When John Ireland (ESPN, Spectrum SportsNet) was last on the show, the key message was how important it was that one of D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle or Brandon Ingram needed to, as he put it, “pop”. Over the last few games, all three of those guys seem to be making legitimate progress, so we spoke to him about what might be fueling it. - Then, because the Lakers are still only a couple games out of the Western Conference playoff picture, we gave our takes on how legitimate those chances might be. For some reason, this does feel a little more real than it did early in the year. - Ireland then provided some of the greatest stories about his time traveling with the current Lakers (as well as the Shaq and Kobe seasons) that you’ll hear and honestly, this show is more than worth your time for that alone. - Finally, as the rumor season is upon us, we would not be providing a legitimate service if we didn’t ask which direction he thinks the Lakers might be heading in. - Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices