On episode 289 of The Atlantic Files, Tyler Herro says he's glad Portland didn't want him and his goal is to become untouchable, the NBA preseason starts with some new faces and new drama already beginning, we also make our final season predictions, plus much more!

Tyler Herro had to sit through his name getting thrown around in every trade rumor imaginable for the last couple of seasons. Damian Lillard reportedly wasn't going to move anywhere unless Herro was involved. Now that he remains in Miami and Lillard moved to Milwaukee, Herro wants to become untouchable so that he's never part of trade talks again. The question is whether or not that's an attainable level for him.

The NBA preseason has kicked off which means media days have already come and gone. We go over some of the top headlines from media day and the preseason as well as talk about some of our favorite players so far. Let's also not forget that James Harden still hasn't been traded to the Philadelphia 76ers are still in a state of flux.

Finally, we talk about the NBA GM survey where they answer a bunch of questions from who they think will the NBA Finals down to who they think will be MVP, Rookie of the Year, and much more.

Timecodes:

00:00:00 Intro

00:02:12 Fantasy Football talk: Week 5

00:15:10 Tyler Herro wants to be untouchable

00:27:08 NBA Preseason and media days

00:43:05 NBA General Manager poll and season predictions

00:59:24 Outro

On episode 288 of The Atlantic Files, Damian Lillard is traded to the Milwaukee Bucks and joins Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday heads to the Boston Celtics, we break down all of the trade pieces, and then we put together all of our divisional previews for one big preview episode!

Finally, we get a resolution to the Damian Lillard saga that has gone on for months. He's on his way to join Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks to form a super-duo. Question marks still exist with this team's health like that of Khris Middleton. Also, the team as a whole is getting older and older, so their window to win another championship is very short. Will the new coach lead them back to the promised land?

Another side of the trade was moving Jrue Holiday to Portland who then was moved to Boston. The Trail Blazers got some more assets out of it while Holiday moved to another Eastern Conference contender. His fit in Boston is perfect as he replaces the role that Marcus Smart vacated. With the addition of Holiday, however, that improves the offense in ways that Smart was unable to.

To wrap up this week's episode, we stitched together all of our divisional previews from the past six weeks to bring one big preview episode. Let us know what you think of each division and who you have winning each one to make the playoffs this year!

Timecodes:

00:01:51 - Damian Lillard traded to Milwaukee

00:10:40 - Jrue Holiday traded to Boston

00:20:15 - 2023-24 NBA Central Division preview

00:31:44 - 2023-24 NBA Atlantic Division preview

00:42:00 - 2023-24 NBA Southeast Division preview

01:01:25 - 2023-24 NBA Pacific Division preview

01:10:55 - 2023-24 NBA Northwest Division preview

01:24:48 - 2023-24 NBA Southwest Division preview

This week, on episode 287 of The Atlantic Files, reportedly, the Toronto Raptors are the frontrunners to land Damian Lillard all of a sudden, Buddy Hield is now on the trade block with the Dallas Mavericks rumored as the frontrunners, and we finish our divisional preview series with the Atlantic Division.

Damian Lillard's trade sage continues but more and more teams keep entering the mix. Now, all of a sudden, the Toronto Raptors are the frontrunners to land the superstar guard. What does that mean for the rest of the league and especially the Miami Heat?! We give our thoughts on whether or not he'll actually end up in Canada or if it's just a smokescreen before he lands in Miami.

Speaking of trades, Buddy Hield is now firmly on the trade block. The Indiana Pacers are shopping him and he's open to a trade to a place where he can sign an extension. Right now, the Dallas Mavericks are the best fit, but it's unclear whether they have the pieces that the Pacers truly want. We talk about where he should go and if he'll actually find a new home before the season starts.

Finally, we wrap up our divisional preview series by taking a look at the Atlantic Division. We give our thoughts on all of the deals that went down and which Atlantic team might surprise everyone. With this division, it brings our divisional preview series to an end and we will be posting all of our previews stitched together into one big preview episode later on!

Timecodes:

00:00:00 Intro

00:04:21 Dennis sets a Christmas scene

00:07:10 New Year Gym struggles

00:12:08 Fantasy Football corner: Week 3

00:26:32 Toronto is the frontrunner for Damian Lillard

00:49:37 Buddy Hield is on the trading block

01:10:09 Atlantic Division Preview

01:21:08 Outro

This week, on episode 286 of The Atlantic Files, Kelly Oubre Jr. is signing a one-year deal with the Sixers, James Harden trade talks were ended by the Clippers and not the 76ers, we continue our divisional preview series with the Central Division, the NBA has established new resting rules for star players, and we bring back our fantasy basketball and football corner!

Daryl Morey and the 76ers actually made a roster move that wasn't trading James Harden. Kelly Oubre Jr. is joining the team on a one-year deal! We're still not exactly sure why Oubre wasn't signed by any other teams until now, but it's a huge pickup for a team that's in limbo with one of their superstars.

Speaking of James Harden, news came out that the trade talks were actually ended by the Clippers. Brian Windhorst spoke about how the Clippers were the ones moving on after the trade talks hit a stalemate. Originally, the drama began because it was believed that Morey finished the negotiations. Now, the shoe is on the other foot and we haven't heard from Harden since then.

The NBA also established new rules in regard to resting players throughout the regular season. We'll, hopefully, begin to see more and more stars playing on national TV and in away games. The issue becomes how the league will actually enforce all of these rules and how they'll make sure that the injuries listed are real.

Finally, we continue our divisional preview series for the 2023-24 season. The Central Division is the next one on the list before our specialty next week. Will Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks win the division again or will Cleveland take another step up with their young core and Donovan Mitchell?

Timecodes:

00:00:00 Intro

00:02:15 Fantasy Football Corner: Week 2

00:17:37 Kelly Oubre Jr signs with Sixers

00:32:21 Clippers end trade talks for James Harden

00:36:27 New resting rules in effect in the NBA

00:46:50 NBA Central division preview

00:58:48 Outro

This week, on episode 285 of The Atlantic Files, Team USA fails to medal at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Kevin Porter Jr. gets in trouble with the law, Damian Lillard now says he'd join training camp for any team, and we preview the Southeast Division for the upcoming NBA season.

After the controversial comments from Noah Lyles about the NBA, Team USA couldn't turn those words into fuel for the 2023 FIBA World Cup. The team lost to Germany in the semifinal and then suffered another loss to Canada in the third-place game. They failed to meet expectations and the race to build the best team for the Olympics is now on.

Kevin Porter Jr. has found himself in very hot water after being arrested on assault charges. Right now, everything is alleged before the court cases take place. The NBA, however, could bring down some pretty hard sanctions when it's all said and done because of the issues off of the court for Miles Bridges. His NBA career is now in jeopardy let alone his future with the Houston Rockets.

Finally, we preview the Southeast Division for the upcoming NBA season. Damian Lillard to the Miami Heat is still a possibility, but the rest of the division has some rising rosters. Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks look to improve with a full season of Quin Snyder at the helm and the Orlando Magic are getting better every day as their young stars improved throughout the offseason.

Timecodes:

00:00:00 Intro

00:03:31 Fantasy Football Corner: Week 1 recap

00:21:36 Team USA fails to medal at 2023 FIBA World Cup

00:36:32 Kevin Porter Jr. arrested

00:50:48 NBA Southeast Division Preview

01:10:38 Outro

On episode 284 of The Atlantic Files, Team USA suffers their first loss to Lithuania in the 2023 FIBA World Cup but then beat the brakes off of Italy, we continue our divisional previews for the 2023-24 NBA season with the Pacific division, and the weird happenings surrounding now-retired NBA ref Eric Lewis.

The 2023 FIBA World Cup is heating up as the semifinals are shaping up. Team USA lost their first game of the tournament as they got beat down by Lithuania but then turned around and beat down Italy. This could have poked the bear in the USA team or they could now be used to the physicality of the international style of play. Will they be able to beat Germany in the semifinal and go on to win gold?

In case you haven't heard about it, former NBA referee, Eric Lewis, was under investigation for some suspicious social media use. There seemed to be a burner account only replying to tweets to defend the ref when people accused him of incredible bias towards the Boston Celtics. In a surprising move, he retired, and all of a sudden the investigation stopped. Something doesn't seem right...

Finally, we continued our divisional preview series with the entertaining Pacific Division. Which team will take a hit and will the division all finish with winning records again next season? The Los Angeles Lakers seem primed to improve while the Phoenix Suns brought in some crazy offensive firepower! We dive into our predictions and talk about how the division will shake out.

Timecodes:

00:00 Intro

03:30 Team USA loses to Lithuania, beats Italy

18:27 Referee Eric Lewis retires to avoid investigation

30:18 2023-24 NBA Pacific Division Preview

40:10 Outro

On episode 283 of The Atlantic Files, James Harden gets fined for his comments about Daryl Morey, we continue our divisional previews with the Northwest Division, France gets ousted in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Evan Turner hints at the refs being biased in the NBA Playoffs, and we go through the second half of Dennis' fantasy basketball rankings.

James Harden was fined $100k for saying that he would never play for the Sixers as long as Daryl Morey is employed there. While his plan to tell the audience that in China was genius, he still looks like an idiot after the dust has pretty much settled from everything.

Rudy Gobert and Team France get eliminated after just two pool play games. They lost to both Canada and Latvia without Kristaps Porzingis in back to back games and they'll head home after being one of the top teams in the tournament. Sad day for France fans.

Evan Turner made an appearance on Gilbert Arenas' podcast and talked about their 2012 Playoff matchup against the Boston Celtics. He said that Elton Brand told him they would have to win by 15 just to win by one which meant they needed to make sure the refs had no say in who won. Confirming a lot of beliefs that people had about the officiating.

Finally, we previewed the Northwest Division with the reigning NBA Champs. Do you think they'll repeat? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!

timecodes:

00:00:00 Intro

00:11:35 James Harden fined 100k

00:20:39 France eliminated from 2023 FIBA World Cup

00:31:25 Evan Turner on Gilbert Arenas' podcast

00:44:30 NBA Northwest Division preview

00:58:54 outro

In episode 282 of The Atlantic Files, James Harden calls Daryl Morey a liar and won't play for him, Daryl Morey isn't surprised and stands his ground, the 2023 FIBA World Cup starts soon, we do our first divisional preview starting with the Southwest division, Dennis gives his fantasy basketball rankings for points leagues, and more!

James Harden was on tour in China with Adidas and fielded questions after an event where he took the chance to throw some shots at Daryl Morey. He called Morey a liar and said that he will not play for a franchise that Morey is a part of and he repeated a second time to make sure everyone understood. He obviously knew his audience and that people in China aren't big fans of Morey. This moves the process to a whole new level of confusing.

The 2023 FIBA World Cup starts in a couple of weeks so we look at some of the rosters of the countries that are participating. We give our thoughts on the top rosters and the teams that have the best chance of taking home the gold.

Then, we kick off our divisional preview series as we take a look at the upcoming season for the Southwest Division. The Memphis Grizzlies won't have Ja Morant for a chunk of the season and the Houston Rockets improved greatly. Will the New Orleans Pelicans finally stay healthy and realize their potential, or will they tank?

Finally, our very own Dennis Clausen put out his rankings for the 2023-24 fantasy basketball season. The rankings are geared toward points leagues so we discuss the top 30 players and whether or not we agree or think others deserve the spot instead.

Timecodes:

00:00:00 Intro

00:06:54 James Harden calls Daryl Morey a liar

00:34:13 2023 FIBA World Cup thoughts

00:51:32 2023-24 Southwest division preview

01:16:34 Dennis's 2023-24 fantasy basketball points rankings

01:43:15 Outro

On episode 280 of The Atlantic Files, Jaylen Brown gets a supermax extension from the Boston Celtics, Mikal Bridges hypes up Ben Simmons like many have done before, Donovan Mitchell apparently won't stay in Cleveland, we discuss the top rookies for redraft and fantasy basketball leagues, and we play the NBA grid game!

Jaylen Brown gets a whole boatload of money from the Celtics to go with a five-year extension. Now, the debate is whether or not he can produce enough to match the amount of money he's making. Some don't even think he's the second-best player on his team!

Mikal Bridges went on Paul George's podcast and talked about Ben Simmons and where the team's mindset is at in regard to getting him back on the court. Bridges hyped up Simmons' attitude and his work ethic heading into this season while he said that Simmons was actually the one talking the most in their team group chat. Will this turn into yet another hype reel that doesn't turn into any real production?

Now, there are reports flying around that Donovan Mitchell won't be staying in Cleveland longer than his current contract. His eyes are already set on another city apparently and the team would be smart to just trade him away to get something for him. Should they keep him and try to convince him to stay instead?

Finally, we discuss the top rookies heading into this season for fantasy basketball. We talk about both redraft and dynasty leagues and the best rookies to look out for if you happen to be participating in either one this year!

Timestamps:

00:00:00 Intro

00:03:07 Jaylen Brown gets the Supermax from the Boston Celtics

00:11:58 Mikal Bridges hypes up Ben Simmons

00:24:18 Donovan Mitchell won't stay in Cleveland?

00:33:31 Top fantasy basketball rookies for redraft leagues

00:47:28 Top fantasy basketball rookies for dynasty leagues

00:59:28 The NBA Grid game!

01:14:22 Outro

Joel Embiid said that all he wants to do is win a championship in an interview with Mav Carter. The issue is that he also said whether it's in Philly or somewhere else, he wants to win. That sent everyone in Philadelphia into a frenzy because he even hinted at the idea of wanting out. Embiid then took to Twitter to say that it was actually all a troll job. Is anyone believing this?

NBA Summer League has come and gone, so there are winners and losers coming out of it. Some prospects did very well and others didn't do so well. Who are your winners and losers and do they line up with ours?

Then, we check in on the James Harden and Damian Lillard situations. Both star guards are still on the same teams and they aren't seemingly moving any time soon. They both only want to go to one team, but that doesn't help either one of their cases. Which one will be traded first and will either one go to the team they really want?

Finally, we take a look at all of the remaining free agents. We talk about where they should go and how much money they could end up signing for. That includes players like Christian Wood, PJ Washington, and Kelly Oubre Jr.

Timecodes:

00:00:00 Intro

00:06:05 NBA Summer league winners and losers

00:45:42 Joel Embiid's championship comments

01:03:27 Damian Lillard and James Harden still not traded

01:13:22 Remaining NBA Free agents

01:24:19 Outro