Rachel Nichols

I gave my NBA MVP vote to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

I actually voted for Shai. And it was a very, very, very hard vote... The Thunder had 18 more wins than the Nuggets. Right. At some point I don't always vote for the guy who's the highest in the standings, but at some point that matters.

LeBron James should take significantly less money to win another championship ring

If it were me, I would say I will take significantly less, as less as it helps basically to make sure that we get other people in here who can help us win. Because here's the thing, you can't buy a championship ring after you retire all that money... He's not gonna feel any difference in his life.

The Celtics will win the NBA Championship

Before the season I picked the Boston Celtics. With the Boston Celtics down two to one in this series, I still pick the Boston Celtics... they're the best complete team and they just won last year.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have the most assets to trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo if he becomes available.

I think the Thunder actually have the most [assets] of all. If [Giannis Antetokounmpo] becomes available, those GMs that have been keeping their picks, they're gonna pull the trigger.

The Lakers will have to trade Austin Reaves if they want the high-level players needed to surround LeBron James with a contender.

They're gonna have to trade Austin Reaves if they want the level of guys around [LeBron James] that they need. Because right now, [opponents] get to choose which one you go through because they don't defend at the level that you need.

Kyrie Irving has become the elder statesman and leader in the Mavericks' locker room

Kyrie so settled in even more than last year, he's such a leader in the locker room. . . the fact that Kyrie has willingly stepped in to do all of that, the guys in that locker room love him. It's really unbelievable.

No single player will ever win six NBA championships as the main guy again

I personally, I don't think it's even possible for someone to win six rings anymore. Like maybe as like the extra guy who goes tops from team to team or something. But as like the main guy, I just don't think that's available anymore. . . the competition is so much thicker from team to team and game to game.

The NBA's consideration of expansion to Seattle is primarily driven by the need for billions in expansion fees

The truth is they need money. And if they expand again, it's about a billion dollars a franchise... They're talking about, 'Oh, should we put more Jersey patches on stuff like that to make up the extra revenue they're not getting from ticket sales?' The Seattle SuperSonics coming back, that would be a hell of a Jersey patch. You would definitely rake in the cash.

The Phoenix Suns will solidly make the playoffs this year with Chris Paul.

The Suns with Chris Paul should be really good. I'm not expecting them to contend for a title, but I think they would solidly get in the playoffs there.

The James Harden trade sweepstakes won't move until a team gets truly desperate

They have to wait for a team to be desperate. And how long is that going to take? ... The reason I say that is to get a Paul George type package to get an Anthony Davis type package for in trade, which is what you want if you're the Rockets... until someone gets desperate, I don't see James Harden moving.

If I had to vote for MVP today, Giannis Antetokounmpo would still beat LeBron James

I have been saying all season the Giannis has been my leader in the clubhouse... if I'm voting for MVP now, I'm still voting for Giannis because there hasn't been enough time for anything to push a different narrative.

The NBA will return this summer and potentially play in smaller gyms without fans

If you look at Asia... they are restarting some of that. So it gives me hope that we will come out the other side... the NBA has talked about... other gym facilities, if you're playing without fans, you don't really have to play in a giant arena.

The 76ers need to add more shooters to optimize the spacing for Joel Embiid and Jimmy Butler

[Embiid] seems like he's having some trouble with figuring out spacing and where he wants to be... that has less to do with Jimmy and much more to do with they need more shooters on that team.

The Chicago Bulls are viewed as a 'joke' around the NBA

Nick Friedell is our insider today... He said, around the league, when you go around and talk to people, the word they use talking about the Chicago Bulls is a joke.

Luke Walton's job is safe for the rest of the season

I don't see Luke Walton on the hot seat because Magic Johnson said he's going to be around for the rest of the season barring something catastrophic. So there you go.

The Lakers have a better shot at trading for Anthony Davis now than in the summer

If you're the LA Lakers and you want a shot at Anthony Davis without Danny Ainge and all his pile of assets competing with you... they have a more clear run at Anthony Davis now than they will in the summer.

The Lakers would trade anyone on their roster except LeBron James to get Anthony Davis

There is nobody on that roster that you wouldn't trade to get Anthony Davis playing with LeBron James.

Kawhi Leonard is a robot who does not have emotions

He doesn't have emotions. He's a robot... he doesn't have a heart yet. He laughed, there was some laughing, him and Nick Saban laughed the same way, they both have like a button they're like it is appropriate to laugh now so I will push my tickle button.

The Rockets will not finish as the top seed in the Western Conference this season

I don't think they're going to be the top seed in the West this year. I think I can go out on a limb and say that.

Colangelo's burner accounts are the weirdest NBA storyline of the season

I still got to go with a general manager in the NBA getting fired for someone in his family, possibly him, burner tweeting his own players. Collar gate.

J.R. Smith throwing soup at Damon Jones is a weirder storyline than him forgetting the score in the Finals

J.R. Smith for getting the score in the finals is less crazy than J.R. Smith throwing a bowl of soup at an assistant coach in anger. [Big Cat: J.R. Smith throwing a bowl of soup at Damon Jones... that's my number one.]

The Kawhi Leonard and Spurs 'injury management' saga is one of the weirdest stories of the season

Kawhi Leonard is the next weirdest storyline. He spent large chunks of time away from the team... Tony Parker comes out and says, I had the same injury, but a million times worse... Spurs were not putting him on the injury report as being hurt. They said, return from injury management.

Kyrie Irving is waiting until 2019 to sign an extension to get $80 million extra

When [Kyrie Irving] said that he wasn't going to stay in a contract extension this summer with Boston, that is because if he waits until next year, he can get $80 million extra from Boston.

The 2018 Cavaliers have the least margin for error of any LeBron James team

I would say this year's Cavaliers have the least margin for error of any of [LeBron's] Cavaliers teams since he came back. And, you know, if Kevin Love gets hurt again somehow during this playoff run or if something bad happens like that to that team, there's no soft landing.

The Pacers will be a much harder first-round challenge for Cleveland than people think

Right now, as we have this conversation, the Pacers are matched up against the Cavaliers. I think that series is actually going to be harder for Cleveland than other people might think. The Pacers are legit tough this year.

The NBA All-Star break is actually the two-thirds mark of the season

It is not halfway through the NBA season... it is more like two-thirds of the way through the NBA season. They've only got 28 games after the break, so... it's just trying to figure out how to put all those pieces together.

The Western Conference is too top-heavy for any first-round upsets

I'm not sure there's going to be any great first-round series where you're going to be like, oh, my God, they dethroned the number two. Like, think about how good the Warriors and Rockets are. Like, do you really think a seven or eight seed is going to knock them out?

DeMarcus Cousins will never be the same elite player after his Achilles injury

That Achilles, if you are over 25 years old... the history is bad. Like that you will ever be even close to the player that you are. It's almost, I don't want to be too gloom and doom, but it's pretty gloomy and doomy. Like, you will not be the player you used to be, especially if you're a big guy.

NBA tampering rules are stupid and assume players are too dumb to understand cap space

Tampering, it is stupid that the NBA even has tampering. Everybody tampers in the league. Tampering in general assumes that NBA players are too stupid to understand cap space or that like, oh, if Magic Johnson doesn't tell you, then there's no way that Paul George would possibly know there's clearing cap room for him.

Lonzo Ball's Summer League introduction was the sixth most popular post in NBA Instagram history

The NBA made a press release today saying that of all the posts that the league has ever put on Instagram... that Lonzo being introduced at Summer League, when they put that up on IG... That's the sixth most popular thing they've ever put up.

The 1990s Bulls would beat the 2017 Warriors if played under 90s rules

The Warriors are built for an era where there's no handshaking, where the defensive rules are different. If they played during the Bulls 90s era, I think the Bulls team was built for those rules. So they would win.

The 2017 Warriors feel more overwhelming than the 2016 version because of how Kevin Durant changed their chemistry

The two games of last year's finals, the Warriors actually won by more. But for some reason, this just feels so much more overwhelming with the way Kevin Durant has changed the chemistry of that team.

JaVale McGee will have a surprising high-scoring game in the 2017 NBA Finals

I actually think JaVale, no joke, I think there will be a game where JaVale has a surprising number of points. Because when you talk about how they're going to defend... what that will leave is a lot of backdoor cuts for JaVale to the basket.

LeBron James signs short contracts to force team management to stay aggressive

I don't think it's an accident he keeps signing these shorter contracts. He's not... LeBron James free agency not signing a five-year contract for a reason. I think he likes keeping his options open... The problem is [with long contracts] your team has no motivation to do anything for you. Plus all the money is locked up. They don't go bring anyone else in.

The Raptors have a 7% chance to beat the Cavaliers

I think they're going to muddy it up... Two over five. Seven percent chance.

The Rockets are a fun team and have a chance to make the series interesting against the Spurs

I'm super high on the Rockets... once they [the Spurs] calm down sort of and sort of get back within themselves and play first basketball, it will be a more interesting series. I'm still high on the Rockets.

The Warriors will miss Steve Kerr in the later rounds of the playoffs

Steve is the one who is able to sort of maestro all of that along. I think they will miss it in the later rounds as the competition gets tougher... it is a delicate thing over there.

Trading Jimmy Butler would be 'categorically insane' for the Bulls

The idea of trading Jimmy Butler is so absolutely categorically insane.

Kevin Durant likely won't lose his shooting rhythm despite his injury

He actually has a history of coming back from injury pretty well... he doesn't seem to lose his shooting rhythm. The thing that's a question mark... is that if he is 5%, 10% off, that's where you could see a big turn... it just wrecks all their form.

I want to see the Rockets and Warriors play in the playoffs

I have a lot of fun watching the Rockets play, so I'm kind of hoping that that matchup happens during the playoffs, in the second round, conference finals, whatever it is.

The Chicago Bulls front office has no clear vision

They just haven't had a clear vision, right? ... If they had decided we're going to rebuild, rebuild. If they decided we're going to build around Jimmy Butler, build around Jimmy Butler. Stop dangling his name in trade talks.

The Bulls would be stupid to trade Jimmy Butler

I definitely do not [think they should trade Jimmy], and I don't understand the question. ... You are hoping to get a pick to draft a guy that you hope in three or four years will develop into someone as good as Jimmy Butler. ... Guess what is a guarantee of something? The guy on your roster who plays really well.

Lonzo Ball won't fall in the draft because of his father's quotes

I don't think so. ... If you're a pro team, I think it's pretty easy to step away from that and not have that be a big factor. I don't think anyone would pass on talent if they feel like if they believe in him for the roster.

Dwight Howard will become lovable again during his time in Atlanta

I think Dwight Howard's going to get lovable again. I think he's going to be like the guy he was in Orlando. I think he's going to be chill. I think the Atlanta fans don't expect him to lead them to a title. So I think everyone's kind of on the same lily pad right now.

There will be no more national anthem protests in the NBA this season

I don't think we're going to see any. We've seen some like link to arms... but their sort of take is, great, Colin Kaepernick, they're pretty supportive of what he did as a group... but they need to do our own thing. And they've been trying to find sort of actual, you know, whether it's town halls... doing things like that that they think can make a real world impact.

NBA players should have the right to choose their super teams

I do believe that grownups should have the right to decide where they work. Kevin Durant was in Oklahoma City for almost 10 years. And if he wants to go play somewhere else, it doesn't really feel good for me as some random person sitting at home and saying, you know where I think you should live your life and work every day. I'm not a big fan of like the franchise tag.

The Warriors will still be 'pretty good' to start the season because the team has played together for a long time

My theory is that you [PFT] don't know basketball that well then. ... unlike the Miami Heat that year, all but one of those players, they've been playing together for a long time. So it's not like the whole group is coming together the way they did in Miami. It's just really working one guy into the equation. ... they'll still be pretty good at basketball. They just might not be as good as they are by the time they hit their stride in the playoffs.

Aroldis Chapman should have issued a stronger public apology after his domestic violence incident

I would have liked him to make a stronger statement of apology publicly because I think that not only is that important in sort of the evolution of him and how fans might want to feel about him, it's important for kids who put those little Cubs uniforms and caps on every day and come to the park. ... I would have liked to have seen more of that from him personally.

LeBron James' subtweets didn't matter during the season because the Cavaliers ultimately won the championship

I'm saying that I have so many more important things in my day to care about than like what for. ... Here's how we know [it's not a big deal]. They fucking won the NBA title. Like, that's how you know it wasn't a big deal. ... It clearly didn't matter.

LeBron James is playing a leverage game with his free agency

I think LeBron's playing a leverage game. And wouldn't you? Dude, I mean, that letter in Comic Sans, you can forgive, babe, but you don't forget.