Takes

Bam Adebayo was the most versatile and influential defender in the NBA this season

I'd say Bam Adebayo was the most versatile and most influential defender... The center position, the big man position... is the quarterback of the defense. They are by far the most important defenders. And I don't think Marcus Smart is even the most impactful defender on his own team.

The Miami Heat are the toughest team in the NBA and nobody wants to see them in a playoff series.

This team is mean... that stuff's not going to work against this vibe. This is the toughest team in the NBA, in my opinion... nobody wants to see that in the bracket, a seven gamer against this team.

Joel Embiid is the most dominant player in the NBA right now.

I called [Embiid] the most dominant player, right this second in the NBA, because it does feel like when he wants to take over a game, there's no one who can stop him. You could probably say it's Giannis, whatever, but [Embiid]... he is Embiid.

The Timberwolves will win Game 3 at home against the Grizzlies

I will go out on a limb and say Minnesota holds court in Game 3. This team has a big chip on its shoulder. They've had a big personality transplant...

The Lakers are a sketchy organization right now that is coasting on its past

This is a franchise that is sort of really based on its own illustrious past... The organization itself, there's a reputation around the league that man, this is kind of a sketchy place... whatever coach comes in there is going to have their hands full.

The Golden State Warriors have the best 'vibes' in the NBA playoffs, followed by the Heat and the Celtics.

Golden State number one. Cause they have the party, the parties back... then I'm going Miami. I think they're an ultimate chip on the shoulder team... and Boston is third because they still have a dangerous situation in front of them this weekend in Brooklyn.

The hardest part of being a professional goalkeeper is the mental strength required to not dwell on mistakes.

As goalkeepers, if you make one mistake, it's usually going to end up as a goal... the hardest part is just like be mentally strong and not being, not thinking about making mistake or being negative because when that happens, you bounce back and mistakes [happen].

Premier League coaching and academies are night and day compared to the American system

When your kid and the academy system growing up over here in Europe, they just have such good coaching... Over here [Europe], there's just more purpose into training and playing the game. They know it better and they just understand it more than than I was taught growing up... when I was growing up to what I see over here, it was night and day.

Harry Kane is not a threat to score if he is outside the six-yard line

Harry Kane? If he has the ball outside the six-yard line, he's not going to score, not a threat... outside of the six, not a danger.

It is okay to be a 'casual' fan who hops between sports during busy seasons

I'm okay with this. I think we as sports fans in a sports podcast, we need to normalize the fact that there's a lot of sports on and the experts in each field trying to shame the true sports guys like ourselves. I'm sick of it... I'm a casual. It's okay for us to hop from sport to sport.

The Warriors are back

The warriors are back. I'd say that's the lead story. The warriors are back. Maybe not for long because I just placed a future on them, but the warriors are back.

The NBA MVP is a regular season award that shouldn't be judged by playoff success

The MVP is a regular season award. How many times do you think in the last 20 years the MVP in the NBA has won the title? It's happened four times... My long point here is I'm not taking away from the Nuggets or Jokic... you can win an MVP, which he probably will is back-to-back MVP, and that doesn't mean that you have the best team, because that's just not what the award is.

The Nuggets will be title contenders next season once Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. are healthy

The team when they're healthy, I think is still a legitimate title contender. So they're obviously missing Jamal Murray. They're missing Porter... I think next seasons nuggets, the day that the NBA finals are over, I'm going to put a big future on next year's nuggets.

There is no answer for Joel Embiid when he wants to dominate

If [Embiid] is if there's there's less of an answer for Joel Embiid when he wants to dominate than anyone else at this current moment in the NBA.

The Utah Jazz are an unlikable team that needs to be broken up

I'm staying firm... I just want this [Jazz] team out of my face and you should too, because they don't like each other... Quinn Snyder looks like a dude, like five years from the future, who's lost all his money on NFTs.

Quinn Snyder should be allowed to smoke cigarettes on the NBA sideline

I actually think [Quinn Snyder] looks like a dude from the past. I think he looks like a sweaty fixer that you see behind the scenes and like Mad Men... I think they should allow Quinn Snyder to smoke cigarettes on the sideline. I think that would be, yeah.

Kevin Durant is the smartest athlete of all time

Kevin Durant fucking smartest athlete of all time... I don't think I've ever switched from not liking an athlete to loving an athlete harder than I have with Kevin Durant.

The upcoming Drake and Taylor Swift collaboration will be played into the ground all summer

My hot seat is the charts, the radio this summer... Drake posted a picture with Taylor Swift, which means go, I'm going to be a song coming, which means it's going to get, it'll probably be a good song, but it will get murdered into the ground and just played in for it everywhere.

We are bringing the Stanley Cup back to Canada by betting on the Flames and Maple Leafs

Big Cat: I've decided I put a future on the Calgary Flames. I'm going to bring a cup to Canada personally... PFT: I'm on the Leafs already. That's the place I'm at. This is their year. ... Big Cat: I just want to bring a cup to the fine people of Canada because I'm sick of them not having a cup. ... PFT: I did also take out a future on the Leafs. I think that they can do it this year.

Chicken salad is disgusting

Chicken salad is disgusting... That's just mayonnaise... That may be an unpopular opinion. That may be my calamari.

Novak Djokovic is the best tennis player of all time

I personally have a soft spot for Roger. I think he's great. But I do think Djokovic is actually the best.

Tennis needs to become more of a 'party scene' with louder fans

I wish the fans were more involved because it's quite quiet sometimes and stiff. And I feel like tennis needs to get with the times and be a little more fun. I'm totally for fans. I always tell my fans I'm like scream as loud as you can. I think it's so fun... I just want to loosen that up and make it more of a party scene.

Dipping pizza in soy sauce is life

Dipping pizza in soy sauce. Oh, life... It just adds some saltiness to it. I thought it was a great idea.

The best way to make friends in your 30s is to go to a bar and get high

I think the best way to do it is a High Noon happy hour... No, I, it's drug-induced, okay? ... I never hear them or see them from there again... 90% of the time we're going out to people that someone is trying to blow. Straight guy facts.

Kyrie Irving giving the middle finger and yelling at fans is exactly what sports should be

Kyrie should do everything back to [Celtics fans] and that is what sports is all about... Fans hating a certain player, a player upping their game to stick it to the fans. I loved every second of it. I just want more of it.

The media will eventually try to make Kyrie Irving a victim and vilify Celtics fans

I'm just worried that what's going to happen is since all these quotes are being taken out by the media, people are gonna be like, they're gonna turn Kyrie into like a big victim and everything and then turn and then turn the Celtics fans into like the big bully.

I am so sick of the Utah Jazz and want them out of the playoffs

I'm so sick of this jazz team. I want them out of here. I just don't want to be told that Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley and Donovan Mitchell are gonna have like an extended run in the playoffs. Get them out of my face.

The Timberwolves have momentum and I'm going to overreact to their Game 1 win

I'm a believer in momentum. And I am going to do the thing where we take game one and blow it out of proportion.

The Warriors are my pick to win the Western Conference

The warriors are my picks. They're like, they're my pick out of the west. The warriors do have the ability to flip the switch.

Jayson Tatum's 'look at my hand' celebration is the coolest move in sports

Tatum doing the 'look at my hand' is the coolest thing ever when he does an awesome play. And he looks at his hand, I think that's one of the coolest like celebrations that you can do.

LeBron James will appear on a television broadcast desk as a panelist during these playoffs

Will we see LeBron on the desk as like a panelist at any point during these playoffs?

Bigfoot is currently in the state of Ohio

My last who's back is big foot. There's been pictures of a big foot sighting... I've tracked it down to Ohio. There was some Bama people claiming that they found them in Bama... but I just want to correct it and let you know that Bigfoot is currently in Ohio.

I am officially retiring from professional baseball

Well, I haven't signed the papers, man, but I'm done. It's time for me to step away from the game at some point. The uniform goes to somebody else. And it's just my time really... yeah man, I'm done.

The 2016 Cubs had one of the rarest feats in baseball by using the same starting five all season

We had the same starting five all year. Like how many times does that ever happen? I'm sure it's probably happened maybe like decades ago, but can you remember back to another team that had the same starting five from the inner spring training to throughout the world series?

Jacob deGrom is the best starting pitcher to ever play the game

I think [Jacob deGrom] is the best starting pitcher to ever put on the uniform... just what he's able to do with the baseball... it's just, I think he's in his own league. And I hope he stays healthy for another 15 years because if he can do that, I think it'll be the best ever.

An average person would not be able to lay down a fair bunt against a peak MLB pitcher in 100 tries

No [you couldn't lay down a bunt]. There's just so many things that I would do. Like I'd throw you high sinkers at your hands that it probably fell off your fist into your face... by the time you think you're going to swing, it's already too late.

Juan Soto is one of the hardest hitters to get out because of his advanced strike zone knowledge

[Juan Soto] just, I mean he's 21 years old or 20 and just the advanced knowledge of the strike zone to go along with his ability as a hitter is amazing... hopefully he stays healthy and plays this game for a long time.

MLB should not ban the defensive shift

I don't love the shift being banned. I really don't... I also don't like the idea of having the greatest product of the sport in the world telling guys that they no longer need to learn how to be multi-dimensional as a hitter. Manufacturing runs shouldn't be a lost art.

Jake Arrieta would have won the 2015 NLCS if he had worn sleeves during the cold games

I am convinced the 2015 NLCS, if you [Jake Arrieta] had worn sleeves, it would have gone differently. You were wearing sleeveless. That was like one of the coldest baseball games I've ever been to.

Pitchers wearing warm-up jackets while on the bases is a terrible look

Absolutely hated it [pitchers wearing jackets on base]. I just think it's such a bad look... are you really that cold to where you can't wait a few minutes?

Men have an innate psychological need for physical 'adventures' like digging holes

I think that like, as we're growing up, I was under the assumption that I would have just non-stop adventures. And I think that guys just need adventures sometimes. It sounds like he's found his adventure, which we should be applauding... guys will literally dig a giant hole in their backyard for years at a time, instead of going to therapy.

Ben Simmons is ready to return for the Nets and just needs to pass the ball and play defense

I think I nailed this one. Cause Ben Simmons is coming back per Shams. They've just kept him on ice... Ben Simmons is ready to come back and yeah, he doesn't really have to do anything. All he has to do is be out on the court on defense and then just pass the ball on offense. That's it.

Ben Simmons returning to the Nets lineup is actually better for the Celtics

This could be old takes exposed, but I think [Ben Simmons returning] is better for the Celtics... if they're not on the same page and like the third or fourth quarter, like you can't... it'll be really [weird].

The Milwaukee Bucks will make it back to the NBA Finals

I do think the Bucks are gonna make it to the finals... I think it's going to be Suns-Bucks again.

The Celtics will 'womp' (win in 5 games or less) the Nets in the first round

I think the Celtics are going to 'womp' the Nets... Five games either way [for the bet], I'm in. I'll be on your side, Hank.

Zion Williamson might return to the Pelicans for the playoffs if they advance past the play-in

I think if they win tonight, which God willing they do, I think [Zion Williamson] might come back.

The Jazz-Mavericks first-round series will be boring and terrible

I've got a series that will suck. I'm ready to predict right now, a series that I care about the least: Jazz-Mavericks. That series is going to suck.

Perfect games are the rarest achievement in sports and Clayton Kershaw should have been allowed to finish his

Perfect games are probably the rarest thing in sports... like no hitters are nothing. I don't care about no hitters anymore... anyone else has a perfect game, I'm glued in. I want to be watching. That's cool. 23 over in the history of baseball. Some guys make their whole career off it. Oh, it's amazing.

Philadelphia is the number one sports town in America

Philadelphia might be my number one sports town. It's like the rules surrounding Harambe's cage: Do not approach. Do not try to pet. If you do, bad things will happen. So you should know that the second you enter the Philadelphia city limits.

Boston is a better sports town than Philadelphia

[Philly as #1 sports town] is a stretch. City of champions, Boston's #1. New York hasn't won shit. Probably LA, Boston, and Jacksonville.