Tom and Amin discuss Chauncey Billups' glowing comments about Kyrie Irving, the subtle differences between skill, talent and IQ, the latest addition the MVP conversation, Point Guard tiers, the plight of Russell Westbrook, and finally a walk down memory lane to the magical 90-91 Denver Nuggets squad.
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The Most Skilled Podcast Ever Recorded

A podcast where award-winning NBA writer Tom Haberstroh finds things in basketball and beyond with his friends.  

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You might have seen the Patrick Mahomes stat that went viral this week. The man behind that stat, , joins us this week at The Finder.  An old colleague from the ESPN days, the whip-smart proprietor of Neil’s Substack talks about using numbers to do premium storytelling, his final days at the now-defunct The Messenger, Denver’s altitude as a superpower, the full-circle response to his “infamous” Andrew Wiggins story,  reimagining the Kobe Bryant clutch debate, his recent post on an NBA efficiency paradox and what he learned while working in the Atlanta Hawks’ basketball operations. Really great to catch up with Paine. Follow my lead and subscribe to his Substack!   

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The Finder pod: Analytics storyteller Neil Paine

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After Kyrie Irving dropped 44 on the red-hot Knicks, we had to run it back with Brandon Payne. Stephen Curry’s longtime trainer Brandon Payne couldn’t wait to talk about Irving’s array of shot-making, creativity and space creation. What struck me about Irving is how unique his moves are. Totally unpredictable. No one else is like him. On Friday we ran thr…

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Victor Wembanyama celebrated his 20th birthday by melting candles and melting minds on Thursday. 27 points, 9 rebounds and 5 blocks in just 26 minutes against Milwaukee Bucks’ frontline of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez. The numbers don’t do his performance justice. The behind-the-back And-1 dunk in transition on Brook Lopez. The backdoor cut that j…

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Stephen Curry dropped 36 points on Tuesday night against Orlando with a couple shots that made its way through socials.  Since y’all seemed to love the Steph moonball video we did, I sent out the Brandon Payne bat signal. He’s been Stephen Curry’s skills trainer and shot guru for Curry for years. We went through each and every one of Curry’s 12 makes. Slow…

One of my favorite people (and a favorite to so many others in the NBA universe), my friend Travonne “Tray” Edwards joins the pod at a very … let’s say transitional time in my life.  The copywriter at top ad agency Weiden-Kennedy / author of two books / confidante to NBA stars / Count The Dings co-founder / social media expert / Compton native / amazing teammate helps me untangle the web of emotions following my mother’s recent death.  First, the social media guru explains the memification of the Mexico aliens and how to game the Twitter/X/Instagram system. We ask: is it actually shameful to pay for Twitter Blue?  Then we get to the heavy stuff. The text he sent me after my mom died. Grief. Loss. Childhood trauma. Forgiveness and what it was like to have a mom who was 14. The difference between a mom and Mom. Gratitude. Spiritual healing. A lot. Then he breaks some big news about Team USA. As he texted me after, “it’s not a pod it’s a open convo.” Enjoy. And go follow Tray. Thank you to super producer Anthony Mayes. 

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.tomthefinder.com/subscribe

The Most Skilled Podcast Ever Recorded

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