Hollinger & Duncan NBA Show - NBA Basketball Podcast

Transcribed - Published: 27 June 2025

John and Nate react to the shocking Desmond Bane trade from both Memphis and Orlando’s perspectives. They also assess where Kevin Durant might end up, and what kind of return Phoenix could realistically expect. Then it’s time for their final draft board discussion before the big day, including Cooper Flagg’s long-term upside, the rest of the top-5, and some of John’s favorite sleepers. What to make of Memphis trading Desmond Bane and what it says about their direction. 0:01 Why the trade is a big bet by Orlando on Franz, Paolo, and their defensive identity. 13:33 What Kevin Durant’s value is and which teams could plausibly trade for him. 18:13 Could Minnesota, Miami, or the Clippers be realistic suitors? 22:53 How Cooper Flagg compares to top past prospects and how he fits in Dallas. 29:54 Evaluating Dylan Harper and his unorthodox jumper. 35:00 V.J. Edgecombe’s unique strengths and concerns. 39:29 Ace Bailey’s upside and unpredictability. 43:01 John’s surprise top-5 pick: Kon Knueppel. 46:36 The electric upside and flaws of Jeremiah Fears. 50:00 Some of John’s favorite sleepers: Collin Murray-Boyles, Noa Essengue, and Carter Bryant. 54:10 Tre Johnson’s scoring chops and limitations. 58:26 Khaman Maluach. 1:01:33

Transcribed - Published: 18 June 2025

Nate and John run through a long list of potential trade candidates for what could be a seismic 2025 NBA offseason. They start with the two biggest possible dominos—Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant—and what their availability would mean for their current teams and potential suitors. From there, they cover a wide array of high-level trade options, including Lauri Markkanen, Jrue Holiday, and Jaylen Brown, as well as some lower-profile but still meaningful players like Anfernee Simons and Walker Kessler. Giannis Antetokounmpo – 1:06 Kevin Durant – 7:31 Lauri Markkanen – 15:59 Jrue Holiday – 25:07 Jaylen Brown – 34:07 Walker Kessler – 38:11 Trae Young – 42:08 Anfernee Simons – 43:49

Transcribed - Published: 4 June 2025

John and Nate continue their series assessing veteran-extension candidates: De'Aaron Fox – 0:21 Julian Champagnie – 9:55 Coby White – 11:24 Ayo Dosunmu – 11:24 Kevin Huerter – 15:06 Julian Phillips – 16:28 Darius Garland – 17:10 Craig Porter Jr. – 19:18 Dean Wade – 20:27 Kyrie Irving – 22:06 Daniel Gafford – 24:23 PJ Washington – 24:23 Rui Hachimura – 30:00 Dorian Finney-Smith – 31:10 Austin Reaves – 32:19 Norm Powell – 33:01 Karl-Anthony Towns – 43:13 Mikal Bridges – 44:50 Mitchell Robinson – 47:16 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – 49:52 Luguentz Dort – 51:16 Kenrich Williams – 56:01 Jaylin Williams – 56:01 Collin Sexton – 57:10 Jordan Poole – 1:01:07 Khris Middleton – 1:01:29 Kristaps Porzingis – 1:02:06

Transcribed - Published: 27 May 2025

How did we get to a Game 7 in Denver vs OKC, and what will be the key factors in who wins? Golden State petered out without Steph. What do they need to get back to contention and how does the restricted free agency of Jonathan Kuminga impact that? 6:44 Why did the Cavaliers fall short, and do they need to make major changes to compete in the East? 16:38 How will Boston navigate the franchise-altering injury to Jayson Tatum?  27:13 What should Dallas do now that they’ll have Cooper Flagg, and what will they do? 31:20 San Antonio should be in the mix for Giannis. Does it make sense to trade the #2 pick for him? 36:41 With Joel Embiid and Paul George, how will the #3 pick fit into the mix in Philly? 41:26 Plus, how the new CBA has affected the NBA combine. 44:14

Transcribed - Published: 16 May 2025

Transcribed - Published: 2 May 2025

Nate Duncan and John Hollinger break down the first week of the playoffs, including standout teams, superstar performances, the best and worst coaching jobs, surprising players, and early lessons from the playoff crucible Who has been the best team of the playoffs so far? Would we change our overall playoff predictions based on what we’ve seen? The biggest change to our pre-series predictions after the first week. Grading the superstars' performances in the early going. The best prediction we made heading into the playoffs. The worst prediction we made so far. The best coaching jobs and the most impressive adjustments of the playoffs so far. The worst coaching jobs and most questionable adjustments or non-adjustments. The most surprising/disappointing players of the first week. The best game of the playoffs to this point. The worst game we've seen so far. The best individual performance in a single playoff game. Who would make the All-Playoffs First Team after one week? Revisiting our playoff preview categories and early observations. The playoff crucible: who thrived and who couldn’t hack it? Which rotation players withstood the pressure? Which players have turned to ash? Full Daily Duncs with links⁠ Giannis Antetokounmpo Defensive Player of the Year Cleveland Cavaliers Thunder-Grizzlies Detroit Pistons Knicks-Pistons Nuggets-Clippers Scoring Game 3s Alijah Arenas ⁠Full Daily Duncs with links

Transcribed - Published: 25 April 2025

Nate and John take their unique look at the playoffs, discussing their picks for: Most interesting series Least interesting series Individual player matchup you are most interested in seeing Star player with the toughest matchup Star player with the easiest matchup Best coaching matchup Biggest coaching mismatch Series with the most variables Rotation players most likely to have their roles cut Deep rotation players who could emerge Most important non-star player who will affect the outcome of a series Best playoff defense Best playoff offense Plus, they give their picks for each playoff series winner and NBA champion. They also discuss Joe Dumars’ hiring in New Orleans and the ax falling for Michael Malone and Calvin Booth in Denver.

Transcribed - Published: 16 April 2025

John and Nate go over their awards agreements and disagreements on Executive and Not-Executive of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and All-NBA. But first, they give their opinions on the NBA’s new European venture and discuss the future of the teams they think won’t make the playoffs. Plus, thoughts on Joe Cronin’s extension and the future of the Blazers. Full Daily Duncs with links NCAA championship game Trivia Kevin Durant Joe Cronin Trivia answer Seeds Awards No. 3 player Evan Mobley Rankings Full Daily Duncs with links

Transcribed - Published: 8 April 2025

John Hollinger joins Danny Leroux and Nate Duncan to break down our rankings of the top players in the NBA. Jokic or Shai at number 1? Who takes the 3rd spot? Where do old lions Steph, KD, and LeBron fall, and how do they compare with the young superstar bigs? How about the bevy of star guards? Plus, we discuss the biggest risers and fallers, the hardest to rank, and the players we think could make us look stupid for having them so low.

Transcribed - Published: 4 April 2025

Transcribed - Published: 26 March 2025

John and Nate look back at their picks with Zach Lowe from last year of which stars were most likely to change teams by the start of the 2025-26 season. Then, the same exercise this year, as they pick which stars could be on the move between now and the start of the 2026-27 season. They also discuss whether the Jazz being fined $100,000 will cause them to mend their tanking ways.

Transcribed - Published: 13 March 2025

John and Nate discuss our coach rankings! What makes a great NBA coach, and how can coaches be evaluated? Then, we rank our top group of coaches in the league. Full Daily Duncs with links Anjali Ranadive Domantas Sabonis Sacramento Kings De'Aaron Fox-Mike Brown Draymond Green/Karl-Anthony Towns Jalen Brunson Mark Cuban Payton Pritchard-Derrick White 3-1 lead 2005-06 SuperSonics Full Daily Duncs with links

Transcribed - Published: 8 March 2025

Transcribed - Published: 26 February 2025

Transcribed - Published: 7 February 2025

John joins us for a special unplanned H&D in which he gives us his special front office insight on what went down in Dallas, plus our evaluations of the Fox trade. On Luka: What the Mavs’ process was–and how it got circumvented Whether AD was the best they could have done to win now Whether it was a rational decision not to “shop” Luka Do we buy that Jason Kidd didn’t know this trade was coming? Nico Harrison’s comments about a 3-4 year horizon If Dennis Lindsey still being in Dallas would have changed things How much did this trade change our priors on what Luka is as a player? Is it possible Luka doesn’t stay in LA? On Fox: Why the Kings did ok here. Does this trade enable the Bulls to turn over a new leaf, or the same dead leaf over and over again? Full Daily Duncs with links Mavericks-76ers trade Warriors-Kevin Durant Golden State Warriors Luka Doncic Luka Doncic trade Thunder-Hornets trade De'Aaron Fox trade Dunc'd On Live Cap sheets MLE trades Full Daily Duncs with links

Transcribed - Published: 4 February 2025

Transcribed - Published: 30 January 2025

Transcribed - Published: 17 January 2025

John and Nate look at the Kings’ decision to fire Mike Brown and how De’Aaron Fox’s contractual situation relates. Then, a look at which teams could and should get involved on Fox. The Jimmy Butler saga has taken over the media of late. What do we see as the end-game there? 27:09 The biggest non-star known to be available right now is the Nets’ Cam Johnson. Who are the potential suitors for him and what would be a reasonable price to pay? 42:37

Transcribed - Published: 4 January 2025

The annual tradition continues, a Dunc’d On and Hollinger & Duncan crossover to rank the top-10 prospects in the NBA 23 and under. Is Victor Wembanyama an obvious number 1? How can we sort through the injuries this year to find the rest of the top-10 among Paolo Banchero, Scottie Barnes, Franz Wagner, Jalen Williams, Anthony Edwards, Chet Holmgren, Evan Mobley, Cade Cunningham, LaMelo Ball, and more? Is anybody in the 2024 draft even in the top-15?

Transcribed - Published: 18 December 2024

The state of the league is a constant discussion point, so John and Nate went through and discussed the biggest criticisms and counterbalanced them with the biggest things the NBA is getting right at the moment, then ranked the biggest issues in both categories. Link: Nate's presentation on fixing the charge

Transcribed - Published: 11 December 2024

Hawks getting fined for sitting a healthy Trae Young - 0:21 76ers/Joel Embiid - 5:38 Organization rankings - 9:05 Eliminating a team from the playoffs - 49:36

Transcribed - Published: 27 November 2024

John and Nate examine the turmoil in Philadelphia, explain the criteria for their organization rankings (16:12) then start ranking teams from the top: Organization 1 - 21:34 Organization 2 - 29:14 Organization 3 - 37:05 Organization 4 - 40:59 John and Nate also eliminate a team from the playoffs (46:47).

Transcribed - Published: 20 November 2024

Atlanta Hawks - 02:16 Cleveland Cavaliers - 07:49 Charlotte Hornets - 12:07 Boston Celtics - 16:23 Milwaukee Bucks - 20:31 Miami Heat - 23:57 Philadelphia 76ers - 28:48 Chicago Bulls - 34:00 Indiana Pacers - 41:45 New York Knicks - 45:47 Orlando Magic - 50:54 Detroit Pistons - 54:31 Bronny James - 59:43 Brooklyn Nets - 01:03:06 Toronto Raptors - 01:05:18

Transcribed - Published: 14 November 2024

New Orleans Pelicans - 0:37 Oklahoma City Thunder - 4:05 Golden State Warriors - 7:00 Dallas Mavericks - 12:24 L.A. Clippers - 16:26 Minnesota Timberwolves - 20:35 Utah Jazz - 24:46 Memphis Grizzlies - 28:27 Los Angeles Lakers - 32:41 Houston Rockets - 36:13 Phoenix Suns - 40:25 Denver Nuggets - 44:18 San Antonio Spurs - 49:28 Portland Trail Blazers - 53:16 Sacramento Kings - 58:20

Transcribed - Published: 31 October 2024

John and Nate canvas the league and pick the players they think will be above or below expectations in the 2024-25 season, and both make over 10 picks in both categories. No timestamps on this one because it would ruin the podcast to list all the players ahead of time.

Transcribed - Published: 17 October 2024

Buckle up! John returns with a riveting explanation of all the crazy cap machinations that made the Wolves/Knicks trade possible. Does the league have a right to be annoyed with this kind of “circumvention?” 12:40. We also discuss whether we would have done this deal as the Knicks and Wolves and the pros and cons for each side. 18:23. Then we discuss the retirement of Derrick Rose and whether he should be a Hall-of-Famer (38:08), and lament the early passing of Dikembe Mutombo. 43:47. Then, we play a little playoff matchup roulette among some of the top teams in the East and the West and project the winner of some matchups we’d like to see. 48:03.

Transcribed - Published: 4 October 2024

John and Nate discuss the news that Kawhi Leonard won’t be cleared to start camp, the possibility of trading Kawhi (4:18), and whether the Kawhi trade and full-draft trades in general are worth it (5:51). Also, Mitchell Robinson won’t be back until the winter (15:00), and Joel Embiid agrees to an extension. (23:55) Plus, more mailbag questions on whether injuries are ruining the playoffs (27:36), Scoot Henderson’s potential (35:00) the big scary Apron (38:39) , whether the Sixers are overrated going into the season (42:21), how we watch basketball and how to improve your own basketball-watching (45:34), and whether teams will also “position” themselves for the 2026 draft. (52:09)

Transcribed - Published: 26 September 2024

Transcribed - Published: 14 September 2024

We are honored to be graced by official Summer League Award Voter John Hollinger to hand out some unofficial Summer League Awards: Who will be the best rookie this year, and who will have the best career? Who changed your opinion the most for the better? Most disappointing player? “I nailed this one,” guys who looked exactly like you thought they would Who are you worried about? Best defensive player? Best rookie in the 2nd half of the first round? Best “sleeper,” i.e. 2nd round or undrafted? Best sophomore? “Too good for summer league?” Wish you were here Most overrated summer league? Most underrated summer league? Victory lap (prematurely) Looking rock solid, just going to be a solid NBA player Pick you totally didn’t understand that was confirmed

Transcribed - Published: 31 July 2024

John and Nate discuss all the big events of the last few days: John’s most surprising transaction How good the PG Sixers are, and what cap shenanigans they can use to add a power forward. Our West power rankings as it stands today The fit of Hartenstein and Caruso in OKC Klay Thompson, Quentin Grimes, and Naji Marshall in Dallas. Whether there’s any excuse for Denver losing KCP and how much it hurts them. Memphis’ potential to get back in the West mix. DeMar DeRozan’s potential fit with the Lakers. And the latest on what the heck the Pistons are doing.

Transcribed - Published: 2 July 2024

John Hollinger & Nate Duncan wrap-up the NBA Finals and go through a big docket on the draft and transaction season. How good is Boston historically? What to make of this Dallas season and where they need to get better The Pistons firing of Monty Williams The Siakam and Monk new contracts Caruso for Giddey Evaluating players at the top of the draft: Ron Holland Zaccharie Risacher Stephon Castle Alex Sarr Reed Sheppard Donovan Clingan

Transcribed - Published: 21 June 2024

John Hollinger & Nate Duncan look at the key extensions that could determine many teams’ paths next season. Included: Boston with Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, and Sam Hauser. Minnesota with Rudy Gobert New Orleans with Brandon Ingram and Jose Alvarado Denver with KCP, Aaron Gordon, and Jamal Murray Miami with Jimmy Butler, Caleb Martin, and Bam Adebayo New York with Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle Phoenix with Kevin Durant

Transcribed - Published: 6 June 2024

John and Nate discuss the value of some of the biggest trade candidates of the 2024 offseason. Who might ask out, and who will their teams be willing to move? It’s going to be a fascinating offseason with the complications of the new Second Apron and teams looking to move good players but also improve on the floor.

Transcribed - Published: 23 May 2024

Transcribed - Published: 16 May 2024

Transcribed - Published: 10 May 2024

Transcribed - Published: 26 April 2024

Zach Lowe joins John and Nate to draft the star players we think are most likely to be on another team 18 months from now at the start of the 2025-26 season. Plus, John and Nate set the playoff field in the West and discuss the future of the teams we’ve eliminated.

Transcribed - Published: 9 April 2024

A special 3-man pod with John, Danny, and Nate discusses the best players in the NBA. Where do Giannis, Jokic, LeBron, Shai, Steph, Luka, Tatum, KD, Kawhi, Edwards, AD, Brunson, and the rest of the All-NBA talents come in on the eve of a playoffs that will prove us all wrong?

Transcribed - Published: 29 March 2024

John and Nate pick the NBA’s best passer, dunker, floater game, handle, and athlete. Then we rule an Eastern Conference team that doesn’t have their draft picks from ‘25 to ‘27 and will be looking to trade a point guard this season out of the playoffs, and discuss what they can do going forward. Plus, what does John think of the NBA moving the draft to 2 nights as a former executive?

Transcribed - Published: 14 March 2024

It’s time to look at the best coaches in the NBA. What are the ways to evaluate a coach? How do the young wunderkinder stack up against the established playoff coaches? John and Nate look at the best coaches in the league. Plus, we each eliminate another team from the playoffs and take stock of their organizations.

Transcribed - Published: 29 February 2024

John and Nate look back on perhaps the biggest trade deadline ever to evaluate all these transactions a year on. How do the KD and Kyrie deals look, and would we have still done them as both teams? Who won the Westbrook/Conley/Russell swap? How have the trading trends evolved since this year? And which acquisitions actually fortified playoff teams?

Transcribed - Published: 14 February 2024

Transcribed - Published: 2 February 2024

John and Nate start by discussing the pros and cons of the Siakam trade. Would we ultimately have done the deal knowing his likely contract expectations? Then, we scrape the bottom of the Joe Johnson Memorial Barrel to fill out our East All-Star teams, before we wrack our brains on how to limit ourselves to 12 in the West.

Transcribed - Published: 23 January 2024

John and Nate discuss: The Memphis Grizzlies’ future now that injuries have officially wrecked their season. Theories on why this year’s bad teams are worse than any other year’s bad teams. What the Knicks might be looking for with Quentin Grimes available and the Magic for Wendell Carter or Markelle Fultz. Also, what team could most use Dejounte Murray? What other available players could potentially help a playoff team?

Transcribed - Published: 17 January 2024

Transcribed - Published: 5 January 2024

John reports back from the G-League showcase. Who stood out among roster players and the G-League Ignite? Then we rule 2 teams out of the playoffs (guess who!) and discuss what their struggles this season mean for their futures. Finally, we start to assess the trade market. Which teams are willing to move important players? And would the Jazz really trade Lauri Markkanen?

Transcribed - Published: 28 December 2023

The "Piñata Tier," as John likes to call them, is the subject of our final installment of the organization rankings including the bottom 12 teams. John and Nate examine each team’s organizational resume and determine which they’d most (and least) want running their team. Which team will claim the coveted 29th spot?!

Transcribed - Published: 13 December 2023

A former executive and someone who will never be one are definitely the most qualified people to evaluate NBA organizations! But if we don’t do it, who will? We examine each team’s organizational resume and determine which we’d most want running our team if we were fans.

Transcribed - Published: 1 December 2023

John BLOWS OUT YOUR EARDRUMS with the panic alarm. Which front offices and fan bases should be DESPAIRING over their teams’ performance so far this season. But first, we take stock of the first couple weeks of NBA Cup play and discuss what’s worked and what could be improved. Plus, we somehow manage to find a team to rule out of the playoffs.

Transcribed - Published: 15 November 2023