Michael Pina

I love how you frame them as the weirdest team in the NBA.

In trying to kind of synthesize my thoughts about them, I still would label them a championship contender.

Any team that is, what are they, fourth in net rating, top five on both ends of the floor.

They have...

uh, two all-stars probably in Shingun and Kevin Durant.

They just, they profile as a championship contender.

Um, but like, they're also this team where I know, I know what all the other championship contenders are and I know how good they can be.

And I feel like I've seen their best basketball, uh,

And with Houston, it's just like there's so much more there to either discover or they are just flawed fatally in a way that will show up in the postseason and kill them.

And I can't really figure out which side I fall on with that.

And the Adams injury is like...

I mean, they're really good when Shingun's at the five offensively and, you know, net rating wise and all that sort of stuff.

But like Steven Adams is just like the personification of their identity on the basketball court.

And he's a big reason why they're so good at protecting the rim.

Their zone defense has been, you know, with a little bit of three point luck, really good in the double big lineups when he's on the floor.

Obviously they,

grab offensive rebounds at i mean they lead the league still when he's off the court i think but when he's on the court it's like 45 or something it's just absolute monstrosity um you can't deal with it so it's just a huge loss and it almost changes like i don't know i don't want to say it changes their identity i think they'll play similarly because they have no choice um but

He's huge.

And if he's out until late March or April, where will Houston be in the standings then?

Will they be in the play-in?