May 2, 2024 • 37 mins
Chris and Rob explain why Steve Ballmer may have no choice but to blow up this current Los Angeles Clippers roster, tell us why the discourse coming out of the Phoenix Suns organization regarding Kevin Durant and the future of their franchise is all wrong and explain why the they believe the Los Angeles Lakers would be making a Darvin Ham the scapegoat if they decide to fire him this week as has been reported.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
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Speaker 2 (00:23):
You're listening to the Best of the Odd Couple with
Chris Brushaw and Ron Harker.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
A team you and I picked to get to the
Western Conference Finals this year, and now I had the
caveat of them being healthy.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
You probably did too.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Kawhi Leonard of course out for them, but still you
got two stars, still at least towards the end of
their prime, in James Harden and Paul George. But you
wouldn't know it by last night Pivotal Game five in
their first round series with the Dallas Mavericks, and their
two stars were no shows and hints. They get demolished
(01:00):
one twenty three to ninety three. Paul George, as bad
as he was, was the better of the two fifteen
points eleven boards, that's the good. He shot four for
thirteen though, and Rob it was almost like right on time.
You know, right right, just as you as you could
(01:21):
predict looking at James Harden's playoff history talked about it
right on key seven points two of twelve, shooting only
two of two free throws.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
So he wasn't aggressive.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
I can't say, honestly, I thought he looked tentative. But
come on, man, you averaging twenty six points in the series,
fifty four percent shooting. How in the world, with your
leading scorer do you out Kawhi Leonard?
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Do you only take twelve shots?
Speaker 1 (01:53):
This has happened time and time again with James Harden,
and it typically is not game one, not game two,
not Game three. It's late when the series get big time,
and here we are pivotal game five and hardens a
no show.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
What are your thoughts, Roun?
Speaker 4 (02:13):
I've seen enough, Chris Boussard, And if I was a bomber,
Steve Bamber or a billionaire owner, I've had enough.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Enough Is enough, Chris?
Speaker 1 (02:27):
It's a lot for you to say it, because you
are You've been ride or died with these clips.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
I've seen enough, Steve Bomer, is this on?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
This is a message of a personal public announcement to
Steve Balmer.
Speaker 5 (02:46):
It's over, stop.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
Chasing a championship, climb back into the hole that the
Clippers have created in NBA America, and just be happy
that you have a brand new billion dollar building, and
make the Clippers.
Speaker 5 (03:07):
Fun and in a good night out.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
Make it affordable for families to come who can't afford
to go to the Laker games. Throw as many T
shirts and cotton candy bags out as you can and
get people to come and have a good night. Do not,
under any circumstance sign James Harden. Do not any under
(03:32):
any circumstance, bring back Westbrook.
Speaker 5 (03:39):
Do not bring back Paul Paul George. Do not do that.
Speaker 4 (03:44):
You already signed Kawhi Leonard, have him Chris if you
want to do some sign and trades and get some
value back on some young players, young fun, exciting players.
I'm all for it, but give up the ghost because
it ain't happening. You've done everything you can injuries. They
play great one night, they blow blow up the next
(04:08):
night and give you nothing. It's the most disappointing and
frustrating thing. And if I was a Clipper fan, and
I am not, I would take all of my stuff
to the tallest building in Los Angeles and dump it
off the top today, the hats, the jackets, the jerseys,
(04:28):
even my Clipper sneakers if they have them, and dump
them off the top of the building. Chris and say,
no way, know how am I gonna get involved in
this and wrap myself up with this. I'm done. Steve Balmer,
you should be done too. I know you just built
the building. I know your dream is to win a championship.
(04:48):
It's it ain't gonna happen. If you can't win a
championship with what you've done the last four or five
years and all the the energy and effort and money
you put, it ain't happening.
Speaker 5 (05:01):
And those guys there, I'm sorry.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
James Harden is not getting your championship, Paul George is
not getting your championship. Westbrook's not getting your championship. And
Kawhi Leonard is not not getting your championship. So if
you have to hold on to him to try to
sell some tickets and get some young guys around him
that are fun and high flying in a fast paced style,
(05:26):
and after Tyl Loo's done with one more year, you
move on from him and go get some young, energetic coach.
Speaker 5 (05:32):
Make it a fun night out.
Speaker 4 (05:34):
Give up the ghost of trying to win a championship
because the window and the gate and the barn and
all those things are closed and it ain't happening.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Well, I agree with you that it ain't happening. And
what you say it sounds good. I mean, that's the
Clipper's history. They were the fun clownish team, the legitimate
version of the Washington Generals or the Harlem Globetrotters, whatever
you want.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
To put me the Generals because they weren't winning. They
weren't winning, right. Look, the problem is this.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
They gave Kawhi Leonard a three year, one hundred and
fifty two million dollar contract.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
That's how much he has left on his.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Contract after this season. That is the problem of all
the players. And good for Kawhi. God blessed Kawhi Uncle Dennis.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Great job, outstanding work, real talk. Great for them. But
for the Clippers, y'all got suckered. Of all their stars.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I'm just gonna say the three of the I'm not
gonna include Westbrook, but I could even clue Westbrook of.
Speaker 3 (07:02):
The four stars, Kawhi.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
Paul George, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Rob the last one
they should have signed long term was Kawhi Leonard, and
obviously he's the best of the bunch. But that dude
can't stay healthy. It's not his fault. I think he
works hard. He tried to really play this year, and
(07:25):
just like last year when he tried to really play,
he broke down in the playoffs or right before the playoffs.
What in the world do you think the next three
years are gonna look like With Kawhi Leonard. I almost
guarantee you he will miss more games than he plays.
And because he's making such big money, Rock good luck
(07:46):
trying to trade him. I mean maybe somebody will take him,
maybe later in the contract. I wouldn't as good as
he is, you can't count on him. So I agree
with you. I would let Paul George walk. He should
want to walk now. It'll be interesting with him. Rob
(08:06):
will he he's from southern California. Does he want to
stay here and just play it out?
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Maybe?
Speaker 1 (08:14):
But Philadelphia will likely go after him. If he has
any desire to win a championship, he should go there,
assuming they offer him the Max play with him being
in MAXI James Harden, Rob, of course.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
I'm not gonna win anything big with him, but I
gotta feel the team. I mean, I.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Think with James Harden, I can be relevant. Of course,
not gonna win, but there is a.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
I do have to pay out some salary.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
And I know if Kawhi's out and it's the James
Harden show, well he can put up some numbers. I
don't think he can go thirty four and ten like
he used to, but he can still put on a show.
He's from sokw to I'm not giving him the max.
I'm not giving him too many years, but I think.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
I probably gotta keep him just because of rebuilds.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Impossible like one, I got Kawhi's contract, that got Norman
Powell making a decent amount of money for the next
couple of years. And Rob, they have hardly any draft picks,
that's the thing, And none.
Speaker 3 (09:26):
Of these guys have trade.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
What kind of picks am I getting for James Harden
if I did a sign in trade, what kind of
picks am I getting for Russell Westbrook?
Speaker 3 (09:36):
I mean they are in trouble. I mean they just
got a bunch of Look like you said, Bomber did
what he could. I don't blame him.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
They just can't stay healthy and Harden just Rob. It's
gotta be something, something mental, It's gotta be nerves. I've
never seen a player so great come up short so
many times in big moments.
Speaker 4 (10:02):
Keeps happening, and at some point you just got to
accept this just who he is and you can't keep
asking for thinking something else is gonna happen. We talk
about it all the time. I just think at some
point you just got to decide that. We saw it
in Brooklyn when that thing didn't work, they just decided
play the younger players, and.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
They're they're relevant NBA side Beer. I don't want to
be that if I'm the clip.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
I'm just saying, if you're the Clippers other than and
I say Kawhi because I think it would be hard
to trade.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
Him, but no other guys. They got no choice.
Speaker 5 (10:38):
Yeah, but then again, uh, they did trade.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
Bradley Beal was traded, So I always every time, that's
always my caveat of Bradley Beal.
Speaker 3 (10:46):
Was nothing's impossible, right because.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
Bradley Beal was traded.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
Maybe he'll go play with Wimby, Maybe he'll go back
to Santonio.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
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listen live.
Speaker 6 (11:08):
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Speaker 3 (11:15):
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Speaker 6 (11:17):
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and Sports Illustrated.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
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to talk a little bit about managerial decisions, playoff games,
and what may have occurred to the dugout maybe in
the nineteen.
Speaker 5 (11:29):
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Speaker 1 (11:45):
Another team that was swept, surprisingly was the Phoenix Suns.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Rob and the young or.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
At least their superstars young Anthony Edwards twenty two years old.
They swept Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, and the
Phoenix Suns out of the playoffs.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
So now Phoenix, you know, now you deal with all
of the uh the after shock, fall after effects, fallout.
Speaker 5 (12:17):
Chris one drivet pick over the next five years that.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
It's bad whether I don't know what exactly it is,
but yeah, they don't have uh, you know much many
draft picks their cap. Next year, they're gonna have over
two hundred million dollar payroll, highest in the league. And
so now they're trying to figure out how they're going
to keep the head coach, Frank Vogel. But they're trying
(12:43):
to put a happy face on everything. Although James Jones,
who runs their basketball operations, strange comment coming from him
the other day.
Speaker 7 (12:54):
Here he is that's a constant focus for us is
to continue to figure out how to maximize Kevin Durant.
No one's done it yet. I believe it will be
the first team to do it. Because we can maximize him,
we can maximize our entire roster. We're a better team.
But that's not an issue. I think Kevin had a
phenomenal season this year offensively. I think there's a stretch.
(13:16):
He had some of the best stretches of his career
this year. So it wasn't an offensive thing. It wasn't
just a utilization or a usage thing. It was just
the totality of figuring out when and where and how
to do it together.
Speaker 5 (13:30):
What Chris, go ahead, let me hear Let me hear
you on this.
Speaker 1 (13:34):
Let me I respect James Jones because I actually think
he's a good executive route, but that is a terrible statement.
It makes absolutely positively no sense, Rob, I get would
(13:56):
maximizing Kevin Durant and Golden State have been them going
back to back.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Years of eighty two and zero.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
Is that what they had to do to maximize Kevin
Durant because they ran through the entire league period, swept
one finals, went five to next the two years he
was healthy in Golden State, they won it all. If
that's not maximizing Kevin Durant, I don't know what is.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
And Durant was the finals MVP both times, and then
Rob the third year he was there.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
I think we all believe had he not gotten hurt,
they would have repeated. So I don't know what in
the world James is talking about. I guess, And you know,
the owner Matt Ishbia did the same thing as far
as trying to put a happy face in a positive,
you know, outlook on the franchise. Maybe in doing that
(14:57):
he got caught up, But to say no one has
maximized Kevin Durant.
Speaker 5 (15:04):
Makes no sense.
Speaker 3 (15:06):
It's absolutely ridiculous. Rob. Hey, here's let me say this
before you go. I don't think Jay.
Speaker 1 (15:14):
I know he didn't mean it this way, but Rob,
it's a tad been insulting the KD because it's kind
of saying like, well, this dude's been you know, fifteen
sixteen years in the league.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
Whatever.
Speaker 1 (15:27):
It is kind of like on potential. He's got potential,
but no one's tapped it untapped?
Speaker 3 (15:34):
Really, you know what I mean? I don't get it.
Speaker 4 (15:38):
Okay, it is Chris, when you're standing up there, they
sitting at the podium and you want to deflect what's
happened there and the mess that you're in and put
a happy face on it, like, uh, no, things are
not as bad as you think they are. We're we're
in a good spot. We're we're really in a good spot.
(16:01):
This was in the end of the world. We still
have options of doing stuff and yeah, you know Kevin Durant,
don't worry about him getting hurt.
Speaker 5 (16:09):
What it We're gonna get We're going to be the ones.
Speaker 4 (16:12):
To unleash him and get the best out of him
at thirty five six, Chris, where he's been hurt over
the last few years.
Speaker 5 (16:20):
Thank god he was hurt this year. But you get
my point. It's ludicrous.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
If you were a Suns fan, you should have wished
for an eclipse on that press conference because what was
that from both of them and the owner double down?
Chris basically is comments, Really, how about you worry about
the mortgages, buddy and just pay the bills?
Speaker 1 (16:45):
Rob the owner, matt Ishbia He said, they're in an
extremely favorable position, right Chris. He said that of the
other twenty nine teams in the league, twenty six of
them with tray play not.
Speaker 3 (17:01):
Just roster but draft picks the whole nine yards. With
the Phoenix Suns.
Speaker 5 (17:06):
Just poppy cock Boulder dash to utter nonsense.
Speaker 4 (17:11):
I don't know if the column is at the Phoenix paper. Chris,
Arizona Republic, right would trash? I mean I hope that
they didn't buy into that, because what a really everybody
else would be would be thrilled to be in the
first round, the first round, I mean, right, a four
game sweep. You have Kevin Durant who's got two championship
(17:34):
trophies and finals MVPs. Kevin Booker was I mean, Kevin,
I keep doing that. Devin Booker was just a couple
Chris two years ago? How many years ago?
Speaker 5 (17:43):
Was that?
Speaker 4 (17:43):
Two years ago that they were in the final, three
years ago in the finals up to all halfway to
a championship, and you will sit here and act like
the sky is rosy and everything's cool.
Speaker 5 (17:56):
Come on, man that.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
I'm suonder if they questioned him on that, And you're right,
I need to look for some of those collegnes.
Speaker 4 (18:04):
I want to just see what the columnists they in
Arizona Republic Road.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Really because Rob I can name off the top of
my head a bunch of teams that would definitely not
trade places with the Phoenix Suns.
Speaker 3 (18:18):
Because here's the problem.
Speaker 1 (18:21):
Bradley Beal is arguably the worst contract we talked about.
Speaker 3 (18:25):
Kawhi Leonard Bradley Bill's contract.
Speaker 1 (18:30):
Rob is probably even worse than Kawhi's because Kawhi actually
plays a little more than Bal and he's obviously better.
Speaker 3 (18:40):
They both got huge contract.
Speaker 1 (18:41):
Bill's got three years, one hundred and sixty million left
on this deal.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Rob, Who in the world is trading for that?
Speaker 5 (18:46):
Nobody. It's a miracle that the Sun's traded for him.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
Man. Here's the other thing, Rob, he's got a no
trade cost.
Speaker 5 (18:53):
How did he earn that?
Speaker 1 (18:55):
I don't know, But I mean, again, congrats to the
agent and Bill himself else because y'all did a heck
of a job.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
But Rob, so you got that, you mentioned it earlier.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
No draft picks to speak of, you know, relatively speaking,
and you can't your three stars, two of whom are
very injury prone.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Durant, you know he was healthy this year. Praise the Lord.
But they eat up so much of your cap that
you really can't get anybody else that's really good. You
don't have a point guard.
Speaker 1 (19:37):
You're all up in the luxury tack, second Apron and
all that, so that limits what you can do. What
in the world is Matt should be talking to? Does
he think that the writers don't do their homework?
Speaker 4 (19:50):
It's an insult Chris to sit there, And I wish
I would have loved to hear the pushback, because there's
no way that they sat there and thought that that
was cool. I mean, those sound bites to me had
I had Phoenix Sun's season tickets.
Speaker 5 (20:03):
I would have I would have turned my name.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
I would have been like, what really, Like, like, it's
one thing, Chris, I'm not saying you gotta doom and
gloom and say the world the sky's falling. Okay, but
we're gonna we're gonna get this right. We're going to
turn this around. This is not what we signed up for.
We're better than this. We got Booker, we got we
(20:26):
all have to be James Jones has to be better.
I have to be a better owner. You deserve better.
We want to custo a championship. We're gonna get back
to that. That's where we were. That's the kind of team.
Speaker 3 (20:38):
We didn't bring Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal here to
go out in.
Speaker 4 (20:42):
The first round exactly, Like, where is that conversation and
that tone, Chris, That's what we would want to hear
and and fans couldn't argue with it, could you?
Speaker 1 (20:52):
No?
Speaker 3 (20:52):
No, you would just be like, yeah, it was disappointing,
but man, I like what he said. He's gonna be No,
You're right, they're trying to pull the wool over your eyes, right,
you know what I mean, that's what it looked. A
little smoking mirrors. Tell you you.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Didn't see what you actually saw. Don't believe what I saw.
Believe what I tell you they saw.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
I mean, come on, so people.
Speaker 4 (21:15):
Are smarter than that. I'm just sorry people are smarter
than that.
Speaker 3 (21:18):
I actually think.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
That they really need to look into trade and Kevin
Durant and I know he's arguably their best player, and
he is still a very good player, probably will be
second team All NBA again, he was that on my ballot.
But they're not gonna win. Do you think this group's
gonna win the championship?
Speaker 5 (21:42):
Ro No? And you know what, get out why? You can't?
Speaker 1 (21:44):
Right, So we're not winning a Championship's young, he's only
like twenty seven. So we can build around him.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
We can't. There's nothing we can do with Bill. We're
stuck with that. I mean, you could try, but it's
gonna be tough.
Speaker 1 (21:59):
And see what you can get for Duran Rob, A
bunch of young players, some young talent that fits age
wise with Devin Booker, and you know, some picks because
Rob right now, if they stay in pat and they might,
I know, they don't have a ton of options, but
(22:20):
if they stand pat Rob and they start next season
with this squad, fans aren't stupid.
Speaker 3 (22:26):
They're not gonna be saying, oh, we're gonna win a championship.
Speaker 1 (22:28):
But with that roster, Rob, it's your mentality is just
conference finals or bust. Like nothing less than that is
gonna satisfy us at all. Whereas if you, let's say
you trade, I'm just gonna throw out Golden State Andrew Wiggins,
Jonathan Kaminga, some draft picks. I mean, at least if
(22:55):
you did that, you got Wiggins, who you would hope
would have a renaissance, because he was bad this year,
but he's been good overall in Golden.
Speaker 4 (23:05):
State, and you know what, and he had some family issues,
so you don't know what, maybe, yeah, maybe he would
be better.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
Headed.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
He's still young though, twenty nine, Rob, and then Kaminga
could develop into a star.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
And then Rob.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
Also, the expectations are lower, you know what I'm saying.
Like now, it's like, okay, if we make the playoffs
and we're competitive, we're gonna be happy because we're.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
Building something, you know what I mean. And so I
think they need.
Speaker 1 (23:38):
To look at that. Obviously a lot of teams would
you know you can. You put Duran out there, Rob,
it's who Let's see who comes with the best offer.
Philadelphia should be going after him, The Lakers should be
going after him. Golden State should be going after him. Heck, Rob,
if Boston falls short, do.
Speaker 3 (23:57):
They you know, are they looking to shake some things up?
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Remember there was talking about Durant going there for Jalen
Brown a few years ago.
Speaker 3 (24:05):
I mean, there are a lot of teams that would want.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
Kevin Durant, and so I would at the very least
Rob start looking at it, like, put the word out
around the league. Hey, give us you We're open to
trade Durant. What's your best offer?
Speaker 4 (24:21):
Seriously, I say, do whatever you can to move from
underneath him. I think you just have to because you're right,
you're not winning anything, Chris, and you got Booker. Just
try to retool and find somebody else. You're stuck with Bill.
I don't know what he is?
Speaker 5 (24:39):
What is he? What is he to you?
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I mean, honestly, he's an albatross, you know what I mean?
Like he really is.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Because he's not healthy enough, Rob, he only played He
hasn't played more.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
Than sixty games since twenty nineteen. That's pre pandemic and
he's got all those years. I honestly do not see.
I mean, the trade of him would be our problem
for your problem. Now. He's a good play He's not
a great player at this stage. He's a good player.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
If he were a healthy Rob, I could live with him,
you know what I mean, Like, if I could count
on him being healthy, I'd be I mean, I still
be like, well, we overpaid, we kind of got snookeered
on this, but hey, you know, he's a good player.
Speaker 3 (25:30):
But at this point, I mean, he's always injured and.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
So and with the no trade clause, Rob, I just
I mean, you're basically at his mercy.
Speaker 2 (25:40):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
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Speaker 3 (25:52):
But in the meantime, Rob Let's talk about the Lakers,
and there was some kind of news today reports that
Darvin Ham is expected to be relieved of his coaching
duties by the end of the week.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Was that Johann Buja, friend of the show, Yeah that
he reported it, Chris that the people that he's talked
with say that it could happen as early as tomorrow,
but this week is expected correct, yep?
Speaker 3 (26:22):
Well, so what are your thoughts on this?
Speaker 5 (26:25):
Ridiculous? Just for real?
Speaker 4 (26:28):
I mean, this is this is the world you live
in with lebron to Chris, he some people think he's
the goat and if you don't and if they don't win,
you become the scapegoat. No matter who it is that
something went wrong and that's where we are. I'm not
there's Darvin Ham, the greatest coach you have a coach
in the NBA, Chris, No, but come on, you can't
(26:48):
keep running people out every time something doesn't go right.
And it took the time to hang that banner. And
I keep talking about the end season tournament because it
was that was supposedly a big deal, wasn't it, Chris?
Speaker 1 (27:01):
Was that they put a banner up, which it says
a lot considering you're the Lakers and you got seventeen championship, right,
So I agree, like, like you didn't have a problem
with it, but now you want to act like it
was it don't.
Speaker 4 (27:11):
Matter, right, That's what I'm saying, Like, now you're saying
it didn't matter and it's no big deal. So you
put the banter up and you and you you're losing
a series, a gentleman's sweep, and now Darvinham has to
be sacrificed. I just it doesn't sit right with me
because you can't keep doing this. And then I gotta
look at JJ Reddick or tyleru As did you see that?
Speaker 1 (27:34):
When not?
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Ti? I mean Tyler?
Speaker 1 (27:36):
No, that's what they The Clippers have a year left
with him under contract.
Speaker 4 (27:41):
But Dom mcman throwing that out there, Chris, the Lakers
want him? Yeah, oh now they will, Yeah, they want him.
Speaker 3 (27:48):
But how they gonna get him out of that? What
are they gonna have to give up?
Speaker 4 (27:51):
And I'm not I mean for the Clippers to hook
up the Lakers. No, And if I'm if I'm Steve Balmer,
I'm not doing that.
Speaker 3 (27:56):
I don't Why would Why would I?
Speaker 2 (27:58):
Right?
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Even if he wasn't coach for me, he's not coaching
for you exactly. Now that's for dar not as long
as he's under contract.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
No, No, But I look, I agree with you, Darvin Ham.
Could he coach when you won the end season turns?
Could he coach when you went to the Western Conference
Finals last year? In his first season as a coach?
Speaker 3 (28:21):
Could he coach?
Speaker 1 (28:21):
He maneuvered the Russell Westbrook stuff, the mess y'all created,
He maneuvered it up until the trade deadline, and then
y'all traded him, and then all he did.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Was help get y'all to the Western Conference Finals.
Speaker 1 (28:36):
When y'all were bragging about finishing the season eleven and
threep and with one of the top five records in
the second half of the season.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
Could he coach then?
Speaker 4 (28:46):
And there was no mention Chris of not being able
to get any kind of rhythm because of injuries cohesiveness?
How did you win eleven out of fourteen to close
it out?
Speaker 5 (28:56):
Then?
Speaker 1 (28:57):
And Rob Lebron after the playoff series against Denver mentioned
the injuries when he was asked about, well, what you're
making the Tea's like, you know, we were injured all
the time. Every time we got going, somebody got hurt.
It's hard to know what we were And Rob, you know,
I look, they were arguably one of the top five
(29:19):
teams in the NBA. Chris, who do we just have
on the radio? Antonio Daniel?
Speaker 5 (29:24):
Who did he pick in the series Lakers? That? Hello?
Speaker 4 (29:28):
Did he would you have picked him? If he would
have been like, I don't know who they are. They're
they're inconsistent, they're injury, they're they're rid with injury. There's
no way they can win. He picked them. That's how
good he felt about the team, Chris and Rob.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
Had they not played face Denver, they may have been
favored over just about anybody else in the West West. Now,
I'm not saying they definitely beat Minnesota or OKC or
the Clippers, but it would have been it would have
been tough.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
And they even played.
Speaker 1 (30:00):
Look they got beating the Gentleman's sweet, but those games
were close. And I look again, like you said, we're
not saying Darvin ham is read.
Speaker 3 (30:09):
He made some mistakes. He's got a lot to learn.
But when you.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
Roped the list, let's go down the list.
Speaker 3 (30:16):
JJ Reddick.
Speaker 1 (30:18):
Now, I do think JJ Reddick will be a good
coach when he starts coaching in the NBA for a
young team, like he interviewed.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
With Charlie something like that. But Rob, he's a contemporary
Lebron in a d They about to listen. I don't
think it's about to give you that respect, RNA.
Speaker 4 (30:41):
They're gonna listen to Jj because he won how many championships?
Speaker 3 (30:45):
Would that be zero? Would that be zero? So he's
Lebron's podcast partner. That's gonna be some authority.
Speaker 5 (30:52):
How is that? How good is that? Right?
Speaker 3 (30:54):
And that's the issue, Rob, Steve Kerr and Phil Jackson.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Uh, they weren't great players in their day. To your point,
they did win championships. They were role players on championship teams.
But even beyond that, Rob, they coached the next generation.
Speaker 3 (31:12):
Yes, they didn't coach a bunch of dudes who used to.
Speaker 1 (31:15):
Take them to the whole dunk on them and talk
trash to him.
Speaker 3 (31:21):
It's just different. Jajon Reddick's their age.
Speaker 4 (31:23):
But that's because Chris the people he has a high profile,
you know that, and people get caught up. I'm gonna
tell you this. It's the same thing that happened Chris.
And this is probably the biggest example.
Speaker 5 (31:36):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
If you remember when Matt Millan was doing television and
doing football, you would listen to that guy and be like,
this dude knows everything about football.
Speaker 5 (31:48):
Am I right? Chris?
Speaker 4 (31:51):
He was great on television, okay, Matt, And and people
used to listen to Madago, this guy knows everything about football.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Blah blah blah.
Speaker 4 (32:00):
Right, Matt had no experience Chris as a general manager,
and then they the Lions turned over the keys to
him and he probably turned in the worst nine years
or whatever it was. It was all your way, the
worst general manager and pro sports.
Speaker 5 (32:15):
Yeah, and.
Speaker 4 (32:17):
All I'm saying is be careful when you're listening to
somebody tell you, you know what I mean talking about the game,
and this whole notion that oh yeah, well let's put
JJ Redick in there and this will be great or
whatever because he knows basketball. I'm again, all the coaches
know ex's and o's, right, thank you.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
I mean they all know ex's and o's. There's no
doubt about it. Now, you got to be able to
relate to the players. You have to be able to
get their respect. They have to be willing to listen
to you. Like it's a lot involved in it. But
they all know x'es and o's. I'm not saying some
aren't better than others in ex'es and o's, but they
know it. But here, let's go through some of the
(32:59):
other names, because to show you how foolish this is,
Mike Budenozer, Well, there were similar complaints about him in
Milwaukee to what there are with Darvin in LA. He
got to make adjustments in the playoffs.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
What's he doing now? They fired him in Milwaukee.
Speaker 1 (33:18):
I always thought Budenozer was a good coach, and now
I bet you they wish they had.
Speaker 5 (33:23):
Him back, no doubt about it.
Speaker 1 (33:26):
Right, So that just shows you every coach you can
criticize and find fault with.
Speaker 3 (33:31):
So that's two of the ones. Why are you bringing
them in over?
Speaker 1 (33:34):
If not to mention Darvin was a longtime assistant for
Bootenozer in Atlanta and Milwaukee.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
Rob another name out there, Terry Stotts.
Speaker 5 (33:44):
How many times had we gotta hear about Terry Stotts?
Speaker 3 (33:46):
What all did he do in porting? Right? I mean
he's a good coach, good, good offensive mind.
Speaker 1 (33:52):
Defense was always terrible, but really like what okay, what
were some other names?
Speaker 3 (33:59):
Oh, Kenny Atkinson? Okay, I bet that'll go over well
with Lebron and yeah, and Kyrie and and KD ran
him out.
Speaker 5 (34:06):
Of town as soon as they got there, if you remember, Yeah,
they got there.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Mark Jackson, I'd love to see him get a shot,
but you know, I don't think that'll happen.
Speaker 3 (34:18):
That yeah. What was another name that was, Oh yeah,
we already talked about it. It was Barrega was out there again.
He got fired up. Where was he at Charlotte Orlando?
One of those places. I mean, it's a bunch of retreads,
is the points.
Speaker 5 (34:32):
And with John Rondo, Chris is being mentioned that again.
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Jerry Stack, he was available, he coached that Vanderbilt.
Speaker 3 (34:40):
I'm just saying, Rob, here's the lay coach. Still Jackson
out there. I get it.
Speaker 1 (34:48):
When the Lakers went to Phil Jackson is like, Okay,
it's Phil Jackson. He's won everywhere and that worked out.
These guys are retreads. That doesn't mean they're not good coaches,
but you not getting anything in them that you don't
know you couldn't eventually get from Ham.
Speaker 5 (35:04):
There you go that going in.
Speaker 3 (35:07):
He's already actually had a little bit of success. He's
going to improve.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
Talk to him about the challenges instead of just look
smiling in his face and then talking to the media
behind his.
Speaker 3 (35:19):
Back about how you about the axiom? Why don't you
be a man and talk to him about Darvin, we
need you. This is what we were disable.
Speaker 5 (35:26):
Here are areas that we need to improve in. Okay,
we need you to do better.
Speaker 4 (35:32):
Uh, because obviously they were doing something all right when
they won the end season and when they finished eleven
and three, Chris going into the playoffs. So it ain't
like I'm with you. None of the other guys you're
talking about. Are you positive they're going to be better
than Darbenham?
Speaker 3 (35:49):
Not not at all.
Speaker 1 (35:50):
I mean you just making change or change and Rob,
Good organizations don't get a new coach every two years. No,
let's Denver, Mike Malone's in there several years now. Now
you got Chris Finch in Minnesota. I bet you he's
not going anywhere for a long time.
Speaker 2 (36:07):
No.
Speaker 1 (36:07):
When Utah had Jerry Sloan, Robb never won a champion,
kept Jerry Stone.
Speaker 5 (36:11):
Jerry Sloan was coached for about twenty five years at least.
Speaker 3 (36:15):
And they won a lot.
Speaker 1 (36:16):
You know, you don't just make change for Eric Sposter
is another one, Rob, When Lebron and d Wade that
first year together, they wanted him out.
Speaker 5 (36:30):
It.
Speaker 1 (36:31):
Yep, this is what I say to the Lakers, Rob,
because pat Riley empowered Sposter. When they thought, oh he
got too much swag for a dude who ain't done nothing.
Pat Riley said look, this is the coach period, and
if you're gonna win, it's gonna be with him. And
they went out there and they played for him. I
get it that the Lakers don't have anybody with the
(36:52):
clout of Riley Robbers, But if Jenny Bust or Rob Pulling,
if they said, look, we're not this is our coach.
Speaker 3 (37:02):
We're not changing. We're not gonna.
Speaker 1 (37:04):
Pay Darvin Ham for the next few years and then
pay somebody else.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
And he didn't do a terrible jock.
Speaker 1 (37:09):
This is your coach now, Like you said, rob if
you want to test me, that's a test for Lebron.
Speaker 3 (37:16):
I don't know that Lebron wants him out or not.
Speaker 4 (37:18):
No, but that, but that you're saying, well, if you don't,
if you don't want to be, he's our coach, so right,
so you have a right you could come back or
opt out.
Speaker 5 (37:27):
This is what we're doing here.
Speaker 4 (37:28):
We're not gonna change coaches again, And and hang a
banner and all this other stuff and then act like
none of it mattered.
Speaker 5 (37:36):
Which one is it? Which one is it?
Thanks for listening to the Best of the Odd Couple podcasts.
Be sure to catch us live every weekday from seven
pm to ten pm Eastern four to seven Pacific on
Fox Sports Radio. Find your local station for The Odd
Couple at Fox Sports Radio dot com, or stream us
live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching FSR.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
You're listening to the Best of the Odd Couple with
Chris Brushaw and Ron Harker.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
A team you and I picked to get to the
Western Conference Finals this year, and now I had the
caveat of them being healthy.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
You probably did too.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Kawhi Leonard of course out for them, but still you
got two stars, still at least towards the end of
their prime, in James Harden and Paul George. But you
wouldn't know it by last night Pivotal Game five in
their first round series with the Dallas Mavericks, and their
two stars were no shows and hints. They get demolished
(01:00):
one twenty three to ninety three. Paul George, as bad
as he was, was the better of the two fifteen
points eleven boards, that's the good. He shot four for
thirteen though, and Rob it was almost like right on time.
You know, right right, just as you as you could
(01:21):
predict looking at James Harden's playoff history talked about it
right on key seven points two of twelve, shooting only
two of two free throws.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
So he wasn't aggressive.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
I can't say, honestly, I thought he looked tentative. But
come on, man, you averaging twenty six points in the series,
fifty four percent shooting. How in the world, with your
leading scorer do you out Kawhi Leonard?
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Do you only take twelve shots?
Speaker 1 (01:53):
This has happened time and time again with James Harden,
and it typically is not game one, not game two,
not Game three. It's late when the series get big time,
and here we are pivotal game five and hardens a
no show.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
What are your thoughts, Roun?
Speaker 4 (02:13):
I've seen enough, Chris Boussard, And if I was a bomber,
Steve Bamber or a billionaire owner, I've had enough.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Enough Is enough, Chris?
Speaker 1 (02:27):
It's a lot for you to say it, because you
are You've been ride or died with these clips.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
I've seen enough, Steve Bomer, is this on?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
This is a message of a personal public announcement to
Steve Balmer.
Speaker 5 (02:46):
It's over, stop.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
Chasing a championship, climb back into the hole that the
Clippers have created in NBA America, and just be happy
that you have a brand new billion dollar building, and
make the Clippers.
Speaker 5 (03:07):
Fun and in a good night out.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
Make it affordable for families to come who can't afford
to go to the Laker games. Throw as many T
shirts and cotton candy bags out as you can and
get people to come and have a good night. Do not,
under any circumstance sign James Harden. Do not any under
(03:32):
any circumstance, bring back Westbrook.
Speaker 5 (03:39):
Do not bring back Paul Paul George. Do not do that.
Speaker 4 (03:44):
You already signed Kawhi Leonard, have him Chris if you
want to do some sign and trades and get some
value back on some young players, young fun, exciting players.
I'm all for it, but give up the ghost because
it ain't happening. You've done everything you can injuries. They
play great one night, they blow blow up the next
(04:08):
night and give you nothing. It's the most disappointing and
frustrating thing. And if I was a Clipper fan, and
I am not, I would take all of my stuff
to the tallest building in Los Angeles and dump it
off the top today, the hats, the jackets, the jerseys,
(04:28):
even my Clipper sneakers if they have them, and dump
them off the top of the building. Chris and say,
no way, know how am I gonna get involved in
this and wrap myself up with this. I'm done. Steve Balmer,
you should be done too. I know you just built
the building. I know your dream is to win a championship.
(04:48):
It's it ain't gonna happen. If you can't win a
championship with what you've done the last four or five
years and all the the energy and effort and money
you put, it ain't happening.
Speaker 5 (05:01):
And those guys there, I'm sorry.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
James Harden is not getting your championship, Paul George is
not getting your championship. Westbrook's not getting your championship. And
Kawhi Leonard is not not getting your championship. So if
you have to hold on to him to try to
sell some tickets and get some young guys around him
that are fun and high flying in a fast paced style,
(05:26):
and after Tyl Loo's done with one more year, you
move on from him and go get some young, energetic coach.
Speaker 5 (05:32):
Make it a fun night out.
Speaker 4 (05:34):
Give up the ghost of trying to win a championship
because the window and the gate and the barn and
all those things are closed and it ain't happening.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Well, I agree with you that it ain't happening. And
what you say it sounds good. I mean, that's the
Clipper's history. They were the fun clownish team, the legitimate
version of the Washington Generals or the Harlem Globetrotters, whatever
you want.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
To put me the Generals because they weren't winning. They
weren't winning, right. Look, the problem is this.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
They gave Kawhi Leonard a three year, one hundred and
fifty two million dollar contract.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
That's how much he has left on his.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Contract after this season. That is the problem of all
the players. And good for Kawhi. God blessed Kawhi Uncle Dennis.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Great job, outstanding work, real talk. Great for them. But
for the Clippers, y'all got suckered. Of all their stars.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I'm just gonna say the three of the I'm not
gonna include Westbrook, but I could even clue Westbrook of.
Speaker 3 (07:02):
The four stars, Kawhi.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
Paul George, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Rob the last one
they should have signed long term was Kawhi Leonard, and
obviously he's the best of the bunch. But that dude
can't stay healthy. It's not his fault. I think he
works hard. He tried to really play this year, and
(07:25):
just like last year when he tried to really play,
he broke down in the playoffs or right before the playoffs.
What in the world do you think the next three
years are gonna look like With Kawhi Leonard. I almost
guarantee you he will miss more games than he plays.
And because he's making such big money, Rock good luck
(07:46):
trying to trade him. I mean maybe somebody will take him,
maybe later in the contract. I wouldn't as good as
he is, you can't count on him. So I agree
with you. I would let Paul George walk. He should
want to walk now. It'll be interesting with him. Rob
(08:06):
will he he's from southern California. Does he want to
stay here and just play it out?
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Maybe?
Speaker 1 (08:14):
But Philadelphia will likely go after him. If he has
any desire to win a championship, he should go there,
assuming they offer him the Max play with him being
in MAXI James Harden, Rob, of course.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
I'm not gonna win anything big with him, but I
gotta feel the team. I mean, I.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Think with James Harden, I can be relevant. Of course,
not gonna win, but there is a.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
I do have to pay out some salary.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
And I know if Kawhi's out and it's the James
Harden show, well he can put up some numbers. I
don't think he can go thirty four and ten like
he used to, but he can still put on a show.
He's from sokw to I'm not giving him the max.
I'm not giving him too many years, but I think.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
I probably gotta keep him just because of rebuilds.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Impossible like one, I got Kawhi's contract, that got Norman
Powell making a decent amount of money for the next
couple of years. And Rob, they have hardly any draft picks,
that's the thing, And none.
Speaker 3 (09:26):
Of these guys have trade.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
What kind of picks am I getting for James Harden
if I did a sign in trade, what kind of
picks am I getting for Russell Westbrook?
Speaker 3 (09:36):
I mean they are in trouble. I mean they just
got a bunch of Look like you said, Bomber did
what he could. I don't blame him.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
They just can't stay healthy and Harden just Rob. It's
gotta be something, something mental, It's gotta be nerves. I've
never seen a player so great come up short so
many times in big moments.
Speaker 4 (10:02):
Keeps happening, and at some point you just got to
accept this just who he is and you can't keep
asking for thinking something else is gonna happen. We talk
about it all the time. I just think at some
point you just got to decide that. We saw it
in Brooklyn when that thing didn't work, they just decided
play the younger players, and.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
They're they're relevant NBA side Beer. I don't want to
be that if I'm the clip.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
I'm just saying, if you're the Clippers other than and
I say Kawhi because I think it would be hard
to trade.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
Him, but no other guys. They got no choice.
Speaker 5 (10:38):
Yeah, but then again, uh, they did trade.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
Bradley Beal was traded, So I always every time, that's
always my caveat of Bradley Beal.
Speaker 3 (10:46):
Was nothing's impossible, right because.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
Bradley Beal was traded.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
Maybe he'll go play with Wimby, Maybe he'll go back
to Santonio.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to
listen live.
Speaker 6 (11:08):
What do you get when you combine a three time
Manager of the Year at a three time National Sports
Writer of the Year.
Speaker 3 (11:15):
It's the Book of Joe Podcast.
Speaker 6 (11:17):
Hey, this is Tom Ferducci from Fox Sports MLB Network
and Sports Illustrated.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
And I'm Joe Madden, and we're going to be around
to talk a little bit about managerial decisions, playoff games,
and what may have occurred to the dugout maybe in
the nineteen.
Speaker 5 (11:29):
Eighties that can't wait for this, Joe.
Speaker 6 (11:31):
We're going to dive into what goes on in the
dugout and behind the scenes in Major League Baseball.
Speaker 5 (11:35):
Cars, wind whatever else we want to talk about.
Speaker 6 (11:37):
Listen to the Book of Joe podcast on the iHeartRadio app,
on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
Another team that was swept, surprisingly was the Phoenix Suns.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Rob and the young or.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
At least their superstars young Anthony Edwards twenty two years old.
They swept Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, and the
Phoenix Suns out of the playoffs.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
So now Phoenix, you know, now you deal with all
of the uh the after shock, fall after effects, fallout.
Speaker 5 (12:17):
Chris one drivet pick over the next five years that.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
It's bad whether I don't know what exactly it is,
but yeah, they don't have uh, you know much many
draft picks their cap. Next year, they're gonna have over
two hundred million dollar payroll, highest in the league. And
so now they're trying to figure out how they're going
to keep the head coach, Frank Vogel. But they're trying
(12:43):
to put a happy face on everything. Although James Jones,
who runs their basketball operations, strange comment coming from him
the other day.
Speaker 7 (12:54):
Here he is that's a constant focus for us is
to continue to figure out how to maximize Kevin Durant.
No one's done it yet. I believe it will be
the first team to do it. Because we can maximize him,
we can maximize our entire roster. We're a better team.
But that's not an issue. I think Kevin had a
phenomenal season this year offensively. I think there's a stretch.
(13:16):
He had some of the best stretches of his career
this year. So it wasn't an offensive thing. It wasn't
just a utilization or a usage thing. It was just
the totality of figuring out when and where and how
to do it together.
Speaker 5 (13:30):
What Chris, go ahead, let me hear Let me hear
you on this.
Speaker 1 (13:34):
Let me I respect James Jones because I actually think
he's a good executive route, but that is a terrible statement.
It makes absolutely positively no sense, Rob, I get would
(13:56):
maximizing Kevin Durant and Golden State have been them going
back to back.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Years of eighty two and zero.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
Is that what they had to do to maximize Kevin
Durant because they ran through the entire league period, swept
one finals, went five to next the two years he
was healthy in Golden State, they won it all. If
that's not maximizing Kevin Durant, I don't know what is.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
And Durant was the finals MVP both times, and then
Rob the third year he was there.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
I think we all believe had he not gotten hurt,
they would have repeated. So I don't know what in
the world James is talking about. I guess, And you know,
the owner Matt Ishbia did the same thing as far
as trying to put a happy face in a positive,
you know, outlook on the franchise. Maybe in doing that
(14:57):
he got caught up, But to say no one has
maximized Kevin Durant.
Speaker 5 (15:04):
Makes no sense.
Speaker 3 (15:06):
It's absolutely ridiculous. Rob. Hey, here's let me say this
before you go. I don't think Jay.
Speaker 1 (15:14):
I know he didn't mean it this way, but Rob,
it's a tad been insulting the KD because it's kind
of saying like, well, this dude's been you know, fifteen
sixteen years in the league.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
Whatever.
Speaker 1 (15:27):
It is kind of like on potential. He's got potential,
but no one's tapped it untapped?
Speaker 3 (15:34):
Really, you know what I mean? I don't get it.
Speaker 4 (15:38):
Okay, it is Chris, when you're standing up there, they
sitting at the podium and you want to deflect what's
happened there and the mess that you're in and put
a happy face on it, like, uh, no, things are
not as bad as you think they are. We're we're
in a good spot. We're we're really in a good spot.
(16:01):
This was in the end of the world. We still
have options of doing stuff and yeah, you know Kevin Durant,
don't worry about him getting hurt.
Speaker 5 (16:09):
What it We're gonna get We're going to be the ones.
Speaker 4 (16:12):
To unleash him and get the best out of him
at thirty five six, Chris, where he's been hurt over
the last few years.
Speaker 5 (16:20):
Thank god he was hurt this year. But you get
my point. It's ludicrous.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
If you were a Suns fan, you should have wished
for an eclipse on that press conference because what was
that from both of them and the owner double down?
Chris basically is comments, Really, how about you worry about
the mortgages, buddy and just pay the bills?
Speaker 1 (16:45):
Rob the owner, matt Ishbia He said, they're in an
extremely favorable position, right Chris. He said that of the
other twenty nine teams in the league, twenty six of
them with tray play not.
Speaker 3 (17:01):
Just roster but draft picks the whole nine yards. With
the Phoenix Suns.
Speaker 5 (17:06):
Just poppy cock Boulder dash to utter nonsense.
Speaker 4 (17:11):
I don't know if the column is at the Phoenix paper. Chris,
Arizona Republic, right would trash? I mean I hope that
they didn't buy into that, because what a really everybody
else would be would be thrilled to be in the
first round, the first round, I mean, right, a four
game sweep. You have Kevin Durant who's got two championship
(17:34):
trophies and finals MVPs. Kevin Booker was I mean, Kevin,
I keep doing that. Devin Booker was just a couple
Chris two years ago? How many years ago?
Speaker 5 (17:43):
Was that?
Speaker 4 (17:43):
Two years ago that they were in the final, three
years ago in the finals up to all halfway to
a championship, and you will sit here and act like
the sky is rosy and everything's cool.
Speaker 5 (17:56):
Come on, man that.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
I'm suonder if they questioned him on that, And you're right,
I need to look for some of those collegnes.
Speaker 4 (18:04):
I want to just see what the columnists they in
Arizona Republic Road.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Really because Rob I can name off the top of
my head a bunch of teams that would definitely not
trade places with the Phoenix Suns.
Speaker 3 (18:18):
Because here's the problem.
Speaker 1 (18:21):
Bradley Beal is arguably the worst contract we talked about.
Speaker 3 (18:25):
Kawhi Leonard Bradley Bill's contract.
Speaker 1 (18:30):
Rob is probably even worse than Kawhi's because Kawhi actually
plays a little more than Bal and he's obviously better.
Speaker 3 (18:40):
They both got huge contract.
Speaker 1 (18:41):
Bill's got three years, one hundred and sixty million left
on this deal.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Rob, Who in the world is trading for that?
Speaker 5 (18:46):
Nobody. It's a miracle that the Sun's traded for him.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
Man. Here's the other thing, Rob, he's got a no
trade cost.
Speaker 5 (18:53):
How did he earn that?
Speaker 1 (18:55):
I don't know, But I mean, again, congrats to the
agent and Bill himself else because y'all did a heck
of a job.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
But Rob, so you got that, you mentioned it earlier.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
No draft picks to speak of, you know, relatively speaking,
and you can't your three stars, two of whom are
very injury prone.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Durant, you know he was healthy this year. Praise the Lord.
But they eat up so much of your cap that
you really can't get anybody else that's really good. You
don't have a point guard.
Speaker 1 (19:37):
You're all up in the luxury tack, second Apron and
all that, so that limits what you can do. What
in the world is Matt should be talking to? Does
he think that the writers don't do their homework?
Speaker 4 (19:50):
It's an insult Chris to sit there, And I wish
I would have loved to hear the pushback, because there's
no way that they sat there and thought that that
was cool. I mean, those sound bites to me had
I had Phoenix Sun's season tickets.
Speaker 5 (20:03):
I would have I would have turned my name.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
I would have been like, what really, Like, like, it's
one thing, Chris, I'm not saying you gotta doom and
gloom and say the world the sky's falling. Okay, but
we're gonna we're gonna get this right. We're going to
turn this around. This is not what we signed up for.
We're better than this. We got Booker, we got we
(20:26):
all have to be James Jones has to be better.
I have to be a better owner. You deserve better.
We want to custo a championship. We're gonna get back
to that. That's where we were. That's the kind of team.
Speaker 3 (20:38):
We didn't bring Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal here to
go out in.
Speaker 4 (20:42):
The first round exactly, Like, where is that conversation and
that tone, Chris, That's what we would want to hear
and and fans couldn't argue with it, could you?
Speaker 1 (20:52):
No?
Speaker 3 (20:52):
No, you would just be like, yeah, it was disappointing,
but man, I like what he said. He's gonna be No,
You're right, they're trying to pull the wool over your eyes, right,
you know what I mean, that's what it looked. A
little smoking mirrors. Tell you you.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Didn't see what you actually saw. Don't believe what I saw.
Believe what I tell you they saw.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
I mean, come on, so people.
Speaker 4 (21:15):
Are smarter than that. I'm just sorry people are smarter
than that.
Speaker 3 (21:18):
I actually think.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
That they really need to look into trade and Kevin
Durant and I know he's arguably their best player, and
he is still a very good player, probably will be
second team All NBA again, he was that on my ballot.
But they're not gonna win. Do you think this group's
gonna win the championship?
Speaker 5 (21:42):
Ro No? And you know what, get out why? You can't?
Speaker 1 (21:44):
Right, So we're not winning a Championship's young, he's only
like twenty seven. So we can build around him.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
We can't. There's nothing we can do with Bill. We're
stuck with that. I mean, you could try, but it's
gonna be tough.
Speaker 1 (21:59):
And see what you can get for Duran Rob, A
bunch of young players, some young talent that fits age
wise with Devin Booker, and you know, some picks because
Rob right now, if they stay in pat and they might,
I know, they don't have a ton of options, but
(22:20):
if they stand pat Rob and they start next season
with this squad, fans aren't stupid.
Speaker 3 (22:26):
They're not gonna be saying, oh, we're gonna win a championship.
Speaker 1 (22:28):
But with that roster, Rob, it's your mentality is just
conference finals or bust. Like nothing less than that is
gonna satisfy us at all. Whereas if you, let's say
you trade, I'm just gonna throw out Golden State Andrew Wiggins,
Jonathan Kaminga, some draft picks. I mean, at least if
(22:55):
you did that, you got Wiggins, who you would hope
would have a renaissance, because he was bad this year,
but he's been good overall in Golden.
Speaker 4 (23:05):
State, and you know what, and he had some family issues,
so you don't know what, maybe, yeah, maybe he would
be better.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
Headed.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
He's still young though, twenty nine, Rob, and then Kaminga
could develop into a star.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
And then Rob.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
Also, the expectations are lower, you know what I'm saying.
Like now, it's like, okay, if we make the playoffs
and we're competitive, we're gonna be happy because we're.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
Building something, you know what I mean. And so I
think they need.
Speaker 1 (23:38):
To look at that. Obviously a lot of teams would
you know you can. You put Duran out there, Rob,
it's who Let's see who comes with the best offer.
Philadelphia should be going after him, The Lakers should be
going after him. Golden State should be going after him. Heck, Rob,
if Boston falls short, do.
Speaker 3 (23:57):
They you know, are they looking to shake some things up?
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Remember there was talking about Durant going there for Jalen
Brown a few years ago.
Speaker 3 (24:05):
I mean, there are a lot of teams that would want.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
Kevin Durant, and so I would at the very least
Rob start looking at it, like, put the word out
around the league. Hey, give us you We're open to
trade Durant. What's your best offer?
Speaker 4 (24:21):
Seriously, I say, do whatever you can to move from
underneath him. I think you just have to because you're right,
you're not winning anything, Chris, and you got Booker. Just
try to retool and find somebody else. You're stuck with Bill.
I don't know what he is?
Speaker 5 (24:39):
What is he? What is he to you?
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I mean, honestly, he's an albatross, you know what I mean?
Like he really is.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Because he's not healthy enough, Rob, he only played He
hasn't played more.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
Than sixty games since twenty nineteen. That's pre pandemic and
he's got all those years. I honestly do not see.
I mean, the trade of him would be our problem
for your problem. Now. He's a good play He's not
a great player at this stage. He's a good player.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
If he were a healthy Rob, I could live with him,
you know what I mean, Like, if I could count
on him being healthy, I'd be I mean, I still
be like, well, we overpaid, we kind of got snookeered
on this, but hey, you know, he's a good player.
Speaker 3 (25:30):
But at this point, I mean, he's always injured and.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
So and with the no trade clause, Rob, I just
I mean, you're basically at his mercy.
Speaker 2 (25:40):
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listen live.
Speaker 3 (25:52):
But in the meantime, Rob Let's talk about the Lakers,
and there was some kind of news today reports that
Darvin Ham is expected to be relieved of his coaching
duties by the end of the week.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Was that Johann Buja, friend of the show, Yeah that
he reported it, Chris that the people that he's talked
with say that it could happen as early as tomorrow,
but this week is expected correct, yep?
Speaker 3 (26:22):
Well, so what are your thoughts on this?
Speaker 5 (26:25):
Ridiculous? Just for real?
Speaker 4 (26:28):
I mean, this is this is the world you live
in with lebron to Chris, he some people think he's
the goat and if you don't and if they don't win,
you become the scapegoat. No matter who it is that
something went wrong and that's where we are. I'm not
there's Darvin Ham, the greatest coach you have a coach
in the NBA, Chris, No, but come on, you can't
(26:48):
keep running people out every time something doesn't go right.
And it took the time to hang that banner. And
I keep talking about the end season tournament because it
was that was supposedly a big deal, wasn't it, Chris?
Speaker 1 (27:01):
Was that they put a banner up, which it says
a lot considering you're the Lakers and you got seventeen championship, right,
So I agree, like, like you didn't have a problem
with it, but now you want to act like it
was it don't.
Speaker 4 (27:11):
Matter, right, That's what I'm saying, Like, now you're saying
it didn't matter and it's no big deal. So you
put the banter up and you and you you're losing
a series, a gentleman's sweep, and now Darvinham has to
be sacrificed. I just it doesn't sit right with me
because you can't keep doing this. And then I gotta
look at JJ Reddick or tyleru As did you see that?
Speaker 1 (27:34):
When not?
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Ti? I mean Tyler?
Speaker 1 (27:36):
No, that's what they The Clippers have a year left
with him under contract.
Speaker 4 (27:41):
But Dom mcman throwing that out there, Chris, the Lakers
want him? Yeah, oh now they will, Yeah, they want him.
Speaker 3 (27:48):
But how they gonna get him out of that? What
are they gonna have to give up?
Speaker 4 (27:51):
And I'm not I mean for the Clippers to hook
up the Lakers. No, And if I'm if I'm Steve Balmer,
I'm not doing that.
Speaker 3 (27:56):
I don't Why would Why would I?
Speaker 2 (27:58):
Right?
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Even if he wasn't coach for me, he's not coaching
for you exactly. Now that's for dar not as long
as he's under contract.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
No, No, But I look, I agree with you, Darvin Ham.
Could he coach when you won the end season turns?
Could he coach when you went to the Western Conference
Finals last year? In his first season as a coach?
Speaker 3 (28:21):
Could he coach?
Speaker 1 (28:21):
He maneuvered the Russell Westbrook stuff, the mess y'all created,
He maneuvered it up until the trade deadline, and then
y'all traded him, and then all he did.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Was help get y'all to the Western Conference Finals.
Speaker 1 (28:36):
When y'all were bragging about finishing the season eleven and
threep and with one of the top five records in
the second half of the season.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
Could he coach then?
Speaker 4 (28:46):
And there was no mention Chris of not being able
to get any kind of rhythm because of injuries cohesiveness?
How did you win eleven out of fourteen to close
it out?
Speaker 5 (28:56):
Then?
Speaker 1 (28:57):
And Rob Lebron after the playoff series against Denver mentioned
the injuries when he was asked about, well, what you're
making the Tea's like, you know, we were injured all
the time. Every time we got going, somebody got hurt.
It's hard to know what we were And Rob, you know,
I look, they were arguably one of the top five
(29:19):
teams in the NBA. Chris, who do we just have
on the radio? Antonio Daniel?
Speaker 5 (29:24):
Who did he pick in the series Lakers? That? Hello?
Speaker 4 (29:28):
Did he would you have picked him? If he would
have been like, I don't know who they are. They're
they're inconsistent, they're injury, they're they're rid with injury. There's
no way they can win. He picked them. That's how
good he felt about the team, Chris and Rob.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
Had they not played face Denver, they may have been
favored over just about anybody else in the West West. Now,
I'm not saying they definitely beat Minnesota or OKC or
the Clippers, but it would have been it would have
been tough.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
And they even played.
Speaker 1 (30:00):
Look they got beating the Gentleman's sweet, but those games
were close. And I look again, like you said, we're
not saying Darvin ham is read.
Speaker 3 (30:09):
He made some mistakes. He's got a lot to learn.
But when you.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
Roped the list, let's go down the list.
Speaker 3 (30:16):
JJ Reddick.
Speaker 1 (30:18):
Now, I do think JJ Reddick will be a good
coach when he starts coaching in the NBA for a
young team, like he interviewed.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
With Charlie something like that. But Rob, he's a contemporary
Lebron in a d They about to listen. I don't
think it's about to give you that respect, RNA.
Speaker 4 (30:41):
They're gonna listen to Jj because he won how many championships?
Speaker 3 (30:45):
Would that be zero? Would that be zero? So he's
Lebron's podcast partner. That's gonna be some authority.
Speaker 5 (30:52):
How is that? How good is that? Right?
Speaker 3 (30:54):
And that's the issue, Rob, Steve Kerr and Phil Jackson.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Uh, they weren't great players in their day. To your point,
they did win championships. They were role players on championship teams.
But even beyond that, Rob, they coached the next generation.
Speaker 3 (31:12):
Yes, they didn't coach a bunch of dudes who used to.
Speaker 1 (31:15):
Take them to the whole dunk on them and talk
trash to him.
Speaker 3 (31:21):
It's just different. Jajon Reddick's their age.
Speaker 4 (31:23):
But that's because Chris the people he has a high profile,
you know that, and people get caught up. I'm gonna
tell you this. It's the same thing that happened Chris.
And this is probably the biggest example.
Speaker 5 (31:36):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
If you remember when Matt Millan was doing television and
doing football, you would listen to that guy and be like,
this dude knows everything about football.
Speaker 5 (31:48):
Am I right? Chris?
Speaker 4 (31:51):
He was great on television, okay, Matt, And and people
used to listen to Madago, this guy knows everything about football.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Blah blah blah.
Speaker 4 (32:00):
Right, Matt had no experience Chris as a general manager,
and then they the Lions turned over the keys to
him and he probably turned in the worst nine years
or whatever it was. It was all your way, the
worst general manager and pro sports.
Speaker 5 (32:15):
Yeah, and.
Speaker 4 (32:17):
All I'm saying is be careful when you're listening to
somebody tell you, you know what I mean talking about the game,
and this whole notion that oh yeah, well let's put
JJ Redick in there and this will be great or
whatever because he knows basketball. I'm again, all the coaches
know ex's and o's, right, thank you.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
I mean they all know ex's and o's. There's no
doubt about it. Now, you got to be able to
relate to the players. You have to be able to
get their respect. They have to be willing to listen
to you. Like it's a lot involved in it. But
they all know x'es and o's. I'm not saying some
aren't better than others in ex'es and o's, but they
know it. But here, let's go through some of the
(32:59):
other names, because to show you how foolish this is,
Mike Budenozer, Well, there were similar complaints about him in
Milwaukee to what there are with Darvin in LA. He
got to make adjustments in the playoffs.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
What's he doing now? They fired him in Milwaukee.
Speaker 1 (33:18):
I always thought Budenozer was a good coach, and now
I bet you they wish they had.
Speaker 5 (33:23):
Him back, no doubt about it.
Speaker 1 (33:26):
Right, So that just shows you every coach you can
criticize and find fault with.
Speaker 3 (33:31):
So that's two of the ones. Why are you bringing
them in over?
Speaker 1 (33:34):
If not to mention Darvin was a longtime assistant for
Bootenozer in Atlanta and Milwaukee.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
Rob another name out there, Terry Stotts.
Speaker 5 (33:44):
How many times had we gotta hear about Terry Stotts?
Speaker 3 (33:46):
What all did he do in porting? Right? I mean
he's a good coach, good, good offensive mind.
Speaker 1 (33:52):
Defense was always terrible, but really like what okay, what
were some other names?
Speaker 3 (33:59):
Oh, Kenny Atkinson? Okay, I bet that'll go over well
with Lebron and yeah, and Kyrie and and KD ran
him out.
Speaker 5 (34:06):
Of town as soon as they got there, if you remember, Yeah,
they got there.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Mark Jackson, I'd love to see him get a shot,
but you know, I don't think that'll happen.
Speaker 3 (34:18):
That yeah. What was another name that was, Oh yeah,
we already talked about it. It was Barrega was out there again.
He got fired up. Where was he at Charlotte Orlando?
One of those places. I mean, it's a bunch of retreads,
is the points.
Speaker 5 (34:32):
And with John Rondo, Chris is being mentioned that again.
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Jerry Stack, he was available, he coached that Vanderbilt.
Speaker 3 (34:40):
I'm just saying, Rob, here's the lay coach. Still Jackson
out there. I get it.
Speaker 1 (34:48):
When the Lakers went to Phil Jackson is like, Okay,
it's Phil Jackson. He's won everywhere and that worked out.
These guys are retreads. That doesn't mean they're not good coaches,
but you not getting anything in them that you don't
know you couldn't eventually get from Ham.
Speaker 5 (35:04):
There you go that going in.
Speaker 3 (35:07):
He's already actually had a little bit of success. He's
going to improve.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
Talk to him about the challenges instead of just look
smiling in his face and then talking to the media
behind his.
Speaker 3 (35:19):
Back about how you about the axiom? Why don't you
be a man and talk to him about Darvin, we
need you. This is what we were disable.
Speaker 5 (35:26):
Here are areas that we need to improve in. Okay,
we need you to do better.
Speaker 4 (35:32):
Uh, because obviously they were doing something all right when
they won the end season and when they finished eleven
and three, Chris going into the playoffs. So it ain't
like I'm with you. None of the other guys you're
talking about. Are you positive they're going to be better
than Darbenham?
Speaker 3 (35:49):
Not not at all.
Speaker 1 (35:50):
I mean you just making change or change and Rob,
Good organizations don't get a new coach every two years. No,
let's Denver, Mike Malone's in there several years now. Now
you got Chris Finch in Minnesota. I bet you he's
not going anywhere for a long time.
Speaker 2 (36:07):
No.
Speaker 1 (36:07):
When Utah had Jerry Sloan, Robb never won a champion,
kept Jerry Stone.
Speaker 5 (36:11):
Jerry Sloan was coached for about twenty five years at least.
Speaker 3 (36:15):
And they won a lot.
Speaker 1 (36:16):
You know, you don't just make change for Eric Sposter
is another one, Rob, When Lebron and d Wade that
first year together, they wanted him out.
Speaker 5 (36:30):
It.
Speaker 1 (36:31):
Yep, this is what I say to the Lakers, Rob,
because pat Riley empowered Sposter. When they thought, oh he
got too much swag for a dude who ain't done nothing.
Pat Riley said look, this is the coach period, and
if you're gonna win, it's gonna be with him. And
they went out there and they played for him. I
get it that the Lakers don't have anybody with the
(36:52):
clout of Riley Robbers, But if Jenny Bust or Rob Pulling,
if they said, look, we're not this is our coach.
Speaker 3 (37:02):
We're not changing. We're not gonna.
Speaker 1 (37:04):
Pay Darvin Ham for the next few years and then
pay somebody else.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
And he didn't do a terrible jock.
Speaker 1 (37:09):
This is your coach now, Like you said, rob if
you want to test me, that's a test for Lebron.
Speaker 3 (37:16):
I don't know that Lebron wants him out or not.
Speaker 4 (37:18):
No, but that, but that you're saying, well, if you don't,
if you don't want to be, he's our coach, so right,
so you have a right you could come back or
opt out.
Speaker 5 (37:27):
This is what we're doing here.
Speaker 4 (37:28):
We're not gonna change coaches again, And and hang a
banner and all this other stuff and then act like
none of it mattered.
Speaker 5 (37:36):
Which one is it? Which one is it?
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