The Ringer NBA Show
Is the Thunder’s Rep Just Bait? Plus, Who Earned Their Knick-for-Life Stripes? | Group Chat
28 May 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hello and welcome to Group Chat.
Chapter 2: What is OKC's reputation in the NBA and is it justified?
I am Justin Verrier and joining me on this lovely Wednesday afternoon is Rob Mahoney, J. Kyle Mann. How's it going, fellas?
Sincere just looks terrible on you and enthusiasm. I don't know. There's something just not right about it.
Chapter 3: How did the Spurs perform in Game 5 against the Thunder?
We were trying to talk about what we're going to talk about at the top, and we settled on weather talk, but Rob was not a fan.
We did not settle on weather talk. If you're out there listening to this, I tried to protect you. I tried to say, you know what, we need something to actually discuss, but Justin, you thought we could fly by the seat of our pants, our collective pants.
It's like the old, like, whenever you do a weather lead to your story, you know, it's gotten really bad. So it's like, it's cold and damp in San Antonio, but it's nice and hot and the discourse is piping over here on the group chat.
For what it's worth, I do prefer the it's cold and damp in San Antonio to the, like, Timothee Chalamet pushed around the lettuce in his salad over this brokered interview at this stylish restaurant. Like, at least it's a scene of a different kind.
Miles Teller, what a dick, because he only orders a sandwich.
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Chapter 4: What makes Alex Caruso a standout player in this series?
Really gets you in the moment, the real description of the... Are you talking about like Rolling Stone type interviews? Yeah. I'm 35,000 feet above the ground with still water.
The hottest band in America, and we're all about to die. See... This is how I know y'all are true journalists.
Bump set spike.
Chapter 5: How do the Thunder leverage their depth in the playoffs?
Almost famous off the dome. JV, did you have a take on the Miles Teller is a dick or is not a dick or is defensive about being a dick discourse?
I think he's probably a dick. Okay. And revealed himself too much, and that's what he's upset about. But I don't necessarily fault him for being upset that he had a lunch with someone and they made a pretty sweeping generalization about him as a person. So...
Chapter 6: What are the implications of the Thunder's foul baiting reputation?
I can see it both ways. Isn't that the gig? Isn't that what you're signing up for, to be generalized? Yeah. I guess so.
Chapter 7: Who are the Knicks' fan favorites and why?
But things just aren't going well for him in general. Isn't he in that Michael movie? He is with a very regrettable haircut.
I've heard many people say that was a hit, a Stone Cold hit, my man. I haven't seen it yet. I suspect it's not a hit. That's one of those audience score things. Speaking of which, Mando Grogu saw that. Another one of those, audience score. Another hit. to revisit the movie talking thing. Had some chatters who were just giving me a little commentary. They were like, where'd he go?
Oh, there he is, like talking out loud like that during the movie. Anyway, yeah. Want to go to a break?
Yeah, I feel like we should have done weather talk, but instead you got five minutes of quick Letterboxd analysis.
If that.
Yeah. Not even pithy enough for Letterboxd. All right, we're going to talk game six of one of the best series in recent history, Spurs Thunder. We're also going to talk about the Knicks making the NBA Finals.
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Chapter 8: What factors contributed to the Knicks' success in reaching the Finals?
But first, we're going to talk about flopping right after this. The Ringer NBA show is brought to you by FanDuel. The conference finals are here. Think you know how it'll go down? Take your shot with FanDuel and get closer to the action. FanDuel is the best place to bet the team's players and plays during the NBA postseason. Build the same game parlay for a shot at a bigger payout or...
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And it's always just like vaguely about NBA, what's going on there. It's like, so Cavs not about to make it, huh? And I was like, yeah, sure. Okay. I'm sure you guys get this a lot. It's probably the de facto sports guy in your families. The one recently was about like the thunder flopping and clearly like he may have watched maybe a game. But it's just like, man. these thunder guys flop a lot.
Right. And it was at that point I came to the realization, perhaps the thunders reputation has broken containment, not only past like NBA, just zealots onto just sports fans in general to this next layer, like kind of the mom test where it's like just anybody out there who has any interest in sports whatsoever. Um, it feels like people are hopping mad, Rob. And it's,
For a while, it felt like a very small group of people. Now it feels just like everybody to the point where it's like this is the dominant, I would say, storyline of the playoffs if not for just the thunder overall.
Yeah, I mean, this is the flip side of the NBA escaping its regular season bubble. We talk all the time about like, oh, this is when you can make your name. You can become a different kind of star. I think Giannis was one of these cases for years where it was like, very popular, very well known among basketball people.
And then all of a sudden he's on the final stage and he's on 60 minutes and it's just like exploding in a totally different way. But the same is true for the most negative things happening in the league or the most toxic discussions that are happening around the league. And so I am also getting those messages.
I'm also getting like AI altered flopping videos in which people are now trying to debate and litigate the legality of what, like, computer-generated Shea Gildress Alexander is doing. So we have... The train has left the station. We have left the planet.
I don't even know what conversation we're having anymore, but it's clear that it's bigger and louder and, in a lot of cases, more annoying in totally new ways.
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