March 24, 2022 • 35 mins
On The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon, the guys tell you the reason why Star players taking big nationally televised games off will come to a head sooner rather than later. Fox Sports 1 NBA Insider and Analyst Ric Bucher gives his opinion on the Miami Heat’s sideline interaction between Jimmy Butler, Udonis Haslem and Head Coach Erik Spoelstra and drops knowledge on all the big goings-on in the Association. Then, Jason & Mike dive back into the Blockbuster trade between the Chiefs and Dolphins.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to The Jason Smith Show with Mike
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(00:23):
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio Fox Sports Radio The
Jason Smith Show with My best friend Mike Harmon. Where
right now? The Lakers trail the seventies sixers ten minutes
ago in the fourth quarter. Lebron James not playing in
(00:45):
this game for the Lakers as the Lakers try to
win and stay in playoff position. Uh, in the bottom
of the playing round in the Western Conference. Again, still
a lot of time left here, just under ten minutes
left to go. Lakers now made it a three point game. Uh. Look,
this is a situation that the NBA is dealing with.
(01:06):
We'll get back into Tyrey killing a second that has
really started to become more than a thorn in their side,
and that star players taking off nationally televised games. Right.
We saw it happened with James Harden taking off a
couple of big games, took off a game against the Heat,
Lebron James taking off tonight against the seventies sixers. The players,
this is what's gonna happen. The players have decided to
(01:29):
push this as much as they can. Right, I'm gonna
if I want off, I'm gonna take off, and you're
not gonna tell me. And I'm the superstar. So if
I'm telling you I need a day off, I'm taking
a day off. I'm taking a day off a naturally
televised game. I'm gonna take a day off. They're gonna
push it too far, and they're gonna force the league
to have to answer with either some kind of discipline
or more proof or something that's going to result in
(01:52):
pissing off the players, because they're gonna keep pushing this
and pushing it and pushing it, and eventually you're gonna
have broadcast partners that are gonna say enough right because
we're not quite there. They're not quite there at the
point where they've had it, but they will very soon
that we've had games this year. We had X amount
of games this year, and we had the star players
opt out in of them. So that's percent of games
(02:13):
that people weren't watching because Lebron James wasn't playing or
James Harden wasn't playing, So we're not watching this game. Uh,
they're gonna push it too far because we're starting to
get there a little bit and and unless the players
pull back, and they're not going to because they're simply
gonna push their advantage as much as they can because
it's what they've been doing since Adam Silver took over.
We're just gonna continue to show that this is our league.
We do whatever the hell we want to. But it's
(02:34):
getting to that point where you're gonna see something really
big in a push back from the league. Yeah, it
is the curiosity. Right. Obviously, we had the big issue
a couple of years ago where there were all those
Saturday night games in a row where you'd have one
star saying Lebron James and then okay, on the other
side it's Stephan Draymond and or Steph and Clay before
(02:54):
clays injuries uh started to crop up and he missed
so much time. Uh, And that became an issue, right
because it was a spotlight Saturday game. To some degree,
they're insulated here, even though it's a national game that
it is in the middle of the week, but certainly
not a good look at home with a premium opponent
coming at you. Right, it's and he's able to say
(03:17):
sore nous with the knee because well, he put it
out there. What a month ago was the first thing saying,
you know, normally maybe maybe you shut it down a
while and and really tried to do the soft shoe
about it and played through. And the hard part is
he's played so so well in all these other games
that that it's hard to say, okay, it's okay, you
(03:38):
can take the night off and claim soreness because he's
playing forty minutes a night when he decides to play.
So this is this one particularly stings for the league
because you've got this matchup and again inn Conference, so
you get the rare visit by the Sixers, and I know,
think of the children, I think of the larger I
(04:00):
I think of the larger corporate entity, right, because the
think of the children moment as well. It's in l A.
You got him beat and he's playing, and Harden's playing,
but you'd love to see them against Lebron and well
you didn't get it. So unfortunately for the folks with tickets,
you did get a little bit of notice as a
saw that news break and sent it along to you
(04:21):
and Frostburg earlier, and we had our our moment on
it and away you go. But for for the larger perspective,
he's like, yeah, you've got a showcase matchup, and here's
all the when it was scheduled, it was it could
be a finals preview. All right, it's not. It's just
another game at the end of March now, but it's
still has significance when you're talking about two of the
(04:42):
great players and three when you include Harden in the game.
Twitter and how about a Fresca Mike has swollen Dome
The Jason Smith Show with my best friend Mike Harmon.
I'll have more in the NBA coming up again. The
Sixers lead the Lakers right now one oh five, still
eight minutes left to go in this game. But today, Look,
we talked a lot about because it was such a
(05:03):
big seismic move in the NFL. The Chiefs trade Tyreek
Hill to the Dolphins. Dolphins give up five draft picks.
The Chiefs, Hey make a good trade. Uh you know
that that's part of the angle on this. And now
Tyreek Hill is a member of the Dolphins, and the
way this came down, there's there's two things I want
to mention here about it. What one is. One is
(05:24):
I I want to just just move away from one
of the big stories coming. And the other one is
a pretty serious deal. But m Adam Schefter, when he
first reported this earlier today, said it was down to
the Jets and the Dolphins. Right. The Jets made a
big offer, the Dolphins made a big offer. The Jets
didn't quite give the first round picks that the Chiefs wanted,
(05:44):
but their overall package was very similar to the Dolphins,
and the Chiefs said, listen, we're happy with either one
of these, Tyreek, which one do you want? Uh? Of
course Tyreek Kill chose the Dolphins. Yeah, you know why
because he was never going to the Jets. All right?
That my team. They just got used as leverage because
this is what happened. But hey, maybe maybe maybe it
(06:05):
was a leading moment though. I mean, I don't know you.
You drafted well, you nice pieces on that squad that
when Ross called says I could get you, uh four years,
undred twenty million with seventy two million guaranteed. Yeah. Yeah,
but it's from the Jets. Uh, let me think about
this for a second. Boy, that's a lot of money
(06:26):
the Jets. Can we get somebody else involved? Oh, I
got the Dolphins involved, Yes, Dolphins, get the Dolphins involved.
Let him and Zack Wilson along with your running back,
get new wide receiver. I mean you've got players. Hey,
I get it, buddy. Look, Robert sala Is is building
something new. That Jets had a great draft last year.
They think they have their guy at quarterback. No, I
(06:47):
get it. I'm the Jets have hit rock bottom and
are starting to finally, you know, come up from it.
But still the Jets. Of the Jets, they've been a
tire fire for the last ten years. If you have
a choice between the Jets and anybody else, you're taking
anybody else, but especial if it's Miami. It's the Dolphins
at South Beach. It's oh my god, Yes, let me
go to Miami. They're building a big they're building big
stuff down there. They have a good all. Yeah, let
(07:08):
me go on Miami. Miami. It's it's kind of like
Los Angeles, except it's just three thousand miles east and
it's kind of it's kind of like l a light.
But that's okay. So of course the Jets were never
in it. It was just like Kirk Cousins. They got
used as leverage because if you have a choice between that,
you're not picking the Jets. The only way that you
that you pick the Jets is if they give you
more money than everybody else, because in the end, players
(07:30):
are gonna take more money, right, But when they can
get the same money from two places, yeah, then they're
gonna get a little picky. So but when the Jets
are the only team giving you money, well, hey, why
is c J is Alma a Jet? Because they give
him three years and twenty four million dollars. Nobody else
was doing that, all right, So guess what I'm gonna
be a Jet. That's what works. I forgot about c J. Yeah,
and hit and look at that. That's a pretty good offense.
If you add Tyreek Hill in there, I have no
(07:52):
idea how much you would have had to give up.
But he was never go He was never gonna pick
the Jets. Could have been the King of New York.
Never go revisit that classic. Uh, the Jason Smith Row
the Mic Carmon Love from the Fox Sports Radio studios.
But here's the here's the serious part of this now,
is that while this was going on in my timeline
today was oh my god, check on Jason, make sure
(08:14):
he's okay when it's between the Jets and the Dolphins
for him, And honestly, I didn't really want him. I
know it sounds crazy, but I think you know by
listening to me, listen to the show as much as
you had the last few years. Tyree Kill is a
hard guy to root for. Guys got domestic violence issues man,
and domestic violence issues that involved is that involved a
woman in college, that involved his wife in the national
football that involved his son who broke his arm, that
(08:37):
had to leave his custody, that had an investigation where
the the prosecution said, hey, a crime occurred, we just
can't absolutely prove it. Uh. He's a tough guy to
root for, man. And as I've said, there's a lot
of guys that I don't feel passionate about because you're
off the field. Stuff is bigger than football. Deshaun Watson,
(08:58):
it's hard to talk about him. Twenty two cases that
he's got are all twenty two women lying. I mean
that that's that that's not been resolved. Ben Roethlisberger was
hard to talk about. Michael Vick was hard to talk about. Uh.
The only time these guys came up in conversation was
when it was about things on the field. You're talking
about the resolution when they're playing in the NFL. Ben
(09:18):
Roethlisberger Michael Vick. Okay, they're playing, and they're part of
the deal. They're part of the whole big reality show
that is the National Football League, and what they do
on the field matters. Right. As we've learned in life,
you have bad people running things. Bad people run business,
bad people are in the government. It's everywhere, and but
it's part of who we are and and you cannot
(09:38):
like that these guys are in the positions that they are,
but they are. But when it comes to Tyreek Kill
on my team, I was okay with it because I how, how, mom,
how am I gonna root for him? When the Jets
had Michael Vick, I just thought, Okay, if he gets
on the field, I'm rooting for the name on the front, right,
I'm not rooting for the name on the back. It's
it's too tough. I I don't have any passion to
talk about Tyree Kill. I don't have passion to talk
(09:59):
about Roethlisberg or DeShawn Watson only really as it matters
to the game and what happens on the field. Even
after that, then I feel done because you know, Hill
Hill is a guy that it's really I went when
when when I just see his name, I say, all right, yeah,
did he do something we need to talk about. Yes,
we'll talk about it again. It's it's difficult and and
there's some guys and this is what comes up with
(10:21):
being some of the tough nights in sports. You know,
people say to me all the time, what are the
tough nights in sports to talk about? And I would say, well, whatever,
somebody dies, it's a big deal because it's a sad
day and we talk about their career in their life.
But the other part is nights like this, right was
Was I really looking forward to talking about DeShawn Watson
as much as we did? No? Not really, Because Deshaun
Watson has got a lot of issues, man, a lot
of bad issues that he's got to deal with. It's hard.
(10:43):
The same thing for Tyree Hill tonight I knew tonight
it's okay. We have to talk about Tyreek kill all
night tonight, and and and we got to make sure
we get into all the different avenues and angles about
what happens on the field, because there are a lot
of them. And it's, like I said, part of the
reality show that is the NFL. And we've gotten to them.
We're gonna get back into them roout the rest of
the show. But overall, when when Hill was out there
(11:03):
and the Jets could have gotten them, I was okay
they didn't. I really was okay because in the end,
all right, we can talk about it, and we can
talk about him and how he affects, but is he
on my team now? And I'm kind of okay with that. Yeah.
I think it's just the big reminder and and not
that it's finger wagging, moralizing whatever. It is part of
the larger dialogue, right because it is an escape here
(11:26):
in sports talk radio. But we have to be you know,
truthful to the the fandom overall, and and certainly people
are conflicted. You saw some of the reports coming out
of Cleveland as Deshaun Watson came to town. Right signs
banners put outside of people's homes and uh contributions coming
in to clinics and and and rape counseling centers and
(11:50):
everything else. Like there, there's a lot going on. So
it does come into the larger scope of what we're
doing here at Fox Sports Radio, and we're to be
able to to talk about these subjects as we do,
right that that it is doesn't have to just be
let's read a box score, talk about a great block shot.
(12:10):
But you know, when we're in the season, and I
know for some it's the alright, why are we talking
about like well, because he's in the news now and
there that is the history, and once he starts playing
for the Dolphins doesn't recede to the background. Sure, but
it's always there. It's latent there of the history because
it's it's the uneasy balance that we all play with
(12:31):
with fandom in any format, right and hero worship in
any format, because nobody's perfect, like we you stipulate to that,
right in any walk of life. We've talked about you
know some of the you know, whatever looks perfect in
terms of first place accomplishments by a team, well, there's
still always gonna be a little bit of unrest there,
(12:52):
or any family situation, relationship, whatever. Nothing's perfect, but you
have the situation here where it's a guy that is
still one of the top players at his position, highly coveted,
and right now in the silly season which has just
been absurdly rich for us on a day to day
basis in late March. It's another piece to the puzzle.
(13:15):
And you talk about and you know, we used a
few good men line Jason with some regularity talking about
the passion without passion or prejudice when you're talking about players.
You can appreciate what they are on the field, but
that doesn't mean you accept the the other piece to it. Right,
It's that uneasy balance, but you have to recognize that
(13:36):
it's there. In your fandom Twitter at how about a
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(13:57):
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(14:19):
slash credit. Well, tonight we watched on the Miami Heat sideline.
Jimmy Butler looks like he wanted to fight Donna's Hasselm
who definitely wanted to fight Jimmy Butler. Uh. Then Eric
Spoelster got into it, maybe asking Jimmy Butler if he
wanted to fight him too. Look to Jimmy Butler and said,
are you bleeping crazy? Everybody had to be separated in
(14:40):
the middle of a thirteen oh Golden State Warrior run.
In the game, the Warriors just steamrolled over the Heat tonight,
so first place team Miami Heat. Boy, they got problems.
Everybody wants to fight each other. Butler Spolstra hassle m
joining us now a guy who actually did get into
a big fist fight with don Nell Seen and Gregg
(15:00):
Popovich at the same time. Just a couple of years ago.
It's Fox Sports one insider Rick Buker, Rick, what's happening man?
That that if that did happen, that would be one
ugly fight. We've seen some videos of old guys going
at it on the street where one guy swings, he
doesn't even connect, and the other guy falls down because
he just loses his balance. He just you know, he
(15:23):
doesn't have a walker and he just tips over. Yeah,
that wouldn't that would not be would not be pretty. Jimmy, Jimmy,
but learned you do? And you're donas has them going
at it? That would that would be That would be
an interesting an interesting battle. And I'm not taking anything
away from spok. I don't think he'd win, but I
think he'd go down swinging. All right, Well, what what
(15:44):
did you make of what you saw tonight on the
sideline for this whole thing? Rick? Is? That was just amazing? Well, look,
this is the second game in a row where they
played at shorthanded, extremely shorthanded team and this is a
Warrior's team that at full strength lost to the Orlando
Magic the night before. So uh, they were down nineteen.
(16:05):
I believe um in part because Jordan Poole just pulled
two threes out of his back pocket, bank threes from
the from the Hash that were desperation slings that banked in.
But nonetheless, Um, the Heat weren't playing anywhere close to
their potential and particularly we're not playing well defensively, and
(16:26):
that really is their calling card. I honestly looking at
all three of them, Jimmy Udonis and spoke, they all
played the character, Um Jimmy. Jimmy is always an irascible
character with every team he's been on, with his coaches,
with his teammates. Uh, you love him for how hard
he plays, but he does not he does not hold
(16:49):
his tongue and he doesn't care if he's in the minority.
And uh, and I would imagine that because of their
defensive issues, that they felt Jimmy was at the core
of at and core and and Jimmy thought otherwise. And
um Udonis is Udonis is a company man. If I mean,
he is all about the team. So if if if
(17:12):
Jimmy is suggesting the supposed game plan is not on,
Udonist will be the first one to say he run
the damn plans and then we'll find out whether it's
good or not so m so I like I I
there are other reasons why I have my doubts about
the Miami heat. It really it really bothered me in
(17:33):
the post game. First of all, I got too incredible credit.
Uh the way he spun that wasn't it? Oh so galvanized?
He wanted to fight Jimmy Butler, that was poetry. This
is this is our language, This is our love language, said,
this is this is how we really, this is how
(17:54):
we show each other that we care about each other
when we communicate like this, but we want to throw down.
That means we love it other and were closer than everything,
I mean literally, For anybody didn't hear it that bo
basically were saying that. I thought it was brilliant. What
bothered me, What really bothered me was we get questions
like is there going to be a carryover on this?
What do you think he's gonna say? Yeah, you know what,
(18:15):
I just probably gonna hang over us and ruin our season.
Why so they asked what happened on the bench, and
he gives you the general. Everybody was upset, and nobody
follows up with a question, Yeah, but you and Jimmy
seemed particularly upset. Why wasn't nobody asked that question? And
(18:36):
then nobody asked the question of because he said, you know,
you could see how we responded. We came back because
the one nobody asked the question, Okay, so why didn't
you sustain it in the fourth quarter? Like why why
did they? Why why did it only laugh at the
end of the third quarter we got got within one.
It sometimes it drives me crazy, I feel, and I
(18:57):
kind of understand it in one way. Access is really
be difficult, um, and I think that a lot of
reporters today are scared of upsetting the people that they
cover on a regular basis. But you've got to ask
the questions. You gotta you gotta ask the direct questions,
not kind of dance around do you think this? Could
(19:17):
you know? This? Could? Do you think this could be? Something? Like?
How do you to answer that? No, I don't think
it's I mean, other than I don't think it's gonna
be something. I just I don't know. I was I
watched the post game because I was enthralled with spo
work in his magic, and I'm like, okay, can one
of my kindreds uh my, my fellow writers reporters. Can
(19:37):
someone like Poco hole like appreciate givespo a little golf
clap and then that was pretty good, Spoe not can
we get the real heart of it, like what's up
with you and Jimmy? But I was waiting for someone
to do it. No one came close. Yeah, I really
wish he would have just had the sarcasm bucket out
and just said, yeah, after seventy games, this is the
thing that's going to fracture us beyond all repair. Hey,
(19:58):
speaking of a team that we're trying to figure out
out here, Rick Brooklyn getting good news Kyrie Irving is
gonna be available every night going forward. However, they go
out and they get throttled by the Memphis Grizzlies, with
John Moranton street clothes hyping them up during timeouts. Yeah, yeah,
it's um well, this is what I see in the
(20:22):
Brooklyn nets, and I think it's why Kevin Durant has
already turned his attention to next year when they they
hopefully have a full compliment with with Ben Simmons and
Kyrie Irving every night. But they their their offense, are
their their energy strictly comes out of their their offense.
They there's no, there's no tenacity at the defensive end.
(20:46):
There's no we're gonna close it and we're gonna win
the game by we know we can out, we know
we can score when we need to. Kyrie Irving and
Kad can get that done. Are we gonna lock in
at the defensive end and try to get it done there?
And they only play hard defensively when they're making shots,
and that's not always going to happen. And the Memphis
Girdlies are built the exact opposite. They're always like, if
(21:06):
they're not playing well defensively, that's when they get upset.
And I'm seeing the same thing against the Philadelphia seventy
sixers against the Lakers tonight, another team that that I
I get it. When you're playing an a inferior team, Uh,
it's it's not uncommon, and plenty of good teams, championship
(21:27):
caliber teams do it. They'll they'll they'll just hang around
for three and a half, maybe four quarters, and at
some point they just go, hey, we're gonna shut this down.
We're gonna give you our best eight nine minutes of basketball,
and we're gonna close this out. And sometimes it doesn't
quite work because they've given confidence to the team and
(21:48):
they start hitting some shots and it gets away from you.
But most of the time that's enough to get what
we call a professional win. You didn't you didn't play
well well all night, but you knew, you took measure
of who you were playing, and you've you've you flash
your superiority, uh in enough time to get it done
and uh and and you see that with the Milwaukee
(22:08):
Bucks a lot this year. They just decide to turn
it up. Good teams decided to turn it up. I
don't see that with the Nets or the Sixers as
teams that we consider championship contenders. And if you haven't
developed that intrinsic ability to say we can play hard
(22:30):
at both ends of the floor for the next six
minutes with relentlessly, then there's no chance that you're going
to be able to do that for forty eight minutes
consistently in the playoffs. And that's what it requires. And
that's why I just I just see them melting as
(22:52):
to all the wrong times. Once we get to the postseason,
they'll win their share games, they'll they'll be a threat
because they're just too talented. But when it comes to
that that tenacity to close out games. I'm not that
that's that's the muscle that you develop over the course
of the season, and I haven't seen either one of
these teams developed it to the point where I think
(23:13):
that there are true threats to come out of the East.
Rick bukerar guest Fox Sports One NBA inside of the
Jason Smith Show with Mike Carmen. All right, So moving
away from the nets for a second. Something we talked
about a little bit here to begin the hour was
here's a game where Lebron James takes the night off. Clearly,
the NBA is probably not happy. It's a marquee game
against the Sixers, nationally televised. He's out, James Harden took
(23:36):
off a couple of games, took off the game against
the Heat. NBA not happy at some point, Rick, isn't
something going to happen because isn't the NBA and broadcast
partner's gonna say, okay, enough enough with this taking time
off and we don't know you. We pay a lot
of money for these games, and we had of our
games not have marquee players because the players are gonna
(23:56):
keep pushing this and taking nights off as long as
the team's gonna allow them to. But I got don't
think there's going to be some kind of retaliation from
the NBA to say, Okay, we gotta take care of
this because now it's getting out of control on our
broadcast partners are not happy and and we gotta take
care of this. Yeah. There, I would imagine that. The
only question I have is how much of this is
coming from the medical staff, because the coaches and the
(24:17):
gms don't have the same control that they once did,
and the medical staffs have expanded exponentially on every team.
If you go back and you go find a media
guy in ten fifteen years ago, it's probably like three
four people listed under the medical staff. Now there's twenty
three people. Um. And so I don't know how much
of this is being generated by the medical staff having,
(24:41):
you know, measuring minutes and all sorts of biometrics. I
know that not all of it is Some of it
is is just a status symbol. I'm good enough that
I don't have to play all eighty two and um.
But I do think that it will be addressed because
it's an opening for the owners in the next collective
(25:02):
bargaining agreement to say you will be paid based on
the number of games that you play, like we'll give
you get the get the full vote if you play
up to seventy five games or whatever it might be
that after that, for every game that you that you
you miss, you know of barring a legitimate injury, um,
(25:24):
we're gonna we're gonna docupay, you're gonna lose money. And
so that guys aren't as cavalier about taking games off
as as they have been. But I assure you there
there are issues with uh, the owners looking at it,
feeling just in general like the players, um, with all
(25:46):
the money that they are making, that it has given
them a latitude to say, yeah, I'm not my money
is guaranteed. You know, I don't I don't have to
play that. It's and it's not just not just guys
taking games off. It's like the Ben Simmons situation. You know, Uh,
it's it's Kyrie Irving. It's it's guys who can who
(26:06):
can you know laterally say I'm making so much money
if I decided not to play, or I decided not
to play for a year, even I can afford to
do it. They want to find a way to to
not make it affordable to miss again, to miss the season. Hey, Rick,
last one for me? How how enjoyable was the Zion
(26:26):
dunk last night? And how many times did you watch it?
So there's the dunk and then he was playing one
on one with Corey Brewer. Was the other clip I
saw also dunked on him. I I'm flabbergasted at all
the reports that he is. Uh, he didn't play all year.
(26:46):
He's not going to play this season. The bone is
healing slowly but surely. But he really can't do a
whole lot of on court activity. And then he's playing
one on one and he's just out of the blue.
He's he's throwing it off the rim of throwing off
the backboard and and crushing it like, um, so has
he heard or is he not heard? Because I like,
(27:09):
if you ordered eighty five pounds and you can, it's
not the jumping, it's the landing. I don't know. He
looked pretty damn spry to me, and you're telling me, yeah,
I can. I can work on my dunking, but I
can't work on my jump shot or my free throws,
like or I can't I don't. I have no explanation
(27:29):
for it, and I have no what I really don't
have an explanation for because it had to be somebody
with the Pelicans that took that video and put it out.
Why would you want that out there? Why? I raises
so many questions, whether you're Zion or your David Griffin
or uh, you're anybody with that organization. I don't know why.
(27:55):
Here's here's the guy that you guys all bought tickets
to watch, and he hasn't it all year and he's
not gonna play this season, but here he is dunking
in our gym. It is such a terrible look for
everybody involved. Uh, And I can't quite explain it what
I what I wish I had, Rick, I can explain
it for you. I can explain. You can tell you
exactly what it is. You know, you know you know
(28:18):
what exactly what it is. Show. That's why I here
on this show, because when I don't know something, I
know I can trust that you're going to tell me.
So of course, look, this is it's it's not about
the Knicks now. But here's the thing. I don't think
there's any coincidence that he posts this video the day
after the story comes out. Sources say Zion is not
(28:38):
going to play for the Pelicans anymore. He is done
for this season. He's out this season. He's done playing
for the franchise. And he's showing everybody, hey, I'm healthy,
come get me. Because in the off season he's gonna
say I want out. He's he's not invested there, He
hasn't been invested there. How dinged up is he? If
this is what he's doing. He wants out. He wants
(28:58):
to get to a more mark destination. And he's telling everybody,
I'm okay, look I'm dunking, I'm playing one on one.
This is not this is Hey, Pelicans fans, it's coming.
This is not the Pelicans putting this video out. This
is him putting it out because he wants other teams
to know, hey, come get me, because he's in a
new destination. It's going to be the story of the offseason, Zion.
Where can he go? Who's gonna put up the biggest
(29:19):
trade form? Where's you go? That's what's gonna happen. So
that makes perfect sense, except if you were really shrewd
or smart about it and you didn't want to wave
it in the pelicans fans faces so that they hate
you more than like. You can put that video out
(29:43):
after the season, or you can put it out at
a point where people can make a play for you
to let them know. You don't have to do it
right at the time, Like I mean, shortly after it's
announced you're not playing again in the season, and then hey,
hell but I can play. I can play. I can
I got to do everything. I just can't play for
the Pelican, that's all. I just just the way to
(30:07):
get the message across without like, um, just smearing it
in the in the Pelican's parents. Stacey. He's on Twitter
at Rick Buker. That is at Rick Buker, Fox Sports One, NBA.
Inside of there is I'm gonna smear in your face.
Rick is the last. Appreciate it, man, have fun. We'll
talk to you next week, all right. He's the best.
(30:31):
He's got big, big stuff on Steph Curry and his injury.
Check out Rick at Rick Buker on Twitter for the latest.
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific. Hey, this is Jason McIntyre Join me every
weekday morning on my podcast, Straight Fired with Jason McIntyre.
(30:52):
This isn't your typical sports pod pushing the same tired
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(31:19):
Fox Sports Radio, the Jason Smith Show with my best
friend Mike Hartman. So what I said earlier in the
show that hey, the Chiefs trading Tyree Kill was a
good move. They have seen that. Okay, running this with
(31:39):
the big three, we're not getting better, right. We went
from a Super Bowl champion to Super Bowl runner up
to not making the a f C championship. We need
something different. Unfortunately, don't want to trade Tyree Kill. The
guys one of the best receivers in the NFL. But
we have to do something different. Who's gonna bring us
the best return? It's Tyree Kill. Wide receivers are eminently
(31:59):
replaced sable in this era of the NFL, five to
seven new guys come in the draft every year that
are ready to play and ready to be stars. This
is what the Chiefs are going to do, a reload
on the fly with. If we have our room with
more talent and it's deeper, we can overcome the loss
of Tyree Hill. Right. They already brought in Juju Smith
Schuster I said they're gonna go in the draft. You're
(32:20):
gonna see them try to go out and get other
players to do it. Well, they're already doing it. According
to reports, they are calling and talking to the Jaguars
about Laviska Channel. And this was a guy who was
a big playmaker coming out of Colorado and look on
the Jags the last couple of years he has flashed.
He is a hell of a football player. Now suddenly
you want to throw him in that Chief's offense. If
(32:41):
this is how they're gonna do it, replacing Tyree Hill
with four good wide receivers, because look what have they
done the last couple of years. We're loading up. We
have Tyreeke and we have Kelsey and that's really it.
And and we haven't really gone crazy trying to bring
good players in because that's kind of what we have. No,
now we've got to replace tyreek Kill. We need a
deeper wide receiver room. That's how we're gonna do it.
(33:03):
And they're already enacting this plan. I expect them to
have three or four wide receivers who you can say, hey,
these guys could be good. And that's how they're gonna
replace tyreek Kill. You can already see the plan. No,
you look at this situation. Right, a guy that how
many times you know before he was very quickly uh
well shuffled off from Jacksonville. Did urban Meyer have to
(33:25):
address what they were doing with right? What is he? No,
he's more than a gadget guy. Well, although you didn't
really use him today, so I guess he was back
to being a gadget guy in his career talking to
got a hundred seventy nine targets one catches averaging about
ten yards to catch. Uh. They used him as a
(33:46):
rusher with twenty nine rushing attempts in his two years.
So yeah, you can get creative with him and put
the ball in his hand anywhere and still speed. Right,
there is a guy that was chilled drafted early. Uh,
and I don't know how much untapped potential is there,
but if anybody's gonna do it, Andy Reid is gonna
figure it out. Even with Matt Naggy around, they're still
(34:07):
gonna got I gotta side swipe in because that's one
of the steps back that they took. Even though he
was successful there. Uh, he's not the same guy coming back, man.
But but no, Look, you you go and find value
and if it doesn't work, guess what, go find another guy.
There's still a lot of wide receivers available, some pretty
(34:28):
big names, and if they're willing, if we're gonna use
it for Baker, let's use it to the Whiteouts. If
you're willing to be humbled and be the number three guy,
number two and to a whatever you're gonna term it,
then yeah, you can come in and play a pretty
significant role in that offense. Twitter At how about a
fresca Mike gets swollen to him the Jason Smith Show
with my best friend Mike Carmon. Look, it makes sense
(34:49):
because as good as Tyreek Hill is, he's replaceable. All
every wide receiver the NFL is replaceable because of the
talent level coming out right now. We have never in
history of the NFL had as many talented wide receivers
coming into the game NFL ready that we do right now,
Guys not just coming in and contributing, but guys coming
in dominating like Jamaar Chas or Jalen Waddle or Davante Smith.
(35:12):
There come Because everybody's throwing in college, they're coming out
much more polished. There's no Well in a couple of years,
it's got no. They hit the ground running now and
as good as Hill is, well, okay, we can go
get a guy for the next four or five years.
It's a lot cheaper. Well, yeah, instead of thirty million
dollars a year. Yes, yes, you need to build a
team and your quarterbacks already making thirty and your tight
(35:35):
ends making twelve. Twitter and out about a Fresca Mike
hats swollen down the Jason Smith Show with my best
friend Mike Harmon. Uh coming up next, boy, there's sometimes
a big time teams get reality checks as to where
they stand. And one big time NBA team got a
big time reality check tonight. That's coming up next right here.
This is Fox
Thanks for listening to The Jason Smith Show with Mike
Harmen podcast. Be sure to catch us live every week
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(00:23):
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio Fox Sports Radio The
Jason Smith Show with My best friend Mike Harmon. Where
right now? The Lakers trail the seventies sixers ten minutes
ago in the fourth quarter. Lebron James not playing in
(00:45):
this game for the Lakers as the Lakers try to
win and stay in playoff position. Uh, in the bottom
of the playing round in the Western Conference. Again, still
a lot of time left here, just under ten minutes
left to go. Lakers now made it a three point game. Uh. Look,
this is a situation that the NBA is dealing with.
(01:06):
We'll get back into Tyrey killing a second that has
really started to become more than a thorn in their side,
and that star players taking off nationally televised games. Right.
We saw it happened with James Harden taking off a
couple of big games, took off a game against the Heat,
Lebron James taking off tonight against the seventies sixers. The players,
this is what's gonna happen. The players have decided to
(01:29):
push this as much as they can. Right, I'm gonna
if I want off, I'm gonna take off, and you're
not gonna tell me. And I'm the superstar. So if
I'm telling you I need a day off, I'm taking
a day off. I'm taking a day off a naturally
televised game. I'm gonna take a day off. They're gonna
push it too far, and they're gonna force the league
to have to answer with either some kind of discipline
or more proof or something that's going to result in
(01:52):
pissing off the players, because they're gonna keep pushing this
and pushing it and pushing it, and eventually you're gonna
have broadcast partners that are gonna say enough right because
we're not quite there. They're not quite there at the
point where they've had it, but they will very soon
that we've had games this year. We had X amount
of games this year, and we had the star players
opt out in of them. So that's percent of games
(02:13):
that people weren't watching because Lebron James wasn't playing or
James Harden wasn't playing, So we're not watching this game. Uh,
they're gonna push it too far because we're starting to
get there a little bit and and unless the players
pull back, and they're not going to because they're simply
gonna push their advantage as much as they can because
it's what they've been doing since Adam Silver took over.
We're just gonna continue to show that this is our league.
We do whatever the hell we want to. But it's
(02:34):
getting to that point where you're gonna see something really
big in a push back from the league. Yeah, it
is the curiosity. Right. Obviously, we had the big issue
a couple of years ago where there were all those
Saturday night games in a row where you'd have one
star saying Lebron James and then okay, on the other
side it's Stephan Draymond and or Steph and Clay before
(02:54):
clays injuries uh started to crop up and he missed
so much time. Uh, And that became an issue, right
because it was a spotlight Saturday game. To some degree,
they're insulated here, even though it's a national game that
it is in the middle of the week, but certainly
not a good look at home with a premium opponent
coming at you. Right, it's and he's able to say
(03:17):
sore nous with the knee because well, he put it
out there. What a month ago was the first thing saying,
you know, normally maybe maybe you shut it down a
while and and really tried to do the soft shoe
about it and played through. And the hard part is
he's played so so well in all these other games
that that it's hard to say, okay, it's okay, you
(03:38):
can take the night off and claim soreness because he's
playing forty minutes a night when he decides to play.
So this is this one particularly stings for the league
because you've got this matchup and again inn Conference, so
you get the rare visit by the Sixers, and I know,
think of the children, I think of the larger I
(04:00):
I think of the larger corporate entity, right, because the
think of the children moment as well. It's in l A.
You got him beat and he's playing, and Harden's playing,
but you'd love to see them against Lebron and well
you didn't get it. So unfortunately for the folks with tickets,
you did get a little bit of notice as a
saw that news break and sent it along to you
(04:21):
and Frostburg earlier, and we had our our moment on
it and away you go. But for for the larger perspective,
he's like, yeah, you've got a showcase matchup, and here's
all the when it was scheduled, it was it could
be a finals preview. All right, it's not. It's just
another game at the end of March now, but it's
still has significance when you're talking about two of the
(04:42):
great players and three when you include Harden in the game.
Twitter and how about a Fresca Mike has swollen Dome
The Jason Smith Show with my best friend Mike Harmon.
I'll have more in the NBA coming up again. The
Sixers lead the Lakers right now one oh five, still
eight minutes left to go in this game. But today, Look,
we talked a lot about because it was such a
(05:03):
big seismic move in the NFL. The Chiefs trade Tyreek
Hill to the Dolphins. Dolphins give up five draft picks.
The Chiefs, Hey make a good trade. Uh you know
that that's part of the angle on this. And now
Tyreek Hill is a member of the Dolphins, and the
way this came down, there's there's two things I want
to mention here about it. What one is. One is
(05:24):
I I want to just just move away from one
of the big stories coming. And the other one is
a pretty serious deal. But m Adam Schefter, when he
first reported this earlier today, said it was down to
the Jets and the Dolphins. Right. The Jets made a
big offer, the Dolphins made a big offer. The Jets
didn't quite give the first round picks that the Chiefs wanted,
(05:44):
but their overall package was very similar to the Dolphins,
and the Chiefs said, listen, we're happy with either one
of these, Tyreek, which one do you want? Uh? Of
course Tyreek Kill chose the Dolphins. Yeah, you know why
because he was never going to the Jets. All right?
That my team. They just got used as leverage because
this is what happened. But hey, maybe maybe maybe it
(06:05):
was a leading moment though. I mean, I don't know you.
You drafted well, you nice pieces on that squad that
when Ross called says I could get you, uh four years,
undred twenty million with seventy two million guaranteed. Yeah. Yeah,
but it's from the Jets. Uh, let me think about
this for a second. Boy, that's a lot of money
(06:26):
the Jets. Can we get somebody else involved? Oh, I
got the Dolphins involved, Yes, Dolphins, get the Dolphins involved.
Let him and Zack Wilson along with your running back,
get new wide receiver. I mean you've got players. Hey,
I get it, buddy. Look, Robert sala Is is building
something new. That Jets had a great draft last year.
They think they have their guy at quarterback. No, I
(06:47):
get it. I'm the Jets have hit rock bottom and
are starting to finally, you know, come up from it.
But still the Jets. Of the Jets, they've been a
tire fire for the last ten years. If you have
a choice between the Jets and anybody else, you're taking
anybody else, but especial if it's Miami. It's the Dolphins
at South Beach. It's oh my god, Yes, let me
go to Miami. They're building a big they're building big
stuff down there. They have a good all. Yeah, let
(07:08):
me go on Miami. Miami. It's it's kind of like
Los Angeles, except it's just three thousand miles east and
it's kind of it's kind of like l a light.
But that's okay. So of course the Jets were never
in it. It was just like Kirk Cousins. They got
used as leverage because if you have a choice between that,
you're not picking the Jets. The only way that you
that you pick the Jets is if they give you
more money than everybody else, because in the end, players
(07:30):
are gonna take more money, right, But when they can
get the same money from two places, yeah, then they're
gonna get a little picky. So but when the Jets
are the only team giving you money, well, hey, why
is c J is Alma a Jet? Because they give
him three years and twenty four million dollars. Nobody else
was doing that, all right, So guess what I'm gonna
be a Jet. That's what works. I forgot about c J. Yeah,
and hit and look at that. That's a pretty good offense.
If you add Tyreek Hill in there, I have no
(07:52):
idea how much you would have had to give up.
But he was never go He was never gonna pick
the Jets. Could have been the King of New York.
Never go revisit that classic. Uh, the Jason Smith Row
the Mic Carmon Love from the Fox Sports Radio studios.
But here's the here's the serious part of this now,
is that while this was going on in my timeline
today was oh my god, check on Jason, make sure
(08:14):
he's okay when it's between the Jets and the Dolphins
for him, And honestly, I didn't really want him. I
know it sounds crazy, but I think you know by
listening to me, listen to the show as much as
you had the last few years. Tyree Kill is a
hard guy to root for. Guys got domestic violence issues man,
and domestic violence issues that involved is that involved a
woman in college, that involved his wife in the national
football that involved his son who broke his arm, that
(08:37):
had to leave his custody, that had an investigation where
the the prosecution said, hey, a crime occurred, we just
can't absolutely prove it. Uh. He's a tough guy to
root for, man. And as I've said, there's a lot
of guys that I don't feel passionate about because you're
off the field. Stuff is bigger than football. Deshaun Watson,
(08:58):
it's hard to talk about him. Twenty two cases that
he's got are all twenty two women lying. I mean
that that's that that's not been resolved. Ben Roethlisberger was
hard to talk about. Michael Vick was hard to talk about. Uh.
The only time these guys came up in conversation was
when it was about things on the field. You're talking
about the resolution when they're playing in the NFL. Ben
(09:18):
Roethlisberger Michael Vick. Okay, they're playing, and they're part of
the deal. They're part of the whole big reality show
that is the National Football League, and what they do
on the field matters. Right. As we've learned in life,
you have bad people running things. Bad people run business,
bad people are in the government. It's everywhere, and but
it's part of who we are and and you cannot
(09:38):
like that these guys are in the positions that they are,
but they are. But when it comes to Tyreek Kill
on my team, I was okay with it because I how, how, mom,
how am I gonna root for him? When the Jets
had Michael Vick, I just thought, Okay, if he gets
on the field, I'm rooting for the name on the front, right,
I'm not rooting for the name on the back. It's
it's too tough. I I don't have any passion to
talk about Tyree Kill. I don't have passion to talk
(09:59):
about Roethlisberg or DeShawn Watson only really as it matters
to the game and what happens on the field. Even
after that, then I feel done because you know, Hill
Hill is a guy that it's really I went when
when when I just see his name, I say, all right, yeah,
did he do something we need to talk about. Yes,
we'll talk about it again. It's it's difficult and and
there's some guys and this is what comes up with
(10:21):
being some of the tough nights in sports. You know,
people say to me all the time, what are the
tough nights in sports to talk about? And I would say, well, whatever,
somebody dies, it's a big deal because it's a sad
day and we talk about their career in their life.
But the other part is nights like this, right was
Was I really looking forward to talking about DeShawn Watson
as much as we did? No? Not really, Because Deshaun
Watson has got a lot of issues, man, a lot
of bad issues that he's got to deal with. It's hard.
(10:43):
The same thing for Tyree Hill tonight I knew tonight
it's okay. We have to talk about Tyreek kill all
night tonight, and and and we got to make sure
we get into all the different avenues and angles about
what happens on the field, because there are a lot
of them. And it's, like I said, part of the
reality show that is the NFL. And we've gotten to them.
We're gonna get back into them roout the rest of
the show. But overall, when when Hill was out there
(11:03):
and the Jets could have gotten them, I was okay
they didn't. I really was okay because in the end,
all right, we can talk about it, and we can
talk about him and how he affects, but is he
on my team now? And I'm kind of okay with that. Yeah.
I think it's just the big reminder and and not
that it's finger wagging, moralizing whatever. It is part of
the larger dialogue, right because it is an escape here
(11:26):
in sports talk radio. But we have to be you know,
truthful to the the fandom overall, and and certainly people
are conflicted. You saw some of the reports coming out
of Cleveland as Deshaun Watson came to town. Right signs
banners put outside of people's homes and uh contributions coming
in to clinics and and and rape counseling centers and
(11:50):
everything else. Like there, there's a lot going on. So
it does come into the larger scope of what we're
doing here at Fox Sports Radio, and we're to be
able to to talk about these subjects as we do,
right that that it is doesn't have to just be
let's read a box score, talk about a great block shot.
(12:10):
But you know, when we're in the season, and I
know for some it's the alright, why are we talking
about like well, because he's in the news now and
there that is the history, and once he starts playing
for the Dolphins doesn't recede to the background. Sure, but
it's always there. It's latent there of the history because
it's it's the uneasy balance that we all play with
(12:31):
with fandom in any format, right and hero worship in
any format, because nobody's perfect, like we you stipulate to that,
right in any walk of life. We've talked about you
know some of the you know, whatever looks perfect in
terms of first place accomplishments by a team, well, there's
still always gonna be a little bit of unrest there,
(12:52):
or any family situation, relationship, whatever. Nothing's perfect, but you
have the situation here where it's a guy that is
still one of the top players at his position, highly coveted,
and right now in the silly season which has just
been absurdly rich for us on a day to day
basis in late March. It's another piece to the puzzle.
(13:15):
And you talk about and you know, we used a
few good men line Jason with some regularity talking about
the passion without passion or prejudice when you're talking about players.
You can appreciate what they are on the field, but
that doesn't mean you accept the the other piece to it. Right,
It's that uneasy balance, but you have to recognize that
(13:36):
it's there. In your fandom Twitter at how about a
fresca Mike gets swollen don The Jason Smith Show with
my best friend Mike harm It's he's tough to talk about.
I'm glad he's not on my team. Be sure to
catch live editions of The Jason Smith Show with Mike
harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven pm Pacific on
Fox Sports Radio and the I Heart Radio app Fox
(13:57):
Sports Radio. The Jason Smith Show with My I best
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Visit indeed dot com slash credit that's indeed dot com
(14:19):
slash credit. Well, tonight we watched on the Miami Heat sideline.
Jimmy Butler looks like he wanted to fight Donna's Hasselm
who definitely wanted to fight Jimmy Butler. Uh. Then Eric
Spoelster got into it, maybe asking Jimmy Butler if he
wanted to fight him too. Look to Jimmy Butler and said,
are you bleeping crazy? Everybody had to be separated in
(14:40):
the middle of a thirteen oh Golden State Warrior run.
In the game, the Warriors just steamrolled over the Heat tonight,
so first place team Miami Heat. Boy, they got problems.
Everybody wants to fight each other. Butler Spolstra hassle m
joining us now a guy who actually did get into
a big fist fight with don Nell Seen and Gregg
(15:00):
Popovich at the same time. Just a couple of years ago.
It's Fox Sports one insider Rick Buker, Rick, what's happening man?
That that if that did happen, that would be one
ugly fight. We've seen some videos of old guys going
at it on the street where one guy swings, he
doesn't even connect, and the other guy falls down because
he just loses his balance. He just you know, he
(15:23):
doesn't have a walker and he just tips over. Yeah,
that wouldn't that would not be would not be pretty. Jimmy, Jimmy,
but learned you do? And you're donas has them going
at it? That would that would be That would be
an interesting an interesting battle. And I'm not taking anything
away from spok. I don't think he'd win, but I
think he'd go down swinging. All right, Well, what what
(15:44):
did you make of what you saw tonight on the
sideline for this whole thing? Rick? Is? That was just amazing? Well, look,
this is the second game in a row where they
played at shorthanded, extremely shorthanded team and this is a
Warrior's team that at full strength lost to the Orlando
Magic the night before. So uh, they were down nineteen.
(16:05):
I believe um in part because Jordan Poole just pulled
two threes out of his back pocket, bank threes from
the from the Hash that were desperation slings that banked in.
But nonetheless, Um, the Heat weren't playing anywhere close to
their potential and particularly we're not playing well defensively, and
(16:26):
that really is their calling card. I honestly looking at
all three of them, Jimmy Udonis and spoke, they all
played the character, Um Jimmy. Jimmy is always an irascible
character with every team he's been on, with his coaches,
with his teammates. Uh, you love him for how hard
he plays, but he does not he does not hold
(16:49):
his tongue and he doesn't care if he's in the minority.
And uh, and I would imagine that because of their
defensive issues, that they felt Jimmy was at the core
of at and core and and Jimmy thought otherwise. And
um Udonis is Udonis is a company man. If I mean,
he is all about the team. So if if if
(17:12):
Jimmy is suggesting the supposed game plan is not on,
Udonist will be the first one to say he run
the damn plans and then we'll find out whether it's
good or not so m so I like I I
there are other reasons why I have my doubts about
the Miami heat. It really it really bothered me in
(17:33):
the post game. First of all, I got too incredible credit.
Uh the way he spun that wasn't it? Oh so galvanized?
He wanted to fight Jimmy Butler, that was poetry. This
is this is our language, This is our love language, said,
this is this is how we really, this is how
(17:54):
we show each other that we care about each other
when we communicate like this, but we want to throw down.
That means we love it other and were closer than everything,
I mean literally, For anybody didn't hear it that bo
basically were saying that. I thought it was brilliant. What
bothered me, What really bothered me was we get questions
like is there going to be a carryover on this?
What do you think he's gonna say? Yeah, you know what,
(18:15):
I just probably gonna hang over us and ruin our season.
Why so they asked what happened on the bench, and
he gives you the general. Everybody was upset, and nobody
follows up with a question, Yeah, but you and Jimmy
seemed particularly upset. Why wasn't nobody asked that question? And
(18:36):
then nobody asked the question of because he said, you know,
you could see how we responded. We came back because
the one nobody asked the question, Okay, so why didn't
you sustain it in the fourth quarter? Like why why
did they? Why why did it only laugh at the
end of the third quarter we got got within one.
It sometimes it drives me crazy, I feel, and I
(18:57):
kind of understand it in one way. Access is really
be difficult, um, and I think that a lot of
reporters today are scared of upsetting the people that they
cover on a regular basis. But you've got to ask
the questions. You gotta you gotta ask the direct questions,
not kind of dance around do you think this? Could
(19:17):
you know? This? Could? Do you think this could be? Something? Like?
How do you to answer that? No, I don't think
it's I mean, other than I don't think it's gonna
be something. I just I don't know. I was I
watched the post game because I was enthralled with spo
work in his magic, and I'm like, okay, can one
of my kindreds uh my, my fellow writers reporters. Can
(19:37):
someone like Poco hole like appreciate givespo a little golf
clap and then that was pretty good, Spoe not can
we get the real heart of it, like what's up
with you and Jimmy? But I was waiting for someone
to do it. No one came close. Yeah, I really
wish he would have just had the sarcasm bucket out
and just said, yeah, after seventy games, this is the
thing that's going to fracture us beyond all repair. Hey,
(19:58):
speaking of a team that we're trying to figure out
out here, Rick Brooklyn getting good news Kyrie Irving is
gonna be available every night going forward. However, they go
out and they get throttled by the Memphis Grizzlies, with
John Moranton street clothes hyping them up during timeouts. Yeah, yeah,
it's um well, this is what I see in the
(20:22):
Brooklyn nets, and I think it's why Kevin Durant has
already turned his attention to next year when they they
hopefully have a full compliment with with Ben Simmons and
Kyrie Irving every night. But they their their offense, are
their their energy strictly comes out of their their offense.
They there's no, there's no tenacity at the defensive end.
(20:46):
There's no we're gonna close it and we're gonna win
the game by we know we can out, we know
we can score when we need to. Kyrie Irving and
Kad can get that done. Are we gonna lock in
at the defensive end and try to get it done there?
And they only play hard defensively when they're making shots,
and that's not always going to happen. And the Memphis
Girdlies are built the exact opposite. They're always like, if
(21:06):
they're not playing well defensively, that's when they get upset.
And I'm seeing the same thing against the Philadelphia seventy
sixers against the Lakers tonight, another team that that I
I get it. When you're playing an a inferior team, Uh,
it's it's not uncommon, and plenty of good teams, championship
(21:27):
caliber teams do it. They'll they'll they'll just hang around
for three and a half, maybe four quarters, and at
some point they just go, hey, we're gonna shut this down.
We're gonna give you our best eight nine minutes of basketball,
and we're gonna close this out. And sometimes it doesn't
quite work because they've given confidence to the team and
(21:48):
they start hitting some shots and it gets away from you.
But most of the time that's enough to get what
we call a professional win. You didn't you didn't play
well well all night, but you knew, you took measure
of who you were playing, and you've you've you flash
your superiority, uh in enough time to get it done
and uh and and you see that with the Milwaukee
(22:08):
Bucks a lot this year. They just decide to turn
it up. Good teams decided to turn it up. I
don't see that with the Nets or the Sixers as
teams that we consider championship contenders. And if you haven't
developed that intrinsic ability to say we can play hard
(22:30):
at both ends of the floor for the next six
minutes with relentlessly, then there's no chance that you're going
to be able to do that for forty eight minutes
consistently in the playoffs. And that's what it requires. And
that's why I just I just see them melting as
(22:52):
to all the wrong times. Once we get to the postseason,
they'll win their share games, they'll they'll be a threat
because they're just too talented. But when it comes to
that that tenacity to close out games. I'm not that
that's that's the muscle that you develop over the course
of the season, and I haven't seen either one of
these teams developed it to the point where I think
(23:13):
that there are true threats to come out of the East.
Rick bukerar guest Fox Sports One NBA inside of the
Jason Smith Show with Mike Carmen. All right, So moving
away from the nets for a second. Something we talked
about a little bit here to begin the hour was
here's a game where Lebron James takes the night off. Clearly,
the NBA is probably not happy. It's a marquee game
against the Sixers, nationally televised. He's out, James Harden took
(23:36):
off a couple of games, took off the game against
the Heat. NBA not happy at some point, Rick, isn't
something going to happen because isn't the NBA and broadcast
partner's gonna say, okay, enough enough with this taking time
off and we don't know you. We pay a lot
of money for these games, and we had of our
games not have marquee players because the players are gonna
(23:56):
keep pushing this and taking nights off as long as
the team's gonna allow them to. But I got don't
think there's going to be some kind of retaliation from
the NBA to say, Okay, we gotta take care of
this because now it's getting out of control on our
broadcast partners are not happy and and we gotta take
care of this. Yeah. There, I would imagine that. The
only question I have is how much of this is
coming from the medical staff, because the coaches and the
(24:17):
gms don't have the same control that they once did,
and the medical staffs have expanded exponentially on every team.
If you go back and you go find a media
guy in ten fifteen years ago, it's probably like three
four people listed under the medical staff. Now there's twenty
three people. Um. And so I don't know how much
of this is being generated by the medical staff having,
(24:41):
you know, measuring minutes and all sorts of biometrics. I
know that not all of it is Some of it
is is just a status symbol. I'm good enough that
I don't have to play all eighty two and um.
But I do think that it will be addressed because
it's an opening for the owners in the next collective
(25:02):
bargaining agreement to say you will be paid based on
the number of games that you play, like we'll give
you get the get the full vote if you play
up to seventy five games or whatever it might be
that after that, for every game that you that you
you miss, you know of barring a legitimate injury, um,
(25:24):
we're gonna we're gonna docupay, you're gonna lose money. And
so that guys aren't as cavalier about taking games off
as as they have been. But I assure you there
there are issues with uh, the owners looking at it,
feeling just in general like the players, um, with all
(25:46):
the money that they are making, that it has given
them a latitude to say, yeah, I'm not my money
is guaranteed. You know, I don't I don't have to
play that. It's and it's not just not just guys
taking games off. It's like the Ben Simmons situation. You know, Uh,
it's it's Kyrie Irving. It's it's guys who can who
(26:06):
can you know laterally say I'm making so much money
if I decided not to play, or I decided not
to play for a year, even I can afford to
do it. They want to find a way to to
not make it affordable to miss again, to miss the season. Hey, Rick,
last one for me? How how enjoyable was the Zion
(26:26):
dunk last night? And how many times did you watch it?
So there's the dunk and then he was playing one
on one with Corey Brewer. Was the other clip I
saw also dunked on him. I I'm flabbergasted at all
the reports that he is. Uh, he didn't play all year.
(26:46):
He's not going to play this season. The bone is
healing slowly but surely. But he really can't do a
whole lot of on court activity. And then he's playing
one on one and he's just out of the blue.
He's he's throwing it off the rim of throwing off
the backboard and and crushing it like, um, so has
he heard or is he not heard? Because I like,
(27:09):
if you ordered eighty five pounds and you can, it's
not the jumping, it's the landing. I don't know. He
looked pretty damn spry to me, and you're telling me, yeah,
I can. I can work on my dunking, but I
can't work on my jump shot or my free throws,
like or I can't I don't. I have no explanation
(27:29):
for it, and I have no what I really don't
have an explanation for because it had to be somebody
with the Pelicans that took that video and put it out.
Why would you want that out there? Why? I raises
so many questions, whether you're Zion or your David Griffin
or uh, you're anybody with that organization. I don't know why.
(27:55):
Here's here's the guy that you guys all bought tickets
to watch, and he hasn't it all year and he's
not gonna play this season, but here he is dunking
in our gym. It is such a terrible look for
everybody involved. Uh, And I can't quite explain it what
I what I wish I had, Rick, I can explain
it for you. I can explain. You can tell you
exactly what it is. You know, you know you know
(28:18):
what exactly what it is. Show. That's why I here
on this show, because when I don't know something, I
know I can trust that you're going to tell me.
So of course, look, this is it's it's not about
the Knicks now. But here's the thing. I don't think
there's any coincidence that he posts this video the day
after the story comes out. Sources say Zion is not
(28:38):
going to play for the Pelicans anymore. He is done
for this season. He's out this season. He's done playing
for the franchise. And he's showing everybody, hey, I'm healthy,
come get me. Because in the off season he's gonna
say I want out. He's he's not invested there, He
hasn't been invested there. How dinged up is he? If
this is what he's doing. He wants out. He wants
(28:58):
to get to a more mark destination. And he's telling everybody,
I'm okay, look I'm dunking, I'm playing one on one.
This is not this is Hey, Pelicans fans, it's coming.
This is not the Pelicans putting this video out. This
is him putting it out because he wants other teams
to know, hey, come get me, because he's in a
new destination. It's going to be the story of the offseason, Zion.
Where can he go? Who's gonna put up the biggest
(29:19):
trade form? Where's you go? That's what's gonna happen. So
that makes perfect sense, except if you were really shrewd
or smart about it and you didn't want to wave
it in the pelicans fans faces so that they hate
you more than like. You can put that video out
(29:43):
after the season, or you can put it out at
a point where people can make a play for you
to let them know. You don't have to do it
right at the time, Like I mean, shortly after it's
announced you're not playing again in the season, and then hey,
hell but I can play. I can play. I can
I got to do everything. I just can't play for
the Pelican, that's all. I just just the way to
(30:07):
get the message across without like, um, just smearing it
in the in the Pelican's parents. Stacey. He's on Twitter
at Rick Buker. That is at Rick Buker, Fox Sports One, NBA.
Inside of there is I'm gonna smear in your face.
Rick is the last. Appreciate it, man, have fun. We'll
talk to you next week, all right. He's the best.
(30:31):
He's got big, big stuff on Steph Curry and his injury.
Check out Rick at Rick Buker on Twitter for the latest.
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific. Hey, this is Jason McIntyre Join me every
weekday morning on my podcast, Straight Fired with Jason McIntyre.
(30:52):
This isn't your typical sports pod pushing the same tired
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Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts,
(31:19):
Fox Sports Radio, the Jason Smith Show with my best
friend Mike Hartman. So what I said earlier in the
show that hey, the Chiefs trading Tyree Kill was a
good move. They have seen that. Okay, running this with
(31:39):
the big three, we're not getting better, right. We went
from a Super Bowl champion to Super Bowl runner up
to not making the a f C championship. We need
something different. Unfortunately, don't want to trade Tyree Kill. The
guys one of the best receivers in the NFL. But
we have to do something different. Who's gonna bring us
the best return? It's Tyree Kill. Wide receivers are eminently
(31:59):
replaced sable in this era of the NFL, five to
seven new guys come in the draft every year that
are ready to play and ready to be stars. This
is what the Chiefs are going to do, a reload
on the fly with. If we have our room with
more talent and it's deeper, we can overcome the loss
of Tyree Hill. Right. They already brought in Juju Smith
Schuster I said they're gonna go in the draft. You're
(32:20):
gonna see them try to go out and get other
players to do it. Well, they're already doing it. According
to reports, they are calling and talking to the Jaguars
about Laviska Channel. And this was a guy who was
a big playmaker coming out of Colorado and look on
the Jags the last couple of years he has flashed.
He is a hell of a football player. Now suddenly
you want to throw him in that Chief's offense. If
(32:41):
this is how they're gonna do it, replacing Tyree Hill
with four good wide receivers, because look what have they
done the last couple of years. We're loading up. We
have Tyreeke and we have Kelsey and that's really it.
And and we haven't really gone crazy trying to bring
good players in because that's kind of what we have. No,
now we've got to replace tyreek Kill. We need a
deeper wide receiver room. That's how we're gonna do it.
(33:03):
And they're already enacting this plan. I expect them to
have three or four wide receivers who you can say, hey,
these guys could be good. And that's how they're gonna
replace tyreek Kill. You can already see the plan. No,
you look at this situation. Right, a guy that how
many times you know before he was very quickly uh
well shuffled off from Jacksonville. Did urban Meyer have to
(33:25):
address what they were doing with right? What is he? No,
he's more than a gadget guy. Well, although you didn't
really use him today, so I guess he was back
to being a gadget guy in his career talking to
got a hundred seventy nine targets one catches averaging about
ten yards to catch. Uh. They used him as a
(33:46):
rusher with twenty nine rushing attempts in his two years.
So yeah, you can get creative with him and put
the ball in his hand anywhere and still speed. Right,
there is a guy that was chilled drafted early. Uh,
and I don't know how much untapped potential is there,
but if anybody's gonna do it, Andy Reid is gonna
figure it out. Even with Matt Naggy around, they're still
(34:07):
gonna got I gotta side swipe in because that's one
of the steps back that they took. Even though he
was successful there. Uh, he's not the same guy coming back, man.
But but no, Look, you you go and find value
and if it doesn't work, guess what, go find another guy.
There's still a lot of wide receivers available, some pretty
(34:28):
big names, and if they're willing, if we're gonna use
it for Baker, let's use it to the Whiteouts. If
you're willing to be humbled and be the number three guy,
number two and to a whatever you're gonna term it,
then yeah, you can come in and play a pretty
significant role in that offense. Twitter At how about a
fresca Mike gets swollen to him the Jason Smith Show
with my best friend Mike Carmon. Look, it makes sense
(34:49):
because as good as Tyreek Hill is, he's replaceable. All
every wide receiver the NFL is replaceable because of the
talent level coming out right now. We have never in
history of the NFL had as many talented wide receivers
coming into the game NFL ready that we do right now,
Guys not just coming in and contributing, but guys coming
in dominating like Jamaar Chas or Jalen Waddle or Davante Smith.
(35:12):
There come Because everybody's throwing in college, they're coming out
much more polished. There's no Well in a couple of years,
it's got no. They hit the ground running now and
as good as Hill is, well, okay, we can go
get a guy for the next four or five years.
It's a lot cheaper. Well, yeah, instead of thirty million
dollars a year. Yes, yes, you need to build a
team and your quarterbacks already making thirty and your tight
(35:35):
ends making twelve. Twitter and out about a Fresca Mike
hats swollen down the Jason Smith Show with my best
friend Mike Harmon. Uh coming up next, boy, there's sometimes
a big time teams get reality checks as to where
they stand. And one big time NBA team got a
big time reality check tonight. That's coming up next right here.
This is Fox
Hosts And Creators
Jason Smith
Mike Harmon
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