Hello and Welcome

Will, Alex, and Jerome figure out how many great NBA Finals they’ve watched in the past decade by reviewing every matchup from 2014 to 2023 (01:00). Also included: Letterboxd rating and review for each series and the Ian Mahinmi All-Stars. Later, everyone picks their top 4 individual Finals games of all-time (44:00). Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showAudio Credits: Club 520 Podcast, ESPN & NBC Sports Bay Area.Original Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaEmail sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will is joined by The Athletic senior writer and host of The Game Theory Podcast Sam Vecenie to break down the pros and cons of four players the Raptors could potentially select with the 19th pick: Jaylon Tyson (6:31), Tyler Kolek (12:21), Tristan da Silva (16:41), and Kel’el Ware (21:08). The two also discuss whether Zach Edey’s (27:45) college success can translate to the NBA. Later, Will shares his thoughts (36:31) on what the Raptors can accomplish in this year's draft.Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showOriginal Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaEmail sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will and Alex discuss the 2024 NBA Finals (1:20) and chat about Jrue Holiday’s impact, Kyrie and the Mavericks looking ordinary, how the Celtics built a roster to overcome their flaws, Payton Pritchard as early contender for the Ian Mahinmi All-Star award, and their review of ESPN's broadcast (22:30). Later, the two discuss adjustments for Game 3 (34:00) before introducing their first “Slow Raptors News Month” segment (37:45) and chat about a recent Darko Rajakovic interview about the team’s timeline on being competitive again.Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showOriginal Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaEmail sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will and Alex are joined by CBC senior contributor Shireen Ahmed for a behind-the-scenes look at how the WNBA ended up in Toronto (12:00), potential names for the franchise (18:40), and the present-day sports media discourse surrounding Caitlin Clark and women’s basketball (32:30).  Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showOriginal Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaEmail sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will is joined by TrueHoop’s David Thorpe to preview the NBA Finals. The two chat about the narrative of the Celtics having an easy path to the Finals (2:00), how Boston may approach defending Luka Doncic (13:00) and Kyrie Irving (22:05), and the key matchups for this series. Later, the two chat about Jrue Holiday’s defensive brilliance (27:00) and Brad Stevens’ run as general manager so far before wrapping up with a discussion on how the Raptors can return to championship contention (38:15). Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showOriginal Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaEmail sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will and Alex discuss the upcoming NBA Finals matchup between the Celtics and Mavericks (8:00) including top storylines, official predictions (25:00), and Joe Mazzulla’s best soundbites. Later, they share their winners and losers of the postseason (27:00) and chat about the next generation of NBA stars, best role players of the playoffs (32:30), which team should most regret passing on Luka Doncic (38:20), the Kawhi Leonard era in Los Angeles (45:00), and more. Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showAudio Credit: Top Dawg Entertainment.Original Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaEmail sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the May Banter Pod! Will and Alex answer Raptors questions including whether the team has enough core talent to start a rebuild (9:30), if they should consider drafting Bronny (15:30), expectations for Darko Rajakovic and Gradey Dick in year 2 (34:10), Immanuel Quickley’s restricted free agency (29:00), if the front office can survive another down year (41:20), and more. Later, Will, Alex, and Jerome discuss the most surprising playoff results so far (50:40), worst on-court designs (53:40), 2019 Raptors vs. 2023 Nuggets (57:25), before diving deep into the mailbag to chat about favourite movies (1:05:00), important fashion rules, career changes, burger toppings, work-life balance, Dragon Ball Z vs. Pokemon characters, all-time favourite sports-related video games, running marathons, and more. Finally, Will and Alex recap their three-week trip to China (2:34:40). Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showWant to come to our Launch Party on June 4th at Red Bull Gaming Studios? RSVP here: https://hellowelcomelaunchparty.rsvpify.com/Original Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaEmail sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will and Alex catch up on everything that’s happened since the end of the season, including the Raptors losing their first round pick (01:00), revisiting the Jakob Poeltl trade (08:00), Bruce Brown’s trade market (17:45), the Nets retiring Vince Carter’s jersey (24:00), and Jontay Porter’s lifetime suspension (35:00). Later, the two chat about the WNBA coming to Toronto (49:30), the potential end of “Inside the NBA," (1:05:15) and debate whether they could score a basket on LeBron James in a game up to 100 (1:24:00).Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showOriginal Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaAudio Credits: The Dan Patrick Show and NBC Sports.Reach out to sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will and Alex share some exciting news as they launch their new podcast in partnership with The Nation Network, introduce Jerome Cheng as the show’s editor and lead producer, discuss their coverage plan for this summer, and much more.Reach out to the show by leaving a voicemail at hellowelcome.show or email the guys info@hellowelcome.showOriginal Music by DIVISION 88.Hello and Welcome is presented by Betway. #BetTheResponsibleWay #BetwayCanadaReach out to sales@thenationnetwork.com to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.