The OKC Thunder take a 2-0 lead on the Timberwolves beating them 118 to 103. Bam Adebayo misses out on making the All-NBA Defensive Team, is it because his ability has gone down or because he was on a losing team?
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00:00But the OKC Thunder took a 2-0 lead on the Timberwolves.
00:03Shea Gildress Alexander, he's good.
00:07Yep.
00:0838 points for him in the win over the Timberwolves.
00:13And, yeah, they look, you know, the Thunder looking very Panthers-like,
00:17very overwhelming right now.
00:19Yeah.
00:20I mean, they quieted Ant-Man.
00:23Yeah.
00:26I'm having a hard time.
00:28And I don't think he's a bad player.
00:32Who?
00:34But I'm going to say this.
00:36I don't think you can win a championship with Rudy Gobert.
00:39Oh, really?
00:41Yeah, because he's like playing with four and a half players.
00:48I mean, he's not like Rodman who always gets the rebound, right?
00:54He sometimes gets it.
00:56He's out of position a lot.
00:59Shea is doing what he wants in the paint.
01:02That's what you are, a paint deterrent.
01:04So why is a guy who shoots middies scoring 38 in the paint?
01:10He's very good, though.
01:11So I don't care how good he is.
01:14You're a, what, four-time defensive player of the year?
01:16There should be none of that.
01:18By the way, speaking of defensive player of the year, Bam on a bio yesterday, his streak of all defense came to an end.
01:26First time in six years, Bam does not make an all-defense team.
01:29Not first, not second.
01:32So I'm sure he's going to take that well.
01:35But here's the thing.
01:36I'm going to be pure to this.
01:41It has more to do with the team he's playing on and not about his abilities.
01:44It's not, yeah, it's not about his abilities.
01:46And from my standpoint, I don't get in the case of snubbery.
01:52I don't think there are, if you told me you think there are 10 defenders on this planet better than Bam on a bio, I'd say you're high as a kite, Yogi.
01:59If you told me there were five defenders you think are better on this planet than Bam on a bio, I don't think I agree with that.
02:05But when you win 37 games, you're not going to get a lot of accolades.
02:08Right.
02:08That's what I'm saying.
02:11That's what it is.
02:11That's what it comes down to.
02:13Most of the awards, and the only reason why it's not that way for the All-Star game, because you got to pick the All-Star teams middle of the season.
02:21And rookies, too.
02:22Like, rookies are naturally going to be on bad teams.
02:25So, and then, so, when you look at it, like, what the Heat have been doing the last few years, being undermanned and, you know, just scrappy, and they all put it towards, okay, the defense.
02:41They're always in the game with that defense.
02:43And then you go and say, oh, it's Bam.
02:47Those things can't be said about this team this year.
02:49So, therefore, the defensive accolades are going to be missed, even though you're still playing quality defense and guarding one through five.
03:00So, it has more to do with the team and the success of the team.
03:06And think about it.
03:08If I'm somebody else from another city and you pick Bam over a player that plays for another team, I'm immediately going to say, how do you blow that many leads and be on an all-defensive team?
03:26Yeah, and the thing is, for him, like, he's the only guy kind of keeping it all together.
03:34But, yeah, I'm with you.
03:35When you have the worst fourth-quarter metrics of any team in the league, it's a fair critique, even though it's not on him.
03:42Right.
03:43He's the anchor of the unit.
03:44But keep in mind, we're looking at it firsthand.
03:47Man, most people that vote in this are looking at it from the peripherals.
03:52Yeah.
03:52They're looking at it from the outside, and they're looking at numbers, and they're hearing all these stats about the Heat giving up these leads in the fourth quarter and how ridiculous it is and how their defensive rating has been affected by that.
04:05And then you go, okay, how are we going to take somebody on all-defense that was a part of that?
04:12Yeah.
04:12Here was your first team.
04:13Evan Mobley, obviously one defensive player of the year.
04:15Dyson Daniels, who led the league in steals by a lot.
04:19Lou Dort, OKC, most dominant defense in the league.
04:23Draymond Green.
04:25He begged his way onto it.
04:26He campaigned, lifetime achievement award.
04:29By the way, half the year, they sucked.
04:30And basically, what, did he become the best defender in the league because Jimmy Butler arrived?
04:35Jimmy Butler arrived.
04:35I saw Bam Adebayo versus Draymond Green.
04:38Bam cooked his ass, but whatever.
04:40Ahmed Thompson, he was great.
04:42Obviously, he had the viral game against Steph Curry.
04:46But, like, yeah, the guys on the second team, Zubac has had a great year.
04:51You think he's a better defender than Bam?
04:53You're high as a kite.
04:53Jaron Jackson Jr., come on, dude.
04:56Dude's a foul machine.
04:58Not better than Bam at defense.
05:02Tamati Kamar from Portland's had a great year.
05:04They were kind of an up-and-up team.
05:05Nice.
05:05And then Rudy Gobert was the last.
05:08Oh, Jalen Williams made it from OKC.
05:09And then Rudy Gobert was the last guy to make it on all second team.
05:12Which is amazing to me because he has not been any type of deterrent in this OKC series.
05:25And I think, let me, only two guys, is it two guys?
05:29Yeah, two guys from the East made it.
05:31Only Mobley and Daniels.
05:34So, that was a very West-heavy award.
05:38Two Thunder making it, you know, probably deservedly so because of their incredible season.
05:43But a very, very West-heavy all-defense team for that.
05:49And then Bam finished.
05:53He was second in others receiving votes, but he didn't receive.
05:56Like, the next guy was OG Ananobi, who had 49 points, which was the next guy to be off the list.
06:03And then Bam only had 18.
06:04He had one first team all-defense vote and then 16 second team all-defense votes.
06:11But that was way behind OG Ananobi's total.
06:15Yeah, he was mostly an afterthought on this this year.
06:17Mostly an afterthought on this this year.
06:19And that has more to do with team success than his ability to play defense.
06:23Yeah, but I'd imagine, as he said to Pat, you know, what was the thing that he wants the answers to Pat on?
06:29What changes they're going to make or what fixes they're going to do?
06:31So, you know, I imagine he doesn't, you know, Bam is not one of these guys that I'm sure wants to be stuck on a mediocre team either.
06:39So, we'll see what moves Pat Riley's got to deter that.
06:44But it's been all quiet.
06:46It's almost too quiet.
06:47I need some action.
06:47Let's go, baby.
06:48Chris Haynes, where's my Giannis report, dude?