Aaron and Evan go in-depth about what they'll be watching for in each of the four NBA Cup Quarterfinal matchups.

ORL vs. MIA: 6:51

TOR vs. NYK: 13:32

LAL vs. SAS: 25:48

PHX vs. OKC: 35:59

Then, in 3-Up/3-Down (46:46), they discuss that motherf---er Pat Spencer, the Cavs’ conundrum — including some potential landing spots for Darius Garland — the Wagner brothers’ weird Krampus curse, the Blue Arrow shooting for his first All-Star nod, Jaylen Brown playing MVP-level basketball, and the Bulls being back to bleak.

As always, you can find Evan and Aaron on NBA Threads

Also, don't forget to subscribe to Live. Breathe. Ball. and Basketball Intelligence to get even more basketball insight.

Aaron and Evan rank all 30 NBA teams in their first quarterly Power Rankings for the 2025–26 NBA season.

As always, you can find Evan and Aaron on NBA Threads

Also, don't forget to subscribe to Live. Breathe. Ball. and Basketball Intelligence to get even more basketball insight.

In the Tip-Off, the guys discuss how well the NBA is positioned to transition into a post-LeBron era (4:44). For the Vibe Check, they take the pulse of the LaMelo Ball situation, including Aaron offering some hypothetical deals to find him a new home (21:04). For 3-Up/3-Down, the guys discuss the Washington Wizards and their potential for all-time futility (40:38), the exceptional play of the Jazz's Lauri Markkanen (47:49), whether the Hawks really need Trae Young (55:40), the surprising play of Collin Gillespie (1:09:07), the fact that experience isn’t equating with success this season (1:20:06), and the Houston Rockets playing bully ball on the offensive glass (1:23:52). Finally, this isn’t a hot-take space, but Aaron and Evan get off a couple of non-sports hot takes to soothe the soul (1:30:29).

As always, you can find Evan and Aaron on NBA Threads

Also, don't forget to subscribe to Live. Breathe. Ball. and Basketball Intelligence to get even more basketball insight.