The Pure Hoops Quick Hitters

The Boston Celtics made news last week in announcing that Danny Ainge was retiring as President of Basketball Operations. More curiously, they announced Head Coach Brad Stevens is leaving the bench to take over for Ainge in the front office. Stadium Basketball Insider Jeff Goodman, however, speculates that Brad may not stay in the role long, foreseeing a return to coaching in the NBA. Goodman tells our Otto Strong and Aaron Berlin one potential landing spot is an area of the country Stevens is very familiar with.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Stadium Basketball Analyst Jeff Goodman broke the story of Mike Krzyzewski retiring as head coach of Duke at the end of the 2021-22 season, with Blue Devils Associate Head Coach Jon Scheyer tabbed to replace him. Goodman tells our Aaron Berlin and Otto Strong that with Coach K leaving, Duke may not have the same allure, but will remain a prize jewel among college coaching jobs. Goodman also gives his thoughts on what Scheyer would need to accomplish to be considered a success as "the guy who replaced the guy."

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks dominated the New York Knicks in his first playoff series and torched the top seeded Philadelphia 76ers in game one of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. He may be the smallest player on the court, but he packs a lot of "swag" into his 6'1" frame.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Now that Celtics President Danny Ainge has left the building and former coach Brad Stevens is the new team President, the first order of business is hiring a new head coach. There are a number of intriguing names out there, some with Boston ties. Veteran NBA journalist Steve Bulpett, who has covered and followed the Celtics since the 1980s joins King McClure and Bruce Bernstein (subbing in for Monica McNutt) to discuss which direction the team could go with its next head coach.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

There have been many instances of poor behavior by basketball fans in Philly, New York, and Boston. The players are rightly upset and management is dealing quite harshly with the bad actors. Mike Wise and Bruce Bernstein share stories of their own close encounters with unruly fans.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

TJ Macias of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram joined our Otto Strong and Aaron Berlin this week to discuss the Dallas Mavericks and their playoff series with the Los Angeles Clippers. With Luka Doncic struggling with a neck strain issue, Macias and our hosts discuss if it might make good strategic sense for the Mavs to sit their superstar for Game 5.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nekias Duncan of BasketballNews.com and the co-host of "The Dunkers Spot" podcast is scratching his head over the way the LA Clippers are playing defense against Luka Doncic and the Mavericks. As Luka Doncic picks apart LA's defense at will, Nekias wonders if coach Ty Lue and his staff will realize that playing two small guards at the same time is a recipe for disaster.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Whether the Los Angeles Lakers repeat as NBA Champions or not, they will have some difficult decisions to make in the offseason. Jovan Buha of The Athletic and The Forum Club podcast points out to our Otto Strong and Aaron Berlin that half of their main rotation guys will be free agents and the team will be up against the luxury tax again. Buha goes on to tell us which of those guys will be the priority for L.A. and which of them will need to have a big postseason to get the kind of money they're asking for. Buha and the guys also discuss if the bill is finally coming due on the Anthony Davis trade and if it was worth it.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Atlanta's Trae Young marched into Madison Square Garden on Sunday and torched the Knicks in front of 15,000 excited New York fans. And after he hit the game winner with less than one second to play, he put an exclamation point on his performance by "shushing" the fans.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

@AriIvory of Bleacher Report and "HighlightHER" joins Monica McNutt & King McClure for a discussion of the NY Liberty's fast start and the historic triple double performance of Sabrina Ionescu.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.