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After a lengthy hiatus, The Step Back Live returns to catch up on the first quarter of the 2018-19 NBA season. Matt Rutkowski joins FanSided senior NBA editor Ian Levy to cover the most enjoyable parts of the season so far, the Pistons and alternate timelines, conspiracy theories and a rousing game of 20 questions. Honestly, would you have been able to guess Sam Cassell?

Jeremy Woo, NBA Draft expert for Sports Illustrated's The Crossover joins this week's episode to preview the NBA Draft. Woo shares his thoughts on what fans are missing in the games of Luka Doncic and Deandre Ayton, as well as how he would rank the draft's top big men by their ceilings and by their floors. Woo also leads listeners through some ideal pairings between teams and prospects and which players he think will benefit the most from playing in an NBA context.

Jeff Siegel, writer for Peachtree Hoops, Fear the Sword and Early Bird Rights joins The Step Back Live to talk NBA Free Agency. Which teams have the most at stake in free agency this summer and which teams have the cap space to really make things happen. Obviously, a lot hinges on the decision of LeBron James but how will his timeline shape the rest of the moves made around the league. Also, catch up on some of the premier restrictred free agents available and who is likely to be on the move.

Carter Rodriguez, of Fear the Sword and The Chase Down podcast, joins The Step Back Live to discuss the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals and what comes next. What do we take from the Cavaliers playing the Warriors close in the first two games of the series? Are there any strategic or lineup adjustments that can help them close the gap? How do the Cavaliers approach this offseason with or without LeBron James, and how is he viewed if he decides to leave again?

Sean Highkin, freelance NBA reporter and former contributor to USA Today, Bleacher Report and The Athletic joins Ian Levy on The Step Back Live to discuss the teams falling out of this year's playoffs. Do the Portland Trail Blazers need to blow it up? Could they even if they wanted to? Could the Toronto Raptors follow the same path? Are the 76ers and the Celtics going to be the matchup that defines the NBA playoffs for the next decade?

Candace Buckner, staff writer for the Washington Post joins The Step Back LIVE to discuss what's next for the Washington Wizards. Was a first round exit the ceiling for this team as presently constructed? What are the chances the Wizards can make useful moves this offseason, and how likely are those moves to involved Bradley Beal, John Wall or Marcin Gortat? How much of this team's troubles could be traced to issues with chemistry? Listen and find out!

Seerat Sohi of SBNation, FanSided and The Athletic Toronto joins Ian Levy on The Step Back Live to unpack all our favorite playoffs narratives. Toronto and the Wizards is broken down in detail, with high stakes on both sides and a potential summer of turmoil ahead for the loser. In the West, is Russell Westbrook changing or are we? And how could the perception of Kevin Durant be changed by these playoffs for the Warriors, win or lose?

Nate Duncan of the Dunc'd On Podcast joins Ian Levy on The Step Back Live, to break down the first weekend of the NBA playoffs. They dig into the Cavaliers surprising loss in Game 1 and whether the Pacers can expect their defense to work that well against LeBron James and Cleveland's shooters moving forward. Did the Bucks miss their shot in Game 1? Are the 76ers set to reassert control with Joel Embiid rejoining the lineup? Listen and find out!

Adam Mares, site manager for SBNation's Denver Stiffs and host of the Locked on Nuggets podcast, joins The Step Back Live to dissect the rapidly disintegrating Denver Nuggets. Adam talks about what the average fan is still missing about Nikola Jokic and how his offensive skill set drives the Nuggets at both ends of the floor and shapes how this roster should be built moving forward. The conversation also covers the relative hotness of Michael Malone's seat and Paul Millsap's future with the team.

Chris Stone, NBA Draft expert for The Step Back and Sporting News, joins the show to discuss comparisons for top prospects. Ian Levy runs through player comparisons for top prospects like Michael Porter Jr., Deandre Ayton, and Trae Young, and Stone lets him know what each comparison is missing about that prospect. Stone also shares insights on weeding signal from noise in terms of scouting prospects in the Tournament.

Ben Golliver, staff writer for Sports Illustrated, joins Ian Levy on this week's episode of The Step Back Live to discuss the quest for parity (the NBA's top two teams haven't met in the Finals for two decades), the NBA's growing absorption with Instagram and whether the Los Angeles Lakers are really the best option for LeBron James. Spoiler, Ben thinks they're not.

Andy Liu, of Warriors World and The Light Years Podcast, joins Ian Levy on this week's episode of The Step Back Live to break down the Golden State Warriors. Are they better than ever? Can they be? What should scare the Warriors about the Houston Rockets and the rest of the Western Conference? Which first round opponent could help knock the Warriors out of their fog? What happens if the Warriors win another title? Is Steph really better?

Michael Pina, a staff writer for VICE Sports, joins his week's episode of The Step Back Live to break down the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Can the Boston Celtics survive without Marcus Smart? Can they survive with his offense? Can we believe these Toronto Raptors are different until we see it in the playoffs? Are the Cavaliers better, or do they just not hate each other's guys? Who suggers the most by missing the playoffs? Who is the worst matchup for each of the top seeds?

Rohan Nadkarni, NBA writer for Sports Illustrated's The Crossover, joins Ian Levy on this week's episode of The Step Back Live. Rohan and Ian discuss highlights from All-Star Weekend, dunk contest conpsiracies, ideas the NBA can borrow from MTV's The Challenge and more.

ESPN's Kevin Pelton brings his unique and analytics-influenced perspective to the show, discussing the new look Cleveland Cavaliers, their prospects for the present and future, and the rest of the big moves that went down at the NBA Trade Deadline. 

Ben Dowsett, deputy editor of Basketball Insiders, joined the show to talk about the state of the Utah Jazz, their recent hot streak and plans for the future. Ben also helped preview the NBA Trade Deadline, including what he expected to happen with several key Jazz targets like Rodney Hood, Derrick Favors and Alec Burks.

The Athletic's Sam Vecenie joins the show to talk about some of this year's top NBA Draft prospects. Sam shares his thoughts on Luka Doncic vs. DeAndre Ayton, scouting the similar talents on the Kentucky Wildcats and what to make of Marvin Bagley.

Chris Herring of FiveThirtyEight.com joins Ian Levy on The Step Back Live to discuss the New York Knicks, the recent Jason Kidd firing and what might go down at the NBA Trade Deadline.

On this week's episode of The Step Back Live, Matt Moore of the The Action Network joins Ian Levy.