Season 2, Episode 19- Showtime

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

Highlight: Indiana Pacers
Lowlight: Atlanta Hawks
Random Stat: March 2 is the anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game
Game of the Week: Minnesota Timberwolves @ L.A. Lakers

Also, listen to the perspective of our featured guest, Austin Krell! (Follow him on X and Instagram at @nbakrell).

"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: Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025

Chapters

• 0:16 Introduction
• 1:00 Overview of the NBA this Week
• 3:07 Highlight
• 4:58 Austin Krell Interview
• 18:18 Lowlight
• 20:03 Random Stat
• 21:53 Game of the Week
• 23:05 Conclusion

Transcript

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

Introduction: Hello everybody, and welcome to episode #54 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: If I sound a little weird today, I apologize. I’m getting over a cold. But, the show must go on. We were hit with terrible news on Thursday afternoon. San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama is being shut down for the season with a blood clot in his shoulder. Specifically, it’s deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder. This issue was discovered after the All-Star Game, and it’s usually treated with blood-thinning medication. This diagnosis has had fans remembering Hall-of-Famer Chris Bosh. Bosh’s career ended early in the mid-2010s due to a blood clot in his leg. New Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram had a similar issue in 2019. But, after being put on blood thinners, and with doctors removing a portion of a rib, Ingram eventually returned and was a first-time All-Star and Most Improved Player with New Orleans. Fortunately, the Spurs believe their superstar will recover fully before next season. As of now, San Antonio is four games back for the final Western Conference play-in tournament seed.

Thursday was also the day another player was announced to be sitting out for a while… for an entirely different reason. Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis has been suspended for 25 games for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy. Don’t make assumptions, though. Portis took tramadol to treat severe pain. His agent said it was an accident. Portis’ agent said he meant to take Toradol, not tramadol. Portis’ assistant gave him the wrong medication by mistakenly telling him it was Toradol. This essentially knocks Portis out for the remainder of the regular season. The Little Rock, Ark. native will not appeal the suspension. 

This episode is entitled "Showtime."

So, who’s raising eyebrows at the moment?

Highlight: If you want a team that’s fast-paced and full of offense, then the Indiana Pacers are the team for you! The Pacers are 32-24 and fifth in the Eastern Conference. Although Indiana didn’t acquire a big piece this season like Pascal Siakam (who they got in Jan. 2024), the Pacers are looking to improve from their Eastern Conference Finals appearance. Tyrese Haliburton has the keys to the Pacers’ offense, averaging 18.1 points, 8.7 assists, and 1.4 steals per night. He’s been averaging at least 20 points and 10 assists over the past two seasons, but perhaps that hamstring injury suffered last year has been a nagging issue. The Pacers have a solid core of shooters around Haliburton, like Andrew Nembhard and Bennedict Mathurin, and a second star in Siakam. In the paint, Myles Turner is a former two-time NBA blocks leader. The main concern I have with Indiana is their defense, and how that could translate into the playoffs. While their electric offense is top 10 in scoring, their points per game allowed is also top 10. I don’t doubt they present problems to a team or two in the postseason, but they need to tighten things up defensively. Their next game is tomorrow, Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. They will host the Toronto Raptors.

Lowlight: Can the Atlanta Hawks do anything right? Atlanta is 27-31 and eighth in the East. It seems like no matter who’s on their roster, the Hawks struggle to solidify themselves as a contender. Trae Young is the team’s bright spot, putting up 24 points, 3.1 rebounds, and a league-high 11.5 assists per game. Their only notable accomplishment of late was their run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, where they lost to the eventual-champion Milwaukee Bucks. Atlanta won the NBA Draft lottery last season and chose Zaccharie Risacher from France. A starter in all but two games in his rookie year, he averages about 11 points in 24 minutes. The Dejounte Murray experiment didn’t work, resulting in a trade to New Orleans. Dyson Daniels has been a gift from that trade, as he leads the NBA with 3.1 steals per game! Veterans De’Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanović were traded at the deadline to Cleveland and the L.A. Clippers, respectively. There have always been rumors floating around about Young’s time in Atlanta potentially being up (and the occasional PhotoShop of him in a Lakers uniform before Luka Dončić was sent there). This Hawks roster is currently not set up to compete for a championship or even a first-round series. We’ll see if they can make more moves soon. Their next game is tomorrow, Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. They will be in Miami to play the Heat.

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

Austin Krell Interview

Random Stat: March 2, 1962. A date that stands in NBA lore (and a date that will be this coming Sunday). This is the date of Wilt Chamberlain’s iconic 100-point game. For those of you that don’t know this story, or just want to hear it again, the Philadelphia Warriors (the current-day Golden State Warriors) and New York Knicks squared off on March 2, 1962 at Hershey Sports Arena in Hershey, Pa. Chamberlain proceeded to drop 100 points and 25 rebounds on 36-63 shooting. Shockingly, he was 28-32 (87.5%) from the foul line; his free throw average in 1961-62 was 61.3%. Chamberlain also played the entire 48 minutes (which wasn’t unusual because he averaged 48.5 minutes per game that year)! Yeah. The Warriors won 169-147, even though three Knicks players had 30+ points. The game, unfortunately, wasn’t televised, and no footage has been recovered. Only audio from the fourth quarter remains. Some bozo fans, and I emphasize “bozo,” think this legendary day was a myth! Scoring 100 points in a single game is only one of the numerous records Chamberlain achieved in his NBA career, including scoring a record 50.4 points per game in that same season! Despite the fact that no one will probably touch this record again, it’s still an amazing feat in league history.

Game of the Week: For this week’s “Game of the Week,” let’s go with Minnesota Timberwolves @ L.A. Lakers. This game is on Thursday, Feb. 27 at 10:30 p.m. The Lakers have won eight of their last 10, and they appear to be gaining a rhythm with new acquisition Luka Dončić. This was evident in their Saturday smackdown over the Nuggets, a team that has given them fits in the playoffs in recent years. Meanwhile, Minnesota is trying to make up ground in the West. They’re tied with the Clippers for the sixth seed (to escape the play-in tournament). The Timberwolves are currently dealing with injuries to Julius Randle, Rudy Gobert, and Donte DiVincenzo. That is certainly not a list of players you want to see on the injury report (you also don’t want anyone on the injury report, for that matter). However, Minnesota kept it close with the conference-leading Thunder on Sunday. It’ll be a battle of Dončić and LeBron James vs. Anthony Edwards. Give me the Lakers 116-108.

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 Austin Krell for being our guest this week on the podcast. Remember, you can follow him on X and Instagram @nbakrell. And don’t forget to spread the word about “Diehlman at Halftime!” See you next time, fellow hoops fans!