Season 2, Episode 4- Spotlight

In this week's episode of "Diehlman at Halftime," I discuss:

Highlight: Phoenix Suns
Lowlight: New Orleans Pelicans
Random Stat: Scotty Pippen Sr. and Jr. become first father-son NBA duo to record a triple-double
Game of the Week: New York Knicks @ Philadelphia 76ers

Also, listen to the perspective of our featured guest, Chris DiPietro! (Follow him on Instagram at @chrisdipi).

"Aurora" interlude music written by Jeff Kaale
https://uppbeat.io/t/jeff-kaale/aurora
License code: HJ6W88QKKUB00FNS

Intro/outro written by Larry Diehlman

Release date: Monday, Nov. 11, 2024

Chapters

• 0:15 Introduction
• 1:01 Overview of the NBA this Week
• 6:53 Highlight
• 8:58 Chris DiPietro Interview
• 23:57 Lowlight
• 25:43 Random Stat
• 27:25 Game of the Week
• 28:39 Conclusion

Transcript

**NOTE: Full episode transcript is below except the interview**

Introduction: Hello everybody, and welcome to episode #39 of “Diehlman at Halftime,” the NBA podcast that tops all others! I’m your host, Larry Diehlman. If you’re joining us for the first time, welcome abroad. And if you’ve been a loyal listener, welcome back! We have much to get to today and not a lot of time to do it. We have five sections that we’ll get into: a general overview of the NBA this week, and our usual “Highlight, Lowlight, Random Stat, and Game of the Week.”

Overview of the NBA this Week: It’s back, ladies and gentlemen. The second annual NBA in-season tournament is finally here! The L.A. Lakers defeated the Indiana Pacers last year to clinch the first-ever NBA Cup. Remember, the in-season tournament does not have any advantages, like an automatic playoff spot or extra draft picks (but don’t be surprised if something happens in the future). It’s mainly for cash and prizes, as well as having games that are “more intense.”

The Philadelphia 76ers were dealt another major blow this week. We discussed last week about Joel Embiid slugging a Philadelphia Inquirer reporter in the locker room. He received a three-game suspension for that. Offseason acquisition Paul George made his debut on Monday against Phoenix, but the 76ers keep taking losses. Now, star point guard Tyrese Maxey is out for a few weeks with a hamstring issue. For those of you (well, all of you) looking for a bright spot with the 76ers, Embiid is expected to make his season debut tomorrow, Nov. 12, against the Knicks. Embiid and George should be a lot better than whatever has been going on lately. However, the loss of Maxey will be a tough pill to swallow, especially if the 76ers struggle to return to .500.

Finally, L.A. Lakers guard Bronny James is being sent to the G League. Although LeBron’s son has received significant media coverage since being drafted, he was still drafted with one of the last picks in the second round. Bronny isn’t NBA ready yet. He will be bouncing back and forth between the L.A. Lakers and their G-League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers. The plan is for James to only play in South Bay home games. James has made six NBA appearances thus far and averaging 2.7 minutes per game.

This episode is entitled "Spotlight."

So, who’s raising eyebrows at the moment?

Highlight: After underperforming against expectations in sports, your first goal is to improve. The Phoenix Suns look to be on that path. The Suns are 8-2, tied for first in the Western Conference with Oklahoma City and Golden State, and just had a seven-game winning streak snapped. Ever since Kevin Durant was sent to Phoenix at the 2022-23 season trade deadline, it’s been boom or bust with this team… and it’s been mostly the latter. Because of Durant’s acquisition from Brooklyn, and rescuing Bradley Beal from Washington, the Suns don’t have control of their own first-round pick until 2031! With superstar Devin Booker being Phoenix’s franchise cornerstone for about a decade, bringing in Durant then and Beal last season showed the league that they aren’t messing around. Durant, at 36 years old, is averaging 27.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.4 blocks per night. Booker averages 23.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game. Bench players like Royce O’Neale and Grayson Allen come off the bench as good shooters and underrated defense. With new head coach Mike Budenholzer calling the shots, Phoenix is essentially out of excuses for not making a deep playoff run. And it’s not like they have a choice either. Their next game is on Tuesday, Nov. 12 at 9 p.m. They will be in Utah to take on the Jazz, as they begin their slate of in-season tournament games.

Interview Segue: To get more insight into our “Highlight” this week, we have our first guest on “Diehlman at Halftime” season two. Let’s get into it!

Chris DiPietro Interview

Lowlight: Who remembers when Zion Williamson was being compared to LeBron James, and that he was going to save the New Orleans Pelicans? Woof, was that a while ago. The Pelicans are 3-7, 13th in the West, and on a four-game losing streak. The story wouldn’t be complete here if I didn’t say the Pelicans have an injury bug. New Orleans’ latest injury report included Williamson, C.J. McCollum, Trey Murphy, Dejounte Murray, Herbert Jones, and Jordan Hawkins. That’s basically their entire starting five and key role players! Despite this unfortunate luck, the Pelicans still have Brandon Ingram. Ingram leads the team with 22.8 points, as well as six rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. Murray was acquired from Atlanta in the offseason as another scorer and distributor. When healthy, Williamson is a beast in the paint. Underline the words “when healthy.” We learned on Saturday that he’s out indefinitely with a hamstring strain. Jones is a defensive menace. And Hawkins has taken a step so far, going over double his scoring average from his rookie season. Especially since New Orleans is in the Western Conference, it’ll be hard for them to make up ground. Or who’s to say these team injuries won’t linger for a majority of the season? We obviously hope that doesn’t happen, but a situation like this can be tricky to navigate through. Their next game is tonight, Monday, Nov. 11 at 8 p.m. They will host the Brooklyn Nets.

Random Stat: In the Memphis Grizzlies’ 128-104 victory on Friday against the Wizards, Scotty Pippen Jr., the son of Chicago Bulls Hall-of-Famer Scottie Pippen, did something groundbreaking. It was the first time that a father-son duo each recorded a triple-double in NBA history. The elder Pippen recorded 17 in his legendary career, a career which was mostly side-by-side with Michael Jordan. The younger Pippen dropped 11 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists for his first triple-double. Junior has been coming off the bench this season, averaging 12.1 points and 6.5 assists per game in 25.5 minutes of action per night. Not bad! The L.A. Lakers tossed him aside after his rookie year before Memphis scooped him up before last season. So far this season, Pippen has recorded four double-doubles by way of points and assists. (Again, this guy is coming off the bench). Ironically, one of them came against the Bulls. The other major father-son milestone we’ve seen in 2024 is LeBron James and Bronny James playing with each other. Unless the elder Pippen comes out of retirement at age 59, I’m pretty sure we won’t be seeing him on the court anytime soon…or ever again. In a tough Western Conference, the Grizzlies having Pippen Jr. playing like this will surely help them secure a playoff spot for later this season.

Game of the Week: For this week’s “Game of the Week,” let’s do New York Knicks @ Philadelphia 76ers. This game will be tomorrow, Tuesday, Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m. It also lands on the first day of in-season tournament games. This game is a rematch of the first round series last season which ended with the Knicks winning in six games. As mentioned in the opener, Joel Embiid will make his season debut on Tuesday. However, we’ll have to wait a while for him, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey to play simultaneously. Meanwhile, New York is just under .500 as they test out their new squad. Losing Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, and Isaiah Hartenstein in the offseason to trades and free agency hurt, but gaining Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges were slam dunks. Jalen Brunson, Towns, and Bridges is one of the most lethal trios in the NBA. Until the 76ers get their…situation together, I’m going to take the Knicks 112-108.

Conclusion: Well, that’s all the time we have for today. If you haven’t already, make sure to follow me on social media. I have two X (or Twitter) accounts and two Instagram accounts. The podcast accounts are under @Diehlman_NBA for both X and Instagram. My personal X account is @LarryDiehlman18, and my personal Instagram is @mr_sports18. They’re also in the description on Buzzsprout, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. And thank you to Chris DiPietro for being our guest this week on the podcast. Remember, you can follow him on Instagram @chrisdipi. And don’t forget to spread the word about “Diehlman at Halftime!” See you next time, fellow hoops fans!