July 21, 2021 • 36 mins
On Today's Dan Patrick Show, DP recaps last night's Bucks NBA Finals win with Tim Legler. Where does Giannis' 50 point performance rank all-time? ESPN's Ed Werder discusses the outlook for the Cowboys going into the 2021 season. And Bucks Play by play Announcer Ted Davis explains why he made a Tom Petty reference in the Championship call last night.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You are listening to the Dan Patrick Show on Fox
Sports Radio. Tim Legler ESPN NBA analysts kind enough to
join us from Milwaukee. Tim, where does Janis's performance last
night and in this series ranked to you all time?
The performance itself last night is one of the greatest
I've ever seen. And I don't care, you know, if
(00:21):
we're putting in the context of NBA playoffs NBA Finals,
I don't care period, just in terms of any player
in any game. I think about how many athletes get
the rare opportunity to play the greatest game of their
lives in the most significant moment of their careers. That's
what he put together last night. Very few guys can
(00:41):
say those two things in the same sentence, right the
other A lot of guys can get to the Promised
Land and win a championship and it might not be
their best night. A lot of guys have incredible games
and of course the regular season in their careers, but
it's not in this moment, biggest stage, brightest lights, and
he had the greatest game of his career. It was
one of the most awesome displays I've ever seen. A
(01:04):
combining force with the nest because this is a guy
that obviously struggles at the line to know to do
that from had a step back eighteen footer in there,
had a three pointer in there, had a pushshot, like
a one handed pushshot from the foul line at a
critical time in the game. Combined with all of that
power at the rim, and just overwhelming the suns. It
(01:25):
was just an absolutely awesome display. It's it's it's almost
hard to describe accurately how great he played last night.
I actually think he's underrated Tim because we kept looking
at what he didn't do instead of what he does do.
And Okay, he didn't make his free throws, but he
didn't he did make his free throws last night. I
(01:47):
don't like him handling the ball bringing it up the floor.
I don't like him taking jumpers. I wanted him down
on the low post because he was unstoppable there. Boy,
this is this is certainly a message to the rest
of the NBA. God forbid. If he does hit all
of his free throws and he does develop some kind
of outside shot, I mean, that's scary. That's a scary,
(02:11):
scary proposition for this. And he does want to get greater,
as you know, playing in the in the league. Certain
guys get to a certain level and they're fine with that.
It doesn't feel like at age twenty six he's going
to go you know what, this is the kind of
player who I am. It just doesn't seem like that's
in his DNA. Completely agree, and he's he's he's the
kind of star player. I was thinking about it. You know,
(02:32):
I played with a lot of stars or the course
of my career, Hall of Fame players, and you know,
this is the kind of guy as a star player
that you want to play with as a teammate because
there's there's going to be zero complacency and that's what
you love about him, which is what you're describing. And
I think a way to sum it up with him,
you know, he doesn't want a great moment. This is
a great moment. He doesn't want a great moment. He
(02:53):
wants all time greatness and that's going to differentiate him.
And so it's impossible not to root for this guy.
It just is he's everything you could want an athlete
to be. The way he goes about his business, the
kind of person he is, the kind of guy he
(03:13):
is to be around every day, upbeat, positive, energetic, hardest
worker on the team, So he sets the tone there,
you know, constantly giving praise to those around him, despite
the fact that last night he literally lifted an entire
team and franchise a city on his back. I mean,
if you want to talk about a guy putting something
(03:35):
on their back, we use that phrase all the time.
Last night, that should be what you see if you
look that turn up and you google that is Giannis
thoughts to the Kopa last night because he had very
little help offensively from his star players. Bobby Portis was
great or that Bobby Portis last night. They don't win
the game, but the other guy's middle team was decent late.
(03:55):
He hit a couple of big moments late in the game,
but for the most part, Holiday and middle team are
not good. He scores half their points practically, so he's
everything you could want in a star player in the
face of a franchise he epitomizes. I think what it
should be about to feel the weight and responsibility to
do this for a franchise that drafted you if you
(04:16):
reach this level of greatness, And that's what he took
on when he signed that contract and decided to stay.
And I think it's phenomenal for the league that a
guy can prove you can do it this way too.
It's a different script than what these guys followed. Now, Yeah,
I think the key now is will free agents want
to go to Milwaukee. They did make the trade for
Drew Holliday. They gave up a lot of draft picks
(04:36):
for him. It feels like a young nucleus is there.
I also wondered about this tim and maybe I'm seeing
something different. I thought that the series felt like it
was shifting when Drew Holliday started to pick up Chris
Paul three quarters court. It changed the tempo, made Paul
work a little bit harder, and to me, I know,
(04:59):
we can talk about the freak with the block or
the alley youub, but that was a real subtle move
by the Bucks Mike Budenholzer that I thought changed Chris
Paul a little bit and changed the Phoenix Suns offensively.
Am I reading into it too much? No, you're dead
spot on and after the first game, and you know,
not even after the first game, about middle of the
(05:20):
second quarter of the first game, I'm taking notes, getting
ready to go on after and I'm saying this has
to be the worst defensive game plan I've seen the
team come up with to defend pick and roll in
a long time. You know, you had three days to
four days wherever it was the Suns to prepare for
the Buck, I mean the Bucks. To prepare for the Suns.
You have one of the best mid range players in
(05:40):
the history of the game and Chris Paul, and you're
going to decide that you want to either switch all
ball screens or put your big guy defending the screen
fifteen feet off the screen so he can come off unimpeded,
get to an eighteen foot area the floor for a
lean back jump shot, which his bread and butter play,
and you'll let him have it the entire game. And
I'm of the game. I mean everybody was in on
(06:02):
that obviously, and they just pounding the box and pounding
their preparation. It made no sense. Give him credit. They
made the adjustment and they said, if Drew Holliday's on
the floor, he is going to target Chris Paul and
so not only picking him up eighty five feet dan
every time Chris Paul brought it up after either made
basket or dead ball, and Chris Paul's bringing it up.
(06:23):
It was holiday seventy five percent at the time. PJ.
Tucker was doing it. Jeff Teague would come in and
even do it a little bit. And these guys were
turning him, bumping him, just draining his power meter. That's
what it did, and it took away his aggressiveness in
the half court. But the other thing they did, in
addition to picking him up, when Jue Holliday was getting
screened starting in Game two, he wasn't handing him off
(06:47):
to whoever came up on that screen. He was continuing
to pursue Chris Paul and eventually with just enough help
so he couldn't go off a mid range jump shot
from your big When he would pick the ball up
Drew Hall, he then was back on his shoulder, making
sure he wasn't going to be a factor later in
the possession. So not only the the you know, the
(07:08):
wear and tear of all those possessions of turning a
guy and bumping him in a thirty six year old
guard facing full core pressure, which we don't see in
the NBA ever nowadays, to do that, but also to say,
you know, Drew, you're gonna blanket this guy. It's like
It's like a cover corner, right, And I would remember
I'm a Washington football team fan and we brought in
Josh Norman a few years ago, and I was so
(07:29):
excited because we needed a cover corner. And then the
very first game, I'm at the game and the star
wide receiver for the other team, you know, goes in
motion and Josh Norman doesn't move from his side in
the field, and I proceeded to watch this guy towards
the other corner for a huge day. I'm going, what's
the point of having Josh Norman if he's not going
to cover this guy the entire time. That's what Drew
(07:50):
Holliday became starting in Game two. It was Chris Paul
is going to be targeted. I am the guy to
do it, and that, to me, that's subtle change. Completely
changed the complexion of this series. And Chris Paul until
last night, basically was a non factor offensively. If every
NBA player were healthy during the postseason, who would have
(08:13):
won the championship? Brooklyn, I just don't know how anybody
was supposed to deal with that level of firepower. To me,
that collection of Durant Harden and Kyrie Irving that is
the single greatest trio of raw offensive talent ever assembled
in this league. I do not know how you were
(08:35):
supposed to have the personnel, that the depth, the scheme
to be able to defend all that. You're talking about
three guys that can beat you on every platform offensively.
They can beat you. They can make plays off the dribble,
they can beat you from deep on a ball screen,
they can beat you with the mid range. They're all
great finishers. What are you supposed to do with that
(08:55):
much talent? And you can always have a Steve nas
can always have two of the elite offensive players in
the game on the court at the same time and
start and finish every half with all three of those guys.
It's just too much for anybody to deal with. So
it was it was going to be the Nets that
we're gonna win this. And look, it is a narrative, Danna.
(09:17):
We're not taking anything away from the Bucks, but you
can't dismiss the fact that the Nets broke down. The
Lakers broke down, the Clippers broke down. Even a team
like Denver with a healthy Jamal Murray after they picked
up Aaron Gordon. That's a team that legitimately could have
made it to the NBA Finals. So you can't dismiss
all of the injuries, but give the Bucks credit. They
(09:37):
took advantage of what the landscape looked like this year
and they broke through. And the confidence they have going
forward could mean this is the start of a great
run because we don't know if the Nets are gonna
stay healthy next year. Those guys barely have played together.
They have a lot to prove, and the Milwaukee Bucks
are going to carry themselves like champions now. They believe
they can get through any pressure situation based on the
(09:59):
way they navigated this postseason. What should the Suns do
with Chris Paul and what should Chris Paul do with
the Suns? Well, he's got a player option for forty
four million, so I know he's not going anywhere. It's
gonna be. He probably signed that in the locker room
last night. If he's smart to get make sure he
gets that forty four million, So he's not going anywhere.
I think what they have to be honest about look
(10:20):
at their team, just like we talked with the Bucks
just now, the same thing with the Suns. Look at
the landscape in the West with the Kauhi going down,
Anthony Davis going down, Jamal Murray going down. This was
the perfect storm for the Suns to make this kind
of run this year. But they're they're a guy away.
They need an all star caliber wing with some length
(10:43):
that can get his own shot, because you're not gonna
you're not gonna get through the Western Conference next year
if those teams stay healthy with what you have. So
Chris Paul has a significant role on this team. I
do believe that. But they can't go forward thinking, oh,
we've got these two great guards and that's going to
be enough because we went to the finals last year.
Assuming that Okay, Ayton gets a little bit better, Bridges
(11:04):
gets a little bit better, Cam Johnson gets a little
bit better. The problem is the ceiling of those three
players is significant, is significantly lower than what we're talking
about with these other teams and their second and third
best players. It just is McCall, Bridges and Cam Johnson
are really nice players. They're never gonna have to kind
of handle that you're gonna need to be a twenty
to twenty five point scorer in this league on the wing,
(11:26):
you're just not. And those are the players that lead
teams to championships, so they're a guy away, but Chris
Paul will have a significant role on that team, and
certainly he's going to be untradeable if they decided to
go at a different route and thinking, yeah, this could
be a guy to get somebody else over their hump
at forty four million, I don't know how you do that.
Who should trade for Damian Lollard. I'd love to see
(11:50):
Damian Lillard in Philadelphia. If you've paired Damian Lillard with
Joel Embiid and the shooting that they have there with
Seth Curry, that to me is a team then that
can get into the mix in the East and truly challenged.
Now there's a lot of talk about that. Obviously, that
would would that would include Ben Simmons leaving town, which
(12:11):
I think everybody in Philadelphia is ready for and they
want to see happen. He's an elite level athlete and talent,
but he is missing a gene that you need, and
his fear of failure was so evident last year in
the playoffs. I don't know how you go forward with
Ben Simmons. I just certain markets Dan are never gonna
forget and forgive and it's unrelenting. And he's in one
(12:33):
of those markets. I've spent thirty seven years living there.
He's in one of those markets. Which is another point
actually about out to the Cooper I was thinking about
today how blessed and lucky he is to be in
a place that has shown him unconditional love, forgiveness and
support despite the fact that he was a two time
MVP with the number one seed in the league and
didn't make it to the finals. If he is in
(12:56):
a Northeast corridor city, there's a very good chance it's
the media coverage, the fan base coverage. What he's hearing
every day turns so negative and sour. If you feel
like you have not lived up to expectations in a
given year, he probably doesn't make the same decision he
made to stay. The fact that he's in that type
of situation allowed him to feel the love even though
(13:20):
they came up short and he was doing everything he
could to get him there. That was a big factor
in this. I think that's going to also be the
situation with Ben Simmons and why he's going to have
to leave. The first sign of him turning down a
shot near the Rim next season, whether it's game one,
game two, they're gonna start and they're never gonna stop
until he's out. So I think they have to make
(13:43):
a move. If they can do something with Portland and
give enough of Ben Simmons picks and maybe feeling at
Tyree's Max or somebody like that, maybe that's enough to
get Lord and Lord ebid Is. That would be a
very phenomenal combination to watch. That was fun. Legs, thanks
for your contribution to the show, not only today but
throughout the season. We appreciate it. As always, I always
(14:05):
love coming on Dan. Thank you, Legs. That's Tim Legler.
Be sure to catch the live edition of The Dan
Patrick Show weekdays at nine am Eastern six am Pacific
on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeart Radio WAPP. Ed
Warder has more ESPN NFL reporter. He covers the Cowboys,
but he can speak on a variety of topics there
(14:26):
with the NFL. In fact, Ed, let me start with
you more interested in finding out about Aaron Rodgers or
Deshaun Watson's immediate future. I think I'm more interested in
finding out about Deshaun Watson just because there are more
compelling factors involved. In terms of, you know, a player
of his stature being sued, you know, being investigated by police,
(14:50):
being investigated by the NFL. We know the NFL is
not going to move in and put Aaron Rodgers on
the commissioner's exemplest. This is something for the packers and
the player to work out. There are more elements involved
in the Deshaun Watson decision, which occurs about a week
from today. We'll see whether he reports that he's on
the field when the NFL allows me, and then I'm
(15:11):
I don't know if we've had breaking news with Aaron Rodgers.
What Chefty reported yesterday to me wasn't breaking news because
we had heard about this for the last couple of months. There.
I can't imagine a guy coming off an MVP season,
one of the greats of all time, and we still
don't know what he wants like, I just find that
a great mystery, and nobody's been able to put any
(15:33):
of these comments into context here. Ed Well, there's been
a lot of speculation about what his endgame is, and
some of it is that he wants, you know, the
general manager replaced. He certainly placed Gutenhurst under a lot
of scrutiny here, and if the general manager were threatened
by the possibility of getting fired because of Rogers, it
(15:55):
seems like he would have already moved Rogers by now.
To me, I think, just observing what Aaron has said
over the past few weeks when he's been in public
situations at a couple different golf tournaments, I get the
sense that he knows he can't win right now. He'll
take the best outcome he can get, and I think
he'll play for the Packers this year eventually. All right,
(16:15):
you're covering the Cowboys. Cowboys open up camp today, the
Steelers open up camp. They'll meet in the Hall of
Fame game. It seems like everything is good in Dallas
with Cowboys, Is that correct? Everything is good at the moment. Obviously,
the man who manages the expectations so well here in Dallas,
Jerry Jones, will speak to us in a couple of hours,
(16:36):
really in person for the first time for more than
a year, and with the hard knock cameras rolling, I
have great expectations for what the man might say to
us today. You know, he used to drive Troy Itch
been absolutely crazy this time of year because back in
the nineties, he would always predict a Super Bowl and
so anything short of that was a failure, which just
(16:56):
drove the players insane. He's avoided saying such things recently,
but I think expectations are and should be pretty high
given what we've seen from Dak Prescott recovering from Lale Collins,
Tyrann Smith. I mean, it all comes down to injuries,
but they play in a bad division. I think it's
(17:16):
a you know, Mike McCarthy, I think is under some
pressure this year. It's been a long time since he's won.
The team he left has done nicely without him, the
team he's come to has fared not so well. Alttle,
there's certainly worre some extenuating circumstances this first year in Dallas.
Last year. Yeah, I'm trying to figure all of this
out that you know. I'm sure the reports will be
Ezekiel Elliott's in the best shape of his career. And
(17:39):
it's always the verbal bouquets are being thrown out when
it comes to the Cowboys because I think the media,
either consciously or subconsciously, once the Cowboys to do well,
like when they at least have some kind of storyline
there did Jerry Jones make the decision that he wanted
hard Knucks According to what the way the Cowboys have
(18:01):
characterized it. They were asked to do it, you know,
and Jerry doesn't really have any He's not revolted by
the idea of his brand being out there and being
at the forefront in the NFL. He thinks it helps
the entire league if the Cowboys are capturing a lot
of media attention. So I don't know that they solicited it,
(18:24):
but I think I don't think they mind having that opportunity, especially,
you know, given like I said, they have a very
outfront owner and general manager, and Jerry Jones, he likes
to promote his brand. He likes the opportunity to speak
to the public himself, and so this arrangement will allow
all of that to happen. Now, there have been times
I think when coaches have been exposed, you know, in
(18:47):
front of the cameras, given how intrusive they are. We're
going to get a real sense of how Mike McCarthy
runs his Cowboys football team. And maybe that will be good,
and maybe it won't be. It hasn't been good for everybody. Now,
if you're going to ask one question to Jerry Jones.
What's Edward are going to ask today? Wow, that's a
good question, Dan, I haven't given that enough thought. If
(19:09):
I could ask one question and Mike McCarthy, I'd ask
him about his experience with Aaron Rodgers and his experience
with the Packers and how he thinks that whole thing
plays out for Jerry bad. I like that, But Dallas
fans would probably not be as interested in that, and
it might be the last time McCarthy takes a question
from me. But I guess, I guess I would ask,
you know, Jerry what how he feels like he managed
(19:32):
the Dack negotiations and what disadvantages they now have to
overcome because of what they wound up having to pay him,
you know, probably two years late. They you know, I
think they created a bad situation for themselves when two
years ago they did what they said they wouldn't and
they honored Ezekiel Elliott with the highest paid running back
contract and all the football at a time where the
(19:54):
running back position has really been valued, including here in
Dallas by the Coachi hire. I mean, to me, that's
sort of a misfit situation. I know, Zeke's in great shape.
I think, you know, he's a terrific football player and
among the best running backs in the league. But that's
not the way Mike McCarthy plays football. I mean last
year when they started together, McCarthy in thirteen years in
Green Bay never had a running back finish in the
(20:15):
top ten in attempts. Zeke Elliot had more carries than
anybody in football since he was drafted in twenty sixteen.
So I think Zeke Elliott has done challenging for rushing championships.
And maybe that's fine. I think he'd still be a
huge part of a winning team if the right circumstances
are created for him to dominate the close out games
and so forth, like Derrick Henry does in Tennessee. But
(20:38):
but I just I don't think it makes sense a
year later to hire Mike McCarthy, a guy who has
very little regard for the running game. When you're paid
Ezekiel Elliott to be the highest paid running back in football,
and you know, spend all this money in draft collateral
and arranging a great offensive line that's dominant up front
under Jason Garrett. Yeah, I'm still not sure the philosophy
here comes down to defense. I've said this all along
(21:00):
the last Well, whatever it comes down to, if you
win a championship, it comes down to somebody making a
defensive play. And whether it's Malcolm Butler or Chris Jones
with the chief like, it's a small thing and you go, oh,
I got all these stars, all these offensive weapons, everybody's
putting up these great fantasy numbers. It comes down to
(21:20):
can you stop somebody at some point in the season.
Can Dallas stop somebody? Well, they couldn't stop anybody. Last year.
They gave up a franchise record four hundred and seventy
three points. But you know then, you know Dan, they've
only played football in Dallas for sixty one years, so
small sample side. They allowed two of the three single
(21:41):
highest rushing totals in an individual game in franchise history.
They allowed twenty seven touchdown passes to wide receivers, the
most in the NFL last year. So they were horrible
across the board, and that's why Mike Nolan got fired
after one season as a defensive coordinator. But that was
a that's a Mike McCarthy higher. So beyond all the
bad decisions, and there were bad hires, and I think
(22:06):
Dan Quinn is going to be a much take a
much more aggressive approach on defense. Obviously, they dedicated their
draft to defense in a way they never have before.
Their first six players were all defensive players, so I
think that gives them a chance. But I overall, Dan,
to your point, I think the Cowboys see themselves were
trying to achieve being the Kansas City Chiefs. They want
(22:27):
to be a great offensive team, puts up a lot
of points, makes a lot of explosive plays, and then
just be good on defense, and maybe they can achieve.
I think I know they can achieve the first part.
I think they could be really good on offense if
Dak Prescott stays healthy, which he's done every year but
last year. It's the defensive part of the equation that
(22:47):
I'm not sure how long that's going to take. But
if their goal is to be average, I mean that
seems attainable. Ed Warder from the Mothership covering the Cowboys
more threatening team the Chargers of the Rams given the
injuries that have happened, You know, cam acres with the Rams,
But who do you think is more threatening this year? Well?
(23:10):
I like the Rams a lot. I covered them quite
a bit last year after Dak got hurt and the
Cowboys were at a contention and nobody was interested in
them anymore. I really like the Matt Stafford dynamic, you know,
with Sean McVay. But the Acre's injuries this really significant
one in my mind, having watched him and how much
you know. He became a dominant factor in the offense
(23:30):
the second half of the year. But I mean, you
gotta love the Chargers. They play in a tough situation
in the division they're in. Hard to imagine them winning
the division over the Chiefs, but the young quarterback is fantastic,
and we'll see what effect the coaching change has there.
They are a team that can be really good on
defense and on the other side of the ball. So
(23:51):
to answer your question, I guess I like the Chargers
as a sleeper, but I think the Rams probably still
have a better chance of winning their division. Cowboys played
the Steelers in the Hall of Fame game. Your reaction
when the Steelers decided to keep Ben Roethlisberger a little
surprising given his age and the sharp decline in his performance.
I remember I covered the Cowboys game against the Steelers
(24:12):
late last year, the Steelers were what the last undefeated
team in football? I think eleven and oh and I
thought it sounded ridiculous. I said this on somebody's radio show.
I wasn't impressed with the Steelers at that time. You know,
the emphasis was on getting the ball out of Roethlisberger's
hands quickly. They couldn't protect him, they couldn't run the football.
(24:33):
I'm not entirely surprised they gave him one more shot,
given what he's meant to the organization, and maybe given
that they didn't think there was a better option out
there in free agency. But I just don't know how
well this is going to turn out for the Steelers
this year. Yeah, I was surprised as well, unless they
didn't see a quarterback that they could get or that
grated out to what they wanted there. But and Ben
(24:55):
wasn't helped out by those wide receivers. Now you bring
in Harris from Alabama, you know, is that running attack
than to help out Ben a little bit more? But
I I was curious about that. Also, the Russell Wilson
story that exploded, of course right after the Super Bowl.
Do you think that the Seahawks are comfortable with Russell
Wilson long term, I think so, but let's see how
(25:20):
it plays out this year. I mean, he and Pete Carroll.
From my understanding, I've had a lot of really good
dialogue about the circumstances that caused Russell Wilson to criticize
the organization, having watched Tom Brady go win a Super
Bowl with everything the Bucks did, you know, to accommodate
him and allow him to play his best football. I mean,
at the start of last year, we were talking about
(25:40):
what a dominant player Russell Wilson was, and he was
the best player in the league. It was gonna win MVP. Really,
they failed themselves on the other side of the ball.
For the most part, they did become two one dimensional.
I mean, Pete Carroll to me, is always going to
emphasize balance and running the football to the best of
his ability. So if Russell wants to just go out
there in freelance, you know, on a consistent basis, I
don't know that that's going to be something Pete Carroll
(26:02):
wants to move to. And I think Pete Carroll's established
enough as in that organization and the way they're structured
with John Snider as a general manager that you know,
he could outlast Russell Wilson there should should it come
to that. I'll leave you with this, the Cowboys more
likely to make the NFC title game or miss the playoffs? Well,
(26:22):
they've done one a lot more often than they've done
the other. So I'm gonna say they're a lot more
likely to miss the playoffs just because they haven't been
in the championship gave in twenty five years. What would
the fallout be if they don't make the playoffs this year?
I don't know. I think it depends on the circumstances.
I mean, you know, Mike McCarthy has seen the team
(26:43):
he left go to consecutive NFC Championship games in his absence.
He's I can tell you his record, you know, over
the last two years is really kind of bad. The
last two full seasons he's had his record in Dallas
six and ten, matched the fewest games that he won
in a season over thirteen years in Green Bay. Now,
(27:03):
there were extenuating circumstances. I mentioned he played fifteen different
offensive lines, he started four different quarterbacks, so it wasn't
entirely his fault. Plus all of the challenges that came
with the pandemic and the limitations in the offseason for
a first year head coach. That being said, like I said,
he made some bad hires. He coached some really bad
games right from the start the Rams season opener, but
(27:25):
the Washington game on Thanksgiving Day when they're four points
down and he's running a fake punt, you know, from
on fourth and eleven from his own end of the field.
I mean, he made Barry Switzer look like a game
management genius at times. So I think that I think
McCarthy to a certain extent, is coaching for his job.
If what you we just said is more likely actually happens,
(27:46):
if they missed the playoff for the third straight year.
Depending on how it happens, I could certainly see Jerry
making him the next Chan Gaily, which is the only
coach he's ever fired after two years. Has Barry Switzer
ever publicly thanked Jimmy John for giving him gift wrapping
a Super Bowl? You know, Barry Switzer said to me
(28:07):
not too long ago, he said, look, you don't have
to give me credit for winning a Super Bowl and
for building, you know, a super Bowl winning team. But
at least I didn't screw it up. You know, there
are other guys who would have gotten hired. They would
have screwed it up. I didn't screw it up, so
I give him that much credit. At least play nice today. Ed.
We appreciate your time as always, thanks for the opportunity,
(28:29):
todad good to talk to you. Fox Sports Radio has
the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all
of our shows at Fox Sports Radio dot com and
within the iHeartRadio app search FSR to listen live. Hey,
I'm Doug Gottlie. The podcast is called All Ball. We
usually talk all basketball all the time, but it's more
(28:50):
about the stories about what made these people love their
sport and all the interesting interactions along the way. We
talked to coaches, we talked to players, We tell you stories.
You download it, you listen to it. I think you
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the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, orherever you get your podcast.
(29:12):
The Man making the Call Ted Davis The Bucks played
by a play announcer and Paulie picked this up with
a tribute to a shout out to Tom Petty in
the lyrics. There room at the top and Ted joins
us on the program. Did you have it scripted? Ted?
Not really? I mean I had an idea. I wanted
to connect fifty years to now. And you know, I'm
(29:35):
such a big Tom Petty fan. He's the only celebrity
who when he died it really hit me emotionally because
I love his music, love his lyrics. They're so simple
an evocative, and I wanted to work that in somehow, because, hey,
the Bucks do have a room at the top of
the world tonight and as Tom Petty said, I ain't
coming down. What did you think of it felt like
(29:56):
a coronation with sixty five thousand outside, packed house inside.
What was that feeling like for you? Trying to set
the scene on radio? Well, eight years ago, I was
doing games for the Bucks when Rihannas was a rookie
and Middleton had just arrived from Detroit, and that team
won fifteen games, and you've had trouble getting ten thousand
(30:19):
people in the arena. So to see where the Bucks
are now, I mean, let's face it, for a long time,
Milwaukee was NBA Siberia to a lot of players. They
didn't want to come here. It was a cold weather city.
It had an aging arena, they had one in a
long time, and now you look at where they are
with that beautiful arena selling out every game. The Deer
District out there had I don't know how many people
(30:41):
sixty sixty five thousand people just standing outside. The NBA
is now a great viable market. In Yannis's presence at
the age of twenty six twenty seven, going into his prime,
I think is going to ensure that Milwaukee is now
a destination for players who want to chase a ring
because they know they can win here. The entire perception
(31:02):
of the franchise and in some ways the city has changed.
When did you realize how good, how great Yannis could be?
Remember a game or a moment, probably in his third season,
Jason Kidd was the coach and the team really wasn't
going anywhere. May have been his fourth season, and Kidd
(31:22):
just tossed the keys to him and said, you play
point guard for a while. And that's when he started
having triple doubles. I remember he had a triple double
the night Kobe Bryant retired, Well there was the year
he retired. It was his last game in Milwaukee, and
after that game, Jason Kidd set up a private meeting
off the Bucks locker room, just Kidd, Jannis, and Kobe
(31:44):
Bryant and Yannis had had a triple double that night
the Bucks had won the game, and Kobe Bryant said
to Yannis, you have the talent to be as good
as you want to be. Now do you want to
work for it? And I think that little lightbulbubulb above
Yannis's head saying, man if Kobe thinks I can do it,
I can do it now. I think he had that
work epic within him anyway, But we all knew little motivation, right,
(32:07):
a jump start, something to kick us. I think that did.
And from that point on we've seen the Honest grow
into this full blown battering ram mode that is an
MVP in the league and an MVP in the finals.
What was the mood like when the Suns went up
two oh, I don't think anybody panicked. They knew they
were coming home. They had played very well at home.
(32:29):
They had been down O two in the Brooklyn series
and came back and won the two home games to
flip the script to make it a two two series,
and they did it again. This group had some scars
from the last two seasons, where they were up two
oh against Toronto in twenty nineteen in the Eastern Conference
Finals and lost four in a row. Last year, they
lost focus when they went into the bubble and they
(32:50):
got bounced out by Matt Miami in a gentleman's sweep.
They had been the top seed, the best record in
the NBA, and it wasn't good enough. I think those
scars were there at the beginning, and there was no
panic on this team. They knew that they were good
enough to win, and they just set about doing the
business of making it happen. And you have to learn
(33:10):
from your suffering, from your disappointments, and I think this
team did. When Jannis drafted, he came over and then
Milwaukee decided I think the GM at the time, John
Hammond brought his family to Milwaukee to make him more comfortable,
But before that, Jannis was sending money home during his
rookie season. He does mention his mom a lot. What
(33:33):
role has she played? Oh, She's big in his life
for a lot of reasons. I mean, they were very
poor in Greece when they immigrated from Nigeria. They couldn't
get citizenship they were living off the books. His mom
and his dad worked really hard to make life as
good as it could be in those circumstances, and he
(33:55):
remembers that he's very strong on family. He's very loyal
to them. There's a story that's been told that I
don't think people really realize how close Janice was to
not living his NBA dream when he came over in
his rookie season. It took a long time to get
the paperwork done to get his parents out of Greece,
and the Buck's Ownership Senate to Herb Cole at the
(34:16):
time was working through the State Department to get it done.
But the Greek government was not cooperating. And you have
three chances to get your family out, so they tried.
The first time, Greece said no, they tried the second time,
Greece said no. Now this is the third time, and
this went all the way to the top of the
State Department. I think John Kerry was the Secretary of
(34:37):
State at the time. And Jannis has said that if
he had not gotten his family out of Greece at
that point, he was going to go back and play
in Europe. He wasn't going to play in the NBA.
This might have never happened, but they got it done.
They got his parents over here. Now he's a two
time MVP. He's going into this Supermax contract next year
that will change his life. It's generational money and it's
(34:59):
a great story. Phoenix Suns would like to recheck that
paperwork of Jannis just just staying there. Ted, But hey, congratulations,
it's not just players who suffer through this. It's certainly
you know, people like you who are there every single night.
You got to show up at the building when you're
winning fifteen games, people forget about that. Everybody would love
(35:21):
to be in the position you had last night. It
sounded great and congrats, Ted, Well, thank you. I had
a veteran when I got into the league in my
first year. He said, you know, we don't we don't
get paid just to do the good game. So you
got to do the paddle one. But when you have
a good one, you want to savor it. Yeah, so
thank you. But if the Bucks had lost, would you
have gone with free falling or breakdown by Tom Tom Petty?
(35:47):
Probably free falling, Yeah, that's what it would have felt like. Well, congrats,
get some sleep, Ted, thank you for joining us. All right,
thank you, dan By. All Right, that's Ted Davis. 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.
You are listening to the Dan Patrick Show on Fox
Sports Radio. Tim Legler ESPN NBA analysts kind enough to
join us from Milwaukee. Tim, where does Janis's performance last
night and in this series ranked to you all time?
The performance itself last night is one of the greatest
I've ever seen. And I don't care, you know, if
(00:21):
we're putting in the context of NBA playoffs NBA Finals,
I don't care period, just in terms of any player
in any game. I think about how many athletes get
the rare opportunity to play the greatest game of their
lives in the most significant moment of their careers. That's
what he put together last night. Very few guys can
(00:41):
say those two things in the same sentence, right the
other A lot of guys can get to the Promised
Land and win a championship and it might not be
their best night. A lot of guys have incredible games
and of course the regular season in their careers, but
it's not in this moment, biggest stage, brightest lights, and
he had the greatest game of his career. It was
one of the most awesome displays I've ever seen. A
(01:04):
combining force with the nest because this is a guy
that obviously struggles at the line to know to do
that from had a step back eighteen footer in there,
had a three pointer in there, had a pushshot, like
a one handed pushshot from the foul line at a
critical time in the game. Combined with all of that
power at the rim, and just overwhelming the suns. It
(01:25):
was just an absolutely awesome display. It's it's it's almost
hard to describe accurately how great he played last night.
I actually think he's underrated Tim because we kept looking
at what he didn't do instead of what he does do.
And Okay, he didn't make his free throws, but he
didn't he did make his free throws last night. I
(01:47):
don't like him handling the ball bringing it up the floor.
I don't like him taking jumpers. I wanted him down
on the low post because he was unstoppable there. Boy,
this is this is certainly a message to the rest
of the NBA. God forbid. If he does hit all
of his free throws and he does develop some kind
of outside shot, I mean, that's scary. That's a scary,
(02:11):
scary proposition for this. And he does want to get greater,
as you know, playing in the in the league. Certain
guys get to a certain level and they're fine with that.
It doesn't feel like at age twenty six he's going
to go you know what, this is the kind of
player who I am. It just doesn't seem like that's
in his DNA. Completely agree, and he's he's he's the
kind of star player. I was thinking about it. You know,
(02:32):
I played with a lot of stars or the course
of my career, Hall of Fame players, and you know,
this is the kind of guy as a star player
that you want to play with as a teammate because
there's there's going to be zero complacency and that's what
you love about him, which is what you're describing. And
I think a way to sum it up with him,
you know, he doesn't want a great moment. This is
a great moment. He doesn't want a great moment. He
(02:53):
wants all time greatness and that's going to differentiate him.
And so it's impossible not to root for this guy.
It just is he's everything you could want an athlete
to be. The way he goes about his business, the
kind of person he is, the kind of guy he
(03:13):
is to be around every day, upbeat, positive, energetic, hardest
worker on the team, So he sets the tone there,
you know, constantly giving praise to those around him, despite
the fact that last night he literally lifted an entire
team and franchise a city on his back. I mean,
if you want to talk about a guy putting something
(03:35):
on their back, we use that phrase all the time.
Last night, that should be what you see if you
look that turn up and you google that is Giannis
thoughts to the Kopa last night because he had very
little help offensively from his star players. Bobby Portis was
great or that Bobby Portis last night. They don't win
the game, but the other guy's middle team was decent late.
(03:55):
He hit a couple of big moments late in the game,
but for the most part, Holiday and middle team are
not good. He scores half their points practically, so he's
everything you could want in a star player in the
face of a franchise he epitomizes. I think what it
should be about to feel the weight and responsibility to
do this for a franchise that drafted you if you
(04:16):
reach this level of greatness, And that's what he took
on when he signed that contract and decided to stay.
And I think it's phenomenal for the league that a
guy can prove you can do it this way too.
It's a different script than what these guys followed. Now, Yeah,
I think the key now is will free agents want
to go to Milwaukee. They did make the trade for
Drew Holliday. They gave up a lot of draft picks
(04:36):
for him. It feels like a young nucleus is there.
I also wondered about this tim and maybe I'm seeing
something different. I thought that the series felt like it
was shifting when Drew Holliday started to pick up Chris
Paul three quarters court. It changed the tempo, made Paul
work a little bit harder, and to me, I know,
(04:59):
we can talk about the freak with the block or
the alley youub, but that was a real subtle move
by the Bucks Mike Budenholzer that I thought changed Chris
Paul a little bit and changed the Phoenix Suns offensively.
Am I reading into it too much? No, you're dead
spot on and after the first game, and you know,
not even after the first game, about middle of the
(05:20):
second quarter of the first game, I'm taking notes, getting
ready to go on after and I'm saying this has
to be the worst defensive game plan I've seen the
team come up with to defend pick and roll in
a long time. You know, you had three days to
four days wherever it was the Suns to prepare for
the Buck, I mean the Bucks. To prepare for the Suns.
You have one of the best mid range players in
(05:40):
the history of the game and Chris Paul, and you're
going to decide that you want to either switch all
ball screens or put your big guy defending the screen
fifteen feet off the screen so he can come off unimpeded,
get to an eighteen foot area the floor for a
lean back jump shot, which his bread and butter play,
and you'll let him have it the entire game. And
I'm of the game. I mean everybody was in on
(06:02):
that obviously, and they just pounding the box and pounding
their preparation. It made no sense. Give him credit. They
made the adjustment and they said, if Drew Holliday's on
the floor, he is going to target Chris Paul and
so not only picking him up eighty five feet dan
every time Chris Paul brought it up after either made
basket or dead ball, and Chris Paul's bringing it up.
(06:23):
It was holiday seventy five percent at the time. PJ.
Tucker was doing it. Jeff Teague would come in and
even do it a little bit. And these guys were
turning him, bumping him, just draining his power meter. That's
what it did, and it took away his aggressiveness in
the half court. But the other thing they did, in
addition to picking him up, when Jue Holliday was getting
screened starting in Game two, he wasn't handing him off
(06:47):
to whoever came up on that screen. He was continuing
to pursue Chris Paul and eventually with just enough help
so he couldn't go off a mid range jump shot
from your big When he would pick the ball up
Drew Hall, he then was back on his shoulder, making
sure he wasn't going to be a factor later in
the possession. So not only the the you know, the
(07:08):
wear and tear of all those possessions of turning a
guy and bumping him in a thirty six year old
guard facing full core pressure, which we don't see in
the NBA ever nowadays, to do that, but also to say,
you know, Drew, you're gonna blanket this guy. It's like
It's like a cover corner, right, And I would remember
I'm a Washington football team fan and we brought in
Josh Norman a few years ago, and I was so
(07:29):
excited because we needed a cover corner. And then the
very first game, I'm at the game and the star
wide receiver for the other team, you know, goes in
motion and Josh Norman doesn't move from his side in
the field, and I proceeded to watch this guy towards
the other corner for a huge day. I'm going, what's
the point of having Josh Norman if he's not going
to cover this guy the entire time. That's what Drew
(07:50):
Holliday became starting in Game two. It was Chris Paul
is going to be targeted. I am the guy to
do it, and that, to me, that's subtle change. Completely
changed the complexion of this series. And Chris Paul until
last night, basically was a non factor offensively. If every
NBA player were healthy during the postseason, who would have
(08:13):
won the championship? Brooklyn, I just don't know how anybody
was supposed to deal with that level of firepower. To me,
that collection of Durant Harden and Kyrie Irving that is
the single greatest trio of raw offensive talent ever assembled
in this league. I do not know how you were
(08:35):
supposed to have the personnel, that the depth, the scheme
to be able to defend all that. You're talking about
three guys that can beat you on every platform offensively.
They can beat you. They can make plays off the dribble,
they can beat you from deep on a ball screen,
they can beat you with the mid range. They're all
great finishers. What are you supposed to do with that
(08:55):
much talent? And you can always have a Steve nas
can always have two of the elite offensive players in
the game on the court at the same time and
start and finish every half with all three of those guys.
It's just too much for anybody to deal with. So
it was it was going to be the Nets that
we're gonna win this. And look, it is a narrative, Danna.
(09:17):
We're not taking anything away from the Bucks, but you
can't dismiss the fact that the Nets broke down. The
Lakers broke down, the Clippers broke down. Even a team
like Denver with a healthy Jamal Murray after they picked
up Aaron Gordon. That's a team that legitimately could have
made it to the NBA Finals. So you can't dismiss
all of the injuries, but give the Bucks credit. They
(09:37):
took advantage of what the landscape looked like this year
and they broke through. And the confidence they have going
forward could mean this is the start of a great
run because we don't know if the Nets are gonna
stay healthy next year. Those guys barely have played together.
They have a lot to prove, and the Milwaukee Bucks
are going to carry themselves like champions now. They believe
they can get through any pressure situation based on the
(09:59):
way they navigated this postseason. What should the Suns do
with Chris Paul and what should Chris Paul do with
the Suns? Well, he's got a player option for forty
four million, so I know he's not going anywhere. It's
gonna be. He probably signed that in the locker room
last night. If he's smart to get make sure he
gets that forty four million, So he's not going anywhere.
I think what they have to be honest about look
(10:20):
at their team, just like we talked with the Bucks
just now, the same thing with the Suns. Look at
the landscape in the West with the Kauhi going down,
Anthony Davis going down, Jamal Murray going down. This was
the perfect storm for the Suns to make this kind
of run this year. But they're they're a guy away.
They need an all star caliber wing with some length
(10:43):
that can get his own shot, because you're not gonna
you're not gonna get through the Western Conference next year
if those teams stay healthy with what you have. So
Chris Paul has a significant role on this team. I
do believe that. But they can't go forward thinking, oh,
we've got these two great guards and that's going to
be enough because we went to the finals last year.
Assuming that Okay, Ayton gets a little bit better, Bridges
(11:04):
gets a little bit better, Cam Johnson gets a little
bit better. The problem is the ceiling of those three
players is significant, is significantly lower than what we're talking
about with these other teams and their second and third
best players. It just is McCall, Bridges and Cam Johnson
are really nice players. They're never gonna have to kind
of handle that you're gonna need to be a twenty
to twenty five point scorer in this league on the wing,
(11:26):
you're just not. And those are the players that lead
teams to championships, so they're a guy away, but Chris
Paul will have a significant role on that team, and
certainly he's going to be untradeable if they decided to
go at a different route and thinking, yeah, this could
be a guy to get somebody else over their hump
at forty four million, I don't know how you do that.
Who should trade for Damian Lollard. I'd love to see
(11:50):
Damian Lillard in Philadelphia. If you've paired Damian Lillard with
Joel Embiid and the shooting that they have there with
Seth Curry, that to me is a team then that
can get into the mix in the East and truly challenged.
Now there's a lot of talk about that. Obviously, that
would would that would include Ben Simmons leaving town, which
(12:11):
I think everybody in Philadelphia is ready for and they
want to see happen. He's an elite level athlete and talent,
but he is missing a gene that you need, and
his fear of failure was so evident last year in
the playoffs. I don't know how you go forward with
Ben Simmons. I just certain markets Dan are never gonna
forget and forgive and it's unrelenting. And he's in one
(12:33):
of those markets. I've spent thirty seven years living there.
He's in one of those markets. Which is another point
actually about out to the Cooper I was thinking about
today how blessed and lucky he is to be in
a place that has shown him unconditional love, forgiveness and
support despite the fact that he was a two time
MVP with the number one seed in the league and
didn't make it to the finals. If he is in
(12:56):
a Northeast corridor city, there's a very good chance it's
the media coverage, the fan base coverage. What he's hearing
every day turns so negative and sour. If you feel
like you have not lived up to expectations in a
given year, he probably doesn't make the same decision he
made to stay. The fact that he's in that type
of situation allowed him to feel the love even though
(13:20):
they came up short and he was doing everything he
could to get him there. That was a big factor
in this. I think that's going to also be the
situation with Ben Simmons and why he's going to have
to leave. The first sign of him turning down a
shot near the Rim next season, whether it's game one,
game two, they're gonna start and they're never gonna stop
until he's out. So I think they have to make
(13:43):
a move. If they can do something with Portland and
give enough of Ben Simmons picks and maybe feeling at
Tyree's Max or somebody like that, maybe that's enough to
get Lord and Lord ebid Is. That would be a
very phenomenal combination to watch. That was fun. Legs, thanks
for your contribution to the show, not only today but
throughout the season. We appreciate it. As always, I always
(14:05):
love coming on Dan. Thank you, Legs. That's Tim Legler.
Be sure to catch the live edition of The Dan
Patrick Show weekdays at nine am Eastern six am Pacific
on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeart Radio WAPP. Ed
Warder has more ESPN NFL reporter. He covers the Cowboys,
but he can speak on a variety of topics there
(14:26):
with the NFL. In fact, Ed, let me start with
you more interested in finding out about Aaron Rodgers or
Deshaun Watson's immediate future. I think I'm more interested in
finding out about Deshaun Watson just because there are more
compelling factors involved. In terms of, you know, a player
of his stature being sued, you know, being investigated by police,
(14:50):
being investigated by the NFL. We know the NFL is
not going to move in and put Aaron Rodgers on
the commissioner's exemplest. This is something for the packers and
the player to work out. There are more elements involved
in the Deshaun Watson decision, which occurs about a week
from today. We'll see whether he reports that he's on
the field when the NFL allows me, and then I'm
(15:11):
I don't know if we've had breaking news with Aaron Rodgers.
What Chefty reported yesterday to me wasn't breaking news because
we had heard about this for the last couple of months. There.
I can't imagine a guy coming off an MVP season,
one of the greats of all time, and we still
don't know what he wants like, I just find that
a great mystery, and nobody's been able to put any
(15:33):
of these comments into context here. Ed Well, there's been
a lot of speculation about what his endgame is, and
some of it is that he wants, you know, the
general manager replaced. He certainly placed Gutenhurst under a lot
of scrutiny here, and if the general manager were threatened
by the possibility of getting fired because of Rogers, it
(15:55):
seems like he would have already moved Rogers by now.
To me, I think, just observing what Aaron has said
over the past few weeks when he's been in public
situations at a couple different golf tournaments, I get the
sense that he knows he can't win right now. He'll
take the best outcome he can get, and I think
he'll play for the Packers this year eventually. All right,
(16:15):
you're covering the Cowboys. Cowboys open up camp today, the
Steelers open up camp. They'll meet in the Hall of
Fame game. It seems like everything is good in Dallas
with Cowboys, Is that correct? Everything is good at the moment. Obviously,
the man who manages the expectations so well here in Dallas,
Jerry Jones, will speak to us in a couple of hours,
(16:36):
really in person for the first time for more than
a year, and with the hard knock cameras rolling, I
have great expectations for what the man might say to
us today. You know, he used to drive Troy Itch
been absolutely crazy this time of year because back in
the nineties, he would always predict a Super Bowl and
so anything short of that was a failure, which just
(16:56):
drove the players insane. He's avoided saying such things recently,
but I think expectations are and should be pretty high
given what we've seen from Dak Prescott recovering from Lale Collins,
Tyrann Smith. I mean, it all comes down to injuries,
but they play in a bad division. I think it's
(17:16):
a you know, Mike McCarthy, I think is under some
pressure this year. It's been a long time since he's won.
The team he left has done nicely without him, the
team he's come to has fared not so well. Alttle,
there's certainly worre some extenuating circumstances this first year in Dallas.
Last year. Yeah, I'm trying to figure all of this
out that you know. I'm sure the reports will be
Ezekiel Elliott's in the best shape of his career. And
(17:39):
it's always the verbal bouquets are being thrown out when
it comes to the Cowboys because I think the media,
either consciously or subconsciously, once the Cowboys to do well,
like when they at least have some kind of storyline
there did Jerry Jones make the decision that he wanted
hard Knucks According to what the way the Cowboys have
(18:01):
characterized it. They were asked to do it, you know,
and Jerry doesn't really have any He's not revolted by
the idea of his brand being out there and being
at the forefront in the NFL. He thinks it helps
the entire league if the Cowboys are capturing a lot
of media attention. So I don't know that they solicited it,
(18:24):
but I think I don't think they mind having that opportunity, especially,
you know, given like I said, they have a very
outfront owner and general manager, and Jerry Jones, he likes
to promote his brand. He likes the opportunity to speak
to the public himself, and so this arrangement will allow
all of that to happen. Now, there have been times
I think when coaches have been exposed, you know, in
(18:47):
front of the cameras, given how intrusive they are. We're
going to get a real sense of how Mike McCarthy
runs his Cowboys football team. And maybe that will be good,
and maybe it won't be. It hasn't been good for everybody. Now,
if you're going to ask one question to Jerry Jones.
What's Edward are going to ask today? Wow, that's a
good question, Dan, I haven't given that enough thought. If
(19:09):
I could ask one question and Mike McCarthy, I'd ask
him about his experience with Aaron Rodgers and his experience
with the Packers and how he thinks that whole thing
plays out for Jerry bad. I like that, But Dallas
fans would probably not be as interested in that, and
it might be the last time McCarthy takes a question
from me. But I guess, I guess I would ask,
you know, Jerry what how he feels like he managed
(19:32):
the Dack negotiations and what disadvantages they now have to
overcome because of what they wound up having to pay him,
you know, probably two years late. They you know, I
think they created a bad situation for themselves when two
years ago they did what they said they wouldn't and
they honored Ezekiel Elliott with the highest paid running back
contract and all the football at a time where the
(19:54):
running back position has really been valued, including here in
Dallas by the Coachi hire. I mean, to me, that's
sort of a misfit situation. I know, Zeke's in great shape.
I think, you know, he's a terrific football player and
among the best running backs in the league. But that's
not the way Mike McCarthy plays football. I mean last
year when they started together, McCarthy in thirteen years in
Green Bay never had a running back finish in the
(20:15):
top ten in attempts. Zeke Elliot had more carries than
anybody in football since he was drafted in twenty sixteen.
So I think Zeke Elliott has done challenging for rushing championships.
And maybe that's fine. I think he'd still be a
huge part of a winning team if the right circumstances
are created for him to dominate the close out games
and so forth, like Derrick Henry does in Tennessee. But
(20:38):
but I just I don't think it makes sense a
year later to hire Mike McCarthy, a guy who has
very little regard for the running game. When you're paid
Ezekiel Elliott to be the highest paid running back in football,
and you know, spend all this money in draft collateral
and arranging a great offensive line that's dominant up front
under Jason Garrett. Yeah, I'm still not sure the philosophy
here comes down to defense. I've said this all along
(21:00):
the last Well, whatever it comes down to, if you
win a championship, it comes down to somebody making a
defensive play. And whether it's Malcolm Butler or Chris Jones
with the chief like, it's a small thing and you go, oh,
I got all these stars, all these offensive weapons, everybody's
putting up these great fantasy numbers. It comes down to
(21:20):
can you stop somebody at some point in the season.
Can Dallas stop somebody? Well, they couldn't stop anybody. Last year.
They gave up a franchise record four hundred and seventy
three points. But you know then, you know Dan, they've
only played football in Dallas for sixty one years, so
small sample side. They allowed two of the three single
(21:41):
highest rushing totals in an individual game in franchise history.
They allowed twenty seven touchdown passes to wide receivers, the
most in the NFL last year. So they were horrible
across the board, and that's why Mike Nolan got fired
after one season as a defensive coordinator. But that was
a that's a Mike McCarthy higher. So beyond all the
bad decisions, and there were bad hires, and I think
(22:06):
Dan Quinn is going to be a much take a
much more aggressive approach on defense. Obviously, they dedicated their
draft to defense in a way they never have before.
Their first six players were all defensive players, so I
think that gives them a chance. But I overall, Dan,
to your point, I think the Cowboys see themselves were
trying to achieve being the Kansas City Chiefs. They want
(22:27):
to be a great offensive team, puts up a lot
of points, makes a lot of explosive plays, and then
just be good on defense, and maybe they can achieve.
I think I know they can achieve the first part.
I think they could be really good on offense if
Dak Prescott stays healthy, which he's done every year but
last year. It's the defensive part of the equation that
(22:47):
I'm not sure how long that's going to take. But
if their goal is to be average, I mean that
seems attainable. Ed Warder from the Mothership covering the Cowboys
more threatening team the Chargers of the Rams given the
injuries that have happened, You know, cam acres with the Rams,
But who do you think is more threatening this year? Well?
(23:10):
I like the Rams a lot. I covered them quite
a bit last year after Dak got hurt and the
Cowboys were at a contention and nobody was interested in
them anymore. I really like the Matt Stafford dynamic, you know,
with Sean McVay. But the Acre's injuries this really significant
one in my mind, having watched him and how much
you know. He became a dominant factor in the offense
(23:30):
the second half of the year. But I mean, you
gotta love the Chargers. They play in a tough situation
in the division they're in. Hard to imagine them winning
the division over the Chiefs, but the young quarterback is fantastic,
and we'll see what effect the coaching change has there.
They are a team that can be really good on
defense and on the other side of the ball. So
(23:51):
to answer your question, I guess I like the Chargers
as a sleeper, but I think the Rams probably still
have a better chance of winning their division. Cowboys played
the Steelers in the Hall of Fame game. Your reaction
when the Steelers decided to keep Ben Roethlisberger a little
surprising given his age and the sharp decline in his performance.
I remember I covered the Cowboys game against the Steelers
(24:12):
late last year, the Steelers were what the last undefeated
team in football? I think eleven and oh and I
thought it sounded ridiculous. I said this on somebody's radio show.
I wasn't impressed with the Steelers at that time. You know,
the emphasis was on getting the ball out of Roethlisberger's
hands quickly. They couldn't protect him, they couldn't run the football.
(24:33):
I'm not entirely surprised they gave him one more shot,
given what he's meant to the organization, and maybe given
that they didn't think there was a better option out
there in free agency. But I just don't know how
well this is going to turn out for the Steelers
this year. Yeah, I was surprised as well, unless they
didn't see a quarterback that they could get or that
grated out to what they wanted there. But and Ben
(24:55):
wasn't helped out by those wide receivers. Now you bring
in Harris from Alabama, you know, is that running attack
than to help out Ben a little bit more? But
I I was curious about that. Also, the Russell Wilson
story that exploded, of course right after the Super Bowl.
Do you think that the Seahawks are comfortable with Russell
Wilson long term, I think so, but let's see how
(25:20):
it plays out this year. I mean, he and Pete Carroll.
From my understanding, I've had a lot of really good
dialogue about the circumstances that caused Russell Wilson to criticize
the organization, having watched Tom Brady go win a Super
Bowl with everything the Bucks did, you know, to accommodate
him and allow him to play his best football. I mean,
at the start of last year, we were talking about
(25:40):
what a dominant player Russell Wilson was, and he was
the best player in the league. It was gonna win MVP. Really,
they failed themselves on the other side of the ball.
For the most part, they did become two one dimensional.
I mean, Pete Carroll to me, is always going to
emphasize balance and running the football to the best of
his ability. So if Russell wants to just go out
there in freelance, you know, on a consistent basis, I
don't know that that's going to be something Pete Carroll
(26:02):
wants to move to. And I think Pete Carroll's established
enough as in that organization and the way they're structured
with John Snider as a general manager that you know,
he could outlast Russell Wilson there should should it come
to that. I'll leave you with this, the Cowboys more
likely to make the NFC title game or miss the playoffs? Well,
(26:22):
they've done one a lot more often than they've done
the other. So I'm gonna say they're a lot more
likely to miss the playoffs just because they haven't been
in the championship gave in twenty five years. What would
the fallout be if they don't make the playoffs this year?
I don't know. I think it depends on the circumstances.
I mean, you know, Mike McCarthy has seen the team
(26:43):
he left go to consecutive NFC Championship games in his absence.
He's I can tell you his record, you know, over
the last two years is really kind of bad. The
last two full seasons he's had his record in Dallas
six and ten, matched the fewest games that he won
in a season over thirteen years in Green Bay. Now,
(27:03):
there were extenuating circumstances. I mentioned he played fifteen different
offensive lines, he started four different quarterbacks, so it wasn't
entirely his fault. Plus all of the challenges that came
with the pandemic and the limitations in the offseason for
a first year head coach. That being said, like I said,
he made some bad hires. He coached some really bad
games right from the start the Rams season opener, but
(27:25):
the Washington game on Thanksgiving Day when they're four points
down and he's running a fake punt, you know, from
on fourth and eleven from his own end of the field.
I mean, he made Barry Switzer look like a game
management genius at times. So I think that I think
McCarthy to a certain extent, is coaching for his job.
If what you we just said is more likely actually happens,
(27:46):
if they missed the playoff for the third straight year.
Depending on how it happens, I could certainly see Jerry
making him the next Chan Gaily, which is the only
coach he's ever fired after two years. Has Barry Switzer
ever publicly thanked Jimmy John for giving him gift wrapping
a Super Bowl? You know, Barry Switzer said to me
(28:07):
not too long ago, he said, look, you don't have
to give me credit for winning a Super Bowl and
for building, you know, a super Bowl winning team. But
at least I didn't screw it up. You know, there
are other guys who would have gotten hired. They would
have screwed it up. I didn't screw it up, so
I give him that much credit. At least play nice today. Ed.
We appreciate your time as always, thanks for the opportunity,
(28:29):
todad good to talk to you. Fox Sports Radio has
the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all
of our shows at Fox Sports Radio dot com and
within the iHeartRadio app search FSR to listen live. Hey,
I'm Doug Gottlie. The podcast is called All Ball. We
usually talk all basketball all the time, but it's more
(28:50):
about the stories about what made these people love their
sport and all the interesting interactions along the way. We
talked to coaches, we talked to players, We tell you stories.
You download it, you listen to it. I think you
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the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, orherever you get your podcast.
(29:12):
The Man making the Call Ted Davis The Bucks played
by a play announcer and Paulie picked this up with
a tribute to a shout out to Tom Petty in
the lyrics. There room at the top and Ted joins
us on the program. Did you have it scripted? Ted?
Not really? I mean I had an idea. I wanted
to connect fifty years to now. And you know, I'm
(29:35):
such a big Tom Petty fan. He's the only celebrity
who when he died it really hit me emotionally because
I love his music, love his lyrics. They're so simple
an evocative, and I wanted to work that in somehow, because, hey,
the Bucks do have a room at the top of
the world tonight and as Tom Petty said, I ain't
coming down. What did you think of it felt like
(29:56):
a coronation with sixty five thousand outside, packed house inside.
What was that feeling like for you? Trying to set
the scene on radio? Well, eight years ago, I was
doing games for the Bucks when Rihannas was a rookie
and Middleton had just arrived from Detroit, and that team
won fifteen games, and you've had trouble getting ten thousand
(30:19):
people in the arena. So to see where the Bucks
are now, I mean, let's face it, for a long time,
Milwaukee was NBA Siberia to a lot of players. They
didn't want to come here. It was a cold weather city.
It had an aging arena, they had one in a
long time, and now you look at where they are
with that beautiful arena selling out every game. The Deer
District out there had I don't know how many people
(30:41):
sixty sixty five thousand people just standing outside. The NBA
is now a great viable market. In Yannis's presence at
the age of twenty six twenty seven, going into his prime,
I think is going to ensure that Milwaukee is now
a destination for players who want to chase a ring
because they know they can win here. The entire perception
(31:02):
of the franchise and in some ways the city has changed.
When did you realize how good, how great Yannis could be?
Remember a game or a moment, probably in his third season,
Jason Kidd was the coach and the team really wasn't
going anywhere. May have been his fourth season, and Kidd
(31:22):
just tossed the keys to him and said, you play
point guard for a while. And that's when he started
having triple doubles. I remember he had a triple double
the night Kobe Bryant retired, Well there was the year
he retired. It was his last game in Milwaukee, and
after that game, Jason Kidd set up a private meeting
off the Bucks locker room, just Kidd, Jannis, and Kobe
(31:44):
Bryant and Yannis had had a triple double that night
the Bucks had won the game, and Kobe Bryant said
to Yannis, you have the talent to be as good
as you want to be. Now do you want to
work for it? And I think that little lightbulbubulb above
Yannis's head saying, man if Kobe thinks I can do it,
I can do it now. I think he had that
work epic within him anyway, But we all knew little motivation, right,
(32:07):
a jump start, something to kick us. I think that did.
And from that point on we've seen the Honest grow
into this full blown battering ram mode that is an
MVP in the league and an MVP in the finals.
What was the mood like when the Suns went up
two oh, I don't think anybody panicked. They knew they
were coming home. They had played very well at home.
(32:29):
They had been down O two in the Brooklyn series
and came back and won the two home games to
flip the script to make it a two two series,
and they did it again. This group had some scars
from the last two seasons, where they were up two
oh against Toronto in twenty nineteen in the Eastern Conference
Finals and lost four in a row. Last year, they
lost focus when they went into the bubble and they
(32:50):
got bounced out by Matt Miami in a gentleman's sweep.
They had been the top seed, the best record in
the NBA, and it wasn't good enough. I think those
scars were there at the beginning, and there was no
panic on this team. They knew that they were good
enough to win, and they just set about doing the
business of making it happen. And you have to learn
(33:10):
from your suffering, from your disappointments, and I think this
team did. When Jannis drafted, he came over and then
Milwaukee decided I think the GM at the time, John
Hammond brought his family to Milwaukee to make him more comfortable,
But before that, Jannis was sending money home during his
rookie season. He does mention his mom a lot. What
(33:33):
role has she played? Oh, She's big in his life
for a lot of reasons. I mean, they were very
poor in Greece when they immigrated from Nigeria. They couldn't
get citizenship they were living off the books. His mom
and his dad worked really hard to make life as
good as it could be in those circumstances, and he
(33:55):
remembers that he's very strong on family. He's very loyal
to them. There's a story that's been told that I
don't think people really realize how close Janice was to
not living his NBA dream when he came over in
his rookie season. It took a long time to get
the paperwork done to get his parents out of Greece,
and the Buck's Ownership Senate to Herb Cole at the
(34:16):
time was working through the State Department to get it done.
But the Greek government was not cooperating. And you have
three chances to get your family out, so they tried.
The first time, Greece said no, they tried the second time,
Greece said no. Now this is the third time, and
this went all the way to the top of the
State Department. I think John Kerry was the Secretary of
(34:37):
State at the time. And Jannis has said that if
he had not gotten his family out of Greece at
that point, he was going to go back and play
in Europe. He wasn't going to play in the NBA.
This might have never happened, but they got it done.
They got his parents over here. Now he's a two
time MVP. He's going into this Supermax contract next year
that will change his life. It's generational money and it's
(34:59):
a great story. Phoenix Suns would like to recheck that
paperwork of Jannis just just staying there. Ted, But hey, congratulations,
it's not just players who suffer through this. It's certainly
you know, people like you who are there every single night.
You got to show up at the building when you're
winning fifteen games, people forget about that. Everybody would love
(35:21):
to be in the position you had last night. It
sounded great and congrats, Ted, Well, thank you. I had
a veteran when I got into the league in my
first year. He said, you know, we don't we don't
get paid just to do the good game. So you
got to do the paddle one. But when you have
a good one, you want to savor it. Yeah, so
thank you. But if the Bucks had lost, would you
have gone with free falling or breakdown by Tom Tom Petty?
(35:47):
Probably free falling, Yeah, that's what it would have felt like. Well, congrats,
get some sleep, Ted, thank you for joining us. All right,
thank you, dan By. All Right, that's Ted Davis. Fox
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