Zach and ESPN's Tim MacMahon discuss Joel Embiid's upcoming surgery, ramifications for the Sixers going forward, all things trade deadline, All-Star snubs, MVP candidates, and much more.  Embiid to have surgery (1:02) Zach's tweak to the 65 game rule (9:22) How Sixers will approach trade deadline (15:20) Big picture on the trade deadline (21:28) Possible moves for the Mavs (28:59) Rockets, Cavs, and Nets (39:20) Jazz (49:56) Clippers (56:19) MVP candidates (59:25) Nuggets...

Zach talks about Joel Embiid's injury and what comes next with injury expert Jeff Stotts. Then ESPN's Chris Herring joins to discuss the Lakers beating Boston without Anthony Davis and LeBron, LeBron's cryptic tweets, Lakers options at trade deadline, Knicks recent play and Jalen Brunson, Boston's up-and-down last two weeks, and their most interesting trade deadline teams: Chicago, Oklahoma City, Brooklyn, Sacramento, Atlanta, the Clippers, more -- plus whether the more asset-poor contenders...

Zach and ESPN's Chiney Ogwumike discuss the offensive explosion around the league, the Jalen Green situation in Houston, the Lakers-Rockets fracas and the Lakers up and down play, Doc Rivers first game as Bucks coach, Wolves, Thunder, trade talk across the league, and more. Then ESPN's Kendrick Perkins joins to talk about the struggling Heat, pitch a wild trade idea, Zach LaVine, Pistons, much more.  Feels like it's not going to happen for the Lakers (4:42) Defense is not dead (15:15) Are...

Zach and ESPN's Tim Legler discuss the Doc Rivers fit in Milwaukee and how teams are looking after big trades: OG Anunoby in New York, the struggling Heat and Terry Rozier, the Pacers with Pascal Siakam, and more. Plus full All-Star roster picks, whether the Sixers have enough to win it all as is, and more. Then Eric Nehm of The Athletic digs deeper into the Bucks hiring and firing Adrian Griffin, and what comes next for Milwaukee.  Thoughts on Bucks making a coaching change (1:01) On Doc...

Zach and ESPN's Bobby Marks discuss the Heat trading for Terry Rozier and how it impacts the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Then ESPN's Tim Bontemps joins to weigh in on Joel Embiid's historic scoring performance, ways for the Sixers to improve around him, the red hot Cavs, and the Bucks moving on from Adrian Griffin.  Heat trade for Rozier (1:40) What does this mean for Miami's ability to trade future picks? (5:28) Rozier's fit with Miami (10:44) A look at the top 7 in the East...

Zach and The Ringer's Bill Simmons discuss the Pacers trading for Pascal Siakam, the Raptors' return on trading two stars, and then go back and forth naming players and teams under the most pressure to win the championship this season. Siakam traded to the Pacers (1:10) Bruce Brown has value on the trade market (8:48) Did Toronto get enough for Siakam? (14:59) Championship Pressure Index (26:40) Celtics (27:39) Dame and the Bucks (37:45) Clippers (43:50) Durant and the Suns...

Zach and ESPN's Tim MacMahon discuss the resurgent Jazz, how Dallas can be dangerous in the West, and possible Pascal Siakam teams. Then The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski on the Timberwolves as title contenders, Rudy Gobert fitting in, and the looming financial hurdles in Minnesota. Plus, ESPN's Andrew Lopez on Victor Wembanyama playing the 5 and the depth of the Pelicans. Moves out there for the Jazz? (9:51) Mavs (19:39) Fits for Siakam (26:49) Krawczynski (36:45) Playing Gobert off the...

Zach and ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk discuss Kawhi Leonard's extension, whether the Clippers are contenders, and trade possibilities for LA. Then ESPN's Chris Herring joins Zach to pick tentative All-Stars, talk trades leaguewide, and more. Clippers are real contenders (10:54) No one is talking about Clippers defense (25:24) Ty Lue is one of the best coaches in the league (34:32) Herring (40:55) Eastern All-Star starters (50:50) Eastern reserves (1:07:57) Western All-Star starters...

Zach welcomes ESPN's Kendra Andrews to discuss the slumping Warriors, turmoil in Golden State, and the return of Draymond Green. Then ESPN's Dave McMenamin talks Darvin Ham, the Lakers bad offense, and LA's outlook at the deadline. ESPN's Bobby Marks rounds things out with rapid-fire trade thoughts on Sixers, Kings, Raptors, Pascal Siakam, Hornets, Heat, Wizards, Nets, and more.  Is this salvageable for Golden State (15:07) Possible trades for the Warriors (25:27) Draymond Green is a...

Zach and ESPN's Tim MacMahon discuss the Thunder's chances and possible moves they can make, the Lakers struggling offense, the surging Phoenix Suns, Kevin Durant's legacy, and more. Four stages of Thunder thoughts (3:49) Is Lauri Markkanen available? (14:40) Jordan Clarkson going for a triple-double (17:35) The Lakers offense is struggling and defense is slipping (20:05) Re-visiting the Westbrook trade and how well Minnesota did to get Conley (31:36) The surging Suns (37:15) Durant's...

Zach and ESPN's Kevin Pelton breakdown the Toronto Raptors-New York Knicks trade centered on OG Anunoby and Immanuel Quickley, discuss what comes next for both teams, and bounce around the NBA trade landscape.  2:00- Did the Raptors get enough for OG Anunoby? 9:45- The Raptors plan for their rebuild 14:40- What is RJ Barrett? 25:25- Who is the best player in the trade? 31:05- The Knicks side of the trade. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zach and ESPN's Tim Bontemps weigh in on the strengths and weaknesses of the Celtics, Sixers, and Bucks. Then ESPN's Michael Schwartz stops by for a look at the Suns. Zach laments his bet with Bontemps on the Hawks (1:10) This is the best Celtics team of the Tatum-Brown era (6:52) Sixers offense is humming and Embiid has a great MVP case (35:07) Bucks have been cast aside as the third wheel in the East a bit too aggressively (50:18) Schwartz on the Suns (1:09:19) Learn more about your ad...

Zach and ESPN's Chiney Ogwumike discuss the Warriors first game since Draymond Green's suspension, what comes next as Golden State falls down the standings, the rising Clippers, Chiney's hometown Rockets, and the Mavericks season so far. Plus ESPN's Ramona Shelburne joins to talk about her conversation with Draymond in the aftermath of the Jusuf Nurkic incident, the ongoing impact of the Jordan Poole punch, and where the Warriors and Green go from here.  Warriors without Draymond...

Zach discusses the latest Draymond Green incident, what it means for Draymond's career, and whether the Warriors can salvage this season. Then ESPN's Kevin Pelton joins to talk Draymond/Warriors, the Nuggets bench and Nikola Jokic's ejection on Tuesday, and a special Say Something Nice About Bad Teams draft featuring the Hawks, Raptors, Wizards, Jazz, Pistons, Grizzlies, Spurs, Bulls, Hornets, and Blazers. Pelton (22:54) Warriors hopes at salvaging season (23:09) Jokic ejection...

Zach and the Bleacher Report's Mo Dakhil breakdown the Lakers vs. Pacers matchup for the In-Season Tournament Final and the Clippers improvement this season, then The Athletics' Fred Katz joins to discuss the Knicks and make some early season awards picks. 3:35- Pacers high octane offense 5:40- Lakers vs Pacers matchup 18:20- Is the Lakers offense good enough? 25:00- Pacers offense vs. Lakers defense 36:00- Pacers Transition Offense 41:00- Clippers talk 50:30- Fred Katz joins 50:45- Knicks...

Zach and JJ Redick discuss the first two quarterfinal games of the In-Season Tournament and then explain why they are confused by an assortment of teams in the league. Pacers advance to Vegas (1:44) Haliburton is a star (8:03) Indiana needs to improve defensively (13:04) Celtics takeaways from loss to Indiana (17:54) Are the Pelicans a sleeping giant in the West? (31:31) Kings (40:39) Mavs (53:41) Cavs (1:04:29) How do we feel about point differential as a tiebreaker in the IST?...

Zach and Bobby Marks go around the league and the potential trade landscape as we hit the quarter mark of the NBA season -- Warriors, Clippers, Heat, Pelicans, Lakers, Raptors, and much more. Then Cole Anthony hops on to discuss the Orlando Magic's hot start, that vintage Heat alley-oop he and Jalen Suggs recreated, and all things Orlando.  5:16- How do the Golden State Warriors save their season? 18:14- What do the Chicago Bulls do? 23:50- Pistons Losing Streak 30:40- What's going on with...

Zach goes around the NBA with ESPN's Doris Burke: The top of the East and West, middle-rung teams to watch in each conference, much more. Then ESPN's Dave McMenamin joins to check in on the Lakers.  1:35-Who is the second best team in the east? 18:30 -The impressive Orlando Magic 26:30- Who is the second best team in the west? 43:00- Concern level for the Nuggets 46:00 -New York Knicks 53:30- Golden State Warriors 1:06:51- Dave McMenamin on the Lakers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Zach discusses the Celtics season so far, the Bucks recent uptick in play, and what to watch for in their showdown on Wednesday. Then Andrew Schlecht of the Athletic joins to discuss the red-hot Thunder and their potential approach at the trade deadline, plus other young teams on the rise: Kings, Rockets, Magic, Pacers, more.  1:00- Start to the season for the Celtics 9:50- Balancing the Celtics offensive concerns with their defensive excellence 14:00- Jaylen Brown's season 28:35- Andrew...

Zach and Nekias Duncan of The Dunker Spot go around the middle of the East with deep dives on the Heat, Knicks, Hawks, Cavaliers, Raptors, and Nets. Plus, more Zach LaVine trade chatter and reaction to Russ coming off the bench for the new-look Clippers. Heat (0:38) Hawks (14:45) Knicks (22:13) Cavs (32:44) Raptors (40:12) Nets (50:11) Russell Westbrook to come off of the bench for the Clippers (1:02:15) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zach and ESPN's Kevin Pelton discuss the skirmish between Minnesota and Golden State, the title chances for the Timberwolves, fake Zach LaVine trades, and the upside for the Thunder. Then Bleacher Report's Mo Dakhil joins to review some rookies.   The fracas between the Twolves and Warriors (1:13) Worry level for the Warriors (4:36) Gobert's quotes on Draymond (9:25) Minnesota's hot start (13:06) Are the Twolves title contenders? (15:35) Fake Zach LaVine trades (27:13) Optimism in OKC...

Zach and The Ringer's Howard Beck discuss the Sixers' success without James Harden and the Clippers' struggles to find their footing with him. Plus, surprise teams, a star in the making, and more. Philly looks great (2:10) Should the Sixers try to add another star this season? (10:03) Still feeling things out with Boston (26:45) Gut check time for the Clippers (35:55) Warriors look like themselves again (49:55) Rockets are Top 5 in net rating (56:46) Alperen Sengun is a star in the...

Zach and ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk discuss James Harden's debut with the Clippers. Then ESPN's Tim MacMahon joins to assess some intrigue in the West. Harden's debut (4:28) Harden's passing (7:40) Impact of Plumlee injury (13:19) Clips showed glimpses but still a bit disjointed (16:50) Harden and Kawhi aren't a perfect fit (29:46) Don't evoke the lob word (32:15) Title contenders? (37:08) Tim MacMahon (40:02) Thoughts on Harden (40:47) Timberwolves winning with defense (44:53) State of...

Zach and Steve Jones, Jr. of The Dunker Spot discuss Victor Wembanyama's breakout game against Phoenix, the repercussions of the James Harden trade in both Philly and LA, and then go rapid-fire around the early NBA landscape.  Wembanyama's coming out party (1:11) Early takeaways on Phoenix (10:51) Mavs'4-0 start (16:11) Thoughts on Minnesota (20:53) Harden's fit in LA (22:25) Lakers getting defensive effort from Reddish and Wood (32:50) Sixers look good so far (35:36) Rapid Fire...

Zach and ESPN's Bobby Marks discuss the many layers of the Clippers trade for James Harden. Terms of the trade (2:48) Both teams will think they won this (6:08) Clippers knew they needed more to contend (8:31) Clippers could not make this deal a year from now (14:32) This is a last chance for everyone involved (23:03) Clippers are must see TV (26:09) How do Clippers match up with the top teams in the West? (33:01) On CP3 coming off the bench for the Warriors (41:19) Was the price...