The Playgrounder

On this episode, Matt (@MattEsposito_) and Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) talk about ways which they can switch up and fix all star weekend, to make it more entertaining. Then they go through the all star rosters, and project how the remainder of some of the players' careers will play out.

Rob Shaw (@ShawsLawPodcast) joins Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) to discuss the Lloyd Pierce firing, the New York Knicks, and more. Then Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) of Bleacher Report joins the pod to discuss the current outlook of the West, and how he expects it to play out to end the season.

Matt (@MattEsposito_) and Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) start by talking about a couple bigs who could be in different uniforms soon, in Kristaps Porzingis and Demarcus Cousins. They then talk about Top Shot, and why they're skeptical. They end the show by discussing some contenders in the league, including Philadelphia and Utah, and if they think they're real or not.

The boys start the show off by discussing the Jalen Johnson situation, and some of the snubs they left off their all star teams. Imman (@_nopename) then joins the show to discuss the Raptors' season, a potential Andre Drummond trade, and if they should be buyers or sellers at the deadline.

Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) and Matt (@MattEsposito_) discuss the Derrick Rose trade, their thoughts on if the all star game should be played this year, and make their all star selections for the season.

Matt (@MattEsposito_) and Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) discuss the LeBron vs Fan beef, rank their top 10 centers in the NBA, and finish with a couple rounds of Scary Hour.

On this episode, the boys discuss the rise of the Cleveland Cavaliers, early-season MVP, and ranking seven of the league's top young guards.

Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) and Matt (@MattEsposito_) kick off the show by discussing the new Nets, Kevin Porter Jr. and Miami's rough start (0:14). Tariq Sbiet (@Tariq_NPH) of North Pole Hoops joins the show to discuss the rise of Canada basketball, and its recruiting, team Canada, Canadian NBA players, and some Canadian high schoolers to watch out for (25:47).

Matt and Zach discuss the crazy 4-way James Harden deal from the perspective of each team, if each team won or lost the trade, and how it structures the layout of the East.

Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) begins with his rant about the Toronto Raptors and their struggling season, he and Matt (@MattEsposito_) then discuss Kyrie Irving and his absence, and CJ McCollum's amazing season thus far. To finish the show, Connor Letourneau (@Con_Chron) of the San Francisco Chronicle joins to give insight, and talk about the Golden State Warriors.

The Playgrounder Duo discusses all of their observations from the Western Conference, so far this season. From Steph Curry being underrated, to the roller coaster ride of the Clippers, and the classic Embiid vs Jokic debate!

The boys are back with some early season observations of the Eastern Conference!

The boys predict standings, all star teams, surprise teams, disappointing teams and more for the Western Conference. They also end the show by predicting their MVP, DPOY and 6-Man of the year for the upcoming season.

The boys start off by discussing Giannis' max extension, and how the NBA can fix contracts to help smaller markets. They then preview and make all their predictions for the Eastern Conference, including predictions for COY, ROY and MIP. 

Today, the boys discuss the Wall - Westbrook trade, Harden not showing up for practice, Kyrie rejecting the media, and the NBA fining players for sitting out prime time games. Andrew Lawlor (@lawlorpalooza) then joins them, as the three discuss and debate their top 50 players lists heading into the season.

Rob Shaw (@ShawsLawPodcast) joins Zach (@ZachWilsonNBA) to discuss Christmas/Opening day games, LeBron's extension, Kawhi's diva'ness, and LiAngelo Ball signing with the Pistons. Zach and Matt (@MattEsposito_) are then joined by Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) to discuss his book, "Tanking to the Top" and the Philadelphia 76ers' off season, and season ahead.

This time, Zach and Matt bring you the West! Reviewing every west team's draft, free agency and trades. Discussing who did well, who could've done better, and who is set to make the playoffs in this loaded Western Conference. 

Matt and Zach are finally back, reviewing every Eastern Conference team's draft, free agency, and trades.

Matt and Zach start off by discussing Fred VanVleet's contract, Gordon Hayward's option, Boston trading up in the draft and Chris Paul to the Suns (1:56). Gerald Brown (@GeraldBlss) of SiriusXM NBA Radio then joins the guys to discuss some more free agents, the news of Russell Westbrook wanting out, chicken wings and more (36:50).

Matt and Zach are joined by Joseph Casciaro (@JosephCasciaro) to draft teams of players who have never made an all star team in their careers (1:24). They are then joined by Pat Benson (@Pat_Benson_Jr), author of his new book "Kobe Bryant's Sneaker History" to discuss the content of the book, his writing process, and some fun conversation regarding sneaker's and jerseys (48:42).

Chris Fedor joins the show to discuss the Cavaliers' off season, Tristan Thompson's free agency, trading Kevin Love, Drummond's player option, and more (1:48). Matt and Zach then play would you rather with NBA themed questions, and a couple Non-NBA themed ones as well (30:17).

With the news of the new NBA start date, Zach lays out his dream Christmas day slate of games for the upcoming season (1:26). They then discuss Gordon Hayward and Andre Drummond's player options, what they think should and will happen, and some potential destinations for both players (27:37). 

Matt and Zach follow up last week's episode, but this week they discuss the most intriguing teams of the off season. They talk about what they think teams will or should do in free agency, the draft, and trade-wise.

Matt and Zach start off the show with two fellow Playgrounder's and they compete by drafting teams full of guys who have won championships from 2010-2020 (2:08). Zach then solo interviews Jeff Garcia about the San Antonio Spurs and their off season, DeMar's free agency, the rebuild, and how many years Popovich has left (40:02).

Matt and Zach welcome back The News in 5 where they discuss all the recent coaching hires. They then talk about their top 10 most intriguing free agents this off season. Talk about where they'll sign, how much money they'll get, and the lack of potential spending this off season due to the 2021 free agent class.

Matt and Zach hop on the day after game 6 of the finals to talk Canadian Thankgiving, how the Lakers won, the age old Jordan vs LeBron debate, ranking players in the regular season vs playoffs, LA and Miami's future, and Giannis' future decision/current supporting cast!

Matt and Zach kick off the episode by recapping game 4 of the NBA Finals (1:10). They then discuss some takeaways and lessons they've learned from the playoffs, including Zach's top 25 players list (26:42). Matt and Zach finish off with a game of Spin Zone to end the podcast (55:21).

Matt and Zach kick off the show with the news that Doc Rivers is out in LA (1:36). They then recap the Heat vs Celtics series, and discuss how surprising the Heat have been, what Boston should do this off season and how they can improve (14:58). Josh Eberley then joins to preview the NBA finals, discuss donairs, and talk about how exaggerated NBA fans consistently are (37:02).

Mark Medina joins Zach and Matt to discuss this Heat vs Celtics series, Jimmy Butler's coffee, and why he voted LeBron for Mvp (1:40). Rob Shaw then joins Zach to recap game three of Nuggets vs Lakers (34:09).

Zach and Matt jump on The Playgrounder to recap game 3 of the Heat vs Celtics series. They talk about some trends, and strategies they've been seeing, what to look for going forward, give some strong opinions and takes, and cap it off with their series predictions.

Zach and Rob hop on directly after Denver vs LA to recap both of the great games from Tuesday's action!

Pascal's playoff performance left a sour taste in a lot of Raptor and NBA fans' mouths. I'm here to put his season and playoffs into perspective, and calm everyone down.

Sekou Smith joins the show to preview the ECF matchup between the Heat and Celtics (1:40). Matt and Zach then recap the Celtics vs Raptors by giving away player awards, and then recap the Lakers vs Rockets series (32:17).

Matt and Zach start off the show by expressing their emotions, and talking about this series as a whole, but especially game 6. They then make predictions and discuss game 7 (1:24). OKC Thunder insider, Brady Trantham joins The Playgrounder to discuss Billy Donovan, OKC's coaching search their surprising season, and what the off season could look like (41:27).

Matt and Zach kick off the show by discussing the Raptors vs Celtics, and Nuggets vs Clippers series' (2:06). Then Matt Moore (Hardwood Paroxysm) joins Zach as they list their top five playoff performers so far (32:20).

Rob joins Zach to discuss every second round series (1:23). Jesse Cinquini joins Matt and Zach as they discuss some potential off season trades for the Memphis Grizzlies and Portland Trail Blazers (35:18).

Zach and Matt start the show with Blake Murphy. They talk about the Raptors, and the current series against the Celtics (1:19). Harrison Faigen then joins to talk about the Lakers, their upcoming second round matchup, and on Anthony Davis playing center (25:48). Lastly, Jada Lea joins to talk about her experience growing up as a black female, and her experiences as a black female-athlete (58:56).

Matt and Zach are joined by Gu Mohamood (1:07) and Rob Shaw (37:04) to continue the conversation surrounding social injustice, the NBA strike, and the action and change going forward.

Rob Shaw joins The Playgrounder today to discuss the Jacob Blake incident, our opinions on it, and the NBA's response towards it.

Matt and Zach start off the show with the news in 5, then kick it to some of their playoff hot takes (13:52) and then are joined by JR Radcliffe to talk about the Milwaukee Bucks (41:08).

Matt and Zach start off the show with the news in 5. They then make shark tank pitches for each 8th seed, and make their cases for why they can win their series' (18:44). Dante Turo joins the show to talk about the Boston Cetlics, and Connecticut vs Canadian food (37:11). Lastly, Derek Murray hops on to talk about the lottery, and the NBA draft (78:17).

Matt and Zach spend five minutes previewing each first round matchup, and then conclude the show with their full playoff bracket predictions.

Sean Highkin joins The Playgrounder to preview the play-in matchup between the Portland Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzlies. They also touch on the Suns and Pelicans, and what a potential first round matchup would look like against the Lakers.

Zach starts off the show, hitting you with the news around the association, then is joined by Justin Rowan as they draft teams full of players with single digit jersey numbers, and James Herbert comes on to conclude the show and discuss the Most Improved Player Award.

Matt and Zach get you caught up on everything around the league, they are then joined by Denver Nuggets beat writer, Joel Rush to talk about the Nuggets' playoffs chances, MPJ, Bol Bol, and Jokic. Wolf Rock Radio host, Richard Anselmo then joins the programs to discuss the Miami Heat, the Andre Iguodala trade, and music. The boys finish the show sharing and debating their picks for All-NBA.

Dan Favale joins The Playgrounder as we draft the under 25 draft, then Matt and Zach discuss some of their takeaways from the first few days in the Orlando bubble, and conclude by discussing their coach of the year selections!

Matt and Zach hop on The Playgrounder to bring you the news in 5, including Lou Williams leaving the bubble for a strip club, they draft teams of undrafted players, give out rookie awards, and decide their rookie of the year!

Matt and Zach jump on The Playgrounder to break down this week's news, analyze the move towards Ben Simmons at the 4, make their MVP picks, and draft All-European teams to see who can build the best squad.

Matt and Zach jump on The Playgrounder today to talk about people entering and leaving the bubble, Dwight Howard's solo DJ night, another "guess the player," Boston Celtics rookie reviews, and a good old debate of Karl Anthony-Towns' offense vs Rudy Gobert's defense.

Matt and Zach hop on the pod to discuss Matt's accident, the delete-eight bubble, and the Brooklyn Nets' signings. The guys also play a game of "Guess the Player" and talk about the likelihood of the season, and which franchise they would want to buy most. Ending with a rookie review of Michael Porter Jr.