenders, and still the Knicks looked like they were running in mud the entire time because you need that big guy. You need that big download that can be athletic, that can help take the pressure off, and you just can't. You simply just can't have both of them in the lineup at the same time. Brunch is not going anywhere. So it's gonna be talent, whether it is Yannis, whether it's somebody else, whether it's a trade for a more athletic big or or a playmaking forward and and a lesser role player because you need other guys off the bench. But I'll tell you what if I go to Vegas right now but all my chips middle and say this is how the Knicks fix it. Tip stays here. They are, they weren't the best team. They gotta get better. They gotta break up the big five that they have. And Town's is gonna bring the most in return. He's gonna get Delta in the offseason. And that's what the Knicks are gonna bring in a playmaking forward. Someone's gonna be able to be better down low potentially somebody off the bench, which is you know, that's something you could do in free agency, But Karl Anthony Towns is gonna be the big ticket moved to bring mostly what they need.
He's gonna be a really good franchise player for a bottom rolling squad because you're gonna get a bunch of parts and a would be superstar in return, because all of the hey, he's gonna go to Milwaukee. If I'm Milwaukee, I'm gonna reset with that. Let me give me, give me a guy that's a two way threat in every way shape and for him, and they honest and yeah, let's bring back a guy that is a defensive liability that no, and we're old and we're gonna bring in a guy.
No, this does not work.
So he's gonna end up in the nether region for one of these top up and coming guys that hasn't gotten his second deal yet, plus a couple other parts. Because depth is the name of the game here. And as much as you may like the offensive game and his ability at times like that twenty point fourth quarter is as good as it gets, that's too sporadic, and the inability to close out on the perimeter absolutely got exposed time and time and time again.
I'm telling you that Karl Anthony Towns is the guy that's gonna go and it will happen. Ready for a new job. Let Express Employment Professionals help while Express helps people in all industries. Fine work are sweet spintals logistics roles, and Express never charges job seekers a fee. Go to expresspros dot com. Frostbury quick question for you, because I didn't look up and I missed it. What did Francisco Lindor do when he came up? I loved out.
There's an actual MLB he hit a home run? Nothing, Oh, Lindor hit a home run to start the game. Oh, get lucky. But there's a rule in MLB. I don't know if you heard this. Oh yeah, okay, you have to spot the Mets four runs when they come to your family.
Okay, out with nobody already winning one nothing in a runner on first, nobody out. Maybe we get to four in this inning. That could happen.
On it could happen this guy. I mean, if he wasn't a met he would in the ground. That didn't do a double play.
But well, I mean look, I mean obviously you know mon Soto's gonna do mon Soto thing.
I mean, may put it there for him and hit it over, So it would have been three to nothing.
Okay, not my fault out of a home running with a double play.
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern seven pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.
Tabs tape.
A long time ago, Oh, I remember a month ago when we predicted it would happen.
Oh, Tips, you had a job at this time yesterday.
Maybe if you had unfolded your r had a jomp tip, maybe you would want something else out the black wardrobe you would haven't chopped.
Or maybe if you would just bleep in one game one against the Pacers, yo jobnh mabe.
I'm just saying, maybe, Mike Harmon, that was slight. The I heard the break screech. Now, let me tell you something, top Tim and O. It was a full work up. Get the crowd excited and then get.
Ba Fox Sports Radio. Welcome inside the Jason Smith Show with my best friend Mike Harmon. Over forty years, ti Iraq has been helping customers find the right tires for how, what and where they drive, shipped fast and free, backed by free road hatch protection with convenient installation options like mobile tire installation. Tire rack dot Com is the way tire buying should be. Well, yes, you thought, what kind of basketball headlines are we gonna have to get us the game one of the NBA Finals, Enter the new and Tom Thibodeaux fired after the Knicks best run in the last twenty five years, losing in the Eastern Conference Finals. Now, let me just say what Mike Harmon alluded to a few moments ago. Okay, I am not surprised. We talked about this a couple of weeks ago. I am not surprised. Right, There's lots of different things. But the first thing I will tell you is this, Right before you want to dive into the roster and defense and Karl Anthony Towns, and before you want to dive into and Who's Next and all the stuff, all the 'ren our test and metal World pieces side, I want to be that I'm ready for the smoke. Right, What a campaign, dude. I'll tell you the most fun well, the most fun thing today was watching the Rockies win a series the second most fun thing today was watching the number of people who trended because fans were saying, what if this guy was the knicks next head coach? Right, here's metal World peace, here's Rick Patino. Come on, do what you do?
Do it? Doc Rivers is out there.
Don't don't you? Don't you say that? Come on, man, that.
That would be the greatest thing for the man for the furthering of the show during the long arduous run that is the NBA regular season, to be able to chronicle that on a day to day basis.
At night, come on, I know you and I are at Odds Frostburg with the Mets Dodgers coming up in a few minutes. That's over the line, man that I wouldn't wish Doc Rivers on you. I wouldn't risk Doc Rivers on any but I'm pretty I wouldn't wish Doc Rivers on the White Sox. That's how much I wouldn't wish Doc Rivers on anybody.
You know what?
He might actually he got it.
Although Venable is doing a pretty good job with a bad roster, and they at least come out and fight these days.
But us fault fault, that's all his fall bring the hometown kid, Doc Rivers home. Come on, let's go before before you get to everything. There is a really there's a really easy way that I think people are just blowing past, which is what when? And you know why the Knicks fired Tibbs today after their greatest season in twenty five years. Think for a second, right outside, you know, big NBA fans, we all watch Eastern Conference Finals. Yes, the Knicks lost. It was really difficult. Their their flaws were all exposed. But just think about being around the Knicks for the last couple of days with this right, the Knicks lose and it is heartbreaking. And not only that they are not over a Game one that is going down in the annals of NBA history as the biggest blown loss in the history of the game. I can't I can't overstate that enough. The Knicks loss Game one, blowing a lead in the final minute that nobody in the history of the game is blown. Right, we went back and looked the record fourteen hundred and fourteen wins and no losses and when the NBA was taken keeping track of this right from the mid nineties, right, fourteen fourteen to zero with a nine point lead, and fifty seconds left to go on regulation. And you know what, you know, a team has never blown a lead like that even before that, because teams didn't hit threes for the for the early part of the nineties and the eighties, they didn't take that many shots. Before that, there was no three point shot. So I guarantee you nobody in the one hundred some odd years since since Nasmith said, hey, cut the holes out of the peach basket, eased to get the basketball back. Since that, no one has blown a lead this decade. CLO. So yeah, this is an all time worst loss in the NBA. This is a loss that stays with the team and franchise forever. It's Reggie Miller on steroids because this was Hey, at least the Knicks won that series at Reggie Miller made the choke sign. This was blowing Game one watching Halliburton's miracle shot fall doing the choke sign. It is an all time embarrassing Game one and series loss for the Knicks. You're naive if you think a team can just sit there and say, well, we'll get him next year. We didn't have a good roster. The Pacers were a better team. No, some losses you can't come back from because they're just that bad. Not all losses are created equal. Some losses are worse than others. Some losses make the worst losses look like a kid given out candy. This was one of those Game one We've never seen it before, a team has never had that happen. When something like that happens, you can't just bring the guys back next year. You can't just say, okay, roll it back, we'll make some There needs to be repercussions. There needs to be fall up. We told you after Game one if they lose this series, the guys are gonna look at is gonna be Tibbs and Karl Anthony Towns? And who are the guys? TIBs and Karl Anthony Towns? All the Karl Anthony Towns criticism the last few days, and now Tibbs gets fired today. Sometimes a loss is just so bad you can't bring Tibbs back because he's a memory and a reminder, an every day walking institution of we blew that lead against the Pacers, or we're gonna blow it again. You're gonna see this in the playoffs every time a team is up nine with a minute left to go. Reggie Miller's gonna say, remember the Pacers next in twenty twenty five. Reggie Miller's gonna be ninety eight years old, that like thirty years from now, and it's gonna be saying, remember when the Pacers did it back in twenty five with Hella Burton. That's exactly how it's gonna go. You can't bring him back. That's why I'm not surprised at all. The TIBs got fired because this loss and then the series loss was just so bad you have to start anew You have to start and say, Okay, we gotta move away from this because this is just gonna hang over the franchise. I mean it's gonna hang over the franchise enough already. But bringing back the same cast of characters, it's like a cloud, like the cloud that follows pig Pen, you know in the in the Peanuts, Like that's what's gonna happen. And that's why the Knicks had no choice, and I understand it. I'm not surprised with the fire and Tims because some losses are just so bad you have to move on and start new, and this is one of those losses.
I like that you said and the peanuts kind of like you were going, it's not said, not just peanuts, the peanuts.
Look, it's it's the thing we've.
Talked about for month is that you had eighty two games to try to see what else was on the roster instead of grinding out win in game fifty five, right, fifty seven whatever. Middle of the season, Hey, you play forty two. Well, at no point did you develop continuity. We saw it exacerbated when Brunson had to leave a game for a short period with an injury.
It was like, they look absolutely lost. Right.
You had several turnovers in a row, a couple of shot clock violations, a lot of pointing as if it was the Spider Man meme come to life.
No continuity there.
And so when all of a sudden you get to the playoffs and it's like, all right, we need some depth. Cat picked up his requisite too, silly foles early, so we need to go to the bench. Oh wait, now we can't use him because he can't play defense and he's in foul trouble. All of those things to say, it's an imperfectly structured roster. And we've been clear about that talking about that the whole season for those that live and die by Jason's Knicks fandom and Mets fandom, but Knicks fandom, We appreciate you being part of the show. That means you listen a lot if you get triggered by it, So thank you. Just stay with us because it's gonna it's gonna be a wild off season. But for this move, you say, hey, congratulations on a job done. Here's a giant pile of money to go out the door, and you try to figure out what's next. The roster is going to go through an overhaul, and Rose is certainly on the under the microscope here as to what kind of depth and where we're looking at for the NBA and things changing with these two teams that'll square off starting Thursday, when you're running ten sometimes eleven deep right and fast break points and ability to get out of that versus all right, slow the ball down and take nothing from brunts, and you can decide whether you want him on your top five in the game today. Jason put that pull question out on air last week. But it's just that idea of all right, how do you restructure this and what's the direction going forward? And with Thibodeaux as the face, the gruff, non responsive in many ways coach of this squad in New York. That's just not gonna stand right. The expectation really went through the roof after beating the hated Celtics, and that game one loss will forever stain whatever legacy. Now Cat got him fired twice so that we.
Should remember that.
It's like this guy again, all right, and you know all all of the things we've talked about. You know, you can only hide him so long, and defensively, that was the reason he didn't fit with what Minnesota was trying to do. And you thought you'd be able to piece it together. But again, if you're only gonna run six seven deep and you don't have big men on the bench to spell adequately, uh, and you can only cover up defensive lacking uh issues by Brunson and Cat so long before you're exposed.
And Indiana did it.
So now it's to the next iteration of the Knicks. And it was fun watching all the names. As you said, the belly odds great. The betting odds had I think.
Thirty five guys on it. Oh yeah, yeah, freight, where we're done? Where was Stephen A. Smith. Where where was he was he in the thing? Take no hold on a second, Let.
Me way behind, Doc Rivers.
Oh he is no but look, but just think about it because normally we see it with players.
Right.
Usually when when a manager oversees a collapse and a team loses, it's a we collapsed over the course of the end of the regular season. We collapsed in the playoffs, and that's why coaches get fired. This is a one series thing, but it had We've seen it. Sometimes you don't realize you see it, but you do. I'll go back to last year in Major League Baseball, right, so let's me bring up pee A Lonzo's home run. Devin Williams one of the best closers of Major League right, one of the best. Now, he's hurt a little bit last year, but guy gave up one home run all season. He is as lights out a closer as there was. Right, fastball, change up, that's all you needed, right, That's all Marianna Rivera needed. But he gives up the big home run to Alonso in the ninth inning of a game. The Brewers had a two to nothing lead and they were moving on to the NLDS and they gave up four runs in the inning and they lost. Sometimes a loss is so bad you couldn't bring him back, right, You couldn't bring Devin Williams back. You couldn't bring the You couldn't bring the guy back because it's just the loss against the Mets would hang over. You don't know, is he's still gonna be the same guy. He's gonna be thinking about that loss. It's a daily reminder of the home run because that home run was such a big deal. It wasn't just hey, he gave up a home run. They lost a game. This was ninth inning. Man, come in, shut the door. It's a two run lead. It was so bad the Brewers had to move on from him. Right. It's not like he wanted a big contract. It's not like there was a situation where he's gonna hit free agency or where the Brewers knew we can't go, we can't move on with him, and we have to deal him. So they traded him to the Yankees. Right. I mean, that's that's really why you It happens with players mostly guys at miss field goals. Guys that give up big home runs, got guys that that that melt down in a pitching situation, right when when you Darvish couldn't come back to the Dodgers after that big World Series melt down and allegedly was tipping pitches like that's it, Like, you can't come back after this. Usually it's players, but this was such a big deal and and you know where are you gonna go? You can't bring the head coach back because that's too much a reminder of how bad things were. And you just need a fresh start, no matter who it is. You'd a fresh start with this team and go forward because it's young, you're building. And again that's why I'm not surprised at all that this happened.
It's the negative part of being the face of the franchise. They become the face of the franchise, futility in fifty two years, the foff as it were.
Jason all that said, he got fired because the nick sucked.
The stop we were there were three teams left and we were one of them. We were in the final three.
We're going to the finals, and we told you no, no, no, you got to you're not getting past the pacers.
All right ready, stephen A is sixty to one sixty to one. Doc Rivers, Really, he's not on.
The short list. I'm looking at here. I got Johnny Bright from the She's not the favorite.
Find a new list.
Wait, stephen A. Smith has shorter odds than Doc Rivers. No, at least from Bravada what they had put up earlier then.
Well, I mean they also had Patrick Ewing at plus nine point fifty with Sam Cassel and Mike Budenolzer. Oh wow, okay, all right, all right, Mark Jackson at fourteen to one.
Okay, Jeff Van Gundy return at twenty five to one. Where's stephen A? What do you think of the What do you think of the Knicks performance tonight? You know, they're they're three and one, their first loss of the season. It was appalling. It was atrocious. It was depressing. It was disgusting, distressing, it was frightful. It was ghastly. It was horrifying. It was shocking. It was ugly. It was unpleasy. It was abominable. It was repulsive, it was unsightly, it was grungey, it was deplorable like that. I mean, I want to see that, just to see the post game Prescott.
I think that's also how he described the press release in which they announced this instead of having the guts to do it personally.
So I'm telling you reason number one. That's why. Sometimes there's sauces. You just can't come back from that.
And they sucked.
You know what.
You know what, Crosberg, Your Lakers were watching the playoffs for like a month on Magic Johnson's yacht before the Knicks got eliminated.
Sometimes we got to take a year off.
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith Show with Mike harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven pm Pacific.
Game one of the NBA files the Thunder in control, but the Pacers slowly cutting into their lead throughout the second half a big run. They trail the Thunder right now one ten to one oh nine, with twenty two and a half seconds left to go. The most previous play is being reviewed after a miss by the Thunder. Pascal Siakam goes for the ball and he grabs it but is bumped into it, or it is going for it with another Thunder player and Siakam grabs it but he falls out of bounds. He screams for a foul and Rick Carlyle they went looked the replay called the time out wants them to look at it. So they're looking at this because you could see Carlyle say that's a foul. That's a blanket foul. Man. You see him saying, I've seen the replay a few times. This is not a foul, right, it's it's it's it's not it's not a foul, right you you watch them, but both of them are going for the ball, right, you got you got? Wallace is going for it. Saams going for it. And Wallace just puts his arm out and swats the ball when already has it, doesn't touch him, doesn't touch him, and Siakam just loses his balance and goes out of bounds. I I don't know how you call this a foul.
I really don't he get called it at the beginning of the play when he grabs his wrist to keep him underneath the basket. Listen all the way back that physicality going into the corner. But the prior couple of possessions for Indiana, it was like, unless you drew blood, you were not getting a phone call.
Yeah it was. Yeah, they're definitely like there, definitely, even though both it feels weird because it's like both teams have been to the free throw line a ton in the fourth quarter, but it feels it also feels like they're letting them play. It's a it's a weird thing going on right now. It's like, oh, go to the free throw line, but they're letting them play. We're gonna get the call right now. Again, I'd be really surprised if if it gets reversed, but hey, you never know. It is the NBA Finals and and uh, you know, seven game series is great, but it looks like they are keeping the call as is. Yes, Thunder Thunder fans are celebrating Siakam was the last one to touch it, and honestly, it's the right call, right unsuccessful challenge. I get why they did it right, They had to do it, and you know, but here's the thing is, you know, when when when players make that move and and and you get caught up in a moment of hey, this is our you know you kind of had to do it there, but wow, sometimes you're a player, you can't just say challenge, challenge, challenge. You have to understand that, well, we got to make sure it's the right play, and you know, quite simply, this was a ball that went out of bounds, and the officials make the right call with the Thunder.
Well rise to the level, Jason, and the answer is there's contact, but is it enough? The answer is no, and Tyre's Halliburton.
Oh my goodness, Oh my goodness, Oklahoma City misses a shot. The rebound goes to Indiana. Indiana dribbles down court. They look like they're in trouble. They look like they're in trouble because Halliburton can't penetrate. He finally finds his way free on the right side and he puts up a fifteen footer that falls. It gives the Pacers the lead. They're checking to see if there's time left on the clock. Like Halliburton, there's four seconds left. He's being guarded at mid court and he steps in the steps inside the three point line and he hits a shot. And they're looking to see how much time is left on the clock for the Oklahoma City Thunder. It looks like looks like three tenths of a second, so they're gonna get to inbound the basketball. But my goodness, man, this this Indiana Pacers team just will not die in a night where Halliburton has had a game where he's only got fourteen points. This really has been something. This has been along the lines with everything the Pacers have done, the big comebacks in the first round, beating the Cavs, the way they did Game one against the Knicks, like this is kind of what the Pacers do. And Halliburton hits the big shot when it looked like they were in trouble and things were gonna go absolutely south of the Pacers, and now it looks like they're gonna win Game one, one eleven ten. So does he get to go and steal the clutch trophy from your guy Brunson or what?
Oh?
I don't think you can call him any much. I don't think he'll call him over rated. I don't think any players do that.
I told you he had the extra motivation from having that attempt to go snatch the Larry Bird Trophy and then Pascal Siakam's name being announced, so you know, motivation for the next round. But once again, you hang around second or in the fourth quarter six of ten from three point range? Are the Pacers the Thunder zero for five? SGA misses that big shot on the Thunder's last possession for Haliburton fourteen ten and six and a plus twelve.
What a disaster this is gonna be for the thunder What an absolute disaster. Game one, they control it most of the way.
It sounds like the next series game s yeah it this looks like the next SGAA ever recover eight seven seven SGA playing the role of Jalen Brunson right with thirty eight points and ah, you don't really get what you need out of Jalen Williams and chet Holm, grind and Alf, but you get a couple of other performances.
And here come the pacers who just absolutely wear them down. They hit their threes right eighteen for thirty nine from three point range. It's what keeps them in this game. And Halliburton again hits a shot in which it looked like he was absolutely stuck. And you know, I gotta say the the calm, the grace under pressure, under fire that Halliburton has is just I can't get over it. Where there's plays that other players, other clutch players would absolutely melt and panic and look for a ball, look for a pass. He just finds a way, finds a little bit of space and hits a shot We've seen him do a time after time after time. I give him all the credit in the world. And they're gonna win a game that I didn't think they could win again. One eleven, one ten. Right now, three tenths of a second left to go, Oklahoma City will inbound the basketball from the PACER's side, so they get a chance for one last alley oop tip, some kind of quick toss up. But it looks like this is going to mean other than a miracle, and it seems like the Pacers have the run on miracles. This is gonna wind up being a Pacers stealing Game one from the Thunder.
Hey run that Gordon play run yeah Gordon. Oh, so that one that worked against us, just exactly what they kind of tried to do. But the Pacers take the one eleven, one ten victory as the inbound gets tipped away. Jason, you know, we watched the first half and with the turnovers, final turnover count twenty four to six. But one of the things we were talking about the series was that you do have a bunch of defenders, you do have depth. For Indiana, they kept Oklahoma City. They shot under forty percent for the game. They shot under forty percent for the game. Did not take care of the basketball with all the turnovers that they caused. Good transition defense by the pacer, something you got used to seeing against the Knicks. So they go into OKC and they steal one. Man, did they just just take it? This is a very violent fashion.
This is just disaster. It's absolute disaster for Oklahoma City. Like they get a little lost on the final play, Like Halliburton kind of slides to the side and Wallace is on him, and and Caruso kind of comes up leaves Seakam because he doesn't want to have that little slide past to Seakam.
But then yeah, he retreats back instead. Yeah, yeah, not recognize. I guess with the clock because if he passed at Sam, they don't have a they don't have time. Yeah, and Halliburton hit. Halliburton hits the shot.
And I will say this because I know you don't want to foul, but wow, in a game in which in which they were letting you play down the stretch, Wallace was was given Halliburton way too much room, Like you gotta know you gotta have that body clock, knowing how much time is left, knowing that I gotta be close to him because he's not going to drive past me and get to the hoop. That's not gonna happen. And he definitely, you know, he gave him a a little bit too much rooms. He gets up a clean shot. So I mean, look, Halliburton makes the play. But the one thing I will say is that man Wallace kind of gave him a little bit too much room there. Let him go up with a clean shot. Man Ada was something steady, hack and stick it.
You are going to apologize to Tyres Haliburton?
Am I gonna apologize what I say? He got?
He got lucky last round?
When did what you did? I say these things had? Yes?
Game one?
Come that shot?
This is it? Is it?
Really?
Luck? Come on the end of games one? Bounced it off the back, bounces off the back of the rim, up in the air and back through. No, that's long.
You want the face of the league forget sgsluck.
Yeah yeah, yeah. Now now it's Haliburton who's making all Did you see the metal stand they just put up to win a game end of regulation or ot Since nineteen ninety seven, Lebron James with eight shots and then tied with five are Reggie Miller and now Tyree's Halliburton.
See how quickly they got that stat together, Like we said, my and research staffs get it done.
Like how big of an underdog were the Pacers today?
They were nine and a half for ten.
Yeah, depending on when you you started to dive in I think it got out to ten and a half as you got closer to tip off, a little bit of late money and big bets coming in on OKC to take care of business at home, which they they did for three quarters.
Haliburton is a dog.
I mean, you know, you want to look, you want to look at something and a couple of keys to this game. Right, the Halliburton shot is insane, and we're gonna we're gonna continue to talk about that. But you look at the rebounding advantage the Pacers had. They had four starters with at least nine rebounds in the game, right, they had a fifty six to thirty nine rebound advantage, and and yeah, the twenty four to six turnover advantage. But they didn't turn those twenty four turnovers into enough points or was it eleven points off? The twelve points off of twenty four turnovers? Like that's why this is an as. This is just a disaster for the Thunder. Like it's game one. We're here, we're at home, we're the better team, we have the MVP, we play better defense, we control the entire first half, and then we just get law in the second half. Whether because this would not like the Pacers had some crazy comeback where they hit all of their threes. No, they hit a bunch of threes like they normally do. But you know, eighteen out of thirty nine. Okay, you know it's it's you know, it's forty five percent of your threes, all right, But this was still a game where it's not like the Thunder. It stopped scoring. It's not like the Thunder. It all of a sudden hit the skids and and somehow the I mean, the Pacers just do this. Man, when you think they're dead, they find a way to stay in it at the end all three rounds of the playoffs. Like it's not like when Halliburton's got the ball, I'm saying to myself, I'm talking. I'm saying, he's gonna hit this shot. He's gonna hit wherever it is, He's gonna put it out. It's gonna it's gonna bounce off the front of the rim, and then it's gonna bounce off of somebody's head, and then a bird is gonna fly by and it's gonna hit the bird. It's gonna fall through the bottom of the net, and the Pacers are gonna win.
You're picturing, Neil what they do Michael Jordan, Larry Bird Horse commercials from McDonald's right.
I was actually the yeah, no, I was thinking more than the Danny Rojas the penalty when he when he wow, okay, they hit the dog on the pedal. Well you know, I mean, look, it's is this is what the pacers do that they it's the pacers doing pacer things. Okay, okay, sorry, good. Here's how it sounded just a couple of moments ago. Tyre's Halliburton's game winner for the Pacers. Patis will a chance to win it, final seconds, no foul, so Halliburton looking, Halliburton driving, pulls off jump shots with three tons for the second remating time out. Okay, see Tyrens Halliburton does it again. Mike Bring ESPN ABC on the call. Disappointing Burton shot, uh, where's the bang? Bang?
Where's the title for a shot like that?
No, I think you only use bangs for the Knicks. I don't think I think it's any he's.
Getting paid by it. He's not a Knick's broadcast at bangs and Jason that.
Okay, you want to know, No, I don't. I'll tell you. I will tell you probably why it wasn't a bang or a double bang or a triple bank. I'll tell you why why. I'm gonna tell you, tell you what?
Tell me why?
Generally tell me why? Why don't you go watch Michael CONFORDO. It's the first hit he's had as a Dodger. Again, go watch it, eighth inning hit. I've been kicked off.
They now think he's a bot and he's looked at it so frequently.
Generally, generally with play by play guys, their best calls like this come when it's the home team. If this was if they were at home and Halliburton hit that shot, or if it was the Thunder hit that shot, it would have been a bang or a double bang. But on the road, when the crowd is silent, it's just a weird energy, so I think, and you feed off the crowd in that situation. You got to create your own energy. So I think that's more why he didn't use a banger double bank. Who's the home team doing it?
He would have done it, or he came over the top and said Halliburton says, banke you to the Thunder. Seven more made threes than the Thunder tonight, six fewer free throws. I'll take that trade all day long. Only eleven points scored off of all of those turnovers.
The pacers are doing pacers things like that was I can't get over I can't get over it, man, I mean this is a it's a tough one man, all of a sudden Game two is the NBA Finals for the Thunder. Game two is the NBA Finals because the PA they continue to do what they've done. They outscore the Thunder thirty five twenty five in the fourth quarter, an amazing ending to an NBA Finals game.
