Hour 3 – NBA Greatness with Ric Bucher

Jason and Mike are joined by longtime NBA insider Ric Bucher to talk all things hoops!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to The Jason Smith Show with Mike
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Speaker 2 (00:22):
Let's give this part you're listening to Fox Sports Radio.

Speaker 1 (00:29):
Hello, Welcome in side our three, The Jason Smith Show
with my best friend Mike Harmon, Well Dress Cobo live
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(00:50):
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Mike and I love putting this content out for you
every single night from the NBA midway through the third quarter.
Now actually getting late in the third quarter, justn't four
minutes left to go the Spurs and the Lakers. This
has been tight throughout uh Spurs lead LA eighty three

(01:12):
to eighty for Wemby Right now, thirteen points, seven boards,
three assists in the block in twenty four minutes, Luka
Doncic owns the night so far for the Lakers, keeping
him in this basically all by himself. In twenty eight minutes,
Luca's got twenty eight points, nine assists, seven rebounds, four steals,
and two blocks. You're dismissing the sixteen and six you're

(01:35):
getting from DeAndre eight and how dare that? That's nice? Okay?
That's nice. That's nice, DeAndre, And that's great. That's nice.
That's nice. That's nice. Sixteen and six is nice. Okay,
I didn't know you were on Lucas payta dude in
twenty eight minutes. When that's what you're doing in twenty
that's a that's a pretty big night. Sixteen and six
is like, Yeah, maybe your Spurs are overrated. That's great.
Spurs are winning the game, Spurs are winning. Just saying

(01:56):
he's okay through them it's a Spur. Spurs are winning. Hey,
then maybe he's got that value. I hope you got
in one. I told you in the preseason. Hey, Spurs
dark horse NBA Finals, get it? What were they hundred
to one, get them hundred to one. Spurs Yoh he
was fifty. But yeah, ay the way is long, so
we'll love more on this. We got again. We got
Rick Bucker coming up in about fifteen minutes. All the

(02:17):
big news in the NBA. But meanwhile, the day after
the NFL trade deadline, it is kind of like the
day after Christmas. All right, you open up your presence.
Now you want to go play with them? And uh,
today was yet another day for the Jets. Who you know,
how are things going to go after the big trade
of Sauce Gardner and Quinnin Williams, the attempts to trade

(02:38):
Breeze Hall and Jermaine Johnson, but they didn't work out.
At least I thought today no one was going to
ask Aaron Glenn about the quarterback situation. But yeah, you
still got those questions. Well you still have to take
those questions, I mean, because in the end, that's still
the straw that stirs the second half drink. Yeah, no,
even if it's not what you wanted, not what you ordered,

(02:58):
this is all we got. The only thing working at
the fountain, Get over it. The Jets actually demote quinnn
Williams brother, Quincy Williams, who was All Pro linebacker two
years ago but has not played great this year. He's
been injured. They demote him, and he said, they told
me what I needed to do better and got to
play Downhill more. I have to do different things. Okay,
that's fine. But then Aaron Glenn, because you know, I

(03:20):
know the Jets can't have nice things. This is what
Aaron Glenn says today about the team. Right. He had
said when he got hired. Hey, I want to put
a team out there that fans are proud of. Right,
I want to make show which is great. Right. I
want to hear a coach say, because I want to
be proud of my team. I don't want to say,
have to sit back and go.

Speaker 3 (03:36):
Man.

Speaker 1 (03:36):
I can't wear my Jets skier for a while. Man,
I can't. I can't. I can just tomorrow I can
start wearing my met skier again because his first day
of free agency. So I'm like, okay, Dodgers, Yeah, no,
dog season's over. You can't. Dodgers won seasons over. They
had to parade everything else. The Metsiga trade for Treik
school all tomorrow. So I'm okay, They've already done all
their media rounds. They're there at the Laker game tonight,

(03:57):
they were hanging out on the late night talk shows.
They went to Dancing with the Stars earlier. I mean
they're everywhere. Tomorrow starts. Teams can sign free agents starting tomorrow.
All right, I can wear my met skier again. But
I'm like, boy, when can I really wear my Jet skier?
A part of me is thinking I could this week.
I mean, we won two weeks ago, didn't play this week,
traded away players that were bad with to get draft

(04:20):
picks that maybe will be better with their replacements. Proud
versus proud right lower case p versus the upper case
boldface is you're still that's still your squad, right for
better for worse. Now this iteration of them, perhaps they've
tested your patience on a whole other level because you

(04:43):
had expectations for this squad. You had it with Rogers,
you're one coming back last year, and who knows this year,
even with Justin Fields, you were all in on your coach.
I wasn't all. That's the that's the only debt one
and the only that's the I said, wearing Jets clothes
with the symbol is the new kick me sign on it.

(05:05):
People are allowed to hit you as they walk by you.
You might get clubbed. You wear it a jets, all right,
you're gonna throw a trash at you. Uh, but here's
Aaron Glenum. I beat you up. No, come a dude, Bresall,
poor brisol, dude took the Socials every chance to get
I mean he didn't even get Jacoby Myers had to wait,
but he eventually got out. Now he got shipped to Jacksonville.

(05:28):
But I mean Bresall was begging and got left behind.

Speaker 4 (05:32):
Uh.

Speaker 1 (05:33):
I'm glad you mentioned Jacob Myers. We'll have more on
him coming up in a minute. But the thing with
Aaron Glenn is like, Okay, I'm stuck with him. And
because he's it's too much, the job is too much
for him. Well, once he was a jet, he's further
jet and he's back, and once you're a jet, you're
a jet all the way from your first loss to
your last dying day. But like just the fact that

(05:54):
he won't throw Hill Mary's at the end of the
first half, I want to get to halftime, dude, what
are you talking about? But anyway, he says this today,
he said. Earlier in the year, he said, hey, listen,
I want the Jets to be a team that made
the fan base proud. He said that would define a
successful season. Great, great thing to say. On Wednesday, he
kind of amended that by saying this, I want this

(06:15):
to be a team the fans are proud of. Great.
But again, I never said they were going to be
proud of them right now. So what he's saying is
it's okay to hate the Jets and not be proud
of them because they're terrible and there's no reason to
be proud of this team right now. But eventually you'll
be proud of the Jets. Now that sounds like like

(06:37):
a parent or grandpair whoever. It's like, you know, I
love you. You do a lot of great things. Just
I'm having troubles with you right now. You forgot to
turn in an assignment, you were late, you didn't take
out the garbage. I mean all of those things. You
have those moments where you know you have to look
and you shake your id. Never you didn't do it.
I never said I'm proud of you right now. I
never never. Overall, I really like you know, you bring

(07:00):
a lot of happiness and joining in my life. Oh, however,
right now, you're not going to be proud like I'm
expecting to say, Hey, be proud of them going out here.
The guys here want to go out and win every game. Yeah,
they're still bad the best and they can. They're still funny. Instead, hey, look,
you don't want to be proud of these guys right now. No,
not even coming to practice. We're not even you think
we're practicing, We're not. I mean, it's we just have
guys show up for their mandated media sessions. That's it.

(07:23):
We have me. Really, there's no need to practice because
we're tanking. We want for Nana Mendoza right or Dante more.
Want to make sure we direct in the top two
next year. We're getting our quarterback. We had all our
draft picks. We're not about now. I mean to say,
I never said you'd be proud of them right now. Aha,
I'm moving the gold posts on you. You'll be proud
of them. I never said right now. It's like, hey,
i'll buy you ice cream. How about that ice cream?
I never said I'd buy you ice cream today. I'll

(07:44):
buy you ice cream at some point. Yeah, No, it's
it's making good on bets and dinners or whatever. And
that's the jets I mean, But I mean he's being
realistic as kindly as he can say. It's like, look,
it's it's growing pain stick with us because I got
to imagine, you know, owing to our draft day love,

(08:05):
the message boards were replete with what the blank are
we doing right? Yesterday? You get rid of two discernible assets.
Now some of the reports and I'm not going to
call out insiders by name, saying, hey, they dismantled the
top five defense, Like what top five defense? The hell
you been watching? I like it? This theoretical earth insert

(08:27):
number here, top five defense because that ain't what we
watched this year. But all of that to say, you
only went and did half on your reclamation project. Because
we talked about Bresall, it's something that we've done a
bunch of he's not under contract after this year, and
he's made it pretty clear you don't want to be there.
Of course, you do franchise them. Hell no, you're not franchising,

(08:48):
So why would you not take the offer that was
on the table. What they say last night, I said
it last night. And when it gets to two minutes
before the deadline, and it's a fourth round pick. You
take a fourth round pick. I'm sorry, he's gonna walk
off in the office season and tell you to beat it.
I mean, And for other teams it's like, okay, for
the Chiefs, what are you stupid? Give a third round pick?
You get Breese Hall. Are you trying to win the
Super Bowl?

Speaker 4 (09:08):
Now?

Speaker 1 (09:08):
Lets tell me he was an epic fail by the
Chiefs and Steelers were the two teams that stood out
every epic fail epic fail. So the Jets still being
the Jets, you can't have nice things. As Aaron Glenn says,
you're I'm proud of the guys. I've never said that,
never said that. Now you mentioned Jacoby Myers with the deal, right,
and now it's a big move for the Jaguars. Travis

(09:29):
Hunters on the injured list and Thomas can't catch. Uh
sorry for all those folks that Parker Washington. But now
they go get Jacoby Myers. And I love this move
by the Jaguars because they have realized what we have
told you for a long time, and this is that
Trevor Lawrence is incredibly overrated. He is the most overrated

(09:51):
quarterback in the NFL. We've told you this for a
long time and now everybody kind of knows it. You've
seen him through so many different iterations of coaches and
systems with players and not and he's just a guy,
all right. They needed Jacoby Myers because you gotta get him.
So many great players try to throw the football too,
like let's keep good because he doesn't make anybody around

(10:12):
him better. He doesn't throw enough touchdowns, He throws too
many interceptions, had that brutal red zone interception against the Raiders,
which you're like, what are you doing throwing the football
that way? Outside of his heroics against Kansas City, which
kind of saved his reputation for a little bit earlier
this year, Right, it was a primetime game. We watch
him getting the end zone that saved him. That's the
only bright spot. He doesn't elevate the offense. We still think.

(10:35):
People still think Trevor Lawrence is great because he was
a studded Clemson and the Jaguars were embarrassed that we
drafted this guy. We told everybody he was gonna be great.
We were told he was gonna be great. If we
don't give him money, it's embarrassing. We don't give him
fifty million dollars year, it's embarrassing. Well, hang on a second,
he didn't need to do that because he's just a guy.
He's an average NFL quarterback. We've seen enough of him

(10:56):
to know that now. But the Jaguars, Hey, he's average enough.
I guess we can justify paying him by the fact
that maybe we get a guy that's worse. You know,
our track record for picking quarterbacks is spotted at best.
So yeah, we're paying a guy who's maybe a league
average quarterback. Maybe again, maybe a league average quarter we're
gonna give but again, Now, he was a stud at

(11:17):
Clemsony was so good we love to remember. Okay, that's
not him anymore. And if you need to move on,
I don't think. I don't think the reaction would be,
oh my goodness, how do we let Trevor Lawrence go?
The reaction would be, boy, can Trevor Lawrence get Sam darnoalded?
Can Trevor Lawrence get Baker mayfielded?

Speaker 3 (11:34):
By?

Speaker 1 (11:34):
Somewhere? Can someone get out of him what we couldn't
get out of him here? In so many different iterations,
I don't know, man, Like I say, there's a system
for everybody. But guys like Sam Darnald, they were in
one system with the Jets. Didn't work, Okay, so now
they move on right, Okay, one system with the Panthers,
it didn't work. Now he gets his chance. Like Trevor,
Lawrence has now had three or four chances with different ways,

(11:57):
different different types of receip that he's had come in
great players that they thought were gonna be great players.
He cycled there. You go back to one man, when
Christian Kirk was a great receiver in the NFL before
he got hurt a couple of times, he was terrific.
They kept trying to give him good players for a
long time. And still this is a guy who's he's
maybe a league average quarterback at best. Well, he made

(12:19):
that guy good because he was at nothing, went to
Jacksonville and popped briefly, and then he couldn't stay healthy.
And now he's, you know, kind of a journeyman. Fourteen catches,
one hundred and thirty five yards this year for Houston,
can't stay on the field. But you look at Lawrence overall,
I mean, Brian Thomas Junior is not the guy that

(12:40):
everybody anticipated that he would be plenty of drops and
the Jaguars receiving corps as all. I have no idea.
Do they not do extra work on the jugs machine?
I mean, what are we missing here? It's been a
comedy of airs. And it's not to excuse Lawrence because
we've watched him miss throw after throw. He is the

(13:01):
average and he's part of what the NFL has been.
Next man up kind of situation when it came to
paying quarterbacks and how many guys have we talked about
in that regard. It's like, well, what else are you
gonna do? The devil you know, the devil you don't.
And Liam Cohen he comes in with his duval he
was gonna be the guy that picked it, and for
a couple of minutes he kind of has fixed the

(13:23):
other parts of the team because they run the football well.
They they did defense well enough run the ball yet
three weeks, but when they realized, hey, wait a minute,
we don't need to respect Trevor Lawrence as much. There's
no there's no balance. But they they ran the football
really well the first weeks. They play pretty good defense
now elevating Travis Hunter and maybe he was gonna break out,
but then he gets hurt. That's a really bad break

(13:45):
for them because maybe he was going to be that
ascending talent. Suddenly now you got a new number one receiver,
new thing happening. So but it looked but it's not
like he came in. It's been a disaster. He's come
in and kind of fixed a couple of things, it
just hasn't overall worked because Trevor Lawrence is limited. This
is kind of who he is. If he was dynamic
and threw a lot of picks, Okay, I get it.
If he was this dynamic but through much less interceptions,

(14:06):
I get it. But he's not dynamic and he throws
too many interceptions. Yeah, you're not pushing the ball. And
we watched this squad and it was one that the
curiosity was Travis Hunter and they'd started to use him.
So now on Ir misses the four weeks, which necessit
states the trade because you're still looking at your division going, well,
if you can just get hot because the defense has

(14:28):
played well in spurts, and then once you lean in
on him, then they give you a big letdown effort,
but they're not going to score any you know, buckets
of points. At any point. So, yeah, Trevor Lawrence is
a guy in a crowded field of quarterbacks that you say, well,
if he moved on, how many of those guys can
legitimately move on? Though? And they've already cycled what is this?

(14:52):
Three coaches removed from what Urban Meyer do with him?

Speaker 2 (14:56):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (14:56):
Now, now it's a long way to it. Now, it's
a long way, right, gonna make Kayleb Williams had his hebraflues, sure,
and Trevor Lawrence had his Urban Mind, had my eberflus.
I've had enough, Okay, I've had one eberfriend, mym of eberfluses.
And now fly eberfly, Eberfoberfly, not hebrafly Eberfly looses exit
out bout a Fresca exit swelling Dome. Coming up next,

(15:16):
all the big NBA news with insider Rit Buker, The
latest on Lebron, the Lakers, Luca Wemby, the Nicks, more
right here, Jason and Mike Fox.

Speaker 2 (15:29):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.

Speaker 4 (15:41):
Hey, it's Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington from The Odd
Couple on Fox Sports Radio and in addition to hearing
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Fox Sports Radio, we are excited to announce brand new
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Speaker 1 (15:55):
That's right. You can now watch The Odd Couple live
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Speaker 4 (16:01):
All you gotta do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube
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Speaker 1 (16:11):
Fox Sports Radio The Jason Smith Show with my best
friend Mike Harmon Game of the Night in the NBA,
Lakers have cut these spurs lead to six. Still a
lot of time left here, nine and a half to
go in the fourth quarter, san Antonio leads the Lakers
ninety nine ninety three. It's been a big night for
Lebron or a big night, big night for Luca tonight,

(16:33):
having a huge night so far. I mean, look, he
was doing everything the first half for the Lakers so far.
Now in thirty two minutes, twenty seven points eleven. It
says eight boards, four steals, couple of blocks, he's doing
everything now. We talked early in the show a lot
that boy, how awkward is it? Going to be when
Lebron does come back for the Lakers, he's coming back

(16:54):
as potentially the number three option with as good as
Austin Reeves has been playing. How awkward? Again, I've said
many times, I still can't believe he's actually going to
take the court for the Lakers at some point this year.
He's not going to get traded before he has to play.
But now he's not going to travel on the upcoming
road trip, so we kicked that can down the road.
Do we have any audio of the conversations he's having

(17:15):
with Austin Reeves on the bench tonight? Joining us now
in the hot line to break down this story and more,
Fox Sports one NBA insider Extraordinary Rick Buker, Rick, what's happening?

Speaker 3 (17:25):
Man?

Speaker 1 (17:25):
How are you?

Speaker 3 (17:28):
I'm gonna right now, for the next five seconds, I
am going to replicate the conversation that Lebron James is
having with Austin Reeves right now on the bench.

Speaker 1 (17:37):
Okay, that's too much dead air. Yeah, yeah, we were
going to get a knock call that we went up
air or something. Time to break it up.

Speaker 5 (17:50):
No, I don't know if Lebron has I don't know.

Speaker 3 (17:54):
This entire time, he's doing his greatest invitation of one
of the Eastern Island statues at the end of the bench,
like he's not talking.

Speaker 5 (18:02):
To anybody, he's not reacting to at least from.

Speaker 3 (18:05):
What I've seen. I haven't been I haven't been in Uh,
I haven't been at any of these games live, but
from all indications, it's it's very weird to me that
he's he's having like zero interaction with anybody. It would
appear he's he looks, he's he looks like a mine
at the end of the bench, just like he's on

(18:28):
I don't know, he's he's been put in uh time
out or something like that. It's very bizarre, and it's
gonna be more bizarre. You guys named it. I mean
we were. I've been talking to people about this since
Austin Reeves started going off.

Speaker 5 (18:44):
Like, oh, what do you do?

Speaker 3 (18:47):
How do you make between Luca, between Luca and Austin,
how do you make room for Lebron coming back? Particularly
if you look at the players that they're putting out
there around Luca for him to do what he does, like,
you need you need shooters, and you need defensive guys,
and certainly Lebron has demonstrated that he can space the

(19:10):
floor and shoot a three, but it's not really what
he likes to do full time. And defensively, he's a
shadow of what he once was. So it's it is
I'm with you guys, one hundred percent. I want to
see how how this goes when he has to come
back and and and he is the third Actually, you know,

(19:32):
if the unrate and keeps playing.

Speaker 5 (19:33):
Like this, the mountains like.

Speaker 1 (19:38):
You like that. That's the thing, Rick, is that he's
never had to go through any point in his career
when he's anything less than the alpha on a team.
Now splitting up with Luca. Okay, I get it, he
could take over in the playoffs, but now he's been
shunted aside, like we're Luca driven, we're trying to figure
out how we're moving on past you. I find it
hard to believe he's ever going to really get on

(19:58):
the floor with them this year. Now he's not going
to travel on the road trip. We're getting twenty some
odd games into the year. I wonder how much of
Lebron is just I'll come back when they hit the skids,
because that's the only way I can come back in
and people think I'm helping the team and I'm back
to being Lebron. If they start losing, that's when he
comes back, when.

Speaker 3 (20:16):
They hit the skids or there's an injury. But I
also believe that, I mean, he has been the master
of preservation and so you know, at his age, playing
as few regular season games as he can, so that
he's going to have whatever he's going to have down
the stretch and into the postseason. I mean, kind of

(20:38):
replicating as much as he can the bubble that worked
out well for him. So I don't know that he's
really looking to russ I rush.

Speaker 5 (20:47):
Back, and I think you are right, like it's.

Speaker 3 (20:50):
Looking for that opportunity to play that I'm coming into,
you know, the wonder dog, I'm coming in to save
the day kind of situation for or Lebron. But even
in that case, you know, the question is going to
be what, like, what role do you give him at
this point when they've been so successful with a Lucas

(21:13):
centric Austin Reeves centric team. I will say this too,
I want to see who where they are after this
road trip there. This is the first time they're going
to be traveling significantly they're going to be on the
East Eastern Seaboard, and then they're going to play some
of the best teams that they've that they faced to

(21:35):
this point. If you look at all the teams that
they've played, it's not like they've seen the best of
the best of the league.

Speaker 5 (21:42):
Even the Minnesota summer Wolves right now are a five
hundred team.

Speaker 3 (21:45):
Now, they're not playing anything close to what their capability
or expectations are. So I don't I don't know just
how impressed we should be with this six to two
record right now.

Speaker 5 (21:58):
But sixty two is sixty two.

Speaker 3 (22:00):
They're beating the teams they're supposed to be. But the
best drama is yet to come for sure.

Speaker 1 (22:06):
Let's go on the other side of the equation for
the game tonight, five and one. Are the Spurs coming
in seven guys and double figures tonight? What's the ceiling
with this squad led by Wemban Yama.

Speaker 3 (22:19):
Let's hope that they are that they are going to
be a playoff team this year.

Speaker 5 (22:24):
I would say that, and somebody asked me.

Speaker 3 (22:28):
This the other day, and I said, the ceiling was
the second round. But it may be a vaulted ceiling,
or maybe even an atrium.

Speaker 1 (22:37):
Like that, that's good.

Speaker 3 (22:39):
It's it's like people are looking at Wemby, and certainly
Wemby has to to He still has some steps to go,
and particularly where they get him the ball and where
he operates from. But for everybody getting all hot and
bothered about what the Phoenix Suns did to him, and
a little bit of what the Lakers are doing to
him tonight, who's.

Speaker 5 (23:01):
Their second best player? Like? Who do you go?

Speaker 6 (23:05):
Like?

Speaker 5 (23:05):
It shouldn't be.

Speaker 3 (23:07):
That Wemby has to give you thirty twenty and nine
block shots in order for them to be great. That's
what he's done. And basically what Phoenix did and what
Lakers have done to a certain extent, is to say,
all right, you know what, we'll.

Speaker 5 (23:21):
Double triple team him. We're going to crowd and we're.

Speaker 3 (23:24):
Gonna get Marcus Smart up underneath them, and then we're
gonna have shot blocking and we're gonna make somebody else
on the San Antonio Spurs make plays and get things done,
and they're getting enough of it tonight. But I just
I think that as much as Wembley still has room
to grow as far as the central character to a

(23:46):
deep playoff running team, that the supporting tast has ways
to go to.

Speaker 1 (23:53):
All right, so who do you believe it in?

Speaker 3 (23:54):
More?

Speaker 1 (23:55):
With the big surprise start right now, the Spurs are
up by seven with about six minutes to go in
the game. The big surprise start by the Spurs or
the surprise start by the Bulls.

Speaker 3 (24:06):
Oh you you? It changed up on me. I thought
we were going to compare Philly and the Bulls.

Speaker 1 (24:13):
I was just asking you if you well, because Mike
Harmon said, will you please ask about the Bulls? I said, okay,
we'll ask about the Bulls. I've been begging this whole time.
Get to the Knicks in their one hundred and thirty
seven point effort against the Tea Wolves tonight.

Speaker 3 (24:23):
We needed to say that. By the way, we're going
to go straight to that. I was going to say,
it's about time you asked me about o g Annoby
Ananobe questions Jason exactly exactly, by the way, just real quick.
I am loving this. Richard Jefferson, Tim Legler Combo. I

(24:46):
think their chemistry is great. I think they have a
great combination of analysis and and fun. I don't I
don't know about it. I know both of those guys well,
but I'm really liking what I'm hearing from them. Question, Bulls,
without question, are the surprise, But they are what this

(25:07):
and this is happening. This is the reason that there's
the issues in Memphis. This is some of what we're
getting from the New York Knicks and what's going on
with them in terms of the rumblings of a little disgruntlement,
is that the game teams have figured out. Look, the
game is so fast. We can't play we can't play

(25:29):
stars thirty five thirty six minutes. We can't play ISO,
and we can't play through the same guys all year
long because the speed of the game and that combination
is going to result in injuries and we're not going
to have those guys at the end of the year.
Allow Jason Catum and so so what teams are doing

(25:50):
as they're playing more of a European style and with
depths and moving the ball and not loading up on
any particular players, and that's the new and that's the
new recipe in the Chicago Bulls are very much built
for that.

Speaker 1 (26:08):
Now.

Speaker 3 (26:08):
I still think that that's a regular season thing. I
think you still need to have that star guy who
can go get you a bucket when all else fails.
And I don't know that that Bizillis is ready for that,
or or Kobe White and that we haven't seen him yet.
But I don't think they have that piece. But I've
talked to people in the Bulls organization. They're loving the

(26:30):
chemistry that they have. And if you look at their
their their roster or their stats they got, I think
it's eight guys averaging between twelve and twenty three points,
and nobody is taking more than five threes a game.
I think Giddy is averaging Josh Gitty is averaging four

(26:51):
point seven, but they got like eight or nine guys
who are taking at least three a game. So the
distribution is just terrific. And I think that that is
the new formula in the NBA, which is not being
top heavy but having a versatile, deep team. And you know,

(27:13):
the champions always kind of set the template for everybody.
I think that's what the Oklahoma City Thunder and the
last couple of championship teams have done is demonstrated that
if you want to if you want to be standing
at the end and have a chance, you obviously have
to have some star power. But You're better off having
a little bit of star power and a lot of
depth than a lot of star power and no depth.

Speaker 1 (27:34):
Sow get back to the Sixers with Maxie and Edgecone
leading the way, Joel and was complaining about his twenty
minutes to night, saying I might as well stay home.
Well he didn't play. They lost by eleven at Cleveland.
What do you think of this squad? I mean, February
sixth is gonna come awful fast for some of these
squads in terms of trade deadline and trying to offset

(27:55):
some of these big contracts.

Speaker 3 (27:57):
I just I just feel like the Sixers are kind
of stuck. With embiid and with Paul George.

Speaker 5 (28:03):
I think they have some pieces that they can.

Speaker 3 (28:05):
Build around going forward, but it's it's a team in transition,
and I think you're only as good as your best players.
And and you know, like it or not, that still
is embiid And and Paul George. They're the ones who
are going to set the tempo that the guys you're
going to play through if they're on the floor, and
I just I don't believe in their leadership at this point.

(28:26):
This is a perfect example, like the seventy six ers
are out rolling. You've got young guys that are performing.
If you take Joel Embiid out of the equation and
you put Steph Curry in that position, Steph Curry is
celebrating the fact that he has young guys that are
that are coming to the four and that are showing
that they can play. Joel Embiid is complaining, complaining about

(28:49):
his minutes, like, dude, read the room, read your history, Like.

Speaker 5 (28:55):
What do you I mean? It's just that's that's the
kind of stuff that.

Speaker 3 (28:59):
Drives me crazy. It's it is tone deaf to who
you've been and where your team has been and what
you're getting from these young guys. You shouldn't be complaining
about your minutes. You should be happy that.

Speaker 5 (29:11):
You're you're only having to play twenty minutes.

Speaker 3 (29:14):
And your team came out as the record that it has.
I I will stop there before I say more.

Speaker 1 (29:19):
No, because I keep going back when you when you
would say last year, I've never seen a guy as
tired shooting free throws as Joel how.

Speaker 5 (29:27):
Exactly exactly twenty minutes? You should be excited about that.

Speaker 1 (29:35):
He's on Twitter. At Rick Buker, that is at Rick
Buker check out Beyond the Ball podcast as well.

Speaker 2 (29:41):
No, no, no, we.

Speaker 1 (29:44):
Got We'll get it next man. I want to do
you a favor this week. Wait then, look the Knicks one,
they're great. Everything is fine. Either the Knicks are going
to be really good or we're going to struggle and
get you honest at the deadline. Everything is great right now, Rick.

Speaker 3 (29:57):
You got a British guy leading your team again.

Speaker 1 (30:04):
Rick on Twitter at Rick Buker on the Ball podcast
as well. Rick, take it easy, buddy, We'll talk to
you next week.

Speaker 3 (30:10):
Bangers and mass jo.

Speaker 1 (30:13):
The best ri C B or c h e R.
Time now to find out what's trending in the wide
roll of sports from Moncy Milanios. Moncie, what do you
got for us tonight? It is not the time right now, Jason.

Speaker 7 (30:26):
Why because this game is going down to this final
seven seconds and I want to watch if the Portland
Trail Blazers are gonna pull off this upset win over.

Speaker 1 (30:34):
Ok See, did you bet the Blazers?

Speaker 4 (30:36):
No?

Speaker 1 (30:36):
But I should have. Okay, do you know what I'm saying?
I think you bet the Blazers.

Speaker 2 (30:39):
I should have.

Speaker 1 (30:41):
I would have been a millionaire.

Speaker 7 (30:43):
And uh you know I would only be here.

Speaker 1 (30:45):
On Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Speaker 7 (30:46):
Uh, Blazers are up right now, surely works two days
a week.

Speaker 2 (30:50):
Only work two days a week.

Speaker 1 (30:51):
Blazers will plus one sixty five. The money line.

Speaker 7 (30:54):
One nineteen to one eighteen is a score at Shai
Gil Just Alexander just cut that deficit to one.

Speaker 1 (31:00):
Yeah, so SGA is.

Speaker 7 (31:01):
Playing, but the Trail Blazers are up seven seconds to
go and Portland will have the ball. Another game that
went down to the wire was the Kings and the Warriors.

Speaker 6 (31:12):
As Pajemski again he is ready to inbound. Inbound's pass
goes to Moody. Moody back to Pajemsky, knocked out of
his hands by Westbrook, out of Islands, off for Jimski.
Literally sacrament at all and Russell Westbrook has come up
with a huge defensive play to go with his triple
level tonight that may ensure the victory for Sacramento.

Speaker 7 (31:34):
Like the beam King's radio network, they hold on. They
beat the Warriors one twenty one to one sixteen. And yeah,
Russell Westbrook with a triple double, he still got it
in him.

Speaker 1 (31:43):
No money for Stayakovic. The war The Warriors played run
TMC sure did, come on, it doesn't matter. Kings didn't
have them. Ont to Sevanez or zach Lavine. Are you
ser he were smoking Jakovic? No, they didn't have No,
did not have Pacer No, no, no. Turk very nice

(32:08):
for somebody else, Williams, let's go. I was like Jason Williams.

Speaker 7 (32:13):
We all know I was trying to get one, though.

Speaker 1 (32:14):
We don't talk about. Uh So that's going on there.

Speaker 7 (32:17):
Spurs and Lakers are also still going on in San Antonio.
Is up right now, one six to one oh four,
less than five minutes to go in this one. Luka
Doncic thirty points, eight rebounds and thirteen assists. Nicks took
over in the second half to defeat the Timberwolves one
thirty seven to one fourteen.

Speaker 1 (32:32):
Cooper Flag had twenty.

Speaker 7 (32:33):
Points and nine rebounds, but the Pelicans defeated the Mavericks
one on one to ninety nine. Nicola Jokic with another
triple double. Nuggets defeated the Heat one twenty two to
one twelve, and the Nets got their first win of
the season. They outscored the Pacers one twelve to oneh three.
In the NHL all the games have wrapped up. The
Sharks crushed the crack in six to one, Blackhawks scored
five goals in the third period to beat the Canucks

(32:55):
five to two, Flames over the Blue Jacks blue Jackets
five to one, and the Capital snapped their four game
losing streak by beating the blue six to one. But
more importantly, Alex soovechkin Rich reached nine hundred career goals.
So he has nine hundred and seventy seven goals when
you combined the regular season in the playoffs, still second
behind Way Gretzky, who in total has one thousand and sixteen.

Speaker 1 (33:18):
Back to you, guys, thank you very much. He don't.
Yeah you like that, Simmons. I still remember when when
David Stern used to do all the announcements for all
the players, and he didn't care if he got the
names wrong. Yeah, And I still remember when he got drafted,
he goes and king select he know Turker Glue. Yeah, Well,
he just didn't care who was going to tell. He

(33:39):
was saying at that point, Yeah, I'm gonna say the name.
He know, Turker Glue. Yeah, maybe he's Turk Glue. I
look that up. I'm gonna say if I can find it,
Begs Montsi. Things getting closer in LA four minutes ago.
Lakers now down by three to the Spurs. Love more
on this game coming up next, as well as what is,
without a doubt, the silliest NFL story of the day.
It has to do with fun pumps and can peel Fox.

Speaker 2 (34:06):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific.

Speaker 1 (34:15):
Fox Sports Radio The Jason Smith Show with My best
friend Mike Harmon. Spurs ly the Lakers won eleven ten
under three minutes left to go. One of the games
of the year so far in the NBA. This has
never been more than I think eight points by the
Spurs is the biggest lead that they've had tonight, and
now the Lakers have cut it down to two. Still

(34:36):
a lot of time left in this one, but uh,
Luca doing it all now, Wemby's putting up numbers. That's
kind of fun. You've got the DeAndre Ayton Show. I
mean like, we got cast one thousand and seven guys
in double digits for the Spurs, and I'm glad we
have the cable packages that allow us to watch, so
uh yeah, well we don't watch through YouTube. So this is,

(34:58):
without a doubt the most bizarre and fl story of
the day. But the NFL is good for usually like
two or three of these a year. So Rico Daddell
announced Caroline, Panthers running back who has hit the next
level of stardom this year, you know, having like back
to back to back to back to back four hundred
yard games, announced tonight he was fined by the NFL
during a touchdown celebration he had in Sunday's win over

(35:20):
the Packers. He announced it on social media Wednesday night.
He also posted he partnered with go fund me to
use his fine money for charity. The fine is about
a little bit less than fifteen thousand dollars. Now what happened?
Maybe you followed this, maybe he didn't because it is
the Panthers, but hey, hey, they're one of the great
surprises of the first half. They are they are. It
is nice, and he's been a hero to fantasy owners everywhere.

(35:44):
It is nic. Yes, yeah, if you were lucky enough
to pick him up and say, really, rego dada, he's
a thousand yard guy in Dallas and they said beat it.
So he celebrated his touchdown and third quarter on Sunday
with two pelvic thrusts as teammates stood around him in
the end zone. And we find out after that's a
nod to a twenty thirteen Key and Peel sketch where
they joked that two thrusts was acceptable, but three crossed

(36:07):
the line. It would warrant you a flag. Now apparently
this this uh, two pumps was enough to get him
a fifteen thousand dollars fine. Now he got a fifteen
yard penalty front sportsman like conduct on the play. But
now the whole thing, three pumps will get you fined
and two pumps won't. Now we know two pumps will
get you fined? Will one pump not get you fined?

Speaker 4 (36:28):
Now?

Speaker 1 (36:29):
Is that a thing?

Speaker 6 (36:29):
Now?

Speaker 1 (36:30):
Is it? Basically they had the sketch wrong in twenty thirteen. Yeah,
but why would you bother with one pump? Man? It's
you still get one pump? Yeah, I does Keeg and
Michael Key have to pay the fine? You know, how
cool would it be if Key and Peel paid the
fine for or donated money to go to charity. Tell
the seventeen on the gofund me like you got fifteen Yeah, yeah,

(36:50):
I mean really, I think you've signed a little bit
of money for that. Go around the locker room and
tell everybody to cough up a buck like you're in
reservoir dogs. I mean, come on, do fund me. I mean,
now it is gonna be. It is gonna be for charity.
I guess that's kind of cool. But yeah, you could
just pay the fine and send to the charity too.
But but really, I think about the inner workings of

(37:12):
the NFL, and I just wonder if the okay, they
know it was three blank that guy, Yeah, normally it's three,
but we're gonna get him for two just because he
did it on purpose that way, right, Wonder if the
NFL is being spiked there kind and spiteful with a
lot of things. And you know, there's really a lot
of leeway, it seems, with with how they interpret the rules. Right.

(37:35):
You had a guy, uh, aparently you're suspended for the
fact that you've hip dropped like nine guys. Okay, I'm exaggerating,
but it was enough to warn a suspension out of
hell with it. It's one hundred thousand dollars fine. You
misled everybody on the injury report as to a you know,
an elite quarterback multi MBP his availability for one hundred

(37:56):
thousand dollars. Fine, you you that was a two and
a half pumps fifteen thousand dollars. What are we doing?
I like the fact that he well, not unelect the fact,
but he missed today's practice with a quad injury. And uh,
Dave can Allics had to say it was unrelated to
the pumps. U was a coach? Was he? Uh? Was

(38:18):
he injured doing the uh the pelvic thrust pumps? Uh? No,
that was a not related Did he emphasize pelvis those pumps?
Can you imagine a guy getting hurt? Oh, oh pulled something?
Oh well, we saw Grammatica rip his leg jumping up
and down after I made kid for that. We've seen,
We've seen what I'm just saying. All he did was

(38:39):
so yeah, he just jumped like it was like he
didn't even get much air.

Speaker 3 (38:43):
A couple of.

Speaker 1 (38:44):
Quick pumps sort of you know, it's it's sort of
the movements you're making if you're you know, juking your
way down the field, to say, oh, oh little yeah,
you're right there. That glute, Yeah, that's sciatica that that
sideline Lebron. That's got me to right now. Can't you
plant your cleat and land just wrong? I mean a
lot of things can happen. I can't play. I got

(39:04):
what did you do? Pump and the pelvic f Yeah,
I'm on the DL now for a while. I mean
I was doing the time warp. No, no, I've been
according to the prescribed lyrics, and it got me. I mean,
here's the NFL say, okay, two pelvic thrusts are worth
this fun. But if you did the time warp, jump

(39:24):
to the left, step to the right, to the right, okay,
and the pelvic thrust, yeah, you go all the way around,
because it's really only one one real pump, right, I mean,
I don't know. I think you would going all the
mini pumps so they all count separately like a clicker,
you know, like you're an umpire. No, I think you
would have to skip the pumps all together. I think

(39:46):
if you did the step to the left and jump
to the right, but if you were sancing along in
your heads and a bump, skip the pumps. You know,
if he's got guts when he scores a nice thing
on when he scores, I do one thrust and see
what happens. Wait, so now one is bet Now what
is it? Now? You find me for two so I know,
like care or you do three and go? Well, I
thought two was the rumber I couldn't do, so I

(40:06):
decided to do three. Oh you mean that? Oh it's
too many? Okay, I really want to see him play
around with him. Go yeah, he has a one pump thrust.
Find me again. Well, I just keep finding the end
zone and test where those markers are. And for all
of you that I just traumatized because you started thinking
to the video of Hammer and pumps it a bump.
I'm sorry, exit about a fresca exit swelling down the
Jason's Show with Mike Carmon live from the Fox Sports

(40:29):
Radio studios. We got more NFL on the way and
the ending of one of the games of the year
and the NBA between the Spurs and the Lakers. Keep
it right here, Jason and Mike. You are listening to
Fox Sports Radio.