My interview with Brian Scalabrine - Pt. 1 - ceiling of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown
It was a busy day on the phone yesterday, talking with Clyde "The Glide" Drexler and other BIG3 execs via conference call - and then having the pleasure of speaking with Brian Scalabrine, Captain of the BIG3 Ball Hogs. This was all set up by a true gentleman by the name of Ross Lipschultz of Taylor Strategy, a firm that works with Fox Sports.
It'll be determined on Championships. Jayson can be Kevin Durant-ish. Jaylen can be - gosh - I hate using Michael Jordan, because I don't think he can be Michael Jordan -but the way he plays, and moves - and see how he jumps in the air - ever remember when Jordan would jump and and elevate, kind of float, keep the ball high in the air. Jaylen does that a lot. I hate doing that (Jordan comparison) - Jordan - best player ever - he (Jaylen) can be more of his version of Jordan - more catch-and-shoot - he has that defensive mentality - watch the way they both get in that defensive stance - both those guys (Jay-Team) have a tremendous upside - tremendous - more than anything, it's how hard they work - their mentality - at a young age I look at body and mentality - athleticism - both of those guys have a great head on their shoulders - not good, it's great - (now on Jayson's ceiling) - I always think MVP is always going to be an individual award - but I look at it like First Team All-NBA - if you're in that category, you're really doing something - I can see him flirting with that - I can see him like a Third-Team All-NBA this year - they have blown me away as far as how good they are - and their maturity.
From my interview, there is zero doubt that Brian is super-high on the Jay-Team. He was also very passionate on several other issues, such as his future as a Celtics broadcaster, who he prefers as his partner, and his present partnership with Tommy Heinsohn. And he was particularly focused on the BIG3 coming to TD Garden on Friday night and the game he will be playing as Captain of the Ball Hogs.
Scal is hoping for a loud Scalabrine Chorus from the crowd for a specific reason. Look for Part 2 of the interview later today or tomorrow. To watch the BIG3 games on Friday, Scal said to go to BIG3.com for tickets, and the three games starting at 8:00 PM can be seen on FS1. The first game at 7:00 PM will not be broadcast. The Ball Hogs game is at 9:00 PM.
What an absolute pleasure it was taking with Scal. I thank him sincerely for his time. So look for Part 2. When trash-talking in the BIG3 came up - and I asked if it ever got to the Kevin Garnett level - Brian indicated that they have to keep trash-talking somewhat in check because everybody is wired. Damn interesting interview. There's more.
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Photo via Streeter Lecker/Getty Images
Image via BIG3 Basketball
