Hardwood Knocks

Dan is joined by Matt Modderno (@MattModderno) from Bullets Forever and the Bleav in Wizards Podcast (@BleavinWizards) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Washington Wizards. They discuss the decision to give Bradley Beal EVERYTHING in free agency and whether he can have a bounce back year. From there, they get into Kristaps Porzingis and his fit with Beal, the development of Deni Avdija, Corey Kispert and Rui Hachimura, the ideal role for Kyle Kuzma, the rotation, over/under predictions and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:14 - The Bradley Beal decision 6:07 - Any concerns about Beal's 2021-22 season? 7:30 - Reflecting on the Will Barton and Monte Morris trade 10:31 - Kristaps Porzingis' impact/fit with Bradley Beal 17:03 - The fit and future of Kyle Kuzma 22:45: The Deni Avdija experience/His development 28:16 - What is Rui Hachimura? 31:58 - Development of Corey Kispert 34:06 - Role for Daniel Gafford 37:08 - Concern for Johnny Davis? 41:19 - Defensive ceiling 46:00 - Roster concerns 47:56 - Underrated

Dan and Grant are back together again to tackle their 2022-23 NBA Eastern Conference over/under predictions. To answer your question: Yes, we already hate ourselves. As always, we’re trying to factor in every imaginable and the most plausible outcomes for each while hitting these NBA win totals. And as a reminder, none of this should be taken as definitive betting advice, because we absolutely, positively, without question suck at this. Be sure to check out the Western Conference over/under pod, which you can find here or on your YouTube channel/where you get your pods! TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 3:20 - Atlanta Hawks 6:47 - Boston Celtics 13:16 - Brooklyn Nets 18:48 - Charlotte Hornets 22:48 - Chicago Bulls 26:31 - Cleveland Cavaliers 31:05 - Detroit Pistons 35:22 - Indiana Pacers 38:33 - Miami Heat 41:43 - Milwaukee Bucks 44:41 - New York Knicks 48:08 - Orlando Magic 52:32 - Philadelphia 76ers 54:13 - Toronto Raptors 57:11 - Washington Wizards JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/3

Dan is joined by Imman Adan (@Imman_Adan) from Yahoo Sports Canada and the Dishes & Dimes podcast (@dishesdimespod) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Toronto Raptors. They discuss the next phase of Scottie Barnes' development, whether Pascal Siakam can enter the MVP discussion, OG Anunoby's offensive potential, Precious Achiuwa going kaboom, the half-court offense, the defense, the rotation, Toronto's long-term future and so much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 4:16 - Offseason impressions 7:10 - Year 2 expectations for Scottie Barnes 11:10 - OG Anuonby's role on offense 15:49 - Does Pascal Siakam have another gear? 24:35 - The rise of Precious Achiuwa 33:42 - Role for Dalano Banton 37:30 - The half-court offense 39:41 - The future of Gary Trent Jr. and Fred VanVleet 43:07 - Impact of the "take foul" on the Raptors offense 46:55 - Early impressions of Christian Koloko 48:04 - Underrated strengths of the roster 49:18 - The 10-man rotation 57:11 - Go-to closing unit 1:00:12 - Weirdo lineups we want to see 1:

Dan is joined by Nets Daily's Matt Brooks (MattBrooksNBA) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Brooklyn Nets, a team that could be literally anything at this point. They discuss the offseason from hell, what's next for Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the fit of Ben Simmons, Brooklyn's defensive potential, the rotation, different lineup combinations, substitution patterns and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 3:10 - Is the offseason drama behind the Nets? 6:23 - Timeline for return on Seth Curry, Joe Harris and TJ Warren 11:56 - Early impressions of Ben Simmons' fit 17:00 - The Ben Simmons-Nic Claxton frontcourt/Ben Simmons-at-the-5 20:11 - New offensive identity? 24:42 - How should the Nets stagger their stars? 27:05 - Is there a role for Cam Thomas in Brooklyn/What about Kessler Edwards? 29:17 - Will Yuta Watanabe make the roster? 31:25 - Defensive identity 36:56 - Underrated strengths of the roster 39:12 - Biggest roster concerns 42:19 - Will the Nets be aggressive in search of roster upgrades? 44:43 - The 10

Dan is joined by Sam Esfandiari (@samesfandiari) from the Light Years podcast (@lightyrspod) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Golden State Warriors. Will Draymond Green punching Jordan Poole linger over the organization all year? Will Dray, Poole or Andrew Wiggins sign extensions? How much will the Warriors lean on Moses Moody, Jonathan Kuminga and James Wiseman? Is this team good enough to defend its latest title? What's the rotation look like? Dan and Sam tackle all this—and more! TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:45 - Draymond Green, Jordan Poole 5:13 - Draymond Green's future with the Warriors 8:36 - The Jordan Poole extension 11:43 - Where can Jordan Poole improve? 16:57 - Did they make mistake letting Gary Payton II and Otto Porter Jr. go? 18:58 - The fit of Donte DiVincenzo 20:15 - Will Andrew Wiggins get an extension?/Is his play sustainable? 22:35 - James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody 26:27 - The offense without Stephen Curry 27:36 - Will Steph play enough in the MVP conversation? 29:27 - Jonathan

Dan and Grant are back together again to tackle their 2022-23 NBA Western Conference over/under predictions. To answer your question: Yes, we already hate ourselves. As always, we're trying to factor in every imaginable and the most plausible outcomes for each while hitting these NBA win totals. And as a reminder, none of this should be taken as definitive betting advice, because we absolutely, positively, without question suck at this. Believe it or not, though, we have a few surprises in the top half of the West—including the Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Pelicans. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 4:32 - Dallas Mavericks 7:47 - Denver Nuggets 10:47 - Golden State Warriors 17:36 - Houston Rockets 21:03 - LA Clippers 23:44 - Los Angeles Lakers 27:53 - Memphis Grizzlies 31:47 - Minnesota Timberwolves 34:49 - New Orleans Pelicans 39:10 - Oklahoma City Thunder 42:11 - Phoenix Suns 46:17 - Portland Trail Blazers 49:24 - Sacramento Kings 52:23 - San Antonio Spurs 55:30 - Utah Jazz JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/disco

Dan is joined by Adam Mares (@Adam_Mares) from DNVR and Locked on Nuggets for a deeeep dive into the 2022-23 Denver Nuggets. They discuss Nikola Jokic and the defense, offseason additions, the health of Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., the rise of Bones Hyland, the bench, Michael Malone's rotation, optimizing Aaron Gordon and Bruce Brown, Zeke Nnaji's future, the potential for trades and firings and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:56 - Offseason impressions 3:23 - The Jamal Murray return 4:41 - The Michael Porter Jr. return 7:01 - Staggering MPJ from Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic 8:37 - Will Michael Malone ditch hockey-style lineups? 10:31 - Can a Jokic-led team be good enough defensively to win a title?/His wrist injury 16:29 - The preseason defense 17:53 - Is Aaron Gordon fully optimized on this roster? 20:38 - Year 2 expectations for Bones Hyland 22:38 - The Zeke Nnaji hype 25:46 - Davon Reed's role 26:36 - Christian Braun and Peyton Watson 28:08 - Underrated strengths 29:16 - The Bruce Brown fi

Dan is joined by Andrew Claudio (@AndrewJClaudio_) from Knicks Film School (@KnickFilmSkool) to dissect everything and anything about the 2022-23 New York Knicks. They discuss the Donovan Mitchell trade that wasn't, the impact of Jalen Brunson, how RJ Barrett can develop into a star, the future of Julius Randle, roles for Obi Toppin, Quentin Grimes and Immanuel Quickley, the future of head coach Tom Thibodeau, lineups, the 10-man rotation and so much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:30 - Is Andrew surviving the New York Mets' postseason elimination? 4:51 - Reflecting on the Donovan Mitchell trade that wasn't 12:59 - Impact of Jalen Brunson 18:28 - The biggest barrier separating RJ Barrett from stardom 21:11 - The Julius Randle discussion 25:17 - Obi Toppin's ceiling 29:38 - Isaiah Hartenstein's fit 31:20 - Can Mitchell Robinson expand his offensive armory? 32:37 - Playing time for Quentin Grimes, Cam Reddish and Immanuel Quickley 36:42 - How good is Quentin Grimes? 39:20 - The future of Immanuel Quickley 42:

Dan is joined by Boston Celtics expert Alex Kungu (@Kungu_NBA) to talk about—THAT'S RIGHT—the 2022-23 Boston Celtics. They discuss the impact of Robert Williams III missing probably the rest of 2022, the frontcourt rotation, the next frontier Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, Malcolm Brogdon's fit, possible lineups, Ime Udoka's suspension and much more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:46 - Ime Udoka/Joe Mazzulla 4:38 - Did the Celtics need to learn anything from their Finals loss? 6:33 - Impact of Robert Williams III injury 8:24 - Danilo Gallinari injury/The frontcourt rotation 11:18 - The Malcolm Brogdon fit 15:23 - Does Jaylen Brown have another gear? 20:02 - The Kevin Durant pursuit 23:22 - Projecting forward for Jayson Tatum 27:27 - Roster concerns 30:01 - Underrated strengths of the roster/Sam Hauser hype/Payton Pritchard's role 33:09 - Will we see a Grant Williams extension? 36:25 - Are the Celtics built for a trade? 38:37 - The 10-man rotation 41:10 - Go-to crunch-time lineup 41:49 - Weirdo lineups we want to

Let's take a break from the 2022-23 NBA team lookahead train to have some (agonizing) fun with record projections. The over/under podcast(s) will go into more detail, but for now, Dan is talking himself through win totals for every squad next season. Buckle up, and enjoy the incoherent ride! JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/31z7eyI FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL⬇️ TWITTER/IG: @danfavale / @danfavale TWITTER: @gt_hughes TWITTER: @fromal09 TWITTER/IG: @HardwoodKnocks / @hardwood_knocks TIKTOK: @hardwoodknocks TWITTER: @SportsMathNet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/2916956/advertisement

Draymond Green apologized to Jordan Poole and the Golden State Warriors after punching the former, and he will now be stepping away from the team. Really, though, this is just the beginning...More specifically, it might be the beginning of the end for Draymond with the Warriors. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:21 - Draymond Green apologizing to Jordan Poole, Will the Golden State Warriors accept Dray back? 17:22 - Will Draymond Green now leave Golden State in 2023 NBA free agency? 25:28 - OUTRO JOIN OUR DISCORD: bit.ly/discordhwk SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: bit.ly/31z7eyI FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL⬇️ TWITTER/IG: @danfavale / @danfavale TWITTER: @gt_hughes TWITTER: @fromal09 TWITTER/IG: @HardwoodKnocks / @hardwood_knocks TIKTOK: @hardwoodknocks TWITTER: @SportsMathNet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/2916956/advertisement

Dan is joined by Mike Vigil (@protectedpick) from The Timeline Podcast (@TheTimelinePod) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 Phoenix Suns. They tackle...well, they cover EVERYTHING. Robert Sarver, DeAndre Ayton, Jae Crowder trades, the development of Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson, Chris Paul's age, Devin Booker's stardom, the rotation, quirky lineups, Phoenix's place in the NBA title picture—you name it, they go into detail on it. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 3:28 - Robert Sarver 9:35 - Should we be concerned about Deandre Ayton? 13:00 - The Jae Crowder situation 19:17 - What will a Jae Crowder trade look like?/Trade targets 34:23 - Deandre Ayton's next frontier 39:28 - Is Mikal Bridges ready for more on-ball responsibility? 43:14 - Cam Johnson extension 45:22 - Cam Johnson with the starters/His next offensive frontier 48:46 - How good can Chris Paul be at age 37? 51:05 - DEVIN BOOKER AT POINT GUARD?!? 57:44 - Expectations for Landry Shamet 1:00:12 - The secondary frontcourt rotation, Jock Landale, Dario Saric

Dan is joined by Paul Garcia (@PaulGarciaNBA) from Project Spurs and Spurscast (@TheSpurscast) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 San Antonio Spurs. They talk about the organization's decision to really rebuild, the development of Devin Vassell and Josh Primo, Keldon Johnson's trajectory, rookie-year expectations for Jeremy Sochan, Malaki Branham and Blake Wesley, trades, Victor Wembanyama, the 10-man rotation and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:48 - The Dejounte Murray trade, Franchise direction 4:35 - How much longer will Gregg Popovich coach? 6:56 - Keldon Johnson timetable for return/What will his role look like? 10:00 - Josh Primo timeline for return/His offensive development 13:01 - The lowdown on Tre Jones 14:12 - Devin Vassell's development 18:38 - How much leeway will the rookies get? 19:28 - Rookie-year expectations for Jeremy Sochan 21:37 - Roles for Malaki Branham, Blake Wesley 23:38 - Offensive identity 25:56 - Early impressions of HEALTHY Zach Collins 27:46 - Who's the third big? 29:06 - Th

Dan is joined by Kirk Henderson (@KirkSeriousFace) from Mavs Moneyball to discuss the ins and out of the 2022-23 Dallas Mavericks. They get into how much the team will miss Jalen Brunson, the defensive identity, lineups and rotations, whether the offense can play faster, Christian Wood's fit and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:33 - Jalen Brunson's exit 5:00 - Should they have been more aggressive over the offseason? 6:48 - The Luka Doncic-Spencer Dinwiddie  8:54 - Luka Doncic starting strong? 10:28 - The Josh Green experience 12:46 - Will Jaden Hardy play a role as a rookie?/Figuring out the secondary ball-handling 19:01 - Expectations for Christian Wood 23:38 - The impact of JaVale McGee 26:32 - Will the Mavs play two bigs a bunch? 29:38 - Is Dallas still a top-10 defense? 31:22 - Can the Mavericks get out in transition more? 34:06 - Do the Mavs have any underrated strengths? 35:57 - Are the Mavs a team to watch at the trade deadline? 39:38 - The 10-man rotation 40:51 - Go-to crunch-time unit 42:17 -

Dan is joined by Shamit Dua (@FearTheBrown) of Boot Krewe Media and the In the N.O. podcast (@InTheNOPod) for a deep dive into the 2022-23 New Orleans Pelicans. They discuss the return of Zion Williamson, how he'll fit with CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram, the defensive identity of the Pelicans, the development of Trey Murphy III and Dyson Daniels, New Orleans' 10-man rotation, fun lineups and MUCH MORE. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 1:53 - The vibes in New Orleans are, in fact, immaculate 6:15 - Zion Williamson's next step 9:45 - The Zion-CJ-McCollum-Brandon Ingram Dynamic 18:20 - Extensions for CJ McCollum/Larry Nance Jr. 25:08 - What's next for Herb Jones? 27:08 - How good is Trey Murphy? 31:28 - Rookie-year expectations for Dyson Daniels 36:10 - Does Jaxson Hayes still fit with this team? 41:30 - Roles for Devonte' Graham and Jose Alvarado 41:58 - The future of Kira Lewis Jr. 46:26 - Defensive identity and ceiling? 50:56 - Underrated strengths/weaknesses 54:51 - The 10-man rotation 56:13 - Go-to crunch-time li

Dan reacts to the 2022-23 NBA GM survey that was released on Tuesday, October 4. And yes, he has qualms. Like, WHO THE HELL VOTED ANDREW WIGGINS FOR THE BEST DEFENSIVE PLAYER IN THE NBA?!? TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO/HARDWOOD KNOCKS UPDATE 3:32 - The 2022-23 NBA GM Survey 4:09 - 2022-23 NBA Finals prediction, Western and Eastern Conference standings 6:06 - 2022-23 NBA MVP Prediction 7:11 - Who would you start an NBA franchise with? 7:51 - Which player forces opposing coaches to make the most adjustments? 9:19 - Which NBA player is most likely to have a breakout season? 13:16 - Best point guard in the NBA 13:25 - Best shooting guard in the NBA 13:54 - Best small forward in the NBA 14:30 - Best power forward in the NBA 14:40 - Best center in the NBA 15:28 - Most popular "Best at this position" vote 15:47 - Which team made the best overall moves this offseason? 19:10 - Which one player acquisition will have the biggest impact on his new NBA team? 20:32 - Most underrated player acquisition over the NBA offseason 22

Dan is joined by Allana Tachauer (@AllanaTachauer) from Five Reasons Sports to cannonball into the 2022-23 Miami Heat. They discuss the Tyler Herro extension and his development, the next step for Bam Adebayo, P.J. Tucker's departure, Victor Oladipo's role, Jimmy Butler, the rotation, trade targets and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 4:55 - Tyler Herro extension/His next step 11:48 - Offseason impressions 14:09 - The loss of P.J. Tucker/His replacement 19:12 - Trade targets at 3/4 22:16 - Duncan Robinson's role 25:58 - The value of Victor Oladipo 28:34 - Who starts at the 2? 31:32 - How Bam Adebayo can get better 34:56 - THREE IMPORTANT JIMMY BUTLER QUESTIONS 39:07 - Concerned about Kyle Lowry? 44:08 - Actual roles for Omer Yurtseven and Nikola Jovic?!? 46:16 - Biggest roster concerns 48:17 - Underrated strengths of the roster 49:18 - Building a 10-man rotation 50:21 - Go-to crunch-time lineup 51:39 - Weirdo lineups we want to see 52:50 - Over/under predictions, Where do the Heat rank in the East JOIN O

Dan is joined by Caitlin Cooper (@C2_Cooper), the resident GOAT at Indy Cornrows, to break down the short- and long-term future of the Indiana Pacers. How can Tyrese Haliburton take the next step? Is Isaiah Jackson a point guard now? Will Bennedict Mathurin play a big role in Year 1? Do we finally get a Myles Turner trade? Can Indiana defend without true wings? They touch on all this, construct a 10-man rotation and MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:40 - Offseason impressions/The Deandre Ayton pursuit 6:22 - Myles Turner trade murmurings 11:55 - How will the Pacers use Myles Turner? 15:52 - Expectations for Tyrese Haliburton 22:52 - Bennedict Mathurin 26:27 - Jalen Smith 28:46 - Isaiah Jackson on the ball?!? 31:52 - Next step for Chris Duarte 35:22 - Offensive identity 38:57 - The wing depth 42:07 - Building a 10-man rotation, Who gets squeezed out of the rotation? 46:33 - Defensive identity 50:42 - Measuring progress of the rebuild 57:17 - Go-to crunch-time lineup 59:00 - Weirdo lineups we want to see 1

Dan is joined by Tara Bowen-Biggs (@tcbbiggs) from the We Have A Take Podcast (@wehaveatake) for a deeeeeeep dive into the 2022-23 Portland Trail Blazers. They discuss the team's biggest offseason additions in Jerami Grant and Gary Payton II, along with the extension and future for Damian Lillard. After that, they get into Anfernee Simons' development, the importance of Jusuf Nurkic, the rotation, lineup, predictions and MUCH more! TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 3:39 - Offseason impressions 6:25 - Chauncey Billups 10:26 - The direction 14:36 - Damian Lillard's return from injury 17:45 add 19:46 - The impact of Jerami Grant/His fit with Jusuf Nurkic 25:01 - Gary Payton II's fit 29:13 - How tall is Anfernee Simons REALLY? 29:56 - Where has Anfernee Simons improved?, His partnership with Dame 35:00 - How much will Shadeon Sharpe play? 39:08 - The fifth starter 39:36 - The importance Nassir Little 40:58 - Expectations for Jusuf Nurkic 45:55 - Secondary center rotation, Roles for Trendon Watford and Jabari Walker 49:10

Dan is joined by Konata Edwards (@NataTheScribe) from CBS Sports to break down the ins and outs of the 2022-23 Charlotte Hornets. They discuss the team's offseason, the next step for LaMelo Ball, how Steve Clifford will adapt his defense to Charlotte's offense, the importance of Cody Martin, roles for James Bouknight and Mark Williams, the value of Gordon Hayward and much, MUCH more. TIMESTAMPS⬇️ 0:30 - INTRO 2:47 - Miles Bridges 8:24 - Offseason impressions 10:45 - The coaching search 14:36 - Can Steve Clifford improve the defense without sacrificing offensive identity?/Will Terry Rozier suffer? 19:10 - Has Gordon Hayward more important this year? 22:40 - How much will LaMelo Ball improve? 25:08 - Does LaMelo Ball need an off-the-dribble three? 27:59 - Mark Williams' role and fit 30:24 - Year 4 expectations for P.J. Washington 34:12 - Importance of Cody Martin 38:07 - Does Kelly Oubre Jr. have a future in Charlotte? 40:02 - Should Charlotte trade for Jae Crowder? 41:48 - Roles for James Bouknight, JT Thor, K