October 28, 2025 • 42 mins
The NBA’s latest gambling scandal has the league on notice 😳
Matt Barnes sits down with Keyon Dooling, former player, coach, and someone who’s been through his own battle with controversy, to unpack the shocking allegations surrounding Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier, and the crime family connections rocking the basketball world.
Plus, the guys sound off on the biggest headlines from Week 1: Wemby’s rise, Embiid’s frustration, Jaylen Brown’s new look, and more from around the league.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
One of the biggest scandals in NBA history has hit
defens have un covered in legal gambling operation. First it
was John Tay Porter, then Terry Rozier, now Damon Jones
and Chauncey Billups insider information rigging poker games and even
ties to organized crime. This is one of the biggest scandals,
(00:22):
in my opinion, that the NBA has ever faced. And
obviously keep in mind with the latest in Rosier, Damon Jones,
and Chauncey Billup, these are all allegations. No one has
been charged yet, but we're going to try to make
a little bit of sense of all this of what
I've kind of been picking up and you know chance
as a former teammate, great dude, kind of knew Damon
(00:43):
Jones and then don't really know Terry Rozier. But obviously
there is a lot going on, and let's let's let's
walk down this timeline. Johntay Porter was first hit on
the Raptors, caught in banned from the NBA. He's still
waiting a waiting sentencing which will take place in December.
He's facing up to forty or fifty months in prison.
(01:05):
Terry Rozier, who was once cleared of wrongdoing by the NBA.
But let's keep in mind the NBA doesn't have the
reach and the resources that the FBI does. Rosier was
picked up allegedly providing inside information leading to Betts. He
was like and again he was cleared earlier by the NBA,
(01:26):
but the FED said, nah, not yet. We got some
more questions. And then obviously my brother, former teammate Portland
Trailblazers head coach Chelncey Billips arrested alleged participation in rigging
poker games tied to organized crime.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
There's a lot of.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
Unpack I mean, they're saying, I think you guys have
all seen this loaded decks, glass glasses, they could basically
have X ray vision. I even didn't even have, like
I think Austin Hours had glasses that X ray vision.
I didn't know that shit was real, but I guess
it is real. And then they're also saying that unfortunate
Billups may be involved in extending information about players games players. Yeah,
(02:17):
you know through the Chauncey's legal counsel obviously denied all
all claims and they put out this statement. You can
take a look. Damon Jones, former player assistant coach charged
with selling non public NBA information to betters, allegedly tipped
off people about a star in LA sitting out against
(02:39):
the Bucks. So a lot to unpack, a lot to
talk about. Obviously, the FBI jumped at this opportunity. Congress
of requested a briefing with Adam Silver concerning gambling before
this weekend, before October thirty one, which is Halloween. You know,
to me, living in this crazy world we're in right
(03:04):
now and just looking at this administration, it doesn't surprise
me how hard the FBI is going on this to,
you know, bring down some athletes that have made some
bad decisions, whether it be gambling or providing information. But
won't work this hard to release the Epstein files. But hey,
(03:25):
that's neither here nor there. I guess how much blame
should the NBA and its commissioner take with this? And
it's an interesting conversation. I mean, gambling has always been
an issue in professional sports, obviously, understanding how rapid gambling
has ran, and you hear the rumors back in the
(03:47):
day about MJ and you know now that these professional
leagues have opened the doors to be partnering with these
betting sites. I mean, I think we're obviously know what
we're kind of headed for, so it's going to be
interesting moving forward. The NBA put out a statement basically
saying they're going to tighten up their belts, but I mean,
how much is really in their control? And we have
(04:07):
some ideas we'll talk about a little bit that can
possibly help bridge these gaps. But another thing that I
wanted to touch on was just the NC double A
and always been horrible at reading the room, and just
not to think that you guys are in charge of
so many kids as unbelievable. In the midst of all
this NBA stuff going on, they announced that they're now
(04:28):
allowing their players to bet, and their coaches to bet,
and staff to bet and gamble on professional sports, which
came out I think the day after or the day
of all this NBA madness. So again, NC double as
blind lean the blind over there. I don't know what
the fuck they're thinking. How can gambling be a part
(04:51):
of our game without losing the integrity of the game,
without players jeopardizing their careers, about people going crazy, without
people getting arrested. Obviously, the media is a big part
and sponsored a lot of obviously. I mean we're sponsored
by DraftKings. A lot of your favorite shows these days
(05:12):
are sponsored by these uh betting companies and betting sites.
So it's just like, how can you how can we
clean this up? Because I think it's gonna take all
of us to do it. Possibly, here are some ideas
that the team and I came up with that possibly
helped bridge the gap. We could change prop bets limited
to three or four stars on the team. You know, obviously,
(05:35):
guys who have made a lot of money and have
a reputation to uphold and enfranchises to carry, and you
know they're not going to be with you know, risking
their livelihood and their legacy on gambling. You look at
some of the names involved in this. You look at
a Jontay Porter, who is you know, was trying to
make his way. It was a two way guy and
and and thought he found a quick lick. So to me,
(05:57):
you shouldn't even be able to bet on guys like that.
We're moving the unders. Unders are something that can be
affected by referees by players, So if you're able to
possibly remove the unders, that could help. And then I
also just think there's so much little shit they.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Allow people to bet on.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
I mean there was people were making fun of at
some point you could pick what color gatorade it is.
You know, you think of the movie Kevin Garnett was
in Uncut Gems where they bet on who's going to
win the jump ball. I mean, there's so many little
things you can bet on. I think professional sports where
they're gonna have to tighten their belt up on what
is allowed to be bet on and what's not because
(06:39):
not to their what am I trying to say, not
to their point. But also there's only so much that
the NBA can control, you know, I mean you can't
control everything. You know, you've opened the doors to gambling
to legalize it, but there's only so much they can control.
So obviously some things have to be done. Gambling is
something that people love, you know, some people enjoyed as
(07:01):
a sport. You know, as a former athlete. I was
never a gambler, but I'm thinking for former athletes, I mean,
it's still that competitive edge. You know, we don't get
to get out there and run up and down the
court at the football field of the baseball diamond anymore,
so some guys still get that competitive juices flowing competition
from betting, So how do we make it still fun
(07:21):
but make it more responsible and make sure that athletes
at least aren't getting caught in the matrix and risking everything.
I feel like gambling.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
Is here to stay.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
It's always been here, It's always going to be here.
So I think it's our jobs to again find a
way to bridge this gap with still making it fun
for the fans and even fun for athletes if they
decide to bet, but you know, having the integrity and
responsibility and understanding of what we are doing while we're
(07:55):
doing this. Again, everyone I mentioned today is alleged. No
one has been proven guilty of anything. Everyone has their
due process, so I'm just hoping for the best. You know, again,
this is you know, this is something that's close to
me with a few of these guys, and you know,
it's something I didn't think I would hear. But you know,
they're say there's there's more names coming and in more trouble,
(08:17):
and you see guys in different sports being wrangled in
it too. So I think these professional leagues have their
hands full trying to figure out how to make this
lucrative for the game, fun for the fans and safe
for the players. So, man, this is gonna be an
ongoing story.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
And with more.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
I want to welcome to the show, our resident expert
on some of this. Welcome to the show, my brother
ke On Doling.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Ke On. What's up, bro Man, Good to see you, Bro,
Good to be seeing. Good to be seeing.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Great to see you as we're key on to me
to know we're coming up on a year since you know,
you've kind of reacclimated and you know everything in society.
You know that all the media buzz right now is
what is going on in the NBA with you know,
a handful of our former colleagues and teammates. When you
(09:08):
initially heard about the Chancey and Damon Jones situation, obviously
gilbert'spent thrown in there, We've had other players linked to it.
What was your initial thought?
Speaker 3 (09:20):
So the initial thought for me and Matt thanks again
for having me, man, I miss you boy.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Your hadline is still looking great, man, ain't it? Man?
I'm forty five and this shit is up front.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
Yeah, yeah, I'm jealous, low key, But my initial thought
was it was a trigger for me, right because it
took me and my family back to the time where
we got indicted in the FEDS came to my house
in Utah when I was coaching, right, so it really
hit home for me. And then the love and the
care and the respect that I have for Chancey and
(09:52):
those guys, in particular Chauncey. I got a lot of
love and respect for that man as a human being.
I know it's family, I know how much he cares
about them, and I know he's excelled at every intersection
at life. And yeah, man, it was a real trigger
for me. And I'm just thinking about his family during
this moment because I know how my family felt experiencing
(10:16):
that simultaneously.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
And then I know the isolation that comes along.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
With that because a lot of your homeboys and things
like that, when they thank you Fried or you're going
through something like this, they might love you more from
a distance, so it gets really quiet. So I'm just
thinking about all those different elements that he's probably experiencing
in the moment.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
Walk us through, because i know we touched on this
initially when we sat down with you almost a year ago.
Walk us through the morning you were arrested, the time,
how it took place, and then once you were in
custody and kind of the behind the scenes stuff that
none of us really think about or really even know about.
Speaker 3 (10:56):
No, that's great, man, I appreciate you for asking that question.
I'm gonna put myself on out four seconds because I
got like ten miss calls at about five forty now
I'm about five fifteen am in the morning and from
an unknown number. So before I answered the phone, I
went and looked out the window.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
While I was in the mountains of Utah.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
I went and looked out the window, and I saw
that the FEDS were out there. And so what I
did is I went back to my phone and told
them I was coming down. But before I did that,
I tapped my wife and said, hey, I'm about to
go to jail. The Feds are out there. So the fear,
you know what I mean, The guilt, you know what
I mean, all those different elements I was feeling and
(11:40):
experience in that moment, and so it.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
Was crazy coming.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
The first thing that they do is they put you
in cloths. It wasn't out of the blue. It was
it wasn't out of the blue. And the reason why
I say that because I got a superseding indictment, meaning
you know what I mean. Our guys went down I
believe in October, and they came to get me in April.
So before they came and got me, obviously, there's conversations
(12:06):
that happened along the way.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
There's cooperation that happens along the way.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
So before they come and get you, to go for
the low hanging fruit a little bit to make sure
that you know they have a full case when they
do a superseding indictment. So for years for me, because
I played around in the dark, like if I heard
a helicopter or if I like heard sirens or things
(12:31):
like that, you're like, okay, it's this your day, though
you're not doing that in those moments, right, you know
what I mean? Like what's done in the dark comes
to the light, and it's a really stressful time. Even
before that kind of situation happens, you know, if you
see other people go.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Down in something similar.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
So it was definitely, you know, a thing that I
wouldn't say was out of the blue.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
I didn't know what was coming.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
But because of one of my one of the people
who cooperated against me, and I hope I'm not telling
too much, but they called me a few days before
I got indicted, and they hadn't called me, you know,
for quite some time to that point, so I was like, oh, okay, he's.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
Already gone down. They might be on my trail, you know.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
So the fear that's associated in the silence that you
have is a real thing, Champ, It's a real thing.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
But how long was the process you were arrested, you
were taken into custody? How long was that? Like, walk
us through your day? Yeah, next few days.
Speaker 3 (13:34):
So the first thing they do is when they arrest you,
they put the cuffs on you. It was early in
the morning, so they allowed me to go back upstairs
and put on clothes, and from that process they take
you to a warehouse.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
Now that's where the rubber meeds to.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
Roll at because like, in that moment, you have a
decision to make a choice to make whether you cooperate
in that moment and have a conversation with them or
you just say, hey, you know what I wanted, tourney
and let's play the long game.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
So for me, that was a very you know, long morning.
Speaker 3 (14:08):
I spent about eight hours, you know what I'm saying
in a cell where there was no water, no food
or anything like that you're just looking at the wall.
Then I went before the judge and then I was
able to bail myself out in that process. And then
once you bail yourself out, now you have to deal
with the reality of how your family's feeling. You have
to deal with the team and the organization or the
(14:30):
institution that you're working from for in those moments, and
those are real rough conversations. And then it gets really quiet,
and then you have to deal with the shortcomings and
the mistake, the choices and the decisions that you made
and the consequences that come along with it. And that's
a really hard time. And that's where people, you know,
(14:52):
can spiral out of control. So it gets really quiet,
it gets really silent.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
So what's I mean again, we know your situation in
your opinion, what do you feel like the next steps
are moving forward with Chauncey, Because it looks like he
probably went through some of the similar stuff you went through.
He saw the judge, he was arrested, then he saw
the judge that day. What is kind of his next
few weeks to a month look like.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
So the first thing I think he's going to have
to do is he's going to have to make sure
he lawyers up gets the right information. He's going to
have to make some decisions about how he wants to
approach this, because when you're facing you know a lot
of time, you have to like calculate how you want
to navigate it. So for me, I was facing two
charges initially wire fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
(15:37):
And I think both of the wire fraud held up
to twenty years, right, And I had never had any
experience with being arrested. It was my first time in
handcuffs all that stuff. But I also had like morals,
value standards and things like that, right, So for me,
you know, me like telling on people or incriminating people
and things like that, that wasn't an option for me.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
So he's going to have to figure out out if.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
You're gonna, you know, try and make a better deal
for yourself, right, especially because like the charges you know
a lot of times are so trumped up that they
throw things on you that you're not responsible for, but
because you're included in it, you're going to be held
accountable for. So you have to make a decision in
those moments, do I, you know, cooperate or do I
(16:24):
accept responsibility.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
You know, you have to calculate all those different things.
Speaker 3 (16:28):
So there's a million thoughts that's kind of going through
your head at the moment. And then you got to
deal with the organization and the NBA and the institution
and the brotherhood and the letdown as well and how
it makes your family feel. So it's a lot of
different emotions that you're feeling in this moment, and it's
difficult to come to those conclusions instantly. You have to
like take a step back and you have to reflect,
(16:51):
you have to humble yourself. But then at some point
you get this feeling that you have to activat and
you have to fight for yourself, stand up, and you
have to figure out like the tactics you're going to
use in this fight.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
So you did thirty months, correct.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
I got sentenced to thirty months.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
I did ten months in eight days in I did
eight seven months in a halfway house, and then I
did a month on home confinement because like I was
a first time offender number one, and when you're a
first time offender you get certain benefits. I accept the
responsibility for my role in the actions that I did,
So you get some points minimized, but also my charges
(17:29):
got elevated because I was considered a manager supervisor in
that situation, though in my opinion I wasn't.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
But I digress on that point. But at the end
of the day, you have to.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Figure out the best way for you to navigate this
for yourself and your family. I just know for me,
putting anybody else's family in this situation wouldn't have done
me good.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
When you're talking.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
About, like the situation that our guys are in, and
you're dealing with, you know, some underworld boss type shit,
you know what I mean, that's a scarier thing for
your family. So yeah, it's a lot of thoughts that's
probably going through the homies minds right now for sure.
Speaker 1 (18:13):
I also want to reiterate this is all alleged. No
actual charges have been brought forth yet, so we want
to keep that clear. And the reason why I say that,
and because it's kind of bothered me how you know,
obviously we're in the meetia now. Some of our colleagues
have jumped out there and you know, whether they insinuated
with the situation with Rachel Nichols where she insinuated, you know,
(18:34):
or pushed a question was Gilbert connected to this and
then later erased that tweet, which I didn't agree with
when I initially saw, because again this is these are
people's lives, you know what I mean? But I will
say is Gilbert and his little trolling ass invited. I
felt like this type and I've kind of been talking
to you, and that's the one thing I was like, Bro,
you got to stop the bullshit because you're opening the
(18:55):
door to people to make these type of accusations on you.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
Because he's been super he and I've actually been a
lot the last few days. Sure the process, he's been
schooling me on all this shit, I'm just like, whoa.
So he's kind of been giving me game. And then
also pablotore the way he just kind of threw Kevin
Garnett out there initially, and then Kevin's camp came back
to him and told them, hey, you know, Kevin thought
it was something else. Once he found out what it was,
(19:18):
he left. So his initial statement got over five million views,
and his you know, his his response to something on there,
you know, got a couple hundred thousand, you know, So
to me to go out there and throw someone like
Kevin Garnett's name out there without actually having the facts,
And to me, it comes back to trying to be
first and not right. I think we're in an area
(19:39):
where people want the clickbaits and the views and the
virality of the situation, but you're really messing with people's
livelihoods and their families and opportunities that have going on.
So to me, it's very irresponsible for anybody in the
media to throw these accusations out there, although it's the
world we live in until we actually know. So that's
why we again wanted to re uh, you know, reiterate
(20:01):
that nothing has no one has been charged. Everything is
alleged right now, and they knew they need their their process.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Katie.
Speaker 1 (20:09):
Obviously you've been a crazy You've had a crazy journey
and and thank you for sharing that with us. And
I'm glad that you know, we're talking about on cameras
coming up on a year since you've been back and
trying to kind of reacclimate yourself into society as several
different pillars. You are, a father, a leader of your family,
a businessman, h a former player. What has that journey
(20:29):
been like because we're literally coming up on a year
for you, Matt.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
You know what, it takes me back to like our
high school days, because you and I both were like
overlooked a lot of times right in our journey in
our basketball careers, even as pros, we were under overlooked
and with the value that we brought to the team, right,
and so you have to like start from rock bottom.
So I'm used to it. I'm built for this year.
I'm built to, you know, be resilient. I'm built on accountability.
(20:59):
And the first up with a on ability is you
have to recognize when you make a mistake. And our
Lord knows I fell short. I fell short in my
family life, my family life, my personal life, even my
professional life with some of the decisions that I made.
But one thing I know about me, man, is that
like I have this unique ability to lock in and
reinvent myself. They say you have to reinvent yourself at
(21:20):
least five times in your adulthood.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
And so I'm on like phase four at this point.
So I'm thankful for it. You know, I'm better for it.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Things are a lot better on my end and for
my family than there were when I saw you guys
in December.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
It was in December.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
You look like Chris Tucker on Money Talks in that
Snoop Dogg Wife Beater, all just disheveled, like it was like.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Okay, okay, and we was in Miami.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
So you look like Philip Michael Thompson like he was
on the.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
Miami Vice My Advice Face.
Speaker 3 (21:57):
I don't know who you look like, but but you
know you and stat Jack treated me in that moment
because y'all knew I was y'all knew I was just
kind of coming out of the halfway house and things
like that and the path that I kind of that
I'm on right now with you know, some of the
shows in the podcast and the things that I'm doing,
and some of the consulting opportunities and the things that
(22:18):
I'm doing right now. Had you guys not allowed me
to come on the platform and show so much love
and care and do that interview in a way that
was appropriate that could be like digested by the people,
I wouldn't be here right now. So I thank you guys,
all the Smoke Productions. Matthew Barnes all y'all boys, man,
I really appreciate you guys for giving me that opportunity
(22:40):
and I'm you guys are trailblazed a place that a
lot of us are trying to get to.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
And so man, I just tip my hat to you guys. Man,
keep doing it, keep going.
Speaker 1 (22:48):
Come on, man, you know I love you, your your
family and to all again. To be able to see
you laying back on your feet like I know you
would and be able to you know, make the best
out of it.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
So uh shit. Moving on.
Speaker 1 (23:01):
Week one of the NBA season has just passed and
it's been explosive. The NBA is in great hands right now.
What stood out the most for Week one for you?
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Wow?
Speaker 3 (23:14):
It's two things that really stood out to me. I
think Wemby really stands out to me.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
The fact that there is number on keep your thought.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
I want to throw out numbers before you praise him.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
What is he about? I think it's thirty three, thirteen
and six blocks.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
Thirty three points, thirteen rebounds and six blocks a game.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
And that with the compudhists and the monks and the
right the changing shots he was with Kg's with Jamal
this summer. I mean he is scary, scary, scary, but
go ahead, and before.
Speaker 3 (23:46):
He really stands out to me along with some of
the other superstars because we've had multiple fifty point games.
I mean sometimes we get desensitized to like SGA and
things like that because he's already dropped fifty. You know,
Austin Reeves had fifty one I think last night.
Speaker 2 (24:02):
So those guys like, right, you expect that.
Speaker 3 (24:05):
But Wemby in his body and his movements, I've never
seen a center that plays like a shooting guard but
then protects the rim like minute bowl or some shit like.
Speaker 2 (24:16):
It's even more.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
I mean, it's what is the I want to say
the league. Mark Eaton holds the record and that to me,
I mean obviously to be able to everything you just said,
to be able to protect the protect the paint the
way he does, change shots, block shots, get the rebound,
and go lead the drop like lead the fast break,
get all the way downhill if he wants, or he'll
give you a has he pull up three at seven
(24:38):
foot eleventeen, and you know what I mean. I just
I don't think we've we've never seen this. We may
never see anything like this.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Agaude.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
The dude came up the floor and he understood that
it was a two for one situation.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
He's the center from deep and he pulled that from them.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
When the lefty has he he had into it.
Speaker 2 (24:57):
It's crazy. It's awesome to see you his growth, his development.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
But also what I like about him is that he
took an approach that was so humble, Like he went
and got.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
Centered by going to see the monks. Right. You saw
him with the ball head.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
He fed his childhood love for the community by going
out and playing soccer. Then he went it saw the
Jedi warrior. KG took for dog and mentality. He got
himself healthy. Remember the summer before last he had the
Olympics right, and they were on their way in that
situation as well. So we are witnessing history right now.
(25:34):
If he can stay healthy, he's going to go down
as one of the greatest players of all time.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
But we're also seeing something that I think I don't
and we would have to go back who has dominated
both sides of the floor the way he has. Obviously
we've seen Michael Jordan win Defensive Player of the Year
and be able to score his thirty points, But I
think what Wemby's doing is even different than that, you
know what I mean, being able to lock up, being
(26:00):
able to protect the basket and then you know, on
the offensive side. I mean, you know, obviously only one game,
but Anthony Davis is one of the best defenders in
the game, and Anthony Davis could not do anything with him,
So what makes you think anyone else in.
Speaker 2 (26:15):
The league can.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
So I'm definitely excited about what he's been able to do.
That's a young, very talented team. And keep in mind,
Dearon Fox hasn't even played yet, you know what I mean,
And you got these these these young Harper out there
and Castle and San Antonio has rebuilt the right way
and with the franchise player leading the leading the helm.
(26:40):
So it's going to be very interesting to see what
their journey is. Is there any nicknames that come to
mind when you think about Wimby?
Speaker 3 (26:47):
I mean, if I was thinking about it in a
sense where history would take place, I would call him
the Ananaki, the Nephlum, you know what I mean, deliath Junger,
like something that's like affiliated with being a giant. I
don't know what nickname we're gonna call him, but like,
I've never seen anything like it, and I'm seeing his siblings, like,
(27:08):
you know, on the same track as him.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
It's crazy, crazy, crazy crazy.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
The Internet's saying Wemby and Cornett are coined French vanilla.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
French vanilla, for sure.
Speaker 3 (27:21):
I ain't mad at that, But that's running Cornet with
big fellow, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
He's not necessarily there yet, we got to find something
that is unique to him.
Speaker 1 (27:32):
Also, something that I found kind of interesting and not
necessarily took the league by storm. But a few teams
have tried, is trying to play without a true point guard. Obviously,
the Rockets coming to mind, the Sons come to mind,
the MAVs come to mind, and the teams come to mind.
And as of Monday, those teams combined record are four
and seven. You look at Houston, what they were what six?
(27:54):
Eight and above all the way up to seven feet
with the starting lineup, the Rockets, the MAVs playing and
all the I love Cooper Flagg, it's a lot to
ask him to play point guard at this point, not
that he doesn't have the talent, but it's a lot
to ask him. Obviously, the te Wolves, with Mike Conley
being a little older and them not necessarily trusting the
(28:15):
young boy they got what's his.
Speaker 2 (28:16):
Name, Dylan Ham. Yeah, Dillingham Dillingham.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Yeah, and then obviously the Sons have been struggling period
just to kind of find some cohesiveness. But Dylan Brooks
thinks he's Kevin Durant all of a sudden leading the
team in shots and taking more shots than Devin Booker,
which is fucking insane. But what are your thoughts about
teams trying to play without a traditional point guard.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
It's a fine line, man, It's a fine line because
if you look at like Detroit and they put the
ball in Kate Cunningham's hand early, Kate has to pace
the rhythm to cadence. Because he's a taller guy. He's
not what I consider a striker. He's more of an
initiated He's got a good ground game. He's cut from
like that Jalen Rolls two point zero type build. So
(29:03):
he has more of a better opportunity to become a
point guard than a Cooper Cooper. To me, his superpower
is his energy, his motor getting out in transition, being
a live body. I look at him more of it
as like a Sean Marion like type as far as
his energy. So it's two things. I think one they'll
get Kyrie back at some point. Second part is they
(29:25):
do have d Russ Russell over there as well, so
if they want to implement him off the ball, they
could potentially do that. But also when you're talking about
like developing these young guys, it's a lot of ways
that you can develop them. Jason Kidd is one of
the best basketball He's a beautiful mind as far as
basketball knowledge. So I think Cooper will benefit from having
(29:46):
a run Rock at the one right, he'll be able
to benefit it because it'll help him.
Speaker 2 (29:50):
In situations and things like that.
Speaker 3 (29:52):
But when Kyrie comes back and he can get out
and he can be athletic and things like that, and
you can put him in positions to be successful, I
think that'll be benefit.
Speaker 1 (30:00):
Agreed Rockets who have championship aspirations year picking up Kevin
Durant Los van Fleet with to an ACL injury, they
have assets to make a move at some point, whenever
that may be. But I definitely think there's a glaring
hole there. As good as Sangoon is, as good as
Kevin Durant, as these guys are being picked up nearly
(30:21):
full court and having to back the basket from half court,
not really in their keel spots and not being effective.
Granted they're both still scoring very well, but I remember
the first game it gets okay, see, well, there's plenty
of times where Katie didn't really get the ball in
his spots.
Speaker 2 (30:34):
He was guided out of his spots.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
And if you're going to slow someone down, especially someone's
a little older, it's getting them off their spots. So
they need someone to initiate and set the table for
these guys. And I think we're taking that point guard
position lightly thinking that hey, we don't need one. We
can just be long out here and everyone plays basketball.
Now there's a reason why there's still Chris Paul's here
in year twenty, and guys that run teams, I mean,
(30:57):
some of the targets that are out there with expiring
deals or or you know, friendly situations are calling. Sexton
has an inspiring deal, Kobe White has an inspiring deal.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
CJ.
Speaker 1 (31:09):
McCullum has an inspiring deal, Jordan Poole interesting situation, DeSante
Murray's coming back off injury, Anthony Simmons, Tyas Jones, and
then one Drew Holliday who's later in his career. He's
out in Portland right now. We kind of know what's
going on with Portland. Although he's owed some money, there
are teams that can make space for him. So I
(31:30):
don't know if he'll finish his season in Portland, but
there's some guys out there, anybody that you think is
a good fit. Also keep in mind free agents like
Ben Simmons and John Wall are also sitting at home
and ready to jump at the opportunity. Is there anyone
that you think fits that Houston role?
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (31:51):
I do, And it's a wild card because he hasn't
had an opportunity to play, so you haven't seen him
play with.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
The Spurs yet.
Speaker 3 (31:58):
But Fox, right, Fox, it is from Houston, if I'm
not mistaken. I know he's a Texas boy. And you
got a young boy who you drafted really really high
in the draft that has some potential that you got
to let him go through his growing pains if you
want to be a contender, because when Fox comes back,
his minutes might be minimized a little bit. So I
would say, like deeron Fox, it's a good opportunity. With
(32:22):
what Harper has been able to show this far and
the upside that he has, he might be a good candidate.
Speaker 2 (32:29):
You know, to fit that Houston mole.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
The castle as well. I mean, they got two young
mosters over there. And although Deeron Fox is one of
the best point guards in the NBA and he just
got a five year extension too, right, Nate, Yeah, I
mean the play of these young kids are thinking about,
you know, making not wouldn't say making them expendable, but
it makes you say, hmm. Obviously, couldn't trade Fox until February,
(32:53):
close to the deadline because of the extension, but it does,
you know, get get the rumor meals started to turn.
Top three players in the week one Wimby again sixteen
thirteen and six blocks his team is three and oh
Sga is averaging forty points six and five as his
team is three and oh and Giannis thirty six, sixteen
(33:19):
and seven. I want to say, Steph Curry's up there right.
Steph is averaging nearly thirty three a game at thirty
seven years old, which is absolutely incredible. Anyone else come
to mind that we haven't really spoke on. That's really
kind of out there getting loose up to this point.
Speaker 3 (33:35):
I mean, Luca, you know, before he went down last
game and missed last game, like Luca's been putting up
incredible numbers.
Speaker 2 (33:42):
Austin Reeves dropped fifty last night.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
Aaron Gordon has dropped fifty this season as well with
the three sixty lob, which I have really never seen
outside of the Rutger or some shit like that.
Speaker 2 (33:54):
But it's early in the season.
Speaker 3 (33:56):
Man, Guys are healthy, you know, to get the game
is free flowing and things like that, So it's exciting
to see. Man, it's a lot of talent in our league.
I think the rules are conducive for freedom of movement
and things like that, so I'm excited to see who
can do it.
Speaker 2 (34:10):
It's not if you can.
Speaker 3 (34:11):
Do it for a week, right because all Star time,
you know, like those different intersections within the season, that's
where you know what I mean, It's not just about
your talent. It's about your sticktuitiveness, it's about your mindset,
it's about like your habits all.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
Those other things.
Speaker 3 (34:33):
So yeah, everybody shot out of a cannon right now,
But I want to see how it looks like December
after the tournaments and all that stuff happens.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Absolutely, but also too, I mean, outside of these great numbers,
how do you affect winning? Because at the end of
the day. That's what this game is about. You know,
when you look at a guy like LaMelo Ball, who
has not love him about being one of the most
talented guys in the league. He's at twenty eight, ten
and eight, you know, and his team is two and one.
He stay consistent as he turned the page. I want
to say, this is your sick for him or seven,
So he's been in the for a minute. Then Brunson
(35:03):
at thirty points, six and four and his team is
two and one. So I mean, to your point, it's
week one. We're not crowning anybody the greatest outside of
possibly Winby. There's still a whole season to be played.
But it's been a lot of exciting overtime, double overtime,
big shots, big plays.
Speaker 2 (35:20):
Big dunks.
Speaker 1 (35:21):
I'm just Katie, I'm happy the season is back.
Speaker 2 (35:23):
Bro I am too. I miss I miss hoops, love,
I love I love Matt Real quick, can I make
a point real quick? Is that okay? Please? Oh?
Speaker 3 (35:33):
The things you mentioned Brunson and Ball, right, Nomelo. I
think one of the things they could do instantly is
become more engaged defensively, to be more complete. We don't
complain about them on the offensive end, if they really
want to impact winning, I want to see you, you know,
getting over screens, if you you know, get a switch.
(35:55):
I want to see you take the challenge, accept the challenge,
and things like that. Sometimes you don't have to look outwards.
Sometimes you have to challenge your superstars to be better.
Speaker 2 (36:03):
And I think they're capable of doing that.
Speaker 3 (36:05):
So I don't care if they got to bring pop
a ball in there to get on Mellow's ass, I
don't care if you know what I mean, they got
to bring the og you know, back to talk to
his boy Bronson up in New York. But like defensively,
I feel like they can give more effort and that
can I think that can impact their team's winning.
Speaker 1 (36:22):
And I think when you say this, I mean I
don't want fans to get confused, like we're not looking
for first team All NBA defense, just not to be
a liability, you know, not to be a whole. And
I think that's something early on that Steph was kind
of targeted with that he was a liability, and he
worked his ass off to be a great team defender
and not a not a huge liability on the defensive
because you're doing so much offensively, you know what I mean.
(36:43):
It's very few people can be all NBA on both
sides of the ball. You know, those are the great ones.
But there are guys that are very talentedlessly putting up
tremendous numbers that could definitely give more effort to your
point on the defensive end, which would automatically make their
team better. Also, some rookies, they're out here showing their asses.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
VJ.
Speaker 1 (37:04):
Edgecomb I mean, insane debut, I think a franchise record
for rookies for thirty four points, had the third most
points in the regular season debut behind Chamberlain's forty three.
And who is that Frank Selvy in thirty five in
nineteen fifty four. So he came out and looked great.
Dylan Harper, I mean, we've been big fans of his game,
(37:27):
and obviously his pops had a lot of game. He's
been in double figures all three games for the Spurs.
Cooper Flagg has been doing this Cooper flag stuff. Cedric
Coward for the Grizzlies, the eleventh overall pick has been
nineteen points seventy percent from the three point line. And
he's a former JUCO guy. Yeah, who's kind of found
(37:49):
his spot. And then the six pick, Trey Johnson out
of Texas is averaging seventeen. And you know there's the
Conka Nipple and Charlotte he had a.
Speaker 2 (37:59):
Twenty twenty point.
Speaker 1 (38:00):
He's averaged twenty point six and two as of Sunday night,
averaging about fifth excuse me, had twenty six and two
Sunday Night average about fifteen games, you know, over fifty
percent from the three. And then Cooper Flagg has struggled
a little bit, but you see his flashes. He had
twenty two, four and four the other night. So you know,
week one, this is a small taste of what you
(38:22):
know is to come. Ye and it's a very long season.
But again, I think the league is off to a
or excuse me, this season is off to a great start,
and I'm just really excited it's back.
Speaker 2 (38:34):
I'm excited about it. Matt.
Speaker 3 (38:36):
A guy who you didn't mention, who I like as
a rookie is a guy down with the Pelicans, Jeremiah Fears.
I believe his name is when to Ou, when to
Oklahoma getting down here. I saw him play against John
Miranda other night. He looks like he doesn't care about anything.
Speaker 2 (38:51):
He ain't scared of nobody. Like these young boys are ready.
Speaker 3 (38:55):
It's like you know, they are bringing two K to
reality for real.
Speaker 2 (39:01):
Speaking of John Moran, do you see John Morant being moved?
Speaker 3 (39:05):
I hope so at some point, you know, you want
to get a guy like that into a bigger market.
He's been with the Grizzlies his whole career, and so
you want to pair him with a program and some
players that can while he's in his prime, that can
help develop him, can help protect him where he doesn't
just feel like it's all on him. I think a
(39:26):
change of scenery would be great for him personally, and
I would love to see him get with one of
the better programs where they can challenge him and hold
him more accountable so that he can reach his full potential,
because like he's still got it, he's still cold.
Speaker 1 (39:41):
Still got it, And I agree, I think a fresh start. Unfortunately,
sorry Memphis Grizzlies fans, I think a fresh start would
do his career. It would just be a new spark,
a new life, and I think it'll be good.
Speaker 2 (39:55):
Katie.
Speaker 1 (39:55):
Unfortunately, Javin Brown has struck again with his spray paint hairline.
It's been unbelievable. I remember, I remember, Yeah, you could
probably use you might need to hit him. He needs
the ship that sticks though, like his ship is rubbing
off on these jerseys. I remember while we played, Remember
when Booze and I Love you Booze, you did some
(40:16):
bullshit though. Remember Booze put the black the black shoe
cleaner or the black shoe dye on his head during
the game.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 3 (40:26):
It was an elevated version of Baby Beijing that he
just maybe didn't wash off. He just was like, you
know what, I'm good. I'm gonna just go with the
bowling ball effect.
Speaker 2 (40:36):
Nah, I think get what it was.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Remember I don't know if I don't know if your
dad had, but my dad used to have this white
shoe dye and black shoe died that the ogs would
put on there and it had like a sponge tip
and you would switze the bottle and it just dabbed them.
I think that's all he did do is shit. I
think that's what Booze did and it didn't work. And
then obviously Jaylen Brown, you know, playing great. There it is,
it's on the screen, shoe die playing great. But Aithan Brown,
(41:00):
I don't know, Jenny, you got to tighten your ship up,
bro and raise probably did a probably did a number
on your on your hairline. Jason Tatum is is the
hairline king. You might need to go ask you your
yellow brother. What he suggests for you to uh tighten
up with.
Speaker 2 (41:15):
All the time is undefeated.
Speaker 3 (41:17):
But you know, like we invest in our bodies and
you know what I mean, Like we got guys going
to get their teeth done and things like that. We
might have to call Turkey and yeah, get those hairlines restored.
Speaker 2 (41:30):
Would you lead the trip? Would you?
Speaker 1 (41:32):
Would you lead a trip of of current and former
players to go and restore their youth?
Speaker 2 (41:36):
I would.
Speaker 3 (41:37):
I would love to lead the trip, but Matt Defense
would have to give me my passport.
Speaker 2 (41:42):
I am still not allowed to leave the country at
this moment, but damn lead that.
Speaker 1 (41:49):
George, Oh god, I love it. Key y'all man always
great to catch up.
Speaker 2 (41:53):
God bless you in the family.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
Good to see you and we'll we'll definitely uh talk
to you soon. Fan questions this year on Unplugged, we
want to you guys to be able to connect with
us and our guests more than ever. We recently started
a hotline where fans can call in and ask questions.
It can possibly be featured on Unplugged. Make sure you
give us a call it two seventy nine C A
(42:16):
L l ATS. That's two seventy nine call ats and
let your voice be heard. That's a rap. You can
catch this on all the Smokes Productions YouTube in the
DraftKings Network.
Speaker 2 (42:27):
We'll see you guys next week.
One of the biggest scandals in NBA history has hit
defens have un covered in legal gambling operation. First it
was John Tay Porter, then Terry Rozier, now Damon Jones
and Chauncey Billups insider information rigging poker games and even
ties to organized crime. This is one of the biggest scandals,
(00:22):
in my opinion, that the NBA has ever faced. And
obviously keep in mind with the latest in Rosier, Damon Jones,
and Chauncey Billup, these are all allegations. No one has
been charged yet, but we're going to try to make
a little bit of sense of all this of what
I've kind of been picking up and you know chance
as a former teammate, great dude, kind of knew Damon
(00:43):
Jones and then don't really know Terry Rozier. But obviously
there is a lot going on, and let's let's let's
walk down this timeline. Johntay Porter was first hit on
the Raptors, caught in banned from the NBA. He's still
waiting a waiting sentencing which will take place in December.
He's facing up to forty or fifty months in prison.
(01:05):
Terry Rozier, who was once cleared of wrongdoing by the NBA.
But let's keep in mind the NBA doesn't have the
reach and the resources that the FBI does. Rosier was
picked up allegedly providing inside information leading to Betts. He
was like and again he was cleared earlier by the NBA,
(01:26):
but the FED said, nah, not yet. We got some
more questions. And then obviously my brother, former teammate Portland
Trailblazers head coach Chelncey Billips arrested alleged participation in rigging
poker games tied to organized crime.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
There's a lot of.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
Unpack I mean, they're saying, I think you guys have
all seen this loaded decks, glass glasses, they could basically
have X ray vision. I even didn't even have, like
I think Austin Hours had glasses that X ray vision.
I didn't know that shit was real, but I guess
it is real. And then they're also saying that unfortunate
Billups may be involved in extending information about players games players. Yeah,
(02:17):
you know through the Chauncey's legal counsel obviously denied all
all claims and they put out this statement. You can
take a look. Damon Jones, former player assistant coach charged
with selling non public NBA information to betters, allegedly tipped
off people about a star in LA sitting out against
(02:39):
the Bucks. So a lot to unpack, a lot to
talk about. Obviously, the FBI jumped at this opportunity. Congress
of requested a briefing with Adam Silver concerning gambling before
this weekend, before October thirty one, which is Halloween. You know,
to me, living in this crazy world we're in right
(03:04):
now and just looking at this administration, it doesn't surprise
me how hard the FBI is going on this to,
you know, bring down some athletes that have made some
bad decisions, whether it be gambling or providing information. But
won't work this hard to release the Epstein files. But hey,
(03:25):
that's neither here nor there. I guess how much blame
should the NBA and its commissioner take with this? And
it's an interesting conversation. I mean, gambling has always been
an issue in professional sports, obviously, understanding how rapid gambling
has ran, and you hear the rumors back in the
(03:47):
day about MJ and you know now that these professional
leagues have opened the doors to be partnering with these
betting sites. I mean, I think we're obviously know what
we're kind of headed for, so it's going to be
interesting moving forward. The NBA put out a statement basically
saying they're going to tighten up their belts, but I mean,
how much is really in their control? And we have
(04:07):
some ideas we'll talk about a little bit that can
possibly help bridge these gaps. But another thing that I
wanted to touch on was just the NC double A
and always been horrible at reading the room, and just
not to think that you guys are in charge of
so many kids as unbelievable. In the midst of all
this NBA stuff going on, they announced that they're now
(04:28):
allowing their players to bet, and their coaches to bet,
and staff to bet and gamble on professional sports, which
came out I think the day after or the day
of all this NBA madness. So again, NC double as
blind lean the blind over there. I don't know what
the fuck they're thinking. How can gambling be a part
(04:51):
of our game without losing the integrity of the game,
without players jeopardizing their careers, about people going crazy, without
people getting arrested. Obviously, the media is a big part
and sponsored a lot of obviously. I mean we're sponsored
by DraftKings. A lot of your favorite shows these days
(05:12):
are sponsored by these uh betting companies and betting sites.
So it's just like, how can you how can we
clean this up? Because I think it's gonna take all
of us to do it. Possibly, here are some ideas
that the team and I came up with that possibly
helped bridge the gap. We could change prop bets limited
to three or four stars on the team. You know, obviously,
(05:35):
guys who have made a lot of money and have
a reputation to uphold and enfranchises to carry, and you
know they're not going to be with you know, risking
their livelihood and their legacy on gambling. You look at
some of the names involved in this. You look at
a Jontay Porter, who is you know, was trying to
make his way. It was a two way guy and
and and thought he found a quick lick. So to me,
(05:57):
you shouldn't even be able to bet on guys like that.
We're moving the unders. Unders are something that can be
affected by referees by players, So if you're able to
possibly remove the unders, that could help. And then I
also just think there's so much little shit they.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Allow people to bet on.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
I mean there was people were making fun of at
some point you could pick what color gatorade it is.
You know, you think of the movie Kevin Garnett was
in Uncut Gems where they bet on who's going to
win the jump ball. I mean, there's so many little
things you can bet on. I think professional sports where
they're gonna have to tighten their belt up on what
is allowed to be bet on and what's not because
(06:39):
not to their what am I trying to say, not
to their point. But also there's only so much that
the NBA can control, you know, I mean you can't
control everything. You know, you've opened the doors to gambling
to legalize it, but there's only so much they can control.
So obviously some things have to be done. Gambling is
something that people love, you know, some people enjoyed as
(07:01):
a sport. You know, as a former athlete. I was
never a gambler, but I'm thinking for former athletes, I mean,
it's still that competitive edge. You know, we don't get
to get out there and run up and down the
court at the football field of the baseball diamond anymore,
so some guys still get that competitive juices flowing competition
from betting, So how do we make it still fun
(07:21):
but make it more responsible and make sure that athletes
at least aren't getting caught in the matrix and risking everything.
I feel like gambling.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
Is here to stay.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
It's always been here, It's always going to be here.
So I think it's our jobs to again find a
way to bridge this gap with still making it fun
for the fans and even fun for athletes if they
decide to bet, but you know, having the integrity and
responsibility and understanding of what we are doing while we're
(07:55):
doing this. Again, everyone I mentioned today is alleged. No
one has been proven guilty of anything. Everyone has their
due process, so I'm just hoping for the best. You know, again,
this is you know, this is something that's close to
me with a few of these guys, and you know,
it's something I didn't think I would hear. But you know,
they're say there's there's more names coming and in more trouble,
(08:17):
and you see guys in different sports being wrangled in
it too. So I think these professional leagues have their
hands full trying to figure out how to make this
lucrative for the game, fun for the fans and safe
for the players. So, man, this is gonna be an
ongoing story.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
And with more.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
I want to welcome to the show, our resident expert
on some of this. Welcome to the show, my brother
ke On Doling.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Ke On. What's up, bro Man, Good to see you, Bro,
Good to be seeing. Good to be seeing.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Great to see you as we're key on to me
to know we're coming up on a year since you know,
you've kind of reacclimated and you know everything in society.
You know that all the media buzz right now is
what is going on in the NBA with you know,
a handful of our former colleagues and teammates. When you
(09:08):
initially heard about the Chancey and Damon Jones situation, obviously
gilbert'spent thrown in there, We've had other players linked to it.
What was your initial thought?
Speaker 3 (09:20):
So the initial thought for me and Matt thanks again
for having me, man, I miss you boy.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Your hadline is still looking great, man, ain't it? Man?
I'm forty five and this shit is up front.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
Yeah, yeah, I'm jealous, low key, But my initial thought
was it was a trigger for me, right because it
took me and my family back to the time where
we got indicted in the FEDS came to my house
in Utah when I was coaching, right, so it really
hit home for me. And then the love and the
care and the respect that I have for Chancey and
(09:52):
those guys, in particular Chauncey. I got a lot of
love and respect for that man as a human being.
I know it's family, I know how much he cares
about them, and I know he's excelled at every intersection
at life. And yeah, man, it was a real trigger
for me. And I'm just thinking about his family during
this moment because I know how my family felt experiencing
(10:16):
that simultaneously.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
And then I know the isolation that comes along.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
With that because a lot of your homeboys and things
like that, when they thank you Fried or you're going
through something like this, they might love you more from
a distance, so it gets really quiet. So I'm just
thinking about all those different elements that he's probably experiencing
in the moment.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
Walk us through, because i know we touched on this
initially when we sat down with you almost a year ago.
Walk us through the morning you were arrested, the time,
how it took place, and then once you were in
custody and kind of the behind the scenes stuff that
none of us really think about or really even know about.
Speaker 3 (10:56):
No, that's great, man, I appreciate you for asking that question.
I'm gonna put myself on out four seconds because I
got like ten miss calls at about five forty now
I'm about five fifteen am in the morning and from
an unknown number. So before I answered the phone, I
went and looked out the window.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
While I was in the mountains of Utah.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
I went and looked out the window, and I saw
that the FEDS were out there. And so what I
did is I went back to my phone and told
them I was coming down. But before I did that,
I tapped my wife and said, hey, I'm about to
go to jail. The Feds are out there. So the fear,
you know what I mean, The guilt, you know what
I mean, all those different elements I was feeling and
(11:40):
experience in that moment, and so it.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
Was crazy coming.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
The first thing that they do is they put you
in cloths. It wasn't out of the blue. It was
it wasn't out of the blue. And the reason why
I say that because I got a superseding indictment, meaning
you know what I mean. Our guys went down I
believe in October, and they came to get me in April.
So before they came and got me, obviously, there's conversations
(12:06):
that happened along the way.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
There's cooperation that happens along the way.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
So before they come and get you, to go for
the low hanging fruit a little bit to make sure
that you know they have a full case when they
do a superseding indictment. So for years for me, because
I played around in the dark, like if I heard
a helicopter or if I like heard sirens or things
(12:31):
like that, you're like, okay, it's this your day, though
you're not doing that in those moments, right, you know
what I mean? Like what's done in the dark comes
to the light, and it's a really stressful time. Even
before that kind of situation happens, you know, if you
see other people go.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Down in something similar.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
So it was definitely, you know, a thing that I
wouldn't say was out of the blue.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
I didn't know what was coming.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
But because of one of my one of the people
who cooperated against me, and I hope I'm not telling
too much, but they called me a few days before
I got indicted, and they hadn't called me, you know,
for quite some time to that point, so I was like, oh, okay, he's.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
Already gone down. They might be on my trail, you know.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
So the fear that's associated in the silence that you
have is a real thing, Champ, It's a real thing.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
But how long was the process you were arrested, you
were taken into custody? How long was that? Like, walk
us through your day? Yeah, next few days.
Speaker 3 (13:34):
So the first thing they do is when they arrest you,
they put the cuffs on you. It was early in
the morning, so they allowed me to go back upstairs
and put on clothes, and from that process they take
you to a warehouse.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
Now that's where the rubber meeds to.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
Roll at because like, in that moment, you have a
decision to make a choice to make whether you cooperate
in that moment and have a conversation with them or
you just say, hey, you know what I wanted, tourney
and let's play the long game.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
So for me, that was a very you know, long morning.
Speaker 3 (14:08):
I spent about eight hours, you know what I'm saying
in a cell where there was no water, no food
or anything like that you're just looking at the wall.
Then I went before the judge and then I was
able to bail myself out in that process. And then
once you bail yourself out, now you have to deal
with the reality of how your family's feeling. You have
to deal with the team and the organization or the
(14:30):
institution that you're working from for in those moments, and
those are real rough conversations. And then it gets really quiet,
and then you have to deal with the shortcomings and
the mistake, the choices and the decisions that you made
and the consequences that come along with it. And that's
a really hard time. And that's where people, you know,
(14:52):
can spiral out of control. So it gets really quiet,
it gets really silent.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
So what's I mean again, we know your situation in
your opinion, what do you feel like the next steps
are moving forward with Chauncey, Because it looks like he
probably went through some of the similar stuff you went through.
He saw the judge, he was arrested, then he saw
the judge that day. What is kind of his next
few weeks to a month look like.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
So the first thing I think he's going to have
to do is he's going to have to make sure
he lawyers up gets the right information. He's going to
have to make some decisions about how he wants to
approach this, because when you're facing you know a lot
of time, you have to like calculate how you want
to navigate it. So for me, I was facing two
charges initially wire fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
(15:37):
And I think both of the wire fraud held up
to twenty years, right, And I had never had any
experience with being arrested. It was my first time in
handcuffs all that stuff. But I also had like morals,
value standards and things like that, right, So for me,
you know, me like telling on people or incriminating people
and things like that, that wasn't an option for me.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
So he's going to have to figure out out if.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
You're gonna, you know, try and make a better deal
for yourself, right, especially because like the charges you know
a lot of times are so trumped up that they
throw things on you that you're not responsible for, but
because you're included in it, you're going to be held
accountable for. So you have to make a decision in
those moments, do I, you know, cooperate or do I
(16:24):
accept responsibility.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
You know, you have to calculate all those different things.
Speaker 3 (16:28):
So there's a million thoughts that's kind of going through
your head at the moment. And then you got to
deal with the organization and the NBA and the institution
and the brotherhood and the letdown as well and how
it makes your family feel. So it's a lot of
different emotions that you're feeling in this moment, and it's
difficult to come to those conclusions instantly. You have to
like take a step back and you have to reflect,
(16:51):
you have to humble yourself. But then at some point
you get this feeling that you have to activat and
you have to fight for yourself, stand up, and you
have to figure out like the tactics you're going to
use in this fight.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
So you did thirty months, correct.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
I got sentenced to thirty months.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
I did ten months in eight days in I did
eight seven months in a halfway house, and then I
did a month on home confinement because like I was
a first time offender number one, and when you're a
first time offender you get certain benefits. I accept the
responsibility for my role in the actions that I did,
So you get some points minimized, but also my charges
(17:29):
got elevated because I was considered a manager supervisor in
that situation, though in my opinion I wasn't.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
But I digress on that point. But at the end
of the day, you have to.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Figure out the best way for you to navigate this
for yourself and your family. I just know for me,
putting anybody else's family in this situation wouldn't have done
me good.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
When you're talking.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
About, like the situation that our guys are in, and
you're dealing with, you know, some underworld boss type shit,
you know what I mean, that's a scarier thing for
your family. So yeah, it's a lot of thoughts that's
probably going through the homies minds right now for sure.
Speaker 1 (18:13):
I also want to reiterate this is all alleged. No
actual charges have been brought forth yet, so we want
to keep that clear. And the reason why I say that,
and because it's kind of bothered me how you know,
obviously we're in the meetia now. Some of our colleagues
have jumped out there and you know, whether they insinuated
with the situation with Rachel Nichols where she insinuated, you know,
(18:34):
or pushed a question was Gilbert connected to this and
then later erased that tweet, which I didn't agree with
when I initially saw, because again this is these are
people's lives, you know what I mean? But I will
say is Gilbert and his little trolling ass invited. I
felt like this type and I've kind of been talking
to you, and that's the one thing I was like, Bro,
you got to stop the bullshit because you're opening the
(18:55):
door to people to make these type of accusations on you.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
Because he's been super he and I've actually been a
lot the last few days. Sure the process, he's been
schooling me on all this shit, I'm just like, whoa.
So he's kind of been giving me game. And then
also pablotore the way he just kind of threw Kevin
Garnett out there initially, and then Kevin's camp came back
to him and told them, hey, you know, Kevin thought
it was something else. Once he found out what it was,
(19:18):
he left. So his initial statement got over five million views,
and his you know, his his response to something on there,
you know, got a couple hundred thousand, you know, So
to me to go out there and throw someone like
Kevin Garnett's name out there without actually having the facts,
And to me, it comes back to trying to be
first and not right. I think we're in an area
(19:39):
where people want the clickbaits and the views and the
virality of the situation, but you're really messing with people's
livelihoods and their families and opportunities that have going on.
So to me, it's very irresponsible for anybody in the
media to throw these accusations out there, although it's the
world we live in until we actually know. So that's
why we again wanted to re uh, you know, reiterate
(20:01):
that nothing has no one has been charged. Everything is
alleged right now, and they knew they need their their process.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Katie.
Speaker 1 (20:09):
Obviously you've been a crazy You've had a crazy journey
and and thank you for sharing that with us. And
I'm glad that you know, we're talking about on cameras
coming up on a year since you've been back and
trying to kind of reacclimate yourself into society as several
different pillars. You are, a father, a leader of your family,
a businessman, h a former player. What has that journey
(20:29):
been like because we're literally coming up on a year
for you, Matt.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
You know what, it takes me back to like our
high school days, because you and I both were like
overlooked a lot of times right in our journey in
our basketball careers, even as pros, we were under overlooked
and with the value that we brought to the team, right,
and so you have to like start from rock bottom.
So I'm used to it. I'm built for this year.
I'm built to, you know, be resilient. I'm built on accountability.
(20:59):
And the first up with a on ability is you
have to recognize when you make a mistake. And our
Lord knows I fell short. I fell short in my
family life, my family life, my personal life, even my
professional life with some of the decisions that I made.
But one thing I know about me, man, is that
like I have this unique ability to lock in and
reinvent myself. They say you have to reinvent yourself at
(21:20):
least five times in your adulthood.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
And so I'm on like phase four at this point.
So I'm thankful for it. You know, I'm better for it.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Things are a lot better on my end and for
my family than there were when I saw you guys
in December.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
It was in December.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
You look like Chris Tucker on Money Talks in that
Snoop Dogg Wife Beater, all just disheveled, like it was like.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Okay, okay, and we was in Miami.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
So you look like Philip Michael Thompson like he was
on the.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
Miami Vice My Advice Face.
Speaker 3 (21:57):
I don't know who you look like, but but you
know you and stat Jack treated me in that moment
because y'all knew I was y'all knew I was just
kind of coming out of the halfway house and things
like that and the path that I kind of that
I'm on right now with you know, some of the
shows in the podcast and the things that I'm doing,
and some of the consulting opportunities and the things that
(22:18):
I'm doing right now. Had you guys not allowed me
to come on the platform and show so much love
and care and do that interview in a way that
was appropriate that could be like digested by the people,
I wouldn't be here right now. So I thank you guys,
all the Smoke Productions. Matthew Barnes all y'all boys, man,
I really appreciate you guys for giving me that opportunity
(22:40):
and I'm you guys are trailblazed a place that a
lot of us are trying to get to.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
And so man, I just tip my hat to you guys. Man,
keep doing it, keep going.
Speaker 1 (22:48):
Come on, man, you know I love you, your your
family and to all again. To be able to see
you laying back on your feet like I know you
would and be able to you know, make the best
out of it.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
So uh shit. Moving on.
Speaker 1 (23:01):
Week one of the NBA season has just passed and
it's been explosive. The NBA is in great hands right now.
What stood out the most for Week one for you?
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Wow?
Speaker 3 (23:14):
It's two things that really stood out to me. I
think Wemby really stands out to me.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
The fact that there is number on keep your thought.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
I want to throw out numbers before you praise him.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
What is he about? I think it's thirty three, thirteen
and six blocks.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
Thirty three points, thirteen rebounds and six blocks a game.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
And that with the compudhists and the monks and the
right the changing shots he was with Kg's with Jamal
this summer. I mean he is scary, scary, scary, but
go ahead, and before.
Speaker 3 (23:46):
He really stands out to me along with some of
the other superstars because we've had multiple fifty point games.
I mean sometimes we get desensitized to like SGA and
things like that because he's already dropped fifty. You know,
Austin Reeves had fifty one I think last night.
Speaker 2 (24:02):
So those guys like, right, you expect that.
Speaker 3 (24:05):
But Wemby in his body and his movements, I've never
seen a center that plays like a shooting guard but
then protects the rim like minute bowl or some shit like.
Speaker 2 (24:16):
It's even more.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
I mean, it's what is the I want to say
the league. Mark Eaton holds the record and that to me,
I mean obviously to be able to everything you just said,
to be able to protect the protect the paint the
way he does, change shots, block shots, get the rebound,
and go lead the drop like lead the fast break,
get all the way downhill if he wants, or he'll
give you a has he pull up three at seven
(24:38):
foot eleventeen, and you know what I mean. I just
I don't think we've we've never seen this. We may
never see anything like this.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Agaude.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
The dude came up the floor and he understood that
it was a two for one situation.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
He's the center from deep and he pulled that from them.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
When the lefty has he he had into it.
Speaker 2 (24:57):
It's crazy. It's awesome to see you his growth, his development.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
But also what I like about him is that he
took an approach that was so humble, Like he went
and got.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
Centered by going to see the monks. Right. You saw
him with the ball head.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
He fed his childhood love for the community by going
out and playing soccer. Then he went it saw the
Jedi warrior. KG took for dog and mentality. He got
himself healthy. Remember the summer before last he had the
Olympics right, and they were on their way in that
situation as well. So we are witnessing history right now.
(25:34):
If he can stay healthy, he's going to go down
as one of the greatest players of all time.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
But we're also seeing something that I think I don't
and we would have to go back who has dominated
both sides of the floor the way he has. Obviously
we've seen Michael Jordan win Defensive Player of the Year
and be able to score his thirty points, But I
think what Wemby's doing is even different than that, you
know what I mean, being able to lock up, being
(26:00):
able to protect the basket and then you know, on
the offensive side. I mean, you know, obviously only one game,
but Anthony Davis is one of the best defenders in
the game, and Anthony Davis could not do anything with him,
So what makes you think anyone else in.
Speaker 2 (26:15):
The league can.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
So I'm definitely excited about what he's been able to do.
That's a young, very talented team. And keep in mind,
Dearon Fox hasn't even played yet, you know what I mean,
And you got these these these young Harper out there
and Castle and San Antonio has rebuilt the right way
and with the franchise player leading the leading the helm.
(26:40):
So it's going to be very interesting to see what
their journey is. Is there any nicknames that come to
mind when you think about Wimby?
Speaker 3 (26:47):
I mean, if I was thinking about it in a
sense where history would take place, I would call him
the Ananaki, the Nephlum, you know what I mean, deliath Junger,
like something that's like affiliated with being a giant. I
don't know what nickname we're gonna call him, but like,
I've never seen anything like it, and I'm seeing his siblings, like,
(27:08):
you know, on the same track as him.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
It's crazy, crazy, crazy crazy.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
The Internet's saying Wemby and Cornett are coined French vanilla.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
French vanilla, for sure.
Speaker 3 (27:21):
I ain't mad at that, But that's running Cornet with
big fellow, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
He's not necessarily there yet, we got to find something
that is unique to him.
Speaker 1 (27:32):
Also, something that I found kind of interesting and not
necessarily took the league by storm. But a few teams
have tried, is trying to play without a true point guard. Obviously,
the Rockets coming to mind, the Sons come to mind,
the MAVs come to mind, and the teams come to mind.
And as of Monday, those teams combined record are four
and seven. You look at Houston, what they were what six?
(27:54):
Eight and above all the way up to seven feet
with the starting lineup, the Rockets, the MAVs playing and
all the I love Cooper Flagg, it's a lot to
ask him to play point guard at this point, not
that he doesn't have the talent, but it's a lot
to ask him. Obviously, the te Wolves, with Mike Conley
being a little older and them not necessarily trusting the
(28:15):
young boy they got what's his.
Speaker 2 (28:16):
Name, Dylan Ham. Yeah, Dillingham Dillingham.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Yeah, and then obviously the Sons have been struggling period
just to kind of find some cohesiveness. But Dylan Brooks
thinks he's Kevin Durant all of a sudden leading the
team in shots and taking more shots than Devin Booker,
which is fucking insane. But what are your thoughts about
teams trying to play without a traditional point guard.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
It's a fine line, man, It's a fine line because
if you look at like Detroit and they put the
ball in Kate Cunningham's hand early, Kate has to pace
the rhythm to cadence. Because he's a taller guy. He's
not what I consider a striker. He's more of an
initiated He's got a good ground game. He's cut from
like that Jalen Rolls two point zero type build. So
(29:03):
he has more of a better opportunity to become a
point guard than a Cooper Cooper. To me, his superpower
is his energy, his motor getting out in transition, being
a live body. I look at him more of it
as like a Sean Marion like type as far as
his energy. So it's two things. I think one they'll
get Kyrie back at some point. Second part is they
(29:25):
do have d Russ Russell over there as well, so
if they want to implement him off the ball, they
could potentially do that. But also when you're talking about
like developing these young guys, it's a lot of ways
that you can develop them. Jason Kidd is one of
the best basketball He's a beautiful mind as far as
basketball knowledge. So I think Cooper will benefit from having
(29:46):
a run Rock at the one right, he'll be able
to benefit it because it'll help him.
Speaker 2 (29:50):
In situations and things like that.
Speaker 3 (29:52):
But when Kyrie comes back and he can get out
and he can be athletic and things like that, and
you can put him in positions to be successful, I
think that'll be benefit.
Speaker 1 (30:00):
Agreed Rockets who have championship aspirations year picking up Kevin
Durant Los van Fleet with to an ACL injury, they
have assets to make a move at some point, whenever
that may be. But I definitely think there's a glaring
hole there. As good as Sangoon is, as good as
Kevin Durant, as these guys are being picked up nearly
(30:21):
full court and having to back the basket from half court,
not really in their keel spots and not being effective.
Granted they're both still scoring very well, but I remember
the first game it gets okay, see, well, there's plenty
of times where Katie didn't really get the ball in
his spots.
Speaker 2 (30:34):
He was guided out of his spots.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
And if you're going to slow someone down, especially someone's
a little older, it's getting them off their spots. So
they need someone to initiate and set the table for
these guys. And I think we're taking that point guard
position lightly thinking that hey, we don't need one. We
can just be long out here and everyone plays basketball.
Now there's a reason why there's still Chris Paul's here
in year twenty, and guys that run teams, I mean,
(30:57):
some of the targets that are out there with expiring
deals or or you know, friendly situations are calling. Sexton
has an inspiring deal, Kobe White has an inspiring deal.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
CJ.
Speaker 1 (31:09):
McCullum has an inspiring deal, Jordan Poole interesting situation, DeSante
Murray's coming back off injury, Anthony Simmons, Tyas Jones, and
then one Drew Holliday who's later in his career. He's
out in Portland right now. We kind of know what's
going on with Portland. Although he's owed some money, there
are teams that can make space for him. So I
(31:30):
don't know if he'll finish his season in Portland, but
there's some guys out there, anybody that you think is
a good fit. Also keep in mind free agents like
Ben Simmons and John Wall are also sitting at home
and ready to jump at the opportunity. Is there anyone
that you think fits that Houston role?
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (31:51):
I do, And it's a wild card because he hasn't
had an opportunity to play, so you haven't seen him
play with.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
The Spurs yet.
Speaker 3 (31:58):
But Fox, right, Fox, it is from Houston, if I'm
not mistaken. I know he's a Texas boy. And you
got a young boy who you drafted really really high
in the draft that has some potential that you got
to let him go through his growing pains if you
want to be a contender, because when Fox comes back,
his minutes might be minimized a little bit. So I
would say, like deeron Fox, it's a good opportunity. With
(32:22):
what Harper has been able to show this far and
the upside that he has, he might be a good candidate.
Speaker 2 (32:29):
You know, to fit that Houston mole.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
The castle as well. I mean, they got two young
mosters over there. And although Deeron Fox is one of
the best point guards in the NBA and he just
got a five year extension too, right, Nate, Yeah, I
mean the play of these young kids are thinking about,
you know, making not wouldn't say making them expendable, but
it makes you say, hmm. Obviously, couldn't trade Fox until February,
(32:53):
close to the deadline because of the extension, but it does,
you know, get get the rumor meals started to turn.
Top three players in the week one Wimby again sixteen
thirteen and six blocks his team is three and oh
Sga is averaging forty points six and five as his
team is three and oh and Giannis thirty six, sixteen
(33:19):
and seven. I want to say, Steph Curry's up there right.
Steph is averaging nearly thirty three a game at thirty
seven years old, which is absolutely incredible. Anyone else come
to mind that we haven't really spoke on. That's really
kind of out there getting loose up to this point.
Speaker 3 (33:35):
I mean, Luca, you know, before he went down last
game and missed last game, like Luca's been putting up
incredible numbers.
Speaker 2 (33:42):
Austin Reeves dropped fifty last night.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
Aaron Gordon has dropped fifty this season as well with
the three sixty lob, which I have really never seen
outside of the Rutger or some shit like that.
Speaker 2 (33:54):
But it's early in the season.
Speaker 3 (33:56):
Man, Guys are healthy, you know, to get the game
is free flowing and things like that, So it's exciting
to see. Man, it's a lot of talent in our league.
I think the rules are conducive for freedom of movement
and things like that, so I'm excited to see who
can do it.
Speaker 2 (34:10):
It's not if you can.
Speaker 3 (34:11):
Do it for a week, right because all Star time,
you know, like those different intersections within the season, that's
where you know what I mean, It's not just about
your talent. It's about your sticktuitiveness, it's about your mindset,
it's about like your habits all.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
Those other things.
Speaker 3 (34:33):
So yeah, everybody shot out of a cannon right now,
But I want to see how it looks like December
after the tournaments and all that stuff happens.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Absolutely, but also too, I mean, outside of these great numbers,
how do you affect winning? Because at the end of
the day. That's what this game is about. You know,
when you look at a guy like LaMelo Ball, who
has not love him about being one of the most
talented guys in the league. He's at twenty eight, ten
and eight, you know, and his team is two and one.
He stay consistent as he turned the page. I want
to say, this is your sick for him or seven,
So he's been in the for a minute. Then Brunson
(35:03):
at thirty points, six and four and his team is
two and one. So I mean, to your point, it's
week one. We're not crowning anybody the greatest outside of
possibly Winby. There's still a whole season to be played.
But it's been a lot of exciting overtime, double overtime,
big shots, big plays.
Speaker 2 (35:20):
Big dunks.
Speaker 1 (35:21):
I'm just Katie, I'm happy the season is back.
Speaker 2 (35:23):
Bro I am too. I miss I miss hoops, love,
I love I love Matt Real quick, can I make
a point real quick? Is that okay? Please? Oh?
Speaker 3 (35:33):
The things you mentioned Brunson and Ball, right, Nomelo. I
think one of the things they could do instantly is
become more engaged defensively, to be more complete. We don't
complain about them on the offensive end, if they really
want to impact winning, I want to see you, you know,
getting over screens, if you you know, get a switch.
(35:55):
I want to see you take the challenge, accept the challenge,
and things like that. Sometimes you don't have to look outwards.
Sometimes you have to challenge your superstars to be better.
Speaker 2 (36:03):
And I think they're capable of doing that.
Speaker 3 (36:05):
So I don't care if they got to bring pop
a ball in there to get on Mellow's ass, I
don't care if you know what I mean, they got
to bring the og you know, back to talk to
his boy Bronson up in New York. But like defensively,
I feel like they can give more effort and that
can I think that can impact their team's winning.
Speaker 1 (36:22):
And I think when you say this, I mean I
don't want fans to get confused, like we're not looking
for first team All NBA defense, just not to be
a liability, you know, not to be a whole. And
I think that's something early on that Steph was kind
of targeted with that he was a liability, and he
worked his ass off to be a great team defender
and not a not a huge liability on the defensive
because you're doing so much offensively, you know what I mean.
(36:43):
It's very few people can be all NBA on both
sides of the ball. You know, those are the great ones.
But there are guys that are very talentedlessly putting up
tremendous numbers that could definitely give more effort to your
point on the defensive end, which would automatically make their
team better. Also, some rookies, they're out here showing their asses.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
VJ.
Speaker 1 (37:04):
Edgecomb I mean, insane debut, I think a franchise record
for rookies for thirty four points, had the third most
points in the regular season debut behind Chamberlain's forty three.
And who is that Frank Selvy in thirty five in
nineteen fifty four. So he came out and looked great.
Dylan Harper, I mean, we've been big fans of his game,
(37:27):
and obviously his pops had a lot of game. He's
been in double figures all three games for the Spurs.
Cooper Flagg has been doing this Cooper flag stuff. Cedric
Coward for the Grizzlies, the eleventh overall pick has been
nineteen points seventy percent from the three point line. And
he's a former JUCO guy. Yeah, who's kind of found
(37:49):
his spot. And then the six pick, Trey Johnson out
of Texas is averaging seventeen. And you know there's the
Conka Nipple and Charlotte he had a.
Speaker 2 (37:59):
Twenty twenty point.
Speaker 1 (38:00):
He's averaged twenty point six and two as of Sunday night,
averaging about fifth excuse me, had twenty six and two
Sunday Night average about fifteen games, you know, over fifty
percent from the three. And then Cooper Flagg has struggled
a little bit, but you see his flashes. He had
twenty two, four and four the other night. So you know,
week one, this is a small taste of what you
(38:22):
know is to come. Ye and it's a very long season.
But again, I think the league is off to a
or excuse me, this season is off to a great start,
and I'm just really excited it's back.
Speaker 2 (38:34):
I'm excited about it. Matt.
Speaker 3 (38:36):
A guy who you didn't mention, who I like as
a rookie is a guy down with the Pelicans, Jeremiah Fears.
I believe his name is when to Ou, when to
Oklahoma getting down here. I saw him play against John
Miranda other night. He looks like he doesn't care about anything.
Speaker 2 (38:51):
He ain't scared of nobody. Like these young boys are ready.
Speaker 3 (38:55):
It's like you know, they are bringing two K to
reality for real.
Speaker 2 (39:01):
Speaking of John Moran, do you see John Morant being moved?
Speaker 3 (39:05):
I hope so at some point, you know, you want
to get a guy like that into a bigger market.
He's been with the Grizzlies his whole career, and so
you want to pair him with a program and some
players that can while he's in his prime, that can
help develop him, can help protect him where he doesn't
just feel like it's all on him. I think a
(39:26):
change of scenery would be great for him personally, and
I would love to see him get with one of
the better programs where they can challenge him and hold
him more accountable so that he can reach his full potential,
because like he's still got it, he's still cold.
Speaker 1 (39:41):
Still got it, And I agree, I think a fresh start. Unfortunately,
sorry Memphis Grizzlies fans, I think a fresh start would
do his career. It would just be a new spark,
a new life, and I think it'll be good.
Speaker 2 (39:55):
Katie.
Speaker 1 (39:55):
Unfortunately, Javin Brown has struck again with his spray paint hairline.
It's been unbelievable. I remember, I remember, Yeah, you could
probably use you might need to hit him. He needs
the ship that sticks though, like his ship is rubbing
off on these jerseys. I remember while we played, Remember
when Booze and I Love you Booze, you did some
(40:16):
bullshit though. Remember Booze put the black the black shoe
cleaner or the black shoe dye on his head during
the game.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 3 (40:26):
It was an elevated version of Baby Beijing that he
just maybe didn't wash off. He just was like, you
know what, I'm good. I'm gonna just go with the
bowling ball effect.
Speaker 2 (40:36):
Nah, I think get what it was.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Remember I don't know if I don't know if your
dad had, but my dad used to have this white
shoe dye and black shoe died that the ogs would
put on there and it had like a sponge tip
and you would switze the bottle and it just dabbed them.
I think that's all he did do is shit. I
think that's what Booze did and it didn't work. And
then obviously Jaylen Brown, you know, playing great. There it is,
it's on the screen, shoe die playing great. But Aithan Brown,
(41:00):
I don't know, Jenny, you got to tighten your ship up,
bro and raise probably did a probably did a number
on your on your hairline. Jason Tatum is is the
hairline king. You might need to go ask you your
yellow brother. What he suggests for you to uh tighten
up with.
Speaker 2 (41:15):
All the time is undefeated.
Speaker 3 (41:17):
But you know, like we invest in our bodies and
you know what I mean, Like we got guys going
to get their teeth done and things like that. We
might have to call Turkey and yeah, get those hairlines restored.
Speaker 2 (41:30):
Would you lead the trip? Would you?
Speaker 1 (41:32):
Would you lead a trip of of current and former
players to go and restore their youth?
Speaker 2 (41:36):
I would.
Speaker 3 (41:37):
I would love to lead the trip, but Matt Defense
would have to give me my passport.
Speaker 2 (41:42):
I am still not allowed to leave the country at
this moment, but damn lead that.
Speaker 1 (41:49):
George, Oh god, I love it. Key y'all man always
great to catch up.
Speaker 2 (41:53):
God bless you in the family.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
Good to see you and we'll we'll definitely uh talk
to you soon. Fan questions this year on Unplugged, we
want to you guys to be able to connect with
us and our guests more than ever. We recently started
a hotline where fans can call in and ask questions.
It can possibly be featured on Unplugged. Make sure you
give us a call it two seventy nine C A
(42:16):
L l ATS. That's two seventy nine call ats and
let your voice be heard. That's a rap. You can
catch this on all the Smokes Productions YouTube in the
DraftKings Network.
Speaker 2 (42:27):
We'll see you guys next week.
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