Hey guys, I’m so excited about this episode. We jump into a bunch of fascinating topics in and around the NBA, as well as the “outside world.” If you’re on TikTok or Youtube, I highly recommend you subscribe to see what I’m doing there. There’s a ton of cool BASKETBALLWEATHER shit going on on those platforms. Have a great week. ❤️, - Allen

TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@basketballweather

Youtube: www.youtube.com/@allen_landver

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/allen-landver-42380a5a/

Chapter Highlights

Intro Navigating Politics and Personal Views

05:58 Media Influence and Information Leaks in the NBA, and beyond

09:07 Aging Politicians and Power Dynamics

18:03 The Importance of Local Fandom in Sports

36:19 Chris Paul's Future in the NBA

39:20 Relegation and Competition in Basketball

44:11 The Role of Media in Shaping NBA Narratives

51:10 The Future of the NBA and Tech Companies' Influence

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We start with the Dylan Brooks trade. Was that the beginning of the end for the Memphis Grizzlies? Then we explore the importance of toughness in the NBA, and the broader context of player empowerment and contract dynamics in the league. Also the the psychological aspects of coaching, the expectations placed on players like Austin Reaves, and the Timberwolves' success as a case study in effective team building.

Chapters

00:00 The Dylan Brooks Trade: A Turning Point for the Grizzlies

03:00 Assessing Team Toughness and Player Value

06:02 The Ja Morant Dilemma: Availability and Impact

09:09 Team Discipline and Culture: The Grizzlies' Challenges

12:07 Future Decisions: Rebuilding or Retaining the Core

14:52 Weak Link Theory: Rethinking Team Construction

23:12 Team Building Challenges in the NBA

28:51 The Dynamics of Player Relationships

30:42 Coaching Decisions and their Impact

33:45 JJ Reddick's Coaching Growth

37:33 Austin Reaves and Playoff Performance

41:57 The Minnesota Timberwolves' Surprising Strength

44:46 Lakers' Future: LeBron's Contract and Team Dynamics

46:57 Giant Contracts and Player Movement: The Giannis Dilemma

49:29 Contracts in the NBA: Fairness and Player Rights

53:14 The Impact of Player Movement on the League

57:19 The Future of Trades in the NBA: A Chaotic Landscape

More:

⁠basketballweather.substack.com⁠

TikTok: ⁠basketballweather⁠

IG: ⁠allen_landver

Benching one of your best players before the start of a playoff run when your team is trying to win a championship is... weird. So when Steve Kerr benched Jonathan Kuminga on the very last game of the regular season, was... he... a.... weirdo? We use that microscopic coaching decision to discuss the evolution of NBA coaching, team dynamics, vibes, money, and more.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Playoff Anticipation

01:05 Grizzlies' Playoff Performance

04:34 Assessing the Grizzlies' Core Players

06:50 The Unpredictability of the NBA

10:02 Oklahoma City's Future

14:00 Building a Championship Team

16:57 Coaching Dynamics in the NBA

19:57 The Evolution of NBA Coaching

22:58 Shifting Dynamics in Player-Coach Relationships

26:00 The Rise of the Oklahoma City Thunder

30:08 Warriors vs. Thunder: A Clash of Generations

34:00 Lakers and Timberwolves: Da fuck happened?

39:38 Timberwolves' Future and Expectations

40:55 Long-Term Planning in the NBA

42:49 Oklahoma City's Strategic Advantage

44:49 Kuminga's Bench Situation and Development

49:02 Warriors' Draft Decisions and Player Development

52:06 The Alchemy of Team Success

55:58 Closing Thoughts on NBA Strategies

More:

basketballweather.substack.com

TikTok: basketballweather

IG: allen_landver

The balance between offense and defense.

The dark art of defense gets much less screen time than the sexy three-point splashes and acrobatics of offense. But like a bewitching voodoo, operating underneath the surface, defense plays a major role in winning. We delve into this oft misunderstood and shadowy side of basketball, discussing the various ways defense impacts a game, and try to find some parallels to the real world.

More:

basketballweather.substack.com

TikTok: basketballweather

IG: allen_landver

Blindspots via the lens of the NBA Playoffs.

The NBA playoffs are so many things. Mostly, this NBA playoffs appears to be a referendum on teams who try and take short cuts. Adios, Matt Ishbia. The best teams like the OKC Thunder and Boston Celtics have been building their squads slowly but surely over years. And yet, talent might still reign suprreeme in the from of the LA Lakers, who have one again assembled a team on the fly in time for the playoffs. We get into all of it: Achilles Heels, the will to win, the secret weapon of winning teams, Kawhi Fucking Leonard.

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More: basketballweather.substack.com

IG: allen_landver

TikTok: @basketballweather

We start with a deep dive into the mercurial NBA career of Kevin Durant, and end up finding all kinds of hidden gems about the human need for stability, nostalgia, and the virtue to search our souls. We also dip into Kobe's clutch struggles, the desire we have for stability that we, as fans, project onto our superstars, Lebron's final chapter (aka Lebron 2.0), and so much more.

More Culture and Art via an NBA lens: basketballweather.substack.com

Find me on ⁠TikTok⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ ⁠Youtube⁠ ⁠LinkedIn

With the NBA playoffs on the horizon and beautiful competition on our shores, it’s tempting to think about what a sudden death format might feel like for the entire NBA season? NBA media extraordinaire Jarod Hector and I talked about a new format for the NBA, one where 2 NBA teams would be eliminated from the NBA at the end of each season, and sent to the G League to atone for their sins. Trigger warning: a conversation about capitalism occurs in this episode.

More Culture and Art via an NBA lens: basketballweather.substack.com

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Syd Field meets the NBA this week on BASKETBALLWEATHER. It’s not Being John Malkovich, but it’s not that far because NBA Trade season is the new Super Bowl. Why the NBA should do a better job at telling the trade season story, before it’s too late. We take a surgical look at the NBA regular season, reimagining it as a sweeping Three Act Story, complete with stars, co-stars, and even a little Syd Field! and come up with some fresh thinking that can breathe some narrative juice into the sport, before it’s too late!!!

We all just want to be Spike Lee — the Luca Doncic trade via the lens of fan culture.

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As fans, we can’t help it. We never want to grow up. We want to stay tapped into that thing that made us fans in the first place. For me, it was that first spark watching Kareem on my grandparent’s carpet in a small apartment on Curson Street. Unforgettable, and I’ve been a fan of the Lakers ever since. It’s human nature. As adults, we want to root for our teams as children do. We all want to be Spike Lee on the sideline screaming at the ref. We want to pretend like our teams, and the people who run them, are making the decisions that will always put us in a position to win. But is that really the way it works? Is that even fair to expect? Do we sorta have to grow up? We examine the Luka Doncic trade through the lens of fan culture.

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International basketball players are the best players in the NBA, but American audiences don’t seem to really care.

Writer/Performer/Filmmaker Allen Landver ("The Fan") and NBA writer Jarod Hector ("The Media") discuss the way that American audiences ignore the best international players in the league in favor of the old schoolers. You know, Lebron/Curry/Durant, or as they will be known forever: LCD. What does the resistance to international players say about the NBA, and what does it say about American culture in general?

Check out more of Allen's work via

basketballweather.substack.com

and Jarod Hector and the gang via

truehoop.com