Wild Play-In ripple effects, 2026 NBA awards ballot picks + dream fits for top prospects
4/16/20262 hr 37 min
Kevin O’Connor & Tom Haberstroh react to the biggest moments of the 2026 NBA Play-In Tournament from the Warriors' vintage performance vs. the Clippers and the Hornets eliminating the Heat in OT, to the Magic faltering against the 76ers.
The pair also makes their NBA Finals predictions and shares their ballots for NBA Awards. Do KOC & Tom favor Victor Wembanyama or SGA for MVP? And is the Rookie of the Year race between Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel really as close as it seems?
Later, databallr joins the show to talk NBA Draft and share his dream fits for top prospects like Cam Boozer, Darryn Peterson and AJ Dybantsa. He also makes the case for players like Darius Acuff, Allen Graves and Ebuka Okorie.
(0:52) Warriors beat Clippers in Play-In
(9:20) Fallout from Clippers loss
(15:52) Suns vs. Warriors Play-In preview
(19:29) Blazers vs. Spurs series preview
(25:38) Hornets beat Heat, now face Magic
(44:40) NBA Finals predictions
(45:32) KOC & Tom's NBA Awards ballots
(1:07:08) Wemby vs. SGA for MVP
(1:21:32) Cooper vs. Kon for ROTY
(1:38:25) Dream fits for top prospects
(2:02:27) "Sell me on" prospects with databallr
Subscribe to The Kevin O’Connor Show on the your favorite podcast app:
📢 Check out the Yahoo Sports podcast network, yahoosports.tv and Yahoo Sports NBA on YouTube
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsKevin O'Connor· Host0:00
Coming up, we got a long one 'cause [chuckles] there's a lot to talk about in the NBA world right now. Tom Haberstroh and I first talk about the play-in, everything that's happened this week, the playoffs. We look ahead there. We look at our awards ballots now that we got a ruling. Luka and Cade are both eligible, so we get into that with our All-NBA, MVP, Rookie of the Year debates. And then Databaller runs the best NBA stats website on the internet. I wanted to interview him, learn about him, talk some NBA draft. It's a long one. That's all coming up right now. Today's episode of "The Kevin O'Connor Show" is presented by Game Time. With the NBA back in full swing, nothing's better than being in the stands, but getting last minute tickets to games can be a bit of a pain. The Game Time app makes it easy though for fans, because in just a few taps, you can get your tickets on time and at the best price. And what I love, fees are always included. I first noticed that when I was mapping out my concert calendar for the remainder of the season, 'cause I'm thinking about seeing this band called The Last Dinner Party, and I noticed when I was going to purchase tickets, that it was so nice to see that there was no hidden fees at the end when deciding whether to buy the tickets or not. Finally, transparency. And with the Game Time guarantee, you know the tickets you're gonna get are 100% authentic. I go to most NBA games these days using my credentials, but when I decide to go with friends or take a date, I'll be using the Game Time app to snag them. So take the guesswork out of buying NBA tickets with Game Time. Download the Game Time app, create