Ben Golliver and Michael Pina take a look at the NBA's best and worst contracts after the trade deadline and the round of buyout agreements. Who is delivering the most value in the league this year? Should LeBron James be the automatic No. 1? Or should all-stars on rookie deals like Luka Doncic and Zion Williamson top the list? Which veteran all-stars are delivering max production on non-max deals and which former second-round picks are way outperforming their contracts? On the flip side, now that guys like Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond have been bought out, which deals are the league's most onerous? Would you rather have John Wall, Russell Westbrook or Kevin Love? Does Klay Thompson have to be mentioned? How does Tobias Harris, who has had an awesome season, factor into this conversation? 

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Ben Golliver and Michael Pina analyze the latest buyout moves, including LaMarcus Aldridge to the Brooklyn Nets and Andre Drummond to the Los Angeles Lakers. What roles will Aldridge and Drummond play in the postseason? Which factors influenced their decisions? Does the recent acceleration of buyouts harm small-market teams? Should the NBA institute rules governing buyouts to help limit the flow of veteran players to a select number of contenders? From there, Ben and Michael discuss whether two-way wings were the real winners of the trade deadline before digging into the NBA's tank race. Is OKC headed for a draft lottery dream after shutting down Al Horford? Who needs the number one pick the most? Which team deserves the top pick? The guys close with a look at the MVP race and how best to pitch Nikola Jokic's candidacy to voters. 

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Ben Golliver and Michael Pina react to Thursday's NBA trade deadline, handing out their grades for a busier-than-expected day and running through the winners and losers. Were the Orlando Magic smart for pulling the plug? How do Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier fit in their new homes? Which aspiring contenders in the West made moves that could tilt the title chase? Will the Miami Heat's many new additions boost them higher in the East standings? Was anyone a bigger loser than the Houston Rockets? Did the Chicago Bulls make a sneaky good play by adding Daniel Theis? Should the Raptors have lowered their asking price to get a Kyle Lowry trade done or was grabbing Gary Trent Jr. enough? Will Portland be willing to pay up to keep Norman Powell or is this a short-term rental only? Will Victor Oladipo's short Houston tenure turn into another example of Player Tanking? 

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Ben Golliver and Michael Pina dig into a depressing weekend of NBA injury news concerning LeBron James and LaMelo Ball. How will the Lakers manage without LeBron James and how far will they slide in the standings? Does the high ankle sprain end his MVP pursuit, and which players are the new favorites? Will top teams try to tank down the stretch to avoid the Lakers in the playoffs? From there, Ben and Michael pay a quick tribute to Ball's sensational rookie year by listing their favorite moments and ranking him compared to his fellow under-23 playmakers. The guys close with a discussion of Aaron Gordon's reported trade request and ponder a listener's question about whether the NBA should seek better competitive balance by mandating that each team can only have one all-star or one player on a max contract.

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Ben Golliver and Michael Pina open with an extended discussion of the Milwaukee Bucks' trade with the Houston Rockets for P.J. Tucker. How does Tucker fit with Milwaukee on offense and defense? Was the price fair? Does Milwaukee have a shot at the No. 1 seed? From there, the guys check in on the Rockets' rebuilding plans and the Miami Heat's trade for Trevor Ariza. Do the Rockets have more deadline moves coming? What does their future hold with Victor Oladipo? How much does Ariza have left in the tank? The guys close with a preview of the top NBA prospects in the NCAA tournament and a look back at the relative success of guards and big men selected near the top of recent drafts. How good does a big need to be these days to warrant a top-five selection given the NBA's evolving style of play? 

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Ben Golliver is joined by special guest Jack McCallum, a former NBA writer at Sports Illustrated, to discuss season two of his podcast series: "The Dream Team Tapes: Kobe, LeBron and The Redeem Team." What were Jack's first impressions of covering a young Kobe Bryant and a young LeBron James? How did Jack track down Phil Jackson for an interview about Bryant? Who emerged as the alpha dog of the 2008 USA Basketball team? Were they destined to win gold or is that revisionist history? Would the original Dream Team beat the 2008 and 2012 Olympic teams? Why was Mike Krzyzewski the right coach for the job? Ben and Jack close by discussing Jerry Colangelo's role as one of basketball's great powerbrokers and then run down the 2021 Hall of Fame finalists to decide which players deserve induction: Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce, Tim Hardaway, Ben Wallace, Chris Webber, Michael Cooper and Marques Johnson. 

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With little buzz building before the March 25 trade deadline, Ben Golliver and Michael Pina try to decide which bigger names should actually be moved. Ben makes the case for 10 players to be traded and Judge Pina renders his verdicts. Why are the Wizards clinging so desperately to Bradley Beal? Have the Raptors officially reached the point where they need to pull the plug on Kyle Lowry? Should Brooklyn cash in Spencer Dinwiddie for a piece that could help them win the title? Do the Sacramento Kings need to sell high on Harrison Barnes? Would anyone actually bite on Al Horford's contract? Is it time to free Nikola Vucevic from Orlando? Has Devonte Graham become expendable in Charlotte? Do Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram fit with Zion Williamson on the Pelicans? Who has more trade value: Victor Oladipo or Norman Powell?

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Ben Golliver and Michael Pina are back from the All-Star Break and ready to look ahead to the March 25 trade deadline. But first: they reflect on the one-year anniversary of the NBA's March 11, 2020, shutdown due to the pandemic. From there, they dig into Brooklyn's addition of Blake Griffin and ask whether LaMarcus Aldridge and Andre Drummond should become Nets too. What will Griffin bring to the table for Brooklyn? How should Aldridge's time in San Antonio be remembered? Ben and Michael then zoom back to discuss whether they expect an active trade deadline, and whether financial losses incurred during the pandemic will influence team decisions. Which teams should be buyers, which teams should be sellers and which teams really, really need to make a move? They close with thoughts on Meyers Leonard's $50,000 fine for using an anti-Semitic slur and whether this will mark the end of his NBA career. 

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Ben Golliver and Michael Pina recap the 2021 NBA All-Star Weekend by answering 20 burning questions. Does the Skills Challenge need to be fixed or dumped? Was Stephen Curry's Three-Point Contest title the highlight of the night? What grade did the Slam Dunk Contest deserve? Did Anfernee Simons deserve to win? Was the Dunk Contest's new final round format a success? How big of a disaster was the contact tracing news about Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons? What were the three most memorable moments of the All-Star Game? Was Giannis Antetokounmpo a deserving ASG MVP selection or did Damian Lillard and Stephen Curry get snubbed? What will next year's All-Star Game look like? After Ben and Michael selected their own All-Star teams last week, whose group performed better on Sunday? Most importantly, was the All-Star Game worth doing this year despite the player complaints?

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Ben Golliver and Michael Pina dig into the Utah Jazz's extended criticism of the officiating during their loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday. Are the refs out to get the Jazz? Do their complaints about the officiating reflect frustration over the skepticism they face over their playoff chances? Do these comments deserve substantial fines and will they come back to haunt Utah? From there, Ben and Michael name their first-half MVPs, discuss Lloyd Pierce's firing and conclude that the entire league is ready for a break. Which players (LeBron James) and coaches (Chris Finch) need the break more than anyone else? To close, Ben and Michael preview the Slam Dunk Contest field -- Obi Toppin, Anfernee Simons and Cassius Stanley -- before making their picks for the Skills Challenge, Three-Point Contest, Slam Dunk Contest and All-Star Game MVP. 

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