‘WHAT THE HELL WAS HE WATCHING?!’ Stephen A. DISAGREES with Suns GM on team NARRATIVE 😬 | First Take

On First Take, Stephen A. Smith, Tim Legler and Andraya Carter join Christine Williamson to react to comments Phoenix Suns owner Matt Ishbia made about the narrative of the team after a first-round playoff sweep by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Then, the panel react to General Manager James Jones on his plans to maximize Kevin Durant.

0:00 Stephen A. sounds off!
3:00 Suns GM James Jones’ comments on Kevin Durant
6:00 Suns plan to bring back starting 5 next season
8:00 Tim Legler wants a 2-minute report!
9:30 Stephen A. on Kevin Durant

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just days after getting swept by the Timberwolves in the first round of the playoffs to end a season that started with championship expectations after assembling the big three of Devin Booker Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal Suns owner Matt ishbia said that his team was in a great position and their starting five will be back next season and that quote The Narrative that the house is burning down is incorrect Suns GM James Jones also had some things to say specifically about Kevin Durant take a listen that’s a constant uh Focus for us is to continue to figure out how to maximize Kevin Durant um no one’s done it yet I believe it’ll be the first team to do it and when he’s playing at the highest level he makes us a really really good team and we’re damn near unbeatable all right Stephen I’m gonna start with you on this one what is your reaction to What Jones said well I was more looking to react to What Matt ishbia said the owner for the Phoenix Suns uh because he was talking about the starting five coming back and what they were going to do and what they were capable of and I just wanted to say that it was one of the most idiotic things I’ve ever heard from an owner in the NBA what the hell was he watching not to mention the timing couldn’t be more awful um really literally you know you you you just got swept okay and those are the words I mean that’s really really enthusiastic to say to a fan base hey come on back come on and support us you know we just got swept but we’re just we ain’t changing anything everything’s gonna be just fine we just got swept but we gonna be all right that’s just dumb I’m not saying he’s dumb of course not he’s probably a very brilliant man but that was a very idiotic statement on his part and it appears to have trickled down to such a to some degree with Mr James Jones who I’m very very fond of I like him a lot um I believe in him I think for the most part in Phoenix he’s done a good job um but but some of the things that he’s saying about Kevin Durant makes no sense one of my boys champ who gets on my nerves and I usually block him half the time because he makes no damn sense when it comes to LeBron James he just seems like he’s he’s smoking something but he does make a good point on many many occasions when he talks about Kevin Durant probably needing a facilitator and he makes a very valid point there let me tell y’all something about Kevin Durant this dude that James Jones says you know what we are the ones that’s going to figure out how to best utilize Kevin Durant Tim leg Andrea Carter am I correct did did didn’t Kevin Durant win two titles two I’m just trying to make sure I remember I’m just trying to make sure any he a two-time league MVP when I’m looking at it doesn’t he have four scoring titles only Jordan and Will Chamberlain have more doesn’t he have two NBA Finals MVPs only Jordan LeBron sha magic and Tim Duncan have more isn’t he a Career 27.3 Point per game scorer which ranks fourth all time in the history of basketball with a minimum of 750 games trailing only Jordan Will Chamberlain and elen bayor isn’t that Kevin Durant I think it is my numbers say it is my stats tell me it is my data tells me it is I think that’s Kevin Durant who by the way by the way has more NBA final appearances because again two titles and four seasons in Golden State okay he has more NBA Finals appearances in 16 years than the Suns franchise has in 56 years of existence but somehow you you it’s GNA be you you’re going to be the one that that that brings out something in him at age 35 that we haven’t seen over the last 16 years really really there’s certain things and we get crucified for this especially me you know because far be for us to tell the truth far be for us to tell the truth I mean far be for us to sit up there and go like this this is what the data shows this is what the number shows I’m just giving it to you it’s such a crime in this day and age I don’t know if you knew this Tim legler I don’t know if you do this Andrea Carter telling the truth is actually hazardous to your professional career and dare I say your livelihood simply pointing out the facts is a problem but but we going to sit up there and we going to listen to Executives who literally just had broomsticks thrown in their face because they got swept look at a three-headed monster that’s getting paid $150 million next year 5050 and 49.3 respectively okay and G to tell us we ain’t changing nothing we going to roll it back really wow what a way to really ingratiate yourself with seasoned ticket holders and at fan base in Phoenix Arizona I’m just so touched I mean maybe I need to step back and watch and learn a little something about marketing or whatever because clearly they’re seeing something that I don’t what the definition of insanity right doing the same thing and expecting different results from mshp to say we have this starting five and we’re good is actually insane because I don’t think you’re going to get any different results with this starting five there are already too many question marks who’s going to play the point guard is Bradley Beal going to be healthy those two question marks alone have to be solved if you keep this starting five so that’s the first thing Matt isbo you have a lot more to figure out than just small little tweaks the thing with James Jones that I want to touch on Stephen A well one you said it Kevin Durant has been unlocked two for James Jones to say they’re going to be the team te to unlock him when they may have utilized him in the worst way all season long like you’re the furthest away from unlocking Kevin Durant Kevin Durant took more Corner threes than double his career average what he averaged as far as field goal attempts from the three-point line in the corner on his career he took double that this season so to think you’re going to unlock Kevin Durant when all this season you mostly kept him in the corners seems very far off to me both statements are far off you got a lot more question marks in the starting five and you’re a lot further away than unlocking Kevin Durant than other teams he’s been on to get to the to get to the James Jones point and D you brought up some good points on first of all you’re talking about maxing out who he is going forward when you just had a sample size in which I don’t think Kevin Durant was utilized to his to his best what he’s trying to do is trying to say hey the Best Yet to Come Kevin Durant there’s a lot more there for Kevin Durant I don’t think anybody really number one at this stage of his career is buying into it Kevin Durant is still a great player but you’re not going to all of a sudden see something going forward that we have not seen from Kevin Durant that is better than what his previous 15 16 years in the league have been the guy won an MVP he was at his best I believe in Oklahoma City if you really wanted to see the absolute best version of Kevin dur they just couldn’t break through uh and get that ring while he was paired up early on with Harden and Westbrook when they were just just puppies and then when it was just he and Westbrook trying to get past the Warriors they couldn’t quite get over the Finish Line I think that was the best version that we’ve seen of Kevin Durant and that we will ever see of Kevin Durant doesn’t mean he’s still not great but we’re not going to all of a sudden see some reinvention of Kevin Durant now you’re going to max out the efficiency of an alltime uh efficient player in this league and one of the greatest scoring talents this league has ever seen that’s not still to come and that’s what James Jones is trying to pitch and that’s what ish is trying pitch to the fan base and all of it adds up to we need a two-minute report on what those two guys said let’s see a two-minute report on that to get all the errors that were said in what Matt ISP and James Jones had to say to the to their fan base yeah and listen listen I’m gonna throw isaah Thomas out there I’m G throw Isaiah Thomas’s name out there because that’s my brother I love him to death two-time Champion member of the bad boys Hall of Famer one of the greatest guards in the history of basketball I know he has Matt isb’s ear what’s up bro I listen to you most people who know basketball listen on Isaiah to listen you can sit up there and criticize Isaiah Thomas all you want to when a man talks basketball you got to listen he makes a lot of sense I think we both know that Andrea Tim we don’t we both know that about Isaiah Thomas I mean Matt ish does have your ear what the hell going on what the hell are y’all talking about stock options popcorn companies or something it clearly ain’t basketball if he’s uttering notes kind of quotes I mean what’s up Isaiah somebody got to get in this man’s ear somebody got to get in this man man here because we can’t expect James Jones to do it because James Jones works for the man James Jones works for the man I mean I I don’t understand we going to get the best out of Kevin Durant what I mean what this this Kevin Durant we talking about here we can be critical of Kevin Durant based off of some of the things that we have seen because no one’s perfect all of us have imperfections and in dissecting and analyzing and evaluating the game we can point stuff out but from an overview perspective let’s not understand something this one of the greatest plays we’ve ever seen in the history of basketball this brother’s a two-time champion and regardless of the greatness of Steph Curry regardless of the greatness of the Splash Brothers Kevin Durant was the best player on that team now damn it he never seems happy it always seems to be something wrong it never seems to be enough but that’s about the lone criticism that you can give to him he’s a great dude he’s really really smart he’s a he’s good people he’s a phenomenal phenomenal player okay and the fact is when some executive I don’t give a damn who it is comes out and says we gonna get the best out of him when you don’t have a single Championship to show in your franchise’s history and this brother’s got two along with two NBA final MVPs it makes me wonder what the hell is in the air out there in Phoenix [Music]