Cavs: the Podcast

It is the 2022 NBA Draft eve, and you know what that means, CtB's Draft Appetizer season! Nate Smith, Eli Kim, and Chris Francis serve up a mighty helping of draft and trade slop to satisfy the basketball hunger (h/t to friend of the podcast TrillBroDude of You Know Ball Podcast for the term "slop"). There's a quick rundown of biggest stories hitting the media sphere, breaking news mid-episode, an appetizer draft (yes that's right), and last but not least a CtB Annual Mock Draft that leaves Nate and Eli so puzzled and confused that it could drive you throw your appetizer dish at the wall (Disclaimer: CtB is not liable for any damages resulting from their podcast) So grab a fork, pull up to the trough, and dig in.... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to 1985. Nate Smith, Eli Kim, and Chris Francis have gathered again at the Cavs: The Podcast resort studios to serve the people another helping of offseason hooper content for the basketball-starved fans of Cavsland. The trio discuss the 2022 NBA Finals, John Hollinger's free agency guide regarding Collin Sexton, the NBA Draft now only a mere eight days away. The Cavs are "Running up that Hill" to build their roster, and the draft, trade, and free agency talk flies fast and furious. Then the gents talk Top Gun: Maverick, Stranger Things Season 4, Eli's squeaky dishwasher and the best and worst movies of late! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cavs: the Podcast turns back the clock with Nate Smith, Tom Pestak, Elijah Kim, and Chris Francis to talk the latest in Cavs' rumors, draft musings, and a return of CtB's classic podcast bit "Lawn Mower Chat" featuring a homeowner's horror story 20 years in the making. First order of business was an extensive look at cleveland.com's Chris Fedor's chat with Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype to react to all the rumors swirling around about potential offseason moves for the Cavs, including a bunch of would-be senior citizens. Fedor drops a ton of names and CtB has all the reactions including a brief canonization of "St. Weirdo" Dion Waiters, one of the most beloved of recent Cavs' lore. The legend Mike Conley Sr.'s dunking prowess continues the gerentological theme of the chat. Chris and Eli give a quick update regarding NBA draft rumors post-combine. The league is starved for wings, how will the Cavs fare in the draft finding that elusive two-way wing? Tom, Nate, and Chris give reaction to the elder statesmen Golden State Warriors entering the Finals picture with their win over the Dallas Mavericks. It appears that the Boston Celtics are headed on a collision course against GSW, how do the guys think it will shake out? And of course, last but not least "Lawn Mower Chat" and CtB pitches! Shoutout to all the old guys turning back the clock, may this podcast inspire you! And also, shoutout to all the seniors across the country and world who are graduating, it's summer time in Cavsland! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nate Smith and the Chrises Mr. Lyden and Mr. Francis hopped into the Cavs: the Podcast studio resort to take the temperature of the NBA playoffs so far, the impending draft lottery, and the latest in Cavsworld. On the foremost of Mr. Francis' mind was the upcoming draft and how the Cavs' might approach it. Secondly, the trio dives into the Conference semis, with particular attention from Mr. Smith to the spectacular collapse of the Phoenix Suns and the cooler talk aftermath. The guys riff on the very contemporary subject of video games, which are ubiquitous in the world of Gen Z or "Zoomer" generation. Mr. Lyden takes the guys and audience down the fascinating rabbit hole of DeAndre Ayton's video gaming habits. The trio quickly covers the disturbing reports regarding Rajon Rondo, while ending on a high note by talking next steps in the development of the Cavs. Of course, no Cavs: the Podcast is complete without some pitches, and there are some delightful ones if you're a fan of music and TV See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Editor's Note: this Episode of Cavs: the Podcast is sponsored by Precious Ones Ministries, and our fundraising drive to "Save the School." It's simple. It's direct. See the details below, and give what you can. We're presenting this pod commercial free save our ask that you help us with this effort. One of the features of 21st century communications is the so called "group chat." It enables people, regardless of their location, to instantly communicate with each other in a social way. In this episode of Cavs: the Podcast, Nate Smith, Eli Kim, and Chris Francis have staged an "avant garde" performance of their most recent discussions regarding the post-mortem 2021-22 Cleveland Cavaliers. Listeners can dive in and "peak behind the veil" of CtB to discover how the guys are processing the Cavs' season now that the playoffs are in full swing. There's a little bit of coach talk, PBO talk, player talk, trade talk, draft talk, join in on the friendly banter below. And most importantly, Nate comes through with the most important pitch in CtB history, below. So I'm currently fundraising for a school in Uganda that my cousin runs that we want to fund through the year (at least). It is a school for very poor children which would not have a school if this did not exist. If you ever felt grateful for the years of free content that this site has provided, please consider giving back by donating to this school. I'm going to come up with some way to thank the donors, but I will start by just saying, everyone who donates $50 gets a sweet T-Shirt (no details yet, but you know I'm good for it). Read about it here. Donate here. The charity is a 501c3 and fully deductible. The Story Our dear friend Shannie in Uganda, the Director of Precious Ones, has been running a school for years for the orphans and the poor in her village. When I met her she was paying for the teacher's salaries out of her own salary (she works for a church in the city) and running the school out of a garage. Some land was donated to her and she would literally buy a brick every time she earned enough money to buy one. She knew one day God would provide a school building! Talk about faith!! We were blessed to be able to help build the school. Another organization was helping pay for the food and school fees. She also had support from some kind individuals. However, the pandemic shut the school down for two years. The support ended during that time. Fast forward to now. The school opened back up in January with almost no support. Shannie is really struggling to keep the school open. The school has 200 students and 10 teachers. It also has the only well in the area with clean water. They also feed the kids lunch at School. School in Uganda is not free, nor does the government help in any way. She is short $1000 a month. If the school closes, these kids will not be educated. That's just the reality. Most of their parents received little-to-no education (we are trying our best to educate the women in our program, but most have never had formal education a day in their lives). To keep the school open and to step into this partnership, we would need people to give $1000 a month. That's 10 people willing to give $100 a month. Or 40 will to give $25 a month. All donations to this go through Precious Ones Ministries and would be tax deductible. Will you help us keep the school open? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Postgame the CtB trio of Nate Smith, Chris Francis, and Chris Lyden hopped into the podcast resort studios to recap the Cavs' loss against the Brooklyn Nets 115-108. They break down the game from all angles, who stood out, who stepped up, who disappeared? The gang goes down every Cavs' rabbit hole. The boys also go into the Nets' playoff prospects, and some erudite conversation flows. Lastly, some NBA awards are handed out and if you love hometown picks, this pod's for you. Last but not least, we have some hot off the presses music recommendations for your listening pleasure. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Emerging from their winter hibernation, Nate Smith, Elijah Kim, Chris Francis, and Chris Lyden took a spring break trip to the Cavs: the Podcast resort studios to catch up on all the craziness of the Cavs' season post-All Star Break. In true CtB fashion, they push this episode as best as they could to the two hour mark. So don't worry, if it has anything to do with the Cavs, the quartet has got you covered. They break down the latest Cavs games against the Magic and Bulls, break down where things have gone wrong and right this season, hold yet another referendum on JB Bickerstaff, look forward to the regular season stretch run, make some bold post-season and off-season predictions, look at the rest of the NBA, and praise Elijah Kim and his Amazing Technicolor Cavs Coat. it's a long podcast for a very long month! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To celebrate Sunday's win over the Pacers and the newly acquired LeVert, the CtB faithful squeezed into the podcast studios. Nate Smith, Elijah Kim, Tom Pestak, and Chris Francis kicked it off by holding a (Kevin) Love fest for what we'd all just witnessed. After breaking down the game and the Cavalanche, the guys got into the LeVert trade and broke down how he helped the Cavs, how he fits their timeline, and what other moves the Cavs might have considered or what they may be considering still. The CtB brain trust tried to nail down the origins of the Cavs' 90's mascot, Boomer, played a game of "who he play for?" with an early aughts Cavs squad, Tom penned an ode to Bill Fitch, Eli (the Korean Channing Frye) regaled us with the details of his Sunday night pick-up glory, Tom and Nate traded epic tales of bureaucracy and wisdom, and then the old men sang the praises of the OG computer store, Micro Center. What a night. What a win. What a trade. What a season. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nate Smith, and the Chrises (Mr. Lyden and Mr. Francis) gathered together in the CtB podcast resort studios for a Podcap Two-fer to cover the awful loss in Detroit and the gritty home win against the New Orleans Pelicans. The trio covers all aspects of both games, with a deep dive into Coach JB Bickerstaff's changes between the two games. Nate also lobs Mr. Francis a softball to wax poetic on the inaction of Cavs' GM Koby Altman. For those who can his pain, join him. Finally, the trio dives into All-Star Reserves nominations, which should be coming out shortly this week! There's the strong possibility Cavs fans will see some of their own during All-Star weekend in Cleveland...? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nate Smith and the two Chrises (Mr. Lyden and Mr. Francis) hop into the CtB podcast studio resort to bask in the glory of the Cavs' statement win against the Milwaukee Bucks, 115-99. The win puts the Cavs in 3rd place of the Eastern Conference and in the hunt for the first seed. The Cavs dominated the game even though they were easily the more shorthanded team and the Bucks came out like gangbusters in a fantastic first quarter performance. But NBA Champion Kevin Love and Cedi "the Jedi" Osman stepped up for the team and delivered MVP performances and serving a beatdown of the reigning champions. Conspicuously absent from the CtB trademark rap session was trade talk because, why ruin the good vibes? One of the most underrated aspects of team building is chemistry, and the Cavs have found something special. Just watch NBA Champion Kevin Love's postgame comments, he knows what winning at the highest level looks like. So no trade talk, just good vibes... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.