#299: NBA Christmas Reactions, Jalen Brunson The 1A

This week on The Atlantic Files:

On episode 299 of The Atlantic Files, we react to the NBA Christmas day games, give our thoughts on Becky Hammon saying Jalen Brunson is too small to be a 1A, Kevin Durant expressing frustration with the Phoenix Suns health and role players, and the Detroit Pistons losing streak.

Becky Hammon was on ESPN as their panel talked about the New York Knicks and whether or not they can seriously compete for the NBA Finals. She said they didn’t have that 1A player and explained that Jalen Brunson is a great player but he’s too small to be a 1A. Does she make any good points there or is Brunson a lot better than she gives credit?

The 2023 NBA Christmas Day games gave a mixed bag of entertainment while some superstars didn’t even play and other gave us the performance of a lifetime. Dennis and Alex give their thoughts on the outcomes of each game and whether or not these are signs of things to come for the rest of the season.

Speaking of Christmas games, Kevin Durant is apparently now getting frustrated with the health of his new big three and the talent of the supporting cast. No one is really sure what else he expected when the team went out and got Bradley Beal and traded all of their assets to get him and Beal in the first place. Does anyone actually feel bad for him as well?

Finally, the Detroit Pistons made history for the wrong reasons. They’re now the owners of the longest losing streak in a single NBA season and they could potentially add on to that streak. Is this team actually that bad or are they just hitting some really bad luck?

Timecodes:
00:00:00 Intro and Christmas movies
00:18:43 The Detroit Pistons historic losing streak
00:43:25 Becky Hammon’s comments about Jalen Brunson
01:00:22 2023 NBA Christmas game reactions
01:15:28 Kevin Durant upset in Phoenix
01:32:13 Outro

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Alex Fischbein

Being from the suburbs of Philadelphia, it was hard not to become a Sixers fan during Allen Iverson's prime. Other than just the Sixers, I enjoy watching all forms and levels of basketball, especially the WNBA. Outside of basketball, I've been playing and coaching volleyball for most of my life. Also, after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh, I became a Software Developer by day, while writing and hosting podcasts by night.