It's a weekend Eve, the Danny and Justin radio
program. Thanks for tuning in friends. If you
miss us live, you can always go back to the podcast,
wherever you pot at Danny and Justin, wherever
you find your music is the way Justin says it
to me. Cause most people don't listen. Well,
there's, there's, there is a, I will call it
a little bit. No, it's not a majority of people
to listen to podcasts. No. My point is that there's
some younger people. Because when we were talking
about this, we were talking to a younger person.
I was like, if you don't pod, which I know that
some younger people don't, you've got to get
it wherever you get your music. It's just another
way to tell people. I'm trying to win them over
one at a time. And if you miss us, you're also
going to miss Travis Demers, the mayor of Rip
City, who joins us now on the Oregon Man Clinics
Hotline at 541 -343 -5673. He's got a podcast.
He does. It is what? Section 113. Section 113.
I actually listened to it. Yes, it's very, very
well done. And we always love having Travis on.
Mayor, we're not going to talk about the stuff
on the court first. The trade deadline now passed,
and Portland not unexpectedly didn't make a ton
of moves, but they did make one move with Veit
Krejci. And so I guess I'll ask you this right
off the bat. Do you like it? I love it. I thought
it was a great deal. The trade deadline the last
few years for the Blazers has pretty much gone
just like this. There's no need to really do
anything right, but there's no pressure. And
if a deal didn't present itself that was going
to help the team, there was no point in doing
it. There was nothing that said you've got to
do something right now. So the one trade they
did make, nobody wanted to see Dwaparith go,
and then he was waived by the Hawks today. Everybody
loved Watt. He's an awesome guy to have around,
but he was hurt. He wasn't going to play the
rest of the year. His contract was up after this
year. So you trade him, and you get back a guy
who can be an immediate help in areas of need.
I mean, Pete Krejci is an elite three -point
shooter, 42 % on the year. He's a 6 '8 guard
who can defend and do multiple things, and he's
under team control for the next few years on
a minimum deal. I mean, to me, like, that's...
That's a perfect trade for if you're looking
at a small trade. I don't know that there could
have been a better move than that on that type
of deal. So Krejci comes in shooting 42 % from
beyond the arc. ESPN gave it an A -minus, said
it was a B for Atlanta. Not really too concerned
about the picks, but this doesn't relieve or
doesn't relieve some of the pressure on a hobbled
Denny Advia. because he's been missing games
as of late, and five in January. He's less than
100 % right now on this six -game road skin that
the Blazers are on. So you said it's going to
inject something. Is that part of it offensively?
Yeah, but honestly, guys, I don't think this
is a move that matters for right now. I don't
want to dismiss the current, right, because this
is where we're all living right now in the present,
and the present sucks right now. Six -game losing
streak, Denny's hurt, you're going the wrong
way. Like, nobody wants to see that. But, you
know, that's... That's not what really matters
right now. What matters is getting Denny Abdiah
healthy. I don't know if he's going to play again
before the All -Star break. I would love to see
him play again before the All -Star break because
this team needs him. But what's more important
is that he is healthy as the rest of the season
goes. So, yeah, if we're looking at right now,
does this inject some life? Yeah, it does because
you've got a guy immediately who comes in and
is your best three -point shooter. But in the
big picture... When this team continues to grow
the rest of this year, next year, the year after,
you've got a guy with some size, athletic ability,
smart basketball player, can defend, and can
knock down threes. And, you know, he's a 3 and
D guy off the bench who's 6 '8 and can play,
you know, three different positions. So while,
yes, it absolutely injects something in right
now, this is the kind of guy that you really
need in terms of depth. And it's funny because
he didn't actually come into the league as a
great three -point shooter, so he's got some
of the other qualities as well that made him
an NBA player, but now he is this great three
-point shooter. And he's Slavic, so I love him
already. There you go. And so not a lot of movement
for the Blazers, this one little trade, but how
much of it— Giannis is still out there, and maybe
the Blazers don't end up with Giannis, but they
have the three bucks picks. How much do you think
the lack of movement had to do with the fact
that maybe the Blazers are going to be involved
and want to set themselves up to be involved
whenever the Giannis trade does happen? I don't
think that has anything to do with it, to be
honest. I mean, they might. You know, the last
year, yeah, last year at the trade deadline when
the Blazers didn't do much. Joe Cronin said,
he's like, look, in years past, we didn't do
things at the trade deadline. But the foundation
that we set in conversations with teams in January
and February is what led to deals getting done
in June. And specifically, he mentioned the Denny
Obdia trade and the Jeremy Grant trade. So just
because no moves were made this week doesn't
mean that. Those conversations haven't led to
something that could happen in that next transaction
window around the draft. And I didn't think Giannis
was going to get traded this week anyway. There
was no pressure by the teams that wanted to acquire
him. The pressure was all on Milwaukee. So now
in the summertime, that's a different story because
Giannis is going to be on an expiring deal and
now there's pressure on everybody. But I don't
think that the Blazers are... Looking at that
and saying, okay, we're going to hold on to the
Bucs picks because we want to be in a deal with
the Bucs. I don't think there's any urgency whatsoever
to trade those picks because if you think about
it, if Milwaukee continues to try and rebuild,
which is very clearly what they're doing, the
28 and 30 picks, whichever way, two picks and
two swaps, right? Those are going to be really
valuable. And if they don't... Use that in any
trade now or even next year or even the year
after that, and we get closer to the 2028 draft.
And the Blazers are in a position where they
feel they're one player away. Now you've got
some really valuable stuff in the immediate future
to use as currency that other teams will not
have. And that could be the difference between
when they are close. making a deal to put them
over the top by using some of those bucks picks
down the road. So there's no, there's no rush
to use those. If anything, you know, it's, it's
smarter in a lot of ways to hold onto them because
you're, you're not close to getting over the
top. And that could be the difference between
getting over the top and not. So if that makes
sense, I don't think it has anything to do with,
with the honest deal at all. I think the Blazers
are looking at this in a situation that We are
trying to make our team better to be able to
compete for a championship within the next, you
know, two, three, four, five years. And there
was nothing that was available right now that
did that. Voice of the Trailblazers, Travis Demers
is with us on the Danny and Justin radio program.
It's a Thursday and a lot of guards were traded.
Certainly Chicago Bulls had no problem collecting
a lot of them, including a former Blazer, Anthony
Simons, who I think that this is just my opinion.
If you look back at the trade that. The Blazers
did trade away Anthony Simons. I think it's aged
pretty well getting a guy like Drew Holiday,
who his contract's pretty large, but he's under
a multi -year contract, clearly is still a valuable
player, whereas now the Celtics basically got
him for a guy in Vucevic who's a solid player,
but it's an expiring contract. It wouldn't have
been something that the Blazers would have been
good for them. So do you think that trade away
for Anthony Simons has aged well? Yeah, I loved
it at the time, and I still love it. And even
if Ant had stayed with the Celtics and re -signed
there and got a max deal there, even if any of
that had happened, I love Ant. But Ant's role
in this league is exactly what it was in Boston.
A guy who's coming off the bench, who can knock
down threes, make some plays, be that... spark
plug, microwave -type guy off the bench, and
that's what he is. And what you got back, and
yes, to your point, Drew Holiday is a big contract,
but this team has a very manageable salary situation,
and I don't think there's any issue with Drew
Holiday having a big contract. And the games
that he has played, you know, of late, he has
struggled a little bit, especially turning the
ball over, but there's a number of games early
in the season that, you know, they don't win
if he's not there at the same time. I see what
he does behind the scenes. And while Scoot has
been out for the first, what, 51 games of this
season, and hopefully his return is imminent,
it sounds like it is, Scoot has been able to
sit with Drew Holiday and Damian Lillard and
learn from those guys and watch with those guys.
And I know some people might think I'm crazy
for this. I think Scoot projects as the kind
of guy who's going to be the backbone of your
team. to have that tutelage from one of the best
leaders in sports in Drew Holiday for 51 games,
even if that was only it, to me that's worth
the trade in itself. But that isn't only it.
Travis, who got better? There were a lot of teams
that made moves. Several teams made multiple
moves. Who got better in this trade deadline?
That's confusing. Huh? No, so getting better
might have been setting yourself up for the possibility
as well. Not necessarily wins and losses for
the rest of this year, but that could factor
into it. But also taking into account that, and
I'm sorry I paused there, is getting better because
you're looking towards the future. You're saying
I'm either banking draft picks, I got rid of
bad contracts, and now I'm kind of lifting the
lid and being able to get better in the next
couple of years. Yeah, I think there's a couple
of teams that I think if you put it in that context,
I think Memphis did a great job because they
needed an overhaul. That team, while they had
stars, was never going to go anywhere. So they
got a lot back for Jaron Jackson Jr. And you
go back to the Desmond Bain trade over the summer
where they got four first -round picks from Orlando.
They have stockpiled a... Both load of picks
from those two deals. Unfortunately, they still
have John Morant, and nobody wants him. But they
have a couple of young players that they want
to build around, and I think while it's going
to be a rough couple of years for Memphis, they
have put themselves in a position to have a future,
and I don't think they did before. The Jazz are
surprising because of the moves that they have
made to not be a bottom feeder. which I think
the expectation from everybody was that, okay,
the Jazz are tearing this down. They're going
to trademark it and they're going to do all this
stuff and, you know, build it back up. No, no,
they are not. They added Jaron Jackson Jr., who
I'm not a huge fan of, but a lot of people are.
And that team now has so much size. You've got
Keontae George, who is showing to be a really
good lead guard to go along with all those front
court players and lengths. I thought that the
Clippers kind of retooling a little bit as well,
because. You know, James Harden wasn't going
to be around forever. Kawhi's not going to be
around forever. So you get a young guard in Darius
Garland, who's been an all -star a couple of
times. You know, I think that helps their future.
I think Cleveland certainly helped themselves
in the short term. The Knicks really needed another
defensive player off the bench, and they got
Jose Alvarado. The Bulls tearing things down
a bit, building for the future. that you kind
of look at and say, hello, McFly, anybody home?
It's the Sacramento Kings. Yeah, they did make
a couple of deals, and they got rid of a couple
of guys. But, like, you still have DeMar DeRozan
and Zach Levine on that roster, and it's like,
what are you doing? Come on, butthead, hello.
It's like, I just, I'm. I don't understand. They
want to be the 2022 Chicago Bulls, obviously.
Yeah, because they were so good. Yeah, they were
really, really good. Don't forget. I think it's
pretty obvious Sacramento is one of the worst
franchises in the league. Quick aside before
I get to my other question. Is it the rebounding
with Jaron Jackson Jr.? Is that why you don't
like him? That's part of it. I just, I don't
know. I mean, he's a good player, and I don't
think it's fair to say that I don't like him.
He's a good player. He is. Obviously, Defensive
Player of the Year, really good defensive player.
I don't trust his outside shot. I just don't
think he's the star that you build around that
a lot of people do. I just think he's a good
player. That's fair. So it's interesting now.
A lot of the teams you talked about, it's funny,
right below the Blazers in the standings, the
Grizzlies right below them, Utah a couple spots
below. I don't think Utah's... Like you're saying,
they're clearly not just tearing it down, but
they're not close enough to get in the play -in
conversation, in my opinion. The Clippers, I
think that they're probably going to be worse
now. I think it might have been fairly even with
just a Garland for Harden's swap, but the Zubox
move is clearly insane. I don't get that one.
Yeah, that one's interesting. They did get a
lot from the Pacers, though. The Pacers, I mean...
possibly could be giving him a pick between six
and nine. So for this season, and if not, it'll
be a 2031. But I'm just curious now, we kind
of talked about this before, but now even in
the Warriors made a move for Porzingis, who may
or may not play a lot for them, depending on
his injury situation. But has this sort of cemented
the Blazers in the plan for sure? And how do
you feel about those matchups? Like, because
those are the teams that the Blazers are probably
going to play. And I feel like they have a decent
chance of coming out of that. Yeah, I agree.
I don't know that it cements the Blazers, but
it certainly puts them in a position where if
they do their job, they'll be in. And Scoot's
supposed to come back pretty soon, like we talked
about. Hopefully Denny, after the All -Star break,
if not before then, will be his self. They'll
figure things out. I think that the last 25 games
of the season or so, I think they're going to
be in a good spot. They will have opportunities
there. And, you know, who knows, right? They
move up those standings a little bit. But you
look at the teams in the West that they could
be playing in that play. And if they're in that
9 -10 range, it's probably going to be the Clippers.
It would be much better to have that game at
home. But, yeah, they'd have a great chance to
win that game. Golden State, they've already
shown they can beat them. The Warriors didn't
really give up anything of note because they
weren't playing Kaminga. And Buddy Heald. hasn't
really played this year. So they add Porzingis,
and he'll go in and start when he's healthy immediately
for them. He's really versatile, and I think
that's a good move for them. But that's an aging
team that has a lot of health concerns. You know,
Phoenix is also in there. So, yeah, I think there's
absolutely an opportunity for the Blazers to
do something. And if they get into the play -in,
even if it's at the 9 or 10 spot, I do think
they can. win two games and get into the playoffs.
But it really depends on them, how healthy they
are, if they can continue that health and if
they can start clicking with all those guys coming
back because you're going to be in a situation
here real soon where guys who have been playing
big minutes for you aren't going to be for one
reason or another. they've got to figure out
what the best lineups are and who plays the best
together. And that'll be a challenge because
I don't think there's a huge delineation between
guys 4, 5, and 6 and guys 10, 11, and 12 on the
roster right now. That's a good thing to have.
It means you have depth. But you want to have
some guys that have separated themselves to be
able to play. And I don't think that's had an
opportunity to happen yet. Travis Summers, you
can follow him at Travis Summers wherever you
have your social media. He's also the co -host
of the Section 113 podcast. You can subscribe
to that. And he is the voice of the Trailblazers,
the mayor of Rip City, joining us on the Danny
and Justin radio program. So, Travis, is it more?
Injury or chemistry that's been part of the problem
in these last six games for the Blazers? As they've
been on a slide, they got themselves above .500,
then all of a sudden, wow, and a couple of just
puzzling losses in this stretch. So your assessment?
My answer to your two -part question is yes,
because when you don't have your best player,
you're not going to be the same team, right?
But then when you're bringing guys back who haven't
played a whole lot and you're trying to integrate
them into a group of players who have had chemistry
now for 30 games or so, there are going to be
some adjustments. And Justin brought that up
last week. That's going to happen, right? So
also players who have gotten used to, like Caleb
Love, right? Caleb Love's gotten used to playing
a boatload of minutes at 21 points against Cleveland.
Next game comes back against Phoenix, he plays
eight minutes off the bench and goes 0 for 2
and doesn't score. Well, he didn't all of a sudden
just forget how to shoot threes. He is in a different
role and in a different flow, and it's something
that's an adjustment. So, you know, roles change.
You ask role players to play starter minutes,
and they have to adjust to that. And then you
ask them to play role player minutes again, especially
for a rookie who doesn't have a massive sample
size of either. You know, there are going to
be some things in there that... They have to
figure themselves out. And Blake Wesley coming
back into the lineup. Veit Krejci doesn't know
where to be on this team yet. And watching his
spacing, you know, going to the corner when Tumani
Kamara was already there, it's not because either
one of them are not smart basketball players.
It's because they haven't played with each other
yet. And those are all things that have to, you
know, get worked out. And when you've had injuries,
when Denny is out, when Scoot comes back, there's
going to be... Some similar things there, too.
So I think it's all of the above. Memphis comes
into town. They'll be at the Moda Center tomorrow
night. It'll be at 7 p .m., and Travis will be
on the call right here on one of the Blazer audio
networks, Fox Sports Eugene. So, Travis, next
road trip is going to be where now? Help me out.
Quick. So we have three more games in this homestand,
Memphis, Philly, and then a quick. two -game
back -to -back trip right before the All -Star
break at Minnesota, at Utah, and then the All
-Star break. So five more games before the All
-Star break, quick trip in some cold -weather
places because we haven't had enough of that
in the last couple of weeks, and then we get
to chill for a while. All right, so you can watch
a couple of seasons of it now. Hijack. Yes. I
was trying to tell you guys about this. We watched
it. Apple TV. Is it Apple? It's Apple, right?
Yes, it's Apple. Apple TV. Okay, hijack. Yeah,
is this the one that I said I didn't want to
watch on the plane? You probably don't want to
watch on the plane. No, you absolutely want to
watch it on a plane. The first season is about
a hijack of a plane. Yeah, no, look, I already
hate flying and assume I'm going to die every
time the plane takes off, so I don't need to
add any fuel to that fire. So I will watch that
in the comfort of my home. All right, so here's
the thing. Then I will give you one other that
has nothing to do with planes. I don't know if
you like Jennifer Garner or not. But here it
is. The last thing you said to me. First season
has dropped. They've renewed it for a second
season. It has a very interesting twist in the
middle. And the first season has totally dropped.
And that is Netflix. Okay? Which show? The last
thing you said to me. Sorry, that's the name
of the show. Who's on first? That's exactly what
I was thinking. Okay, yeah, okay, the last thing.
Okay, what does that have to do with the last
thing I said to you? I assume I'm going to die.
Travis was trying to think. That's the name of
the show. Travis was like, what did I say to
him last? I don't know. This is great radio.
This is why we love having you on, Travis. The
last thing you said to me is the name of the
show. Yeah. Okay. That sounds interesting. It
is. I can't even give away even part of it because
the first episode is kind of like it really smacks
you in the face. It's pretty awesome. Just by
the name of the title, it sounds like somebody
who died and somebody who's thinking about the
last thing that was said to them. I don't know.
Maybe. Okay. Maybe. All right, buddy. Maybe not.
Or they were kidnapped or by aliens or something.
I am not giving anything away. Just watch it.
You can watch Hijack at home. Don't watch it
with your kids, though. Okay? Yeah, that's probably
not a good idea. They don't need to be thinking
about that either. No, not at all. All right,
bud, have a great call. Always love having you
on. Stay safe. Try and get some rest tonight,
all right? Thanks, guys. All right, there he
goes. Great Travis Demers, voice of the Blazers.
Come back on a weekend eve, wrap up the show.
Still a lot to talk about, but, you know, I'm
not going to say we're going to have it in any
particular order because that's not the way we
do things here. We could talk more shows. I mean,
I know you said hijack, but we actually have
several more that we're going to throw out there,
and I want to talk to you. Maybe we'll fill that
in into the last part of the program as we continue
here. Danny and Justin for Thursday.