Happy Hour Sports Talk

Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared rank which teams in the NBA Playoffs have the most cause for concern moving forward and rank them in regard to PANIC levels (3:00). They breakdown each matchup as follows:

(5:18) - Nuggets/Blazers - Can the Blazers continue to contain Jokic and will Denver’s secondary scorers step up?

(12:54) - Clippers/Mavericks - Is Kawhi playing his best basketball ever? Are the Mavericks toast without Luka?

(21:57) - Lakers/Suns - Can Lebron shoulder the load without Anthony Davis?

(29:11) - Jazz/Grizzlies - Are the Grizzlies outmatched and still a year or two away as contenders?

(32:43) - What’s going on with NBA fans?

(38:24) - 76ers/Washington - Is Embiid’s knee injury cause for concern?

(41:58) - Nets/Celtics - Sitting atop the panic meter is Boston, where do they go from here?

(45:50) - Bucks/Heat - Is Jrue Holiday the weapon the Bucks have needed to get over the hump?

(48:26) - Knicks/Hawks - What adjustments do the Knicks have to make to attack the Hawks more effectively?

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared break down each of the first round matchups in the NBA Playoffs and identify areas of improvement for each squad. Starting in the Western Conference, what gave Memphis the edge over Utah in Game 1 (3:41)? What will it take for Denver to even the series against Portland (14:30)? Is Doncic better than the entire Clippers roster and what adjustments do the Clippers need to make (20:49)? Do the Lakers have a big man rotation problem and should we be worried about Lebron James (32:54)? Heading to the Eastern Conference, does Westbrook need to do more for Washington to have a chance (41:38)? Is the Big 3 in Brooklyn bored or just simply disinterested (43:26)? Does Jrue Holiday make Milwaukee a contender because of his defensive prowess (51:01)? Do the New York Knicks have another gear and will Julius Randle bounce back (1:01:01)?

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared look at each NBA award given and analyze possible candidates for them. Have the plethora of injuries that have plagued the NBA this year made the award selection process more or less competitive (3:30)? The awards are broken down as follows:

ROTY - Who wins the two-man race between Lamelo Ball and Anthony Edwards? (7:40)

6th-Man - Should points scored be valued more than any other statistics? (17:45)

MIP - Is Julius Randle the runaway favourite for the award? (26:04)

COY - Does the award have to go to the coach of a top 4 team in the standings? (34:56)

DPOY - Do voters prefer the impact big men have defensively over the versatility of wing players? (43:14)

MVP - Is Nikola Jokic the obvious winner? Does Chris Paul or Steph Curry have a shot? (52:31)

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared take a deep dive into the NBA Play-In tournament structure (6:52) and discuss which teams are primed to have the deepest run into the playoffs. Questions are posed about whether the tournament promotes tanking (9:55) or a competitiveness culture in the last week of the season (11:38). Ranking of teams begins with the LA Lakers vs Golden State Warriors and a possible play-in game between them (17:59) and continues with discussion about whether a 7th or 8th seed can actually win in a playoff series (21:25). In Portland, should Terry Stotts get fired if the Blazers don’t win the first round series (25:13)? Does Washington have a chance to make some noise (28:17)? Are the Hornets too injury riddled to make a legitimate run (33:18)? Also, Mark and Jared theorize about what is wrong with the Boston Celtics (35:25), what is giving Washington their strength (38:28), who the better squad is between Memphis and San Antonio (39:20), and whether the Pacers have what it takes to make it out of the tournament (49:57). Plus, play-in Predictions (54:23)!

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared welcome back “Colleague Brandon” to recap and analyze who the biggest winners were as well as which franchises missed the mark on draft weekend. Beginning with, in their opinions, the winning franchises:

Cleveland Browns - Why did Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah fall? Does the league have more information than the normal consumer? (6:30)

Chicago Bears - Will Justin Fields bring hope to Chicago? (10:48)

LA Chargers - Does Rashawn Slater push Herbert into top 10 QB contention? (19:57)

Dallas Cowboys - Will picking 6 defensive players translate to a more consistent defense? (22:52)

New York Jets - Did the Jets finally follow the correct rebuild blueprint? (27:37)

Detroit Lions - With the most on-brand draft, did Dan Campbell win his first draft? (32:03)

Moving on with the franchises the missed the mark:

Houston Texans - Why draft a QB with so many more glaring needs? (40.56)

Los Angeles Rams - Wil Tutu Atwell translate into a quality starter at receiver? (43:47)

Pittsburgh Steelers - Will Najee Harris make-up for the spotty offensive line? (47:09)

Jacksonville Jaguars - Can Urban Meyer find spots for all the speed he drafted? (51:14)

Green Bay Packers - Can playoff contention continue without addressing their two biggest needs? (54:50)

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared are joined once again by “Colleague Brandon” where the three compete in a snake-style mock draft. Join them in a fun, UNCUT episode, filled with hot takes and bold predictions. Who had the most right? Let them know and join the conversation!!

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared invite their first guest on the show, “Colleague Brandon”! The three dive deep into NFL draft week and answer a barrage of questions including: How is the 2021 NFL draft unique (4:28)? Is the best strategy to draft for need or best available (9:30)? Are there any blue chip players in this year’s draft (11:57)? Does the media control players’ draft stock or are they trying to catch up to the teams (15:24)? Who’s a late first round QB steal (17:49)? Who’s the forgotten player in the field (19:45)? Will there be a TE drafted in the top five picks (22:08)? What positions shouldn’t be drafted early (23:22)? What to expect outside the top 5 (26:26)? What is the case against drafting WR early (27:50)? Pitts vs Swell - who do you take first (36:50)? Will there be a late run on defensive players (42:22)? Also, they discuss the state of the LB and CB positions (45:02).

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared discuss Steph Curry and his recent disembodiment of the NBA on his way to MVP contention. Is this the best stretch of his career (2:40)? They also banter about the benefits and drawbacks of the new NBA play-in game, along with Mark Cuban’s comments about its validity (7:00). Then, Mark and Jared dive deep into their final installment of the NBA Franchise GOAT discussion with the remaining teams:

Sacramento Kings (also answering questions about whether a 12-team league and the variance in number of teams early in the NBA affects competitive parity and why triple doubles are more prevalent in today’s NBA) (11:08)

Washington Wizards/Bullets (23:57)

San Antonio Spurs (28:11)

Toronto Raptors (38:35)

Utah Jazz (47:40)

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared discuss some of the frustrations associated with COVID-19 and where we fit moving forward. Following that, Part IV of their NBA Franchise GOAT conversation continues with the following teams:

New Orleans Pelicans (5:43)

New York Knicks (12:27)

Orlando Magic (23:15)

OKC Thunder/Seattle Supersonics (28:21)

Philadelphia 76ers (37:34) 

Phoenix Suns (44:45)

Does the NBA MVP vote lean toward international players? (47:20)

Portland Trail Blazers (49:16)

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Happy Hour Sports Talk’s Mark and Jared discuss Deshaun Watson and whether or not the NFL should take action against his recent 22 counts of sexual assault/harrassment (2:30). Following that, Part III of their NBA Franchise GOAT conversation continues with the following teams:

LA Lakers (9:45)

ALL time GOATs (28:58)

Milwaukee Bucks (34:59)

Miami Heat (45:00)

Minnesota Timberwolves (52:00)

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