Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
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has twenty twenty and twenty wow against the Lakers G
League team, but nonetheless we'll cover that. Um, it does
(01:06):
feel like the Golden State Warriors are actually taking part
of the playbook of Michael Jeffrey Jordan. Get to that,
Mike McCarthy finally speaks out what he's got right, what
he's got wrong. We'll get to Cliff April. He'll join us.
We'll get his take on Russell Wilson, who will get
into it a second, Rich Bucker, Rick Bucker will join us.
We'll talk a little bit about Bryce Hartbrew continues to
play against his former team. We have a metric ton
(01:29):
to get to. Let's start with Russell Wilson, who is
you know, saying publicly all the right things and privately
leaking out that he has a dad heart and fast
deadline for April fifteen. So the day after tax Day
is the day that he wants a new long term
(01:50):
deal in place, long term deal in place to remain
as quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks. Keep in mind that
this is the second deal that he signed. His first deal,
you know, remember it was because he was a third
round pick and he was widely underpaid and went to
two Super Bowls and want a Super Bowl and whatever,
and he's gotten you know, compensated now everybody else. This
(02:12):
is what happens in sports and in media where guys
want to be, you know, paid at the level commensurate
with their current talent for their past success. And I
don't think it's an unreasonable ask to have his contract redone.
It will ultimately be redone or whatever. But it's the
leaking of it and the a I want a new
contract now or else. The only problem with the or
(02:34):
else is he hasn't said he'll actually sit out. Quite
to the contrary. You know, Russell Wilson said he will.
He'll still show up for meetings, but he wants a
new contract. Of course, Colin Cowherd are are our our
colleague who procedes this show on many of these Fox
Sports radio affiliates. Um said a couple of weeks ago
(02:57):
that he's heard Russell Wilson would for her to play
in New York and that ultimately he'll push to play
in New York. And that's and then of course when
he's back on air, this is confirmation biased to him.
To me, this is just all negotiation, that's all it is.
It's all negotiation, whether he's using Colin or whether Colin
(03:18):
sources are real. The fact is that the Seahawks for
better or for worse based upon the collective Barten agreement
own his rights not just this year. Next year they
can franchise tag him. You after that, they can franchise
tag him. Then if they want, they can tradition transitional
franchise tach like in reality. If you want to play hardball,
(03:40):
which is what real Russell Wilson is kind of leaking
out that he wants to do, the NFL's contracts are
not easy to play uh hardball with. They're just not that.
This is not the NBA where when your contracts up
you can simply walk, you know. Adam Schefters are bo that. Look,
(04:00):
this deadline was given to them back in January. Of course,
part of it is it's unclear what the deadline actually means.
Seattle was to come in to him on April sixteenth
and offer him to make the highest paid player in
NFL history. Is he gonna turn that down? No? And
(04:20):
the April fifteen is kind of a random date because
though it does give them, uh, it does give them
a couple of days before the NFL Draft, it's not
like it's your traditional deadline. The whole thing strikes me
as weird, but that actually fits Russell Wilson. Russell Wilson
is in fact weird. He just is. There is the
weird thing with his first wife, and and the rumors
(04:43):
with Golden Tate, and then the then the weird. I
think you would deem a weird relationship with Sierra, Sierra
who's now his wife, where they said they were celibate
even though she previously had a child, celibate in their
relationship until they were married, and now because she's a star,
maybe he wants to be in New York. Look, I
(05:04):
don't actually think that the idea. Mike Freeman tweeted out
to what why not two first round picks? I don't
think that's crazy. Like if I'm Seattle and I can
get two first round picks and get out of paying
a guy a huge chunk of money, don't think it's crazy.
I just don't. Everyone has a value, everyone is tradable
in the nash Football like Khalil Mack is, a is
(05:27):
both a warning and a forecasting of what's potentially to come. Remember,
Cleil Mac wasn't just moved for because they could get
two first round picks, it's they got out of paying
him dollar guarantee. And while I don't think Russell Wilson
is the best quarterback in the NFL. He you can
make the argument is as valuable as anybody. He also
(05:50):
is a guy who has been seen in that locker
room and to some of the defensive players as being divisive, right, Like,
they don't think he's nearly the guy that he put
crazed himself to be. They don't love him, yet he
does perform on Sundays. They thought he was baby, They
think that he was he's been coddled. They don't think
(06:11):
that he's the driving force behind winning. Like that's part
of the deal here. And I don't think it's crazy
if you just turned and the Giants need a quarterback
and the Giants have two first round picks, if you
go like, hey, give us to first and give us
a player that we like and we'll start over, Like,
that's not crazy. It's not crazy talk. But the deadline
(06:34):
with no real ramifications doesn't feel like a deadline. It
feels like there's something else here at work, whether it's hey,
I gave you a deadline for a new contract and
you haven't responded, and now I'm going to leak it
out right like it suddenly leaks out this week. Well,
(06:54):
if this deadline was given back in January, why didn't
it leak out then? Why? Because he hasn't gotten to
response that he wanted. But this is going to be interesting. Man.
What do you do if you're Seattle? Do you engage
in discussions of trading him? And while Russell Wilson you
could save your Seahawks fan and it's reasonable think, hey,
(07:16):
he's untradeable? Is he really? Is anybody really untradeable? What
have we seen in the NFL? What wins in the NFL?
Unless you have Tom Brady. What you have to do
is have a quarterback under rookie contract and and that level,
and then spread the money around to the rest of
your team. How do I know it worked? Worked in Seattle,
(07:41):
it's working in Kansas City, it's working with the l A. Rams,
It generally work with the Dallas Cowboys, right and and
the only and the reason it actually is working with
the New England Patriots is you've got a quarterback that's
not taken top dollar because he's made so much money,
and he's worth so much money, and his wife's wear
(08:01):
so much money. He's not taking rookie money. But he's
also not taking anywhere near what he should. Um ahust
Dan Buyer, Dan, you're a Seahawks fan, you have been
for your life, right like you're Steve Largent is in
fact a god. I thought that. I think that little
figuring that you bow to before every radio shows a
little uncouple. But I do understand that Steve Largent was
(08:22):
an incredible Hall of Fame wide receiver. Yeah, the Kurt
Warner jersey and not one, but two grade school class pictures.
So yes, the the the original Kurt Warner. Yes? Am
I crazy to say that, Hey, you know what if
somebody's willing a pony app to first and a player,
I'm at least considering it if Russell Wilson's contract demands
(08:42):
or that to be the highest paid player in the NFL.
I think that the fact that the would listen to
any offers, I think is accurate because they have shown
that they aren't very flexible when it comes to deals.
There have been holdouts. They did not give Earl Thomas
what he wanted. They really didn't give cam Chancellor what
he wanted. He yelled up for a couple of games.
And I know that there's something that think that Russell
(09:04):
Wilson has treated different so I but I don't think
that that's the case when it comes to contracts. I
think they would at least listen. I don't know if
that would get it done. That may have to be
a starting point, but I think that they would listen.
I agree with you. Huh uh yeah. So I'm look
like this is a stay tuned. If it happens and
he goes to the Giants, Cowherd looks like the smartest
dude on Earth. If it doesn't need he resigns. It
(09:26):
doesn't make Cowherd look like a dope, but it makes
it look like, look, this is all negotiation and Russell
Wilson first leaking it to Colin, then leaking it to
Schefter and leaking into other sources. And he doesn't personally
leak it, but his agent representative friends end up do Hey,
do you know what I heard? This is what I heard.
So I don't know. It's really interesting on how trends
(09:48):
in the NFL are not just not just you know,
you know, defensive linemen and defensive backs and and loading
up your offensive line. But the big trend in the
NFL is can you get a quarterback under rookie control
who's a good, maybe not yet great quarterback, but does
have talent, And can you use all of that other
(10:09):
money to load up on your roster. And the team
that created that blueprint is the Seattle Seahawks, and they
may go that course. Again, I don't think that's a completely,
completely unreasonable thought. Be sure to catch live editions of
the Doug Dot Leaps Show week days in noon eastern
three pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the I
(10:32):
Heart Radio app. Let's welcome to Jason lack Camporo, who joins, says, Jason,
what what have what have you heard regards to Russell Wilson.
I've been reported on this situation for a couple of years. Um,
there was a window a period of time around this
time last year where you know a lot of people
around the Leaver scratching their heads while you weren't hearing
(10:55):
the Seahawks talking about their desire to get a deal
done with Russell Wilson, the same way you heard um
Mark Murphy and people in Green Bay falling all over
themselves about Aaron Rodgers in the same way, Um, you
know you would have heard Arthur Blank falling all over
Matt Ryan saying it's a fad accompany that you know,
we're going to get these things done before the season starts.
And so, you know, it's the cost of doing business
(11:17):
right Quarterbacks, they're the most expensive guys on the team,
and prices continue to soar. And now he's one year
away from free agency, essentially a lame duck year, and
you've got this incredible influx of gambling money that that
the league is. You know that Spickett maybe open full
throttle by the start of the season and your uh
negotiations on the new CBA or underway. And two years
(11:39):
from now, if that CBA has done, you and I
both know they'll start negotiating new TV contracts two years
before the other ones expire. So if you're Russell Wilson,
what are you worth? You know, I mean it's sort
of a metaphysical question. And so he doesn't have to
do anything. I mean, if I'm Russell Wilson, I'm not
calling them, I'm not doing anything. I'm I'm just being
Russell Wilson. And if they want to franchise me a
(12:01):
couple of times, then I'll talk at my you know what,
what it close to a hundred million for three if
that's the way it plays out, and hit the open
market at a young thirty three, or maybe they'll put
something in front of me that I can't refuse. But
what that number starts with the four, I don't know
what the second digit is, you know, I just don't,
and I don't know that anybody does. So we'll see
(12:23):
how creative the Seahawks get here. But I think it's
going to take something truly historic to buy, you know,
to start buying Russell Wilson free agency years now, would
they move on from him? I mean, like, look, look,
you know the trend of the NFL, and we've seen
what the Rams have done. Look, it's all copied by
(12:44):
the way of the Seattle model, which was they got
Russell Wilson in the third round and you know, after
thinking Matt Flynn would be their guy, kind of a
bit of a bit of a bargain. But because they
had Russell Wilson was able to build. They were able
to build the legion of boom. You know, on the
defensive side, we've seen the Rams. We see in the
Chiefs hell. I mean, you can even the Cowboys, you
can even make the case that's kind of what the
(13:05):
Patriots do. Granted not on a rookie scale, but you're
not paying Tom Brady top dollars should spad cap, right,
He's not killing your cap as opposed to all the
top paid quarterbacks. You're struggling to to build a team
around him. Is there a scenario where somebody comes in
and and and and and gives them an offer that
they can't refuse? Of course, right? I mean, Babe Ruth
(13:29):
was traded, right, Wayne Gretzky was traded a couple of times.
O'Dell Beckham just got traded. I mean, I'm old enough
to remember what Odell Beckham got traded, like, Yeah, of course. Um,
I think it would have to be robust compensation. I mean,
if Khalil Mack is two ones, you know what I mean,
Jay Cutler went for two ones back in the day,
(13:50):
Roy Williams went for two ones, like three ones, you know,
I think it would have to I mean, I think
it would have to be seismic. But I also think,
because again we're now in what you know, one year
away from critical mass, when you have to start applying
franchise tags to a quarterback, which is obviously far from ideal,
I think you have to be open minded about anything
(14:12):
about any possibility or probability. Um. We've also seen a
lot of teams kind of make their bed at least
to some degree at quarterback in the last eighteen months.
So you know, asked Nick Foles about how much demand
there is for quarterbacks right now. Obviously Russell Wilson's a
completely different animal, but still, um, you know, if I
was interested in training Russell Wilson, I would have held
(14:33):
an auction back at the combine, you know, and I
would have been like, don't worry about looking at these quarterbacks.
I got a thirty year old franchise quarterback for you
right here. Who's you know, Jon Gruden. You've got three
ones this year. Let's make a deal. Um. But there's
still possibilities. I mean, there's teams and owners who would say, yeah,
you know, I'm willing to give him that you know,
forty million a year and part with all these picks
(14:55):
because we think will take us to the Promised Land
multiple times. Jason lamp For from BBS Sports NFL in
Center joins us Doug otlim Show here on Fox Sports Radio. Uh.
Speaking of of potential landing spots, there's the New York Giants,
who um, I would think would be in some sort
of hunt for maybe Josh Rosen, Uh, maybe Dwayne Haskins.
(15:18):
And then and and look, I don't trust everything that
everybody says, right, Like the Raiders say they're in love
with Derek Carr, but then they go work out Haskins
and Kyler Murray. Um, what about the Giants and these
weird statements about hey, Eli Manning, we love him this year,
we might like him next year as well. Is that
simply about kind of dialing back his contract this year?
(15:38):
Where are they really? I tend to buy what they're selling.
I bought what they were selling last year, and that
they weren't interested in any quarterback even if one popped
loose who they didn't think was going to be there,
and that turned out to be true. I mean, I
think from the owner on down there's still Team Eli.
So I think at seventeen, sure, absolutely they're open for business.
(16:02):
I have a hard time seeing them come off of
a blue chip, potentially franchise changing pass rusher and the time,
you know, at six, we know one quarterback like Colin
Murray's going first, and there's still a chance that Haskins
or or something, you know, something else happens that the
Giants probably wouldn't be into. So that six pick is
at least the fifth, and maybe it's the fourth. So
(16:23):
I don't know that they're going to move off of
that um for a quarterback. But I think at seventeen,
whether it's the kids and Duke or whomever, maybe there's
still scenario where it's still Haskins there, or maybe you
move up a smidge from seventeen to jump the Redskins
if you think you have to do that for you know,
your your your quarterback in the future. But I don't
see I don't I would, I don't. I don't see
(16:44):
them invest in that six pick in a quarterback. And
I think they are all about proper eli up for
at least another year. Doug got live show here on
Fox Sports Trade. That's Jason lockhmphora who's joining us. Then
you have the juxtaposition of the Arizona Cardinals, who look,
they've said a couple of nice things about Josh Rosen,
but they've heaped a bunch of praise on Kyler Murray,
(17:05):
which is the opposite of the Raiders, who could not
have said anything better of Derek Carr than they get
Antonio Brown. The Antonio but immediately goes to his house
and starts catching footballs from Derek Carton is probably his
kids and brother as well. Um, who who gets Kyler Murray?
I think Arizona. I don't think there's any mystery to this.
I don't think there's any smoke. I think, um, based
(17:28):
on everything I've heard, this die was cast when they
when they hired Kingsbury with the first overall pick. And
if we're going to go down this road Luss traveled,
then we're going to have to do it all in
and and give this guy everything he thinks he's and
he needs, and and you know, they've got the ability
to control the draft, and you know, Kyler Murray goes
and hires Cliff Kingsbury's agent. Like sometimes it's just it
(17:50):
just is, you know what I mean. And this is
one where I thoroughly believe it just is. And the
draft starts at two and they're gonna take this kid. Um,
but of course teams are are going to do their
due diligence. And you know, I mean John Gruden loves
hanging out with quarterbacks. I mean, you know the fact
that John Gruden's working out all these quarters like it
was just like this is one of the favorite times
of the year. Like, you know, I favorite part of
his job at ESPN was the quarterback you know, the
(18:13):
quarterback camp he would do. So why not, Um, you
never know when those guys become available down the road.
He's obviously a wheeler dealer. And I think he's also
because I expect him to be so heavily invested in
next year's quarterbacks. You know, you want to be able
to evaluate. Oh yeah, well, how does this compare to
when we had Murray to ourselves in Dallas all of
last year, and when we had Haskins to ourselves, you know,
(18:33):
for a day last year, And how did these guys
stack up to that putting them through the same sort
of workouts. So I think it's just the accumulation of information. Um.
But I don't think anybody in the NFL thinks Colin
Murray is going anywhere other than Arizona first overall. Okay,
so where's Josh Rosen go. Maybe it doesn't happen until
after the draft. Who knows. I mean, maybe you have
(18:53):
to see who's left holding the bag. And um, I
would think they Look, if if I'm them, I I'd
take the who or whatever I can get for anybody
right now. But now that we you know, we're no
longer you know, a month or months away from the draft,
it's yeah, I mean like, look, I thought the Redskins
were a possible destination, the Dolphins were a possible destination
(19:14):
for Josh Rosen. Now it feels like what is it? Chargers, Giants,
maybe Patriots? Yeah right, somebody looking for the guy you
know for a couple of years down the road when
they're fourty year old, eventually looks like a fourty year old. Um, yeah,
I mean, look, it could still be Washington. I mean
I think right now there Haskins there, there's a lot
(19:35):
of I wrote a column about him today CBS Sports
dot Com. There's a lot of people kind of trying
to slot him right now. And if the Giants do
what I think they're gonna do, which we talked about
earlier than you know, does somebody move up for him?
Where where does he go? And you know, is a
Denver in a in a in a Washington and maybe
a Miami sitting there still kind of in the need
(19:57):
for a young developmental guy, and maybe that's when um
a better market for for Rosen emerges. But nobody's you know,
dying to have that kid right now, and I think
Arizona as well. At some point, you know, just get
your messaging on point and if, if you know, if
you're somehow keeping the kid, then make that overtly clear,
(20:18):
or you know, truly start calling teams and really forcing
the issue, because again everybody is convinced they're taking Kyler.
Murray Doug Otlip Show here on Fox Sports Radio. What
have you heard from the rest of the league in
regards to Cleveland who they've They've made some power moves
and accumulated as you point out Odell Beckham Jr. And
(20:40):
then they had this press conference which was I guess
it's player empowerment. I guess it's giving them ownership. But
you literally only had players, including a defensive player who
didn't say anything kind of up there like here's our
four horsemen. What's the reaction in like from around the league?
I mean, I think people understand and that this is
(21:01):
this is gonna be Things are gonna be a little
different there. And if if, um, if anybody spend any
time around Freddie Kitchens at the owners meetings a week ago,
or saw any of the quotes or any of the
clips that came out of there, I mean, you can
tell that this is a different cat. I mean they
they are, to your point, all in on sort of
player empowerment and player engagement and not shying away from
(21:22):
big personalities and not shying away from expectations and holding
themselves to a high standard. They're not shying away from
you know, the P word, playoffs. I mean they feel
like that's that that should be where they end up
if they can harness all this talent. And they feel
like at the core that these these guys, as much
(21:42):
as you know they have fun on social media or
they have outsized personalities, ultimately when it gets to Sunday,
they have some dog in them and they're and they're
all about doing what it takes to win. And I
think Kitchens is going to be I think you might
be just what the doctor ordered. And you know the
I like what the other people assembled around him on
(22:04):
that offensive staff. I think Todd Monkin is a future
NFL head coach and um one of the better coordinators
and schemers in this league right now. And Freddie can
lean on him and um, you know, they've got to
make some strikes defensively for sure. But I think the
Browns are very much for real, and you just start
going around the a f C. I mean, who like
(22:25):
New England and New England. But like after that, like
who would you really really stuff for? I mean I
would make the case the Chargers on paper or the
best team, but can they bring it two years in
a row? You know? And after that, I mean, who's chances?
Who's Chansas City defense right now? Like who are they stopping?
I mean, you know, Pittsburgh, Baltimore. I mean, is anybody
super scared of them right now? I think you can
(22:48):
start creating a narrative where the Browns could could make
some Hey, I definitely think the talent wise. Talent wise,
you're right, But you know again, it's the you have
a coach who's completely unproven that Dorsey is not going anywhere,
beggars not going anywhere, so if things go wrong, it
falls on Freddie Kitchen And then we get back into
(23:10):
the turnstile coaches type of deal, Like there's some super
strong personalities there. How does it work out when they
hit adversity and the juxtaposition of that with Pittsburgh, who's
trying to get rid of those personalities and trying to
quiet the personality even of Ben Roethlisberger like that. That's
really it. It's it's a very interesting social experiment within
the a f C North, is it not? No, it is.
And then you've got Baltimore now trying to empower you know,
(23:34):
a young quarterback who saved people's jobs last year, I mean,
save season, saved the season, saved people's jobs. Um, but
have they really put anything else around him that makes
them any better? I mean, they had the wide receiving
corps right now. Um, god speed Lamar, you know, good
luck throwing to that bunch. I mean, the obviously have
to still address that in the draft. Um. Their offensive
(23:54):
line was a big issue last year and at least
as of right now, it still looks like a doughnut
with a hole in the middle. Um. But they're pretty
good at drafting linement. So we'll see, um, you know
in the Bengals and Zach Taylor and and you know
there's some talent there. But have have they you know,
missed their mark by not getting rid of the quarterback?
You know, when they got rid of Marvin and um,
what about that staff that he had trouble putting together?
(24:16):
And are they going to be ready for prime time?
It's it's an interesting it's an interesting division. But the
more I look at it, and you know, let's wait
for the schedule to come out, because that that does
matter in this sport to to a large degree, um
more than probably most people give it credit for when
you catch teams and all that stuff. But I think
Cleveland's the best team in that division. I do, And
(24:37):
I don't think Freddie Kitchens is just gonna sort of,
you know, muff it all up and mess it up.
I think they'll be already at least for a while.
Two or three years from now maybe a different story,
but I think the honeymoon phases right now, and I
think the honeymoon phase is gonna be entertaining and a
lot of points will be scored, and I like them
to win that division. Vegas does to Vegas has them in.
The Pittsburgh Steelers both in and not. What about the
(25:00):
New England Patriots. I know we just assume they'll figure
it out, but they lose Gronk, Trey Flowers gone, Trent
Brown gone, Um, any I think reasonable person have seen
some fade in Tom Brady. Look at late in season,
even in the playoffs, Like, I know, they won, but
he threw two and what should have been three picks
against Kancity Chiefs and he's got one touchdown, albeit, you know,
(25:23):
enough to beat the Rams. They didn't necessarily win because
of Brady's excellence throughout the entire game. Um, what do
the Patriots look like now that they had this weird
double departure? Right? You lose Flores, You're placing with Greg Shianno,
who all of a sudden bales before he's even officially
announced as their defensive coordinator. What's going on to England? Well,
(25:44):
I mean they still have Belichick, So I'm not gonna
worry about that defense. I mean, you ask anybody's been
around there. That defense has appeared broken at various times
over the last five or six years. And when it
does tighten up, He's got a lot to do with it.
So I think they could they could, They could much
better handle that right now. And Josh McDaniels walked out
the door tomorrow. Um, look, I think what what they
(26:04):
showed you last year late in the season as part
of the Revolution. Now they don't have grunt being um,
you know that butt kicking dominant, uh, you know in
line tight end. But this is a great tight end draft,
and I think they're okay going unbalanced and playing old
school slobber knocker football and making life a little easier
(26:26):
for Brady, you know, in these what I guess or
the twilight years. I mean, it has to end eventually,
and I think the stable of running backs they have
will be something that they continue, um, you know, to
to use to their advantage, and it'll be different. But
I would be shocked if they came away from this
draft with multiple tight ends who make an impact right away.
And does Josh Gordon come back in that building at
(26:47):
some point? Not that he was special, but it's at
least somebody on the outside to worry about, um. And
I expect them to invest a lot of this draft
capital on the defense. This is a really good pass
rushing draft. You know, Trent Brown, you know that that
that's a big loss. But we'll see, you know when
is he writes he healthy? And and what can he
give them? And and Tom Brady has often done more
(27:07):
with less on the offensive line, So I think the
Patriots have one more year where they're the darlings of
that division, and then I think that then if if,
if Sam Donald is where I think they'll be, and
if some of these moves the Bills made kick in UM,
then all of a sudden, I think maybe a year
from now we're talking about UM, you know, the Patriots
having to really look over their shoulders. Great stuff as always, Jason,
(27:31):
Jason lackhamp For, thanks so much for spending some time
with this. Really appreciate thanks for having me. Pleasures mind
Jason lock camp For from CBS Sports dot Com. Be
sure to catch live editions of the Doug dot Leap
Show week days in noon eastern three pm Pacific. I
saw this story from Rob Demowsky, who covers the Green
Bay Packers. He talked with Mike McCarthy. It's Mike McCarthy's
(27:53):
first ever statements after being fired as coach of the
Green Bay Packers. Remember there, he's fired midseason or late
in the season when they us the years on the
Cardinals at home. Quote. Uh. It led some to say
that McCarthy deserved a better ending. Obviously, McCarthy said when
asked if he agreed, it couldn't have been handled any worse.
Anytime you lose a close game, it's a difficult time
(28:16):
emotionally afterwards. We lose a home game at lambeau Field
in December, it's really hard and that hasn't happened very often.
I walked out of my press conference. I'm thinking about
the game, think about how our playoff shot was now minimal,
and that's where my head was when I was told
Mark Murphy wanted to see me, and the messenger was
cold and the energy was bad. Mark said it was
(28:36):
an ugly loss and it was trying to make a change.
He said something about the offense and special teams and
he didn't think it was gonna get any better, and
there was no emotion. That was hard. I mean, honestly,
I get it. Look, I have lost things in the past.
I've not been fired knock on wood from a job.
(29:02):
I've been cut before. And there's never a good way.
You're a good time. They're just isn't. Just isn't. And
you could say, well after a game like, dude, you
lost the Arizona Cardinals for the record, I saw the
Cardinals the week before they played the l A. Chargers.
They had a tend nothing lead. The Chargers scored a
(29:23):
couple of times. They actually I think the Cardinals actually
had a chance to go thirteen. Nothing, missed a makeuple
field goal, like a forty two yard field goal, missed
a field goal, and then the Chargers proceeded to rip
off forty five consecutive points, and in the second half,
like they didn't let Josh Rosen do anything running on
first and second, throw it on third down, and punt.
They just wanted to get out of there. And yet
(29:45):
you lose that very next week, you lose at home
in a must win situation like time to go, And
he pointed out there was a very minimal chance of
making the playoffs. And I'm sure Mark Murphy's sitting there
going like this isn't getting any better. You had to
win this week. I don't think we can save the season.
But let's see what happens if we change the energy
in the room and get rid of you. I mean,
(30:06):
couldn't been handled any worse. Of course, it could be
hand a lot worse. It could have been a text message.
You could have got Lane Kiffin, you come, You're about
to about to get you play a road game, You're
about to get on the plane, they call you out
the team planet, put you off the bus when you land. Hey, man,
we're gonna fire you like that. There's a plenty ways
it canna be worse. Fox Sports Radio has the best
sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our
(30:28):
shows at Fox sports Radio dot com and within the
I Heart Radio app. Search f s R to listen live.
Brick Buker's an NBA senior writer Bleacher Report. Check out
Buker and Friends as part of his podcast, He's Awesome
and he joins us now on the Doug Gottlip Show
on Fox Sports Radio. Why why are the Warriors arguing
with with these officials? I mean, why why pushed the
(30:50):
technical fouls thing in the regular season like Kadi and
Draymond have. Honestly, I think it's just a reflection of
where they are a more really mentally physically, they're they're drained.
And you probably know this as a parent, Doug. When
you haven't had enough sleep and you haven't had enough
rest and your kids, uh, don't do what you asked
(31:13):
them to do, You're probably going to react in a
more emotional way than you would if if you were
well rested. So I think it's more a reflection of
where this team is mentally as much as anything else.
And it's not for those who believe that they're just
gonna flip a switch and they're gonna roll into the
(31:34):
playoffs and be dominating. Uh. To me, this is a
cautionary tale. It's a it's a reflection of where they are.
Why do you say, I'm gonna disagree to Like I thought,
you know, last night, they're in the first half that
they kind of made it a point to kick the
hell out of the Denver Nuggets. I mean, they seem
to get Cousins going a little bit. And I look
at the West. I look at you know, assuming they
don't play Oklahoma City in the first round. In Oklahoma
(31:57):
City is equally flammable, like saying they an Tonio or
and then maybe Utah or Portland's Like, I don't think
the West is nearly what it's been in terms of
the potential for arduous journey, do you I I don't
as far as looking at that one team that can
take them down, but I do believe there's going to
be a cumulative effect. I don't think there are. I
(32:19):
don't think there are any easy out unless you maybe,
San Antonio, do you look at them? So I don't
know that it's anybody that's necessarily going to knock them off,
but I see them maybe taking five, six, seven games
to get through each round rather than having a sweep
some sweep along the way, and just at this stage, yeah,
maybe maybe you don't have There's not a team I
(32:42):
point to in the West and say that's the team.
On the other hand, I look at these Warriors and
they're not the same Warriors. Offensively, yes, and the Nuggets
have long been a bad matchup. But defensively is where
I question that they can get to where they need
to be to be able to win another championship. Well,
(33:03):
let's get to Oklama City. Because I know everybody's he
been praised on Russell Westbrook because he had um. But
they've been a mess. I mean they've they've been a
mess this last month, and I thought they'd end up
as they the second best team in the West. I
get they don't have shooting, but like, what what's happened here?
How that thing has been so out of control? Uh? Paul?
(33:27):
They've lost their way defensively, I mean, really, they they
lost the principles that made them a defensive jug or not.
Paul George physically has been banged up and he hasn't
been quite the same. And then Russ Westbrook as a
result of that, is trying to figure out, Okay, so
how do I play off of this? And then Steven
(33:47):
Adams is another one who I'm not sure what's going
on with him physically, but between the free throw shooting
and not being able to move, I mean I just
named I named two of the three most import and players,
and Westbrook now trying to figure out, Okay, this is
the way I played and we were successful. Now do
I do I need to revert? Do I need to
(34:09):
stay the course? You are right? They are a mess. Um,
I'm gonna go by the by the on the premise
that if we believe that the Warriors can flip some
sort of a switch come April, that the Oklahoma City
Thunder are going to find a way to do the same. Yeah.
The only problem with that though, is um and I
know that there we think they're better than last year,
but last year they got dusted by the playoffs, right
(34:33):
like like, at least the Warriors have shown us they
can flip the switch in the past, where's the thunder?
If not, that is fair, I would say, um, if
if it's if it's Golden State in the first round,
that's going to be an interesting series. Um, I don't.
I would expect that the Warriors would still win. I
think it would be a tough series if they get
Denver in the first round. I like their chances, even
(34:57):
as messed up as they are, because you quite you
look at the Denver Nuggets so over the last couple
of weeks they have just been as messed up. They
don't have any playoff experience. And I'm still other than
Jamal Murray, is Jamal Murray your go to guy to
win a playoff series? Love what he's done, love what
he is? Not convinced of that. I feel like they
(35:17):
are the Nuggets are the Western Conference version of last
year's Milwaukee Bucks, right where you want a bunch of
games and everybody like, look, they're going to be really good?
Are they really good? Now? Like? Not really? But and
and and the Bucks never have never won a playoff series.
Is that Is that an accurate depiction? No? I think
that's I think that's very fair, and quite honestly, I'm
not sure that I'm taking the Milwaukee Bucks out of
(35:38):
that category either. I would expect that they would win
their first round, But do I see them in the
conference finals. Honestly, I don't. I still believe that when
you get to a series and you can make your
honest into a decision maker, there are still elements to
his game that if you can force him into playing
that way, it's going to disrupt disrupt anything that Milwaukee does.
(36:01):
And so I see them as as still being very vulnerable.
But the point that the Nuggets are the same way,
I agree wholeheartedly. Doug Gottliebs show here on Fox Sports Traded.
That's the voice of Rick Bucker, sr NBA writer covering
the association for years with Bleacher Report. Buker and Friends
is a podcast she's download. Listen to it. It's outstanding. Um,
(36:23):
let's let's go non playoffs for a second. Lebron has
been shut down. You know, whether it's fair or unfair,
appears obvious that the Lakers are going to get a
new coach. Who do you think it is? I know
that Las Vegas has suddenly made you want Howard the
uh the odds favorites to get the job. I don't
(36:44):
understand that move at all. If you're gonna do that,
you might as well keep Luke. Uh my feeling. And
what I was told a couple of weeks ago was
that ty Lou, if he wants to, if his health
is good, that he would be the guy. And to me,
that also makes the most sense, because, let's face it,
(37:09):
you have one of two choices here with Lebron at
this point. You do the unthinkable and you trade him,
or you keep him and you build the team around
him that he is comfortable with and that can make
the most out of what he has left there. There
are no other choices. So if I'm going to do that,
(37:29):
tylu in my mind, of all the names that I've
heard out there is the only one that makes any sense. Yeah,
the trading thing is not a possibility. Right, He's not
going anywhere, He's not. I can't. I can't imagine. First
of all, the dirty little secret in this is the
(37:49):
Lakers couldn't get enough back for him because and he
wouldn't show up though. Yeah, and and depending on where
you sent him, I mean, look, there has to be
there would have to be a lot out of conversation.
The Lakers would have to go to Lebron and say, look,
this didn't work out, Um, we're we're going to move you.
He doesn't have a he has a trade kicker, he
(38:10):
doesn't have no trade clause, and will will accommodate you, you
you know, tell us where you'd want to go if
you're not here, and make the best deal possible. I
don't know if the relationship between Rich Paul and Magic
and Genie and Lebron is at a point where they
(38:30):
can have that conversation. And I'm not saying that they
are on the verge of having that conversation, but if
you're gonna do it right, that's the way you would
do it. Yeah. I just don't believe there's the that's
even a you know, like like you, I don't think
it's I'm not saying that they're they're considering that by
any stretch, but I'm just saying, and you know, taking
a pragmatic approach at where they are, it's one or
(38:51):
the other. It's either you build this thing and try
to squeeze the most out of what Lebron has left,
or or you don't. It's not you know, we're gonna
develop or and a everything has to be determined through
the prism of Lebron James. At this point. This is
the Doug Gotli Show on Fox Sports Radio. Juwan Howard
(39:12):
being interesting, Um, interesting, Okay, there's there's repeated conversations about
k D and Kyrie and how they've remained close in
terms of the off season. Um, what's the likelihood that
that plays out with them going together? It? Well, I've
heard that, and I've had people try to convince me
(39:35):
of of that. I I'm still trying to get to
the heart of where this deep abiding relationship began. Considering
there's about a four at least a four year age
gap between the two and so I I've heard. I've
(39:55):
heard that they would love to play together. I've heard
that New York would be you know that that that fits.
That's why New York has the cap room that it
that it does and made the deal that it did
with Chris taps I. It's it's just hard for me
to imagine at the end of the day, simply because
(40:15):
maybe it's because Doug I'm looking at it in basketball terms.
I don't think that would be a great fit. I
don't think it smacks of Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady
going to Orlando, Like, Okay, it's a lot of talent.
It makes this team a lot better. Is it the
combination that I look at and say, Okay, if you
just put the bright pieces around this off to a
(40:36):
uh an NBA Finals, you go. I just I ultimately don't.
I don't see that and I can't buy the idea
that that relationship is on the Dwyane Wade Lebron James
level where it's something that they always imagine themselves doing
and so they made it into a reality. Yeah, I'm
with you there. I do think it gets um. Oh okay,
(41:00):
So here's a question. Who do you think the best
player in the NBA is? Not the MVP. Who do
you think the best player in the NBA is? Who's
the best player in the I should have an immediate
answer for this. I am going to say that Kevin
Durant is the best player in the NBA. I tend
to agree and and is it fair? Like at the
heart of it is here he thinks he's the best
(41:22):
player in the NBA. He's one of the last two
NBA finals, and he doesn't feel like he's getting like
is this a search for love? Is that what this is,
I don't know. There's a search for love as a
matter of and and all I know is this, he
has never been fully embraced, uh in by Golden State
and know what I mean by the team, I mean
by the fan base in the area, and and it's
(41:43):
it's always been a guy who joined, who joined the party,
not started it. And so I think he's I think
he's looking for that and he and he also hasn't
gotten I think, from a national perspective, the respect or
the uh the confirmation that you would expect a guy
who's been a two time finals MVP to get. And
(42:06):
so when he looks all it looks at all that
it's okay, where where can I go? What what kingdom
can I conquer? That is it's going to give me
everything from a business standpoint, and don't understell that UH
and that I get to be the primary piece and
people are going to love me for being there ultimately,
(42:31):
even if I don't want a championship. And I've said
this elsewhere, if if Katie gets the Knicks to the
conference finals, he will be forever beloved in New York
in a way that he simply has not been at
Golden State. I agree with you, and but a lot
of guys have searched for that New York trying to
(42:52):
be the guy with New York and and uh and
and having accomplished it. It's yeah, it's it's amount and
everybody wants to climb and nobody has gotten to the
summit as of yet. Buke great stuff, Yeah, great, great
stuff as as always one one last one real quick. Um.
I talked to an NBA guy that said, hey, it's
(43:14):
there is a discussion John Morand or Zion Williamson. The
problem is that Zian Williamson is going to pack every
arena and sell every jersey and good luck telling your
owner that is it a legit discussion the teams are
gonna have and is there a chance to John rand
could be the number one guy overall? They will have
that discussion. I guarantee you that, and there are gms
(43:35):
out there that would make that move and I think
it believed. It does depend on the composition of your team.
It also depends on who your owner is and push
comes to shove. Yes, I think the vast majority of
owners will look at this and say, I hear you,
but we're going with Zion because it just makes way
(43:57):
too much business sense. But yeah, I think I think
in the in the war rooms, maybe not going to
get to the warm room, but in the in the
GMS office with all the scouts and everybody, there will
be a healthy debate. As soon as they get the
owner on the phone, Uh, that debate will go out
the window. Great stuff as always, Rick Buker, check his
workout on Twitter, Bleacher Report or Bucher and Friends as
(44:18):
the podcast. Awesome stuff, Thanks so much, you got it.