Golden State of Mindcast

Kirk Henderson, aka @KirkSeriousFace, is a well known internet presence and noted Mavs fan. We sat down to discuss all things NBA, including the Mavs' heist of the #3 pick and Luka Doncic.2:00 - Heir apparent to Dirk in Dallas?3:45 - Hawks made the bet that Trae Young is going to be better than Luka Doncic.8:00 - Doncic has played 150 professional games in last two season. Also, eating lots of snacks.12:15 - Immediate draft reactions that do actually bear out (aka Anthony Bennett)15:00 - European players leading teams to a championship.18:50 - Mental strength vs. physical strength.22:45 - Warriors superior drafting skills. Also, Jordan Bell hangover, league-wide memo: don't give the Warriors your second round pick.25:00 - Kirk also hates Mark Jackson.30:00 - Kirk is OG Luka Doncic fanboy.31:20 - Kirk apologizes to Thomas Bevilacqua and admits Tom dunked on him in a beautiful manner on draft night.39:30 - Deriving more pleasure from the draft than from the Finals.44:15 - "Mavs are coming for the Warriors. We are going to avenge 2007."47:00 - "We're the best at everything. We deserve whatever comes to us, get the F out of here." Also, Summer League is great.33:20 - Kevin Durant is Kirk's second favorite player in the league. Also, talking about burner accounts, KD vs. Stephen Curry public persona, etc.57:30 - NBA twitter is a f'ing cancer.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thomas Bevilacqua recently became a doctor, yet somehow found time to write a BOOK about the Warriors' 2018 season that debuted a few days after the title. We sat down with him to discuss that, as well as talked with our resident draft expert Charlie Stanton about the newest Warrior, the 2018 NBA draft as a whole, and the state of the league.Annotated list of topics, add time for commercials inserted, etc:2:40 - Jacob Evans, newest Warriors, reaction from Charlie5:45 - League not allowing the Warriors to buy back into the second round, aka the "Jordan Bell effect."8:00 - Some Grayson Allen talk (slander)9:45 - Wait, did Donovan Mitchell slap his newest teammate Allen in college?12:00 - How weird as Warriors fans to not have the draft be the most exciting day in the NBA season?15:30 - Can Jacob Evans get big minutes in meaningful games next season?19:10 - We lose Charlie for a second.19:50 - Luka Doncic love.22:30 - Drafting for fit vs. drafting the best player available, aka wtf Kings?24:00 - Charlie's triumphant return. Russian interference?29:45 - Thomas' new book. Congrats! (He's Costco famous)35:00 - Building on his Golden State of Mind work.37:35 - "I had some time on my hands because I just defended my dissertation." gtfoh43:30 - His journey through his first full year covering this team.48:15 - Having a physical document commemorating the season.51:00 - How to order! (triumphbooks.com/Warriors2018)54:00 - Feelings headed into the 2018-19 season. It's right around the corner Also, the title of his next book if they win again.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Golden State of Mindcast welcomed Fear the Sword’s inimitable social voice and internet troll Ryan Mourton onto the pod to talk all things Warriors vs. Cavs. At the beginning of the year, many predicted a fourth installment of summer’s biggest blockbuster, namely, these two teams matching up. But, there’s a certain magic that is missing. A certain innocence we’ve lost through these long years.Either way, Ryan and I jumped down into the fight pit, cage match, to discuss such things as Richard Jefferson (how he was awesome for the Cavaliers but horrible for the Warriors), if LeBron’s 2007 team was better or worse than this 2018 team, and much more including an unfortunate Black Mirror reference.Come for the chuckles, stay for the random Kyle Korver appreciation.Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play!Annotated time stamps (adjust if commercials, etc, out front):2:30 - Can this be a series?3:15 - Ryan making hand signs on his camera about how much he actually watched the Western Conference Finals.4:00 - Officiating in Game 1.7:30 - What it felt like to watch JR Smith’s boneheaded play in real time.16:00 - Stephen Curry finally winning Finals MVP?18:30 - LeBron’s GOAT status, also is this team worse than his first Finals team in 2007?22:30 - A beautiful Richard Jefferson tangent.29:00 - Houston Rockets hatred from Ryan as well.30:30 - LeBron should be MVP this season, not James Harden.37:00 - The ongoing, baffling plague of Kobe-stans.40:15 - Predictions for the rest of the series.45:30 - Something got messed up in the world as a whole once the Cavs won their championship. Did they trigger the downfall of humanity?48:30 - Change in our personal feelings for basketball since both our teams won their first championships. Also, a really, deeply unfortunate Black Mirror reference.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Golden State Warriors are now firmly locked into the #2 seed, while seeds eight teams below them vie for positioning. How will the Warriors' injuries affect the team heading into the playoffs — and who the hell are they going to play? Bram, Charlie, and Ivan talk about it, among other topics — the mild success of Quinn Cook and how it affects the team's roster decisions going forward; the NCAA Tournament and consternation caused by the fall of amateurism in sports; and gambling, tattoos, and fear of hepatitis. 1:12 - Injuries to the non-KD Big 3. Worried about Klay's break?5:10 - Warriors' easy schedule and locked into the #2 seed6:50 - First round matchups. Could be the Jazz...7:36 - ...could be the Spurs with Kawhi8:12 - ... or the Thunder. And on and on14:03 - How the rest of the season plays out with all of the injuries16:53 - "The Houston crowd *sucks*"20:00 - Not a guarantee that the Warriors win out22:02 - Eastern Conference seeding is tight too28:28 - Bram's go-to drink: roasting OKC30:28 - Sports gambling and road tattoos33:02 - Quinn Cook, his role on the Warriors, and his effect on the Warriors draft40:51 - Bram talks himself into a dark place, about Pat McCaw43:01 - NCAA Tournament talk48:50 - And now some manner of rant about the demise of true amateur sports and dudes going into financeLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nate, Daniel, and Ivan reflect on the crime committed by James Harden against Wesley Matthews, and how much we appreciate the gamesmanship of disrespectfulness in basketball. We also discuss the threat, or lack thereof, of the Houston Rockets, and why the Warriors' lackluster defense won't be a problem down the stretch. All that and more!Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play!00:45 - James Harden embarrasses Wesley Matthews04:20 - The value of disrespectfulness in sports08:30 - Daniel fixes his mic! 13:05 - Most arrogant Warriors opponents19:32 - Other top disrespectful moments in NBA history23:00 - Switching gears: are the Houston Rockets a problem?25:15 - Daniel drops the hammer on Chris Paul and leaves us speechless28:03 - Warriors not taking this regular season seriously30:30 - Ivan wonders if the Warriors have another gear. Daniel and Nate are nonplussed37:50 - Ivan continues to clutch his pearls, now about the Warriors' defense42:02 - Which Warriors player is underperforming? Nate throws his guy McCaw under the bus51:23 - If Steve Kerr doesn't win a championship, is he on the hot seat? Nate: "Shut your mouth"53:29 - Jordan Bell impactful down the stretch?Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brady Klopfer, our trusted colleague, was one of only two SB Nation team bloggers credentialed for NBA All-Star weekend. He joins Mindcast to give us a hilarious behind-the-scenes look at the weird frivolity that transpired with the game in Los Angeles.Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play!Annotated list of topics covered:1:00 - Welcome Brady!7:00 - All Star weekend in LA is just a weird, wild party. Also, all the players must have been out the night before, etc. Street parties, concerts. Surviving on arena food.10:00 - Brady lives in LA without a car, which is crazy.11:00 - Capturing the national drama swirling around all the political stuff swirling around Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry.16:30 - Media Buzz about those stupid Fox news comments.17:00 - Players relishing the chance to share their thoughts. “We will not shut up and dribble.”23:45 - The vibe with media at the scrums. When Brady finally got a question. Were there fights a la the reporter fight? (It almost happened again at Steph’s presser on Saturday)30:00 - Nate buries our son Pat McCaw under an avalanche of shade. Ooooooh man. How you gonna do the McGOAT like that?35:00 - The humanity of seeing these players up close.36:50 - Which non-Warriors players were the most interesting to speak with?40:20 - Continuing to be depressed about our government, and how we can’t avoid talking about it. It says a lot about our world and lack of leadership that basketball stars and high school survivors of a tragedy are showing more grace and poise on a national stage than our “elected” “leaders.”46:45 - Being able to talk about basketball in the context of “we might all die tomorrow.”48:20 - We realized we hadn’t even talked about the game.49:50 - It was fun to watch the players take the game fairly seriously. 1:02:00 - The NBA’s ability to make fun of itself and have a sense of humor, and how that’s super needed.1:03:10 - HOW DO I ALWAYS MESS UP NATE’S TWITTER HANDLE??????Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nate and I jumped on the Mindcast to discuss how no matter where you live, you can still hate on the Thunder, should you desire. Also, we delved into the question of: “If Russell Westbrook was on your team, would you root for him, or hate his iso-heavy, domineering style of play?” We also asked ourselves how we enjoyed rooting for (recently) Draymond Green who other teams’ fanbases tend to despise, and (longer ago) Monta Ellis, who was basically “Westbrook-lite.”Time-stamps:2:00 - The difference between California weather and New York winters, also making fun of Ivan for missing the pod to “cook dinner.”3:30 - No matter where you live, you can still hate the OKC Thunder.6:30 - Question posed within our internal GSOM slack channel: “Players that you love to hate, would you love them if they were on your team?”9:30 - “Westbrook on the Warriors would be like Monta Ellis on steroids.”15:00 - The ultimate reason we hate on the Thunder: The “what could have been” element of their team, had they kept James Harden and if Durant had stayed. This is the best version that could have come out of their original Finals team? Ugh. 21:30 - The impact of losing Andre Roberson.25:30 - If the Warriors won every single game for the rest of the season, they’d still finish three games back of the 73-9 team, which is crazy. 27:00 - Potential playoffs match-ups in the West and in the East. If the Thunder play the Timberwolves in the first round, would they even advance?31:30 - Nate thinks the Thunder could potentially even fall out of the playoffs entirely.35:00 - Will we ever see 1-16 seeding in the playoffs?39:00 - The Rockets do not look good at the end of games, often. How will that translate to the playoffs when teams can gameplan for them and everything slows down? Also, how will home court advantage play into a potential Warriors vs. Rockets series?42:00 - We meant to come on Mindcast and talk trash about Westbrook, and instead here we are breaking down all the playoff implications and the standings.45:30 - Doubling back, I used to hate the Nick young experience and now it’s glorious. Could Westbrook ever do that on another team? Would he ever accept a reduced role, or play in a system?47:00 - It’s weird and makes me feel old AF that Monta Ellis is washed and is no longer in the league. A deep dive on his game, his future, and much more Ellis talk for a long time.51:00 - The upcoming game against OKC is actually pretty big for both teams, especially heading towards the All-Star break.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bram was off for this pod, but Ivan and Nate welcomed Minnesota Timberwolves writer David Naylor! As always, we love having David on Mindcast. We talked all things Wolves and Minnesota, while breaking down how the Timberwolves have been one of the most interesting teams in the league so far, racing out to a third (or currently fourth) place standing in the packed Western Conference.Annotated list of topics covered:1:30 - David explains his twitter handle, which for some reason has to do with ... Pokemon?! lol4:30 - Are we surprised (and are Wolves writers surprised) that the Timberwolves are doing so well?9:30 - Karl Anthony Towns and Jimmy Butler are both in the All-Star game this, marking only the sixth and seventh Wolves players to ever  make an All-Star team. Whoa. 15:00 onwards - basically a giant breakdown of the Wolves' roster.33:00 - Which Timberwolves players will continue to take "the leap?" Where does KAT fit into that, what's his trajectory?43:00 - What teams to avoid in playoffs for Wolves?57:30 - Quick breakdown of depressing Vikings loss.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bram Kincheloe and Ivan Bettger are joined by Daniel Hardee to discuss the 2018 NBA All-Star picks, and the intrigue surrounding Stephen Curry and LeBron James as captains. Daniel hosts a mock draft, and things get very petty. We also talk Westbrook, the Cleveland Cavaliers' decline and next move, and the wild Rockets/Clippers show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nate and I welcome famed GSOM writer Hugo Kitano to the pod, covering a huge swath of issues including injuries, the nature of fandom, and how life can change in an instant.Enjoy! We had a blast with this one.1:00 - A brief football discourse, and how championships and struggle are processed.5:00 - Welcome Hugo! Talking about how he twisted his ankle a bunch of times and how that impacted his pick-up hoops game.6:30 - Looking at All-Star voting, the doldrums of the midseason.11:20 - Finally talking about the (newest) Curry injury.17:40 - As a Californian, and as a Warriors fan, how has Hugo enjoyed living in Toronto? Also, Toronto’s place in the ranking of NBA cities, as well as DeMar DeRozan’s expanded game.28:00 - How it takes some players (most players) a long time to become their best self in the NBA, and how we can’t write off struggling youngsters.43:00 - In a theoretical Finals series, how would the Raptors match up against the Warriors? Also, how many games the other upper-echelon teams would get against the Warriors in a seven game series.51:30 - Put to it, what team could Mark Jackson coach now?55:00 - If Hugo feels old, Nate and I feel really old.1:00:00 - Things take a heavy turn about how you remember world-altering events, and how they impact your life forever.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nate and I welcomed GSOM writer Charlie Stanton to his inaugural pod, and broke down 2018, the Warriors’ biggest storylines, our lingering obsession with Harison Barnes, the 2018 NBA draft, and much more.[Annotated list of topics, add time if advertisements inserted]0:50 - Welcome to 2018. We ... made it?5:00 - Mavericks vs. Warriors always reminds us of “We Believe.”6:00 - Finding meaning in each new year.9:20 - What’s the storyline that will dictate the rest of the season?13:00 - All the players taken ahead of Harrison Barnes in the draft. Are they better or worse?16:00 - Draymond Green vs. Anthony Davis. Also, are the Warriors better suited taking second round players without the hype?20:00 - Nate finally comes around on Barnes.23:50 - The second pick in the draft is a weird dead zone.25:00 - Charlie became a Warriors fan because of Harrison Barnes. He stans hard, and I’m here for it.30:00 - Why are we still talking about Barnes? What makes us care?34:45 - Harrison is the most polished interviewee ever.37:00 - “The Harrison Barnes Therapy Session”38:30 - Charlie’s hopes and dreams for the 2018 draft, in regards to the Warriors.44:00 - Charlie’s favorite player in the whole draft.48:00 - Teams that could compete after adding a top draft pick.54:00 - In 2018 — with the draft, the rest of the regular season, and the playoffs — what can we hope for? What would make us happy?1:05:00 - How do sports actually change our lives?1:09:00 - Being thankful for what we have. Happy New Year y’all. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s Christmas! It’s time for family, cheer, holiday wishes, and well wishes. So, of course, we got on a podcast and talked soooooooo much s—t about the Cavaliers, Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, and the Rockets (and Clippers). Our souls are broken, I suppose. In other news, this podcast originally included about 45 minutes of Kobe Bryant talk (read: hatred) that I edited out because ... why waste more words on that dude?Enjoy our vitriol and go out and spread some cheer on our behalf! [Annotated list of topics. Add time if blogtalk inserts an advertisement.]0:05 - Welcome! Merry Christmas! Let’s talk about tonight’s Cavaliers vs. Warriors match!5:20 - Which teams have you enjoyed watching the least this season?7:40 - Which players do you tune in to watch, specifically?11:30 - Talking about the Rockets for awhile.12:00 - “Chris Paul’s soul is trapped in Riley Curry’s aquarium.” Ouch.14:00 - I do not like this OKC team. We talk some shaaaade about Carmelo Anthony.20:00 - “Russell Westbrook is the new Kobe.” And not in a good way.27:30 - Revisiting the Iverson Sixers in the middle of a long talk about iso basketball.30:00 - If Westbrook got some good coaching, could he improve his game drastically, a la Michael Jordan with Phil Jackson?37:30 - Ivan’s hilarious attempt to end the pod.So there it is. Beef, beef, and more beef for your Christmas meal and listening pleasure. Remember to hug a loved one today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nate, Dubydubdubs, and Ivan discuss all of their favorite players, including Dallas Mavericks Best Player Harrison Barnes. We go into depth on the development of Patrick McCaw, the growth of Klay Thompson as a playmaker (or so our eyes would make us believe), and "found money" Jordan Bell.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Golden State of Mindcast is back! Nate and I sat down with new writer Thomas Bevilacqua to discuss the season, how Curry’s injury has really been a “wake-up call,” the limits of fandom, and mortality. Sounds like a nice little jaunt through the first part of the season! 1:30 - Where are we as Warriors fans, especially with championship fatigue and the Stephen Curry ankle injury?6:20 - When will we see Curry again?9:30 - Reactions to the injury, how it brings back old pains.11:30 - Separating bandwagon fans from old school fans.15:00 - Looking at the rest of the NBA. How have other teams performed so far, and where do the Warriors fit into that hierarchy?19:00 - How the Warriors are making Jordan Bell into a star, much in the same way like how the Spurs’ system has made other second round players into stars.33:30 - Tom as our resident “librarian.” We take a stroll through his favorite Warriors-related books he’s been reading.40:00 - Somewhere around here the conversation transitions to ideas of how things age, which books or articles will be meaningful in a few years or a few decades, and basically the whole “stick to sports” argument and what that means. Also, which of the recent books about the Warriors will transcend their time and live on?49:00 - The unique moment in which we are living.51:00 - Nate’s very good advice on how to become a better writer.1:02:00 - Tom’s plans for a future book. Very exciting.1:06:00 - We would all read a well-written biography of Steve Kerr.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome home Ivan! We are back, and geared up to talk about all things Warriors, including the new uniforms, all their offseason moves, the return of their core, and much more! [Annotated list of topics] Let’s do this! 1:00 - Ivan is back and the first thing we talk about is ... uniforms? 8:30 - When and where did Ivan find out about the Nick Young signing? 11:30 - We are obsessed with Patrick McCaw, as you may have noticed. 12:30 - Are the Warriors being #lightyears by burying McCaw’s minutes behind Nick Young and Omri Casspi so some other team doesn’t pay him big money, only to unleash him once he’s out of the restricted free agency period? 14:30 - We are already writing off every single other team in the league. Did any team get significantly better, to the point that they can compete with the Warriors? 18:30 - The apocalypse will happen, and Jamal Crawford will still be balling out on an NBA court somewhere. [Side note: I claim to have been at Jamal Crawford’s 50 point game, but here’s the fickle rub of memory: the game happened in Charlotte. I was NOT there. But my whole life (well, since recently), I’ve remembered being there. Man, memory is stupid. I did a bunch of sleuthing, and for the life of my can’t remember what game I actually saw. Someone scored 50, I think. But, dang, my bad. Mind, why don’t you work more better?! Also, that game happened in 2008. I was 21. Granted things are a little ... uh ... hazy around that period of my life, but the game I’m remembering was definitely from when I was a kid, so I guess the lesson here is seriously don’t trust anything I say.] 21:00 - Could the Cavaliers risk it and keep Kyrie Irving around? 31:00 - “Paul George to the Thunder? Ballyhoo!” 37:00 - Did Houston do anything that moved the needle for them in the Western Conference. Even if they get Carmelo Anthony, are they any better than last season? 47:45 - I maybe make a very hot take about Chris Paul vs. LeBron James. 49:00 - Denver Nuggets time! 56:00 - Are the Kings actually gonna be exciting?Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back to Golden State of Mindcast! We haven’t had a chance to gloat and crow about the fact that the Golden State Warriors are CHAMPIONS OF THE WORLD, but I promise we’ll get to that. Instead, Ivan, Nate, and Bram sat down to live-podcast-blog (however you would say that) the NBA Draft which transpired last night. It was a fun thing, and we are planning on maybe doing more of these for regular season games or whatever next season. I mean, what’s better than hanging out with your friends, drinking a nice cold beverage, and talking about sports? Anyways, enjoy. 1:30 - The Knicks are idiots. Will they actually trade Kristaps Porzingis? Ugh, what a toxic scene there. 4:00 - No surprise, Markel Fultz is the first overall pick. What do we make of this trade? Why were the Celtics nervous? Why were they not as high on him as everyone else? 6:30 - “Positionless basketball” about to happen in Philadelphia with Ben Simmons and Markel Fultz both able to handle the ball and initiate action. Also, that teams just want superstars. 9:00 - We find out about the Jimmy Butler trade to Minnesota for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn, and the #7 pick. Whoa. 18:00 - What were you doing at age 19? If you had TMZ following you around, would you end up in jail, or just embarrassed like D’Angelo Russell? 25:00 - Old guard vs. new guard, and how technology has changed not only the NBA draft, but our entire lives. 29:00 - Nate almost got victimized by a fake Woj bomb. 37:40 - Ekpe Udoh return to the Warriors? Anthony Randolph?! Let’s do it. 45:00 - The amazing suspense leading up to a ... Lauri Markkanen pick. Also, he’s going to the Bulls. Everyone knows it. Why can’t he just put on a Bulls hat? Why is this so hard? 47:00 - Nate still pines for Vince Carter, and regrets the heck out of that draft. 49:00 - Knicks slander. 1:04:30 - Would the Cavs have beat the Warriors if they’d kept Andrew Wiggins? Lol. 1:09:00 - Dwight Howard in Charlotte. Good fit? How much shade should we throw at him? 1:18:00 - We get to a player who none of us know who the hell he is and decide to stop the podcast. 1:18:45 - Do any of these picks or moves move anyone closer to the Warriors? Answer: no.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Boy howdy, things are about to get fun. It’s almost June, and that means it’s time for our annual Warriors vs. Cavaliers match-up in the NBA Finals. Yes, that’s right. Round Three is almost upon us! Ivan and I sat down last night to discuss the Finals, LeBron’s legacy, the nature of legacy, the fact that people think the Warriors are evil, and much, much more. As always, we wandered off track and (sort of) found our way back. [Annotated list of talking points:] 2:00 - People love to hate watch the Warriors, and it’s still super surreal for us. 5:30 - It’s hard to figure out what’s going to happen in the Finals, because neither team has been truly tested yet. 9:00 - There’s no real underdog here. Cavs are defending champs with best player, Warriors added another MVP in his prime. 11:00 - Hugo’s awesome Star Wars tweet. Also, how people are convinced the Warriors are the Empire, as in the evil-doers of our world. I say no. No way. 16:00 - People are petty as hell. Boston’s superteam vs. LeBron’s Miami team vs. this current Warriors team. 19:00 - The Warriors tried to embrace being “villains,” but all they did was have a house party and get a bunch of balloons. They are actually way too nice to be evil. 20:00 - The Mike Brown, Steve Kerr, Warriors’ coaching situation. 25:00 - My arrogant James Michael-McAdoo hope/prediction for this series. 25:50 - Ivan’s dark thought that he put in a podcast but not in his article. 34:00 - Beyond the apex of the LeBron James saga? 36:00 - Not surprised if three years from now, we are talking about Warriors vs. Cavs, volume VI. 39:00 - Calling it now, LeBron is going to somehow buy a team, and be the first player/owner/coach. Guessing it’s somehow the Orlando Magic, because #Florida.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beloved Warriors scribe Marcus Thompson II has a fantastic new book out called, “Golden: The Miraculous Rise of Steph Curry.” We did a giveaway a few weeks ago, but if you didn’t win the giveaway, or if you haven’t yet picked up a copy of the book, DO IT NOW! Seriously, it is required reading for all Warriors fans. We were very happy to welcome Marcus to the pod, as he sat with us for well over an hour, talking about the book, talking about Curry, telling future kids to get off our lawn, and much, much more. You can listen here! Also, as you may have noticed, we are extremely excited to announce that we have joined the Almighty Baller Podcast Network. Big things are on the horizon for the Mindcast show. Welcome Marcus! [Editor’s note: We recorded this the day before Game 4 of the Jazz series.] 2:30 - Steph (on court killer) vs. Mr. Curry (worldwide brand mogul) vs. Stephen (home/dad/family). 8:00 - LeBron’s stardom, and for whatever reason not embracing Stephen Curry’s family guy persona. 12:45 - The uncertainty of Curry’s potential ankle reconstruction surgery, and how he didn’t know if his career was maybe over. His rise from the ashes of his own career to become the face of the NBA. (Just remembering how many ankle injuries he suffered). 16:45 - Curry’s injuries stopped once he went to Mark Jackson’s church and they prayed over his ankle (actually, not really). Marcus talks about Steph had to hop on his injured ankle in front of Jackson’s congregation. 21:00 - The race and religion element of Curry’s experience, especially as it relates to him being “light skinned,” and how he addresses it in public and in private. Him being called or considered “soft.” 28:00 - How much does Curry’s faith impact his on/off court behavior, especially as he adsorbs everyone’s fouls and disrespect? [Marcus asks that we cue the Gospel music, we comply. Full disclosure, I couldn’t find any open source organ music that wouldn’t get us in trouble, so I just recorded this myself in my studio.] 30:45 - Steph also thinks this “all happened really fast.” 38:00 - What else can Steph do to get respect from his peers? 41:30 - Warriors forming the new core four, core five of players who are going to be around for a long time, a la the Spurs. 50:00 - Curry as a leader in comparison to Jordan, Iverson, and Kobe. The way he set the tone for this culture and this team is amazing. 55:45 - Did Marcus have to hold stories back because he’s still so intimately tied to the team. Also, a funny story about his “East Oakland sensors” and maybe getting hustled. 1:02:00 - How we are all gonna those old guys telling kids to get off our lawn and go watch Steph clips on their VR goggles. 1:08:30 - Marcus’ reasons for writing this book.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ivan is a Steve Kerr hater. Bram obviously has to put him in his place. We discuss that and much more on the latest episode of Golden State of Mindcast! Annotated list of topics covered: 0:50 - Apparently I’m an “excitable lad.” 1:00 - The Warriors crushed the Trail Blazers. 2:30 - Did we jinx the Clippers for the second year in a row?! 5:50 - I can’t pronounce Joe Ingles’ name. 8:45 - Doc Rivers needs to be removed as “Captain” of the “Clippers.” 9:15 “Imagine Steve Ballmer in a made-for-TV rendition of the poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” 11:25 - Let’s talk about basketball that actually matters. 13:45 - Rudy Gobert vs. Draymond Green potential matchup. Really, I’m more excited about Gobert vs. JaVale Mcgee. 17:30 - Ivan’s cue to cut me off from speaking. 19:15 - “Huh, Joe Johnson plays for the Utah Jazz? That’s weird.” 21:20 - People hate Radiohead? 28:00 - Potential Warriors vs. Utah match-ups. 33:50 - Addressing the Steve Kerr situation. 37:00 - Ivan, maybe kinda thinks the players might have more control on the court under Mike Brown. 40:00 - I’m obviously in love with Kerr. 41:30 - Ivan is super anti-Kerr and I hate him for it. Also, he says the word “optics” a lot. 45:40 - Suddenly we are ranting about “Jeb” York, for some reason. 55:02 - “[Kerr] just stepped into a situation that was awesome. Mark Jackson built this thing.” “Oh man, I just wanna murder everybody.” 1:00:00 - Could the Warriors have won a championship under Stan Van Gundy, if they didn’t hire Kerr? 1:02:45 “Charisma and Balls.”Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last year around this very same time, Golden State of Mindcast feverishly roasted the LA Clippers and salivated at the Warriors dismantling them in the next round of the playoffs. During that very recording, Chris Paul broke a bone in his hand and derailed the Clippers' playoff run. Fast forward to last night, when we got carried away with yet another anti-Clippers roastfest, and, lo-and-behold, what happened? Blake Griffin injures his toe and is out for the remainder of the playoffs. This is not our fault! We are not witches! We did not curse Griffin and the Clippers, nor would we ever wish injury upon anyone! We apologize if the podcast seems tasteless in light of the news.  --------------- 1:00 - Harrison Barnes hate, for some reason 3:24 - JaVale McGee is going to be the NBA Finals MVP 5:30 - How did the Warriors dominate the Blazers in Game 2? 9:40 - No easy answers for Blazers 11:30 - Nurkic returning for Game 3 — what will be the effect? 18:04 - Moving onto the second round: Clippers or Jazz? This quickly devolves into Clippers slander 22:36 - Epic Bram monologue on why he hates the Clippers 26:53 - Fans leaving early from games: is it ok?Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices