March 17, 2025 • 45 mins
Dan Woike hops on as the Lakers get ready to face the Spurs tonight. Where will you be tomorrow morning when the Dodgers begin their season tomorrow morning at 3am? Denny Hamlin hits it big at a casino
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's Rogan to Rodney AM five to seventy LA Sports.
He's Ben Malor, I'm Jonas Knox in for the guys here.
Happy Saint Patti's Day to you and yours, Ben and
I will be taking you all the way up until
three o'clock here.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
It is the eve of Opening Day.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Would you consider that Opening Day Tomorrow's that count for you?
Or does Opening Day need to be here in the
States for you to really partake?
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Well, I'll be awake, Jonas. I'll be awake right after
my show, my overnight show, so I'll be I'll be exad.
But no, it's not. It doesn't have the same I
think Opening Day afternoon, Dodger Stadium, That's what I think
of Opening Day. I don't think of three in the
morning in Japan. I don't. Yeah, but hey, I'll tune in.
I'll hear the hear the game on the on the
way home on the radio. I'll be listening to the
(00:46):
play by play coverage from Japan. So excited.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Well, listen, I know somebody who's with us here now
who will be partaking an Opening Day because they're always
locked in, always ready to go. Covers the Lakers and
the NBA for the La Times. Dan Wiki at dan
Wiki Sports is where you can find him on x
Dan Happy Saint Patty's Day to you and yours. How
many n are you at this point? I mean, how
(01:10):
many green beers? How many Jamison shots? What are we
looking like here?
Speaker 3 (01:13):
So so I have graduated from Saint Patrick's Day drinking.
I will say though, when I was in college, the
Wednesday after Saint Patrick's Day was always my favorite because
you would get the two day Old Green Beer special
all like it maybe like trying to run through the
(01:35):
kegs that they didn't sell and it's you know, I mean,
it's not the freshest beer I've ever had, but you know,
a buck twenty five for a pine of green La
bat Blue. It's a lot of color happening in a glass.
But yeah, that was always my go to. There's a
great week, guys. Saint Patty's Day. Baseball Thursday my favorite
day of the year, the first day the INCA tournament.
(01:57):
Lot of stuff happening at Lee seven Lake games in
five days.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
It feels like, Yeah, but when I think you're from
you're like a midwestern Chicago, great great town for Saint Patty,
Like where's the spot in LA? Where's this? I don't
I was thought to just like, is there any any
neighborhood in LA which is known for Saint Patty's. It's
nothing like Chicago or Boston or something.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
No, no, no, no, I don't think so. I mean
I would think, right, if you want to get drunk
during the day in Los Angeles, right like to me,
like you head to the beach, generally speaking, you'll always
find someone there willing to get drunk with you.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Anywhere in the South Bay, Yeah, exactly, right like that.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
I mean I didn't want to like completely like neighborhood
pro probably beach. It seems like it's like probably a
slam dunk for it. You know, maybe you started a
golf course and end up there. But uh yeah, no,
that's where I would go.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
So now, Dan, we got to know, I know, JJ
Reddick provided a little bit of an update. It seems
like we're we're trending in the right direction. But what's
in a realistic timeline for the return of Lebron James.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
Yeah, I mean they haven't put one out there internally externally.
I think though, like they've got they've got a back
to back on Wednesday and Thursday, big games Denver, Milwaukee.
I would be surprised if Lebron James plays any of
those games based on what I've heard. They played Chicago
(03:25):
on Saturday, and then they go on the road, you know,
and it seemed like I don't expect him to miss
significant time on this upcoming road trip.
Speaker 4 (03:35):
But I think overall, and the reason.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
Why they're not putting a time table on it, the
reason why I'm not putting any timetable on it is
that it's it's a tricky injury in the sense that
there's always fear that it could get worse, especially if
it's not bad to begin with, right, so you want
to make sure it heals as much as possible. And
I think the good news is that this was not
a bad groin injury. It's not a bad groin injury
he suffered those before. This isn't going to keep him
(03:59):
out of playoffs. This isn't going to keep him from
being ready in time to participate in the playoffs.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
They just want to give it as.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Much time as possible to get it as healthy as
possible because really, you know, guys, this is.
Speaker 4 (04:12):
A team that has significant.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Belief and its capability come come to postseason. I think
Lebron is you know, he's shown that in his play right,
how hard he's played, how engaged he's been on the
defensive end. To me, those are all signs of a
player who thinks this team can make a long run.
And because of that, I would expect, you know, a
conservative approach, and that probably means he's not on the
(04:37):
court when they play Milwaukee and Denver again this week.
And that's disappointing because those are fun games, and those
are games where you want to see where the Lakers
stand against two pretty good teams. But guys, you know, uh,
this this team has made June, you know, type of
potential and belief and you don't want to waste that
(04:58):
in March. He can't win the title in March, but
he and lose one.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Now, Dan, what about the optics that last week the Lakers,
they were in Denver. I guess it was Friday night
and Lebron had come back to LA to suppose that
we were told get treatment on his injury, but then
he flew to Sacramento for high school back. The optics
on that are not good day, I mean, those are
not great optics. I know it was his kid's high
school game, but he supposedly came back to get treatment
(05:22):
and was growing and he flew up to Sacramento. So
is there more of that story?
Speaker 5 (05:26):
What?
Speaker 2 (05:26):
What are you hearing on that?
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Yeah, I mean, I think there's a little more to it,
I think right. Like, so, the the way the schedule
sort of broke was the Lakers started a four game
road trip. They were in Boston. They went to New
York City after that to play the Nets, and they
had a couple of they had two off nights in
New York City.
Speaker 4 (05:44):
And then and then they kind of embarked on.
Speaker 3 (05:45):
This like pretty brutal back to back right where you
played in Milwaukee on Thursday night, in Denver Friday night,
home Saturday game yesterday afternoon. Right, it's the start of
a six, six games, an eight day stritch. The Lakers
are the first team in two plus years to have
one of these. It's because they've had a game in there.
Tonight's game was rescheduled because of the wildfires. Look, the
(06:10):
Lakers and we can talk about messaging and all this stuff,
there was just no reason for ruiy Hachimura, Lebron, James
Jackson Hayes. For any of those guys to do that
Milwaukee Denver portion of the trip there just isn't like
it's a brutal trip. It's not fun. Anybody who's ever
flown into Denver before knows that it is, well, a
(06:30):
beautiful city. There is no worse city to be for
like twenty hours, because you spend eighteen of them at
the airport. It feels like driving into the city. It's
not a downtown airport. So look, that was all in
the books. And then and you know, he had an
opportunity then to go see Bryce play and it was
totally approved by the team.
Speaker 4 (06:51):
I think, you know, optically.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Like it's weird because they haven't really come right out
and said this isn't that serious of an injury, or
it is a serious injury. Like there hasn't really been
any official team stamps on it other than any sort
of day to day which is like you know, like
with my dad would say, like we all are. I
guess that's true for everybody, Like there's no that's about
as vague as it gets. And I think to me,
(07:16):
it's it's just they don't want to put a timetable
on this in any real way, but they also don't
want to say, like he could be out there playing
if he had to be, so they get caught in
this sort of middle ground, and you get people dissecting
videos of him reacting to see our canyon baskets. I'm saying,
he doesn't look that hurt, you know. I I I
think I think the good like this isn't this isn't
(07:38):
like full on rest. That's not what it is. I
think there is a component in this that there is
an opportunity to kind of get refreshed before that.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
And look, I generally think that, and.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
I've seen this happen this year, and we like and Bronni.
Speaker 4 (07:51):
Has played a small role in this.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Anything that you can do to get Lebron James, if
it's three percent more comfortable, five percent, or whatever it
may be, it's probably worth it.
Speaker 6 (08:00):
It.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
It just probably is. It's just probably worth it. After
twenty plus years, it's probably worth it.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Dan Wiki joining us here on AM five seventy l
A Sports, Ben Mallord, Jonas Knox in for Fred and Rodney.
What has been exposed the most in your mind with
his absence and the way this team has played over
the past few games.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
It's kind of weird. Uh, this is crazy. Can I
take this in a different direction? It's it was more
Jackson Hayes's absence. That's an insane thing to say all
out and.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
You said that on the radio. Just said that on
the radio.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
Dan, Can we run with that on the A five
seventy x account social media right now? Jack Lebron according
to Dan.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
Maybe I have been drinking today.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
Maybe that's what it is.
Speaker 3 (08:45):
And look, I think long term, obviously, like you don't
have a chance in the playoffs without Lebron James on
the court, you don't. But in Luka Donchen and in
Austin Reeves, you do have guys who at least offensively,
like can take on, you know, some of that shot creations,
some of that playmaking. You're covered there right And defensively,
(09:08):
Lebron has been incredible guys since like December, he's been
awesome and they've missed that. But you can replicate a
little of that with Dorian Finney Smith. You can replicate
a little of that with more Jared Vanderbilt minutes. They
have no Jackson Hayes plan b Like, there just isn't one.
He is their center. He is the guy who provides
(09:29):
them vertical spacing. He's the lob threat. I mean you
saw it in the first half against Phoenix. It's just,
you know, the way Luca can operate, you know, inside
three point line, drawing double and triple teams. It creates
the easiest baskets for a player. Uh really like sort
of like born to catch loobs from Lukatachich, Like that's
(09:50):
kind of what you like. You look at Jackson Hayes, Uh,
you know, seven feet to doll. He was a really
good high school receiver in Texas. It's just like throwing
the ball above the back, going to let him jump
and dunk. Like that's like he loves to do that stuff.
It's pretty simple and he's good at it. They really
really missed him more than they probably should feel comfortable with.
(10:12):
And I think that is if you know, when these
guys hit the deck and they do this is to say,
like you know, you can't absorb any injury, Like you know,
they're all problematic, Right, Luca goes down here in trouble,
Austin MUVEs goes down here in trouble. There there is
no credible plan. B. If Jackson Ase goes down, you
(10:33):
know Alex Plan is not a starter, can't be a starter.
Trey Jemison's on a two way contract. Christian Klok was
on a two way contract. Got the same types of
looks last night that Jackson As gets. He was one
for five. Jackson As, I think was like eight for ten.
So to me, that's just like he not having him
(10:53):
in those games last week was critical, critical, critical, critical,
because they can cover up some of the le round
stuff they're like they can't cover up like having a
seven foot guy who can run and jump. They're just
one of them on the team. Big picture, Lebron James
much more important. Obviously it's Lebron James. But I think
that's like watching them over the last week and then
(11:15):
seeing them against Phoenix, like you could see that, like
you can survive a stretch the way their roster's built
without without Lebron James, it's really hard for them to
survive a stretch. And this is probably a better way
to look at it. They can't survive it without Lebron James.
Jackson Hayes and Marie Hotchmurrow like that. They don't have
(11:36):
the roster to kind of handle missing those particular three starters.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Yeah, well one of the guys we've noticed that. I
saw the stats have been going around Austin Reeves. He's
played seven games without Lebron this year's averaging twenty eight
points a game. It's only seven games, it's a small
sample size. But if he were if Austin Reeves was
on like the Charlotte Hornets, there's some god awful team,
would he be able to do that? Or is this
just kind of a we your quirky thing in the
(12:01):
in the the way that the season's gone for the Lake.
Speaker 3 (12:04):
No, I mean I think he could be a I
mean you could do it, sure, you know, I think,
you know, I don't know. Are you a championship level
team if Austin Reeves is your primary shot creator, ballmaker,
ball maker, playmaker, ball handler. Uh, you know, I don't
(12:24):
think so, you know, can you be a playoff team? Probably?
I mean, look, there's a name that comes up a
lot when you talk to people about Austin Reeves. There's
two actually, Uh, you know, when you look at him,
and you look at him alongside Luca Dodgers, Lebron James,
you hear people talk about Jalen Brunson, right like that's
just you know, Jalen Brunson taking on a lesser role
(12:46):
in Dallas Luka Dodgicch gets a bigger opportunity in the Knicks,
proves that, you know, he's the kind of player and
has the kind of skills that can do this as
sort of a number one off offensive option.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
You saw it at times when when there was opportunity there.
You know, people say, like there's a similar pathway for
Austin Reaves. He's had games guys where you you know,
I wrote this in my story for Sunday, Like you
look at you look at the list of the people
who've done like the things that he's done, and you
can cherry pick these numbers, but it's like things like
thirty five points, thirteen rebounds, eight assists, four steals, right,
(13:20):
Like the list of guys who've had those games, it's
like it's like Pete Merivich and Michael Jordan and Larry
Bird and Austin Reeves. You know, like he had a
game earlier. They share for the Lakers, like the only
other Lakers to ever have it were you know, Kobe
Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, Lebron James and Austin Reeves,
and like these things have happened a handful of times, right,
(13:42):
like when the opportunity's been there for him before the
Luca deal. Guys, even like well after the trade, while
Luca was like still working the calf. I mean, you know,
you saw Lebron defer some offensive responsibility of Austin Leaves,
and the numbers were the numbers were really good, you know,
And I think the real challenge for this team, you know,
(14:02):
offensively is making sure that you know, Reeves is still
getting his in the way that Luca and Lebron are
as well. Right, Keeping all three of those guys as
engaged as weapons. Finding opportunities for all of them to
kind of to sort of run the show is going
to be important because if like they can find that balance,
I really don't know how you're going to guard them, like,
(14:24):
like offensively, Like just the skill set that those three
players possesses. There are not many teams in this league
that have kind of that level of like dynamic offensive
players on the perimeter.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
Dan Wyk joining us here on AM five seventy LA Sports,
Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox in for freend Rodney Here on
a five seventy, Dan, I am curious and I know that. Listen,
it's you know, the dust is settled, you know, where
we've all just accepted the fact that the trade happened
and all that. Have you gotten any more intel or
any more info as to why the hell the trade
(15:00):
was made, why Luca was available and made available to
the Lakers, and how that all went down? Have you
heard anything, because it's still fascinates me that we've not
gotten the real story. And I think everybody is in
agreement on that.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
I mean, you've you start to piece together like little
tiny things that you hear, you know, and that have
been you know, all this stuff has been reported one
way or another. You know, You've I've read stuff out
of Dallas, and I've heard stuff that you know, like
like Nico Harrison hasn't really made any like secret about
his ambition in Dallas, and it's not to be the
general manager for fifteen years, right that this has been
(15:35):
more about a short term thing for him. And so
when you're viewing things through a short term lens, you're
willing to to act with more short term interest, you know.
I think there are obviously, like when it comes to stars,
and dealing with stars, you take on the people around them.
You know, in this case, it was Dallas advocating that
(15:56):
he do it, and then you know, you find out
that maybe you're not as comfortab with some of those
things right in terms of like medical people and things
like that. It's not like an entourage issue necessarily, but
it's you know, like they want to be more conservative
with an injury, and you don't want to be as conservative,
And you know, are they really pushing him in the
way that that you want to push him? I think
(16:17):
there's elements of that. I think there were elements of
sort of cumulative frustration. I mean, they've been asking Luca
to stop arguing with the refs for seven seasons. I
think he has like six technical foy fourteen games with
the Lakers or something that like. And and you know,
I know when I get angriest with my children, it's
when I tell them the same thing over and over
(16:38):
and over again. And I think there were elements of that.
And play here. Does any of this make sense for
why Dallas would do this?
Speaker 4 (16:45):
Now?
Speaker 3 (16:46):
It doesn't. You don't do it. There's a reason why
other teams don't do it. There's a reason why I
was so shocking. The whole point is to get players
as good as Luka Dancic and then you do everything
you can to figure it out around them. Like that
is the point. That is how you build teams that
are good for a decade. Is you get a player
like this and yeah, and you you do things to
(17:10):
make it work. You know that has been the Milwaukee
Bucks plan. Uh you know that is what the Golden State.
Speaker 4 (17:15):
Warriors have done.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
It is what the Lakers have done for fifty years.
So they get a great player and they figured out
around that person. And Dallas had the player, and I
think let let the clutter get in the way of
sort of the which which should just be the kind
of the main thing, which is like you get the
special ones.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Well, Dan Nico Harrison say he doesn't want to be
a team for a long time. Do the Lakers hire
him as an advisor? As soon as he's fired by
the Mavericks in this summer? Do they bring him back
and they have a barat?
Speaker 3 (17:46):
I mean, I mean, look, I would would you want
someone who made that trade on your on your stad No?
Speaker 2 (17:54):
I I The thing I don't understand, Dan, is it's
one thing for Nico Harrison to say, Okay, I want
to trade Luca, but how on gods me on Earth
does the ownership of the Mavericks So okay, well that's fine,
we'll trade him. I mean, did did no one have
a clue?
Speaker 3 (18:09):
Like?
Speaker 2 (18:09):
I mean, it just blows me away that that got approved.
Speaker 3 (18:11):
My absolutely involved, I mean, ownership is absolutely involved in
this stuff. Right, Like, you're gonna make a trade like this,
it usually happens one of two ways, right Like, either
either ownership is the one thing, go do it, and
it does not appear that this was fully driven that way,
you know, or they have to get on board and
they trust the people that they have around them. Look,
(18:34):
I think for the the skewering that Nico Harrison has
gotten uh after this trade, like it has a race,
the fact that he's made a lot of other moves
that have been very good since he got that job
in Dallas, right, Like, there were people around the league
last year, but it was insane that he gave up
when he gave up to get PJ. Washington and Daniel Gafford, right,
and those two players like helped get the Mavericks in
(18:55):
the NBA finals. Like now, another big part of that was,
you know, the Kyrie Irving trades an another example. They
give him too much for Kyrie Irving. You can't trust
Kyrie Irving before the Achilles injury. Oh I'm sorry, the
knee in Dallas. You know, by all accounts, like Kyrie Irving,
(19:15):
Like one of the crazy things guys that happened in
the last two months of the NBA was Kyrie Irving
being the voice of sanity in an organization like like
that occurred right like he was the mature person in
Dallas kind of like trying to unpack all these really
complicated feelings that their fans were having and different things
like that. You know. So Nico had had a nice
(19:36):
run of moves and I don't know if it's you know,
feeling yourself a little bit or what it is or
something like that. Obviously his relationship with Anthony Davis, his
desire for more defense, Like I I can kind of
see how it gets you there. It just like it's
one of those things like someone just has to stop it,
(19:59):
you know, And it seems like more and more that
the people that normally would have been in position to
stop it weren't involved, you know, like Dirk Noavitsky. You know,
I think he said something on like a German podcast today,
I love that this is my life now, so I'm
judging through German podcasts, you know, said something along the
lines of that, Like, you know, over the last couple years,
he hasn't really been involved that much, you know, with
(20:21):
with the Mavericks organization, the same way like post Cuban,
that Mark Cuban, you know, thought when he sold this
team to day Telsons that he would have more say,
and you know that's that hasn't been the case. So
you know, he couldn't really he couldn't really put the
brakes on this in a way that you know he
would have liked to. I think of your ownership, and
you know, you have concerns about somebody, and you're concerns
(20:43):
about their commitment to being healthy, of their commitment to
being in peak physical condition. The reality of the new
NBA is that you're gonna have to pay that person
sixty some million dollars a year. I could see how
that might spook you a little bit, but again, like
you just get over it. You know, you get the
contracts on and then you figure out, you know, if
(21:05):
you have to ban carbs in your building. You do it,
you know, like whatever it is like you've figured out later.
And I think they got their process inverted on this,
and I think we're trying to be a little too
smart for their own good.
Speaker 1 (21:18):
Dan Wykey he covers the Lakers in the NBA for
the La Times. You can get him on ex Dan
Wykey Sports Dan again. You know, go get yourself a
green beer. I don't know if you want to go
PBR just like the old days, a little throwback for you,
but nonetheless, have yourself a good time. We appreciate a
few minutes of your time here.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
Enough PBR it'll be green eventually.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
Yes, that'll stop.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
I mean, by the way, Midwest guy, you know, old
style I would think would be the go to old.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Sounds absolutely awful.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
The PBR.
Speaker 4 (21:50):
PBR was my.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
Local, you know, I know it's more Wisconsin in Chicago
was like my local, like the hipster beer of an
expensive choice. But yeah, I know it uh old Milwaukee.
Speaker 4 (22:05):
Maybe if we're.
Speaker 1 (22:06):
Getting real, all right, I mean maybe, I mean whatever
whatever is going to get you to where you need
to get like that, that's that's really the goal here
for many people, to right. But but damn. We appreciate it. Man,
Let's do it again soon.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
Thanks Dr Sono.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
Guys good.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
We need to die something like you know, Chicago, they
die the Chicago River. Yeah, Chicago. We don't die anything
in l a right doing. I mean a lot of
stuff is naturally green, so we don't need to the diet.
There's no uh no green tents on venice anywhere. Like
they're not kill there might be.
Speaker 1 (22:42):
A whole different world.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
Hey listen, Kevin, it was somebody else's idea to put
us together. I don't know this is you know, you
got to feel the greens on. Come on, all right?
Speaker 1 (23:00):
So Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox in for friend Rodney here
on AM five seventy LA Sports. So we want to know,
how will you be partaking in the Dodgers opener three
am first pitch coverage here obviously on AM five seventy
LA Sports, the Home of the Dodgers. It'll be on TV.
But this follows Saint Patty's Day. How will you be
(23:20):
partaking in the festivities coming up tomorrow eight six six nine,
eight seven two five seventy. That's eight six six nine
eight seven two five seventy. We will hear who's got
the best plan in place? The voice for Game one
of the Dodgers defending World Series champion season, and those
calls are next here on AM five to seventy LA Sports.
(23:43):
AM five seventy LA Sports. It's Rogan and Rodney, except
it's not. It's Ben Mallard Jonas Knox in for the
guys here on this Saint Patty's da. It is the
eve of the opener for the Dodgers as they begin
the two game series in Tokyo, which, by the way,
Dodgers on Deck coverage. We'll start here tomorrow morning, two
am local time, first pitch at three oh five, and
(24:06):
there will be a re air of the game at
noon right here on AM five seventy LA Sports. So, Ben,
we were asking the question, what's the plan. There's people
out there you got, you gotta make a decision. How
are you going to handle this opportunity to do what
you and I do, which is be up at that
time during the morning every single day. That is just
(24:26):
our life with the schedule we have doing radio, and
so we wanted to know how are other people Dodger
fans listening going to be partaking in the game coming
up tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
What's the plan?
Speaker 1 (24:36):
And so we will go to the phones eight six
six nine eight seven two five seventy where I believe
this is Danny and Coasta Mesa. Danny and Coasta Mesa
is listening here. I know he is a p one
if you will, Ben of Fox Sports Radio and the
really Torch Am five seventy Danny, what do you got?
What's your plan?
Speaker 3 (24:53):
Man?
Speaker 7 (24:55):
My plan is like, yeahy opening day, man, We're in
the backyard bars, gonna grill some garnasalad about two thirty
in the morning, so on some onions, some corn and
drink a Lottas bloody Mary's what shots we want to take?
Speaker 4 (25:11):
Like every other game date. Yeah, I may be calling
between two thirty and three.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
All right, well I'll be, I'll be. I'm doing the
pre pregame show. I just realized that. Jonas said, Danny,
I'm doing I'm before Kate, So I I gotta like
one am man, I'm doing the pre pregame show. So
you gotta get out there early and start eating and drinking.
I was wondering if people are gonna tailgate, because normally
neighborhoods don't like people tailgating at two in the morning.
But hey, why not, man, go for it. If you
(25:36):
don't have a homeowers association, might as well do it.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
It depends on the neighborhood. All right, Listen, I'm not
trying to judge. Okay, but Danny, I believe that that
you know what I'm talking about here. So my in
laws are Mexican, I can assure you there is no clock,
there are no neighbors.
Speaker 2 (25:54):
They do not care.
Speaker 1 (25:55):
If they want to rage, they will rage, and everybody
just has a working agreement. Oh yeah, this is what
it is like. You're just gonna listen. The food's great,
the music's wonderful. It's just gonna go a little bit late,
and it might start a little bit early the next day.
Speaker 2 (26:08):
Just is what it is.
Speaker 7 (26:09):
Yeah, we'll be done by seven o'clock in the Morning's
all right.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
There you go get anybody's way. There's nothing wrong with that.
Speaker 2 (26:19):
Smelling like alcohol and you know food, and just knock
yourself out. Men, go for it, having your best life.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
There.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
I do like how it's well, the game starts at three.
You can't possibly be doing carne asada and tailgating. Oh
yes we can.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
Yeah, there you can't underest me the passion of the
Dodger fan base. But I mean, you got to go
out there by yeah, and we didn't ask him. He's
gonna take a nap first, he's gonna stay up all night.
But you know, what the heck, go for it.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
I mean, how would how would you recommend that?
Speaker 2 (26:47):
You know, how would you? I mean, there's I'm not
a napper. This is my problem. Like I I've not
been able to nap like when I when I'm up
for the day, I'm up for the day. So I
would just I would just power through. I would do caffeine.
This is my I don't I don't drink like coffee
or anything like that, but I would do like caffeine
something bit something like that.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
That still blows my mind. That you that you don't
drink coffee. That blows my mind. Not a not a
coffee drinker. Now, somebody who's got a little bit of
an advantage here, Mitch is in New Jersey listening here
on AM five seventy l A Sports Mitch. I mean,
come on, man, you're not really grinding through like Dodger
fans out here, because you're getting a six am first pitch.
Speaker 5 (27:23):
Hey, yeah, he's doing well well. First of all, Ben,
I don't know how you do without coffee. I'm retired now,
so this is really a soul to the room here.
I have a cat that chirps, I know.
Speaker 6 (27:36):
So I'm usually up at four five o'clock in the
morning my time, which would be two o'clock one o'clock
your time. So maybe i can turn on the pre
pregame show or I hit him and here the game.
It's funny, I can't hear the game on this channel.
Speaker 5 (27:50):
But I'm go to the Clippers app.
Speaker 6 (27:52):
I can hear the game because it says i'm I'm,
I'm not within ninety miles of la oh. Elie wants
to adopt New Jersey in New York City as another county.
Speaker 5 (28:03):
Maybe someday understand that's terrible to do with all thirty teams,
he means, all the fans and just have opening days, Uh,
in different cities around the world.
Speaker 6 (28:17):
Is that what?
Speaker 5 (28:18):
Because it has to be about money. But anyway, go Dodgers,
thanks to take my call.
Speaker 1 (28:24):
There is there's Mitch Mitch in New Jersey.
Speaker 2 (28:26):
Yes, I think we should go to like, uh, just
pick random, you know, cities and just put baseball there.
I mean, you're not spend the globe and just throw
throw a pin and you know we'll go to Kabul
next year. We'll see where we end up.
Speaker 1 (28:42):
I mean, who's not who's not into raise jays in
the Sudan? Come on, listen, did we not get this done?
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Please? The money maker Boba is huge out there, like
the Padres. Let me say, the Padres are big and
Guam there's a lot of pres. They love the Padres. Okay,
on their way to who knows where.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
It's uh, why not? You know at this point, you know,
let's just let's make it happen.
Speaker 3 (29:09):
That we are on.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
I know Terry in England, I guess some of my
guys Terry's listening. He's like seven. It was after seven.
I think maybe it's like eight now in England.
Speaker 3 (29:18):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
He's he's tuned in, so he's he's locked in. And
Robbie the Mariner fan and whatnot there. So the the
the p Ones are out there, Jones, I know your
guys are out there. Everyone's locked in here. Oh yeah,
they love it. Day night's doubleheader. It's so good. We'll
play two. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:33):
You know, if you're a big fan of sarcasm. At
a high level. This is the pairing that you would want.
This is the one that you were hoping for high level.
Speaker 2 (29:43):
Now do you.
Speaker 1 (29:44):
Think Kevin, based on your knowledge of how Fred travels,
do you believe that he's currently awake right now in
Tokyo or do you think he's trying to sleep whatever
he had off last night? Oh, Fred's trying to sleep
it off on whatever luxury hotel he's standing in for sure. Yeah,
we don't know where he's.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Fred is not giving that information, absolutely not. He's probably
not saying an Airbnb, right, he's my hotel guy.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
Yeah, this is nothing close to to Luca Lake.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
Not up to my standards, not up to my standards.
Please come on now.
Speaker 1 (30:17):
So I listen, enjoy it, but again be safe and
a reminder. The Dodgers on deck at two am, first
pitch three oh five, and the re air will be
at noon here on am five to seventy l A sports, Well,
what's the one of the World Series.
Speaker 2 (30:33):
C what's the earliest you can call someone? Because it's
five fifty in the morning right now in Tokyo roughly,
So is it like you have to wait till eight
because that we're not going to be here at eight
local time in Tokyo maybe like six thirty, maybe like forty.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
When when I was a telemarketer, there was of this
rule if you were calling people back East, that you
wouldn't do it before eight am. Before eight am, yeah,
like nine am was ideal, but not before a because
you did telemarketing.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
Oh yeah. Was that better than being the mascot of
Chuck E Cheese or was that worse?
Speaker 1 (31:09):
More comfortable? You know, you don't have the threat of
you know, some spoiled brat who's there for his sixth
birthday who takes a light saving or your balls when
you're not looking. You don't have to worry about that, and
so but yeah, telemarketing, you just that would be one
of the rules, like hey, listen, just don't call people
too early because you can you can offend them.
Speaker 2 (31:26):
Did you see that documentary a couple of years ago,
I think it was on HBO of the telemarketing place
out of Jersey that they had they had partnered. They'd
claimed they were part of like the police, and they
were raising all kinds of money, but they weren't actually
associated with the police, Like a total scam operation. You
love that you worked in telemarketing, man, you gotta check
(31:46):
that out. Let's right in your wheelhouse. They were like
they were calling people up saying, we need money to help,
you know, firefighters and police officers, and it was like
a total like they had some side deal with certain
factions of the police of fighter. I remember they weren't
the money. They were just pocketing. From what I remember
watching the documentary, they were just pocketing the money.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
You want to talk about some scumbags and characters that
work at a telemarketing place, there's uh tell.
Speaker 2 (32:12):
You, boy, I can I can only imagine. Yeah, it's amazing.
You know, did you have a script? Did you have
a script when you call people?
Speaker 1 (32:19):
Give me a little bit of a script. He just
got used to it at a certain point. But I
just I remember this guy called up one time. He
was because it was we would sell ink and toner
supplies back in the day for cash registers, and so
when it would get to this time of the year,
you would call golf shops around the country because the
pro shops will start to open up back east because golf,
you know, the weather was getting nicer and all that.
(32:40):
So they would need supplies. I just remember this guy
called up, and you know, the guy on the other
end was a little bit abrasive, and he says, well,
who's this calling. And the guy who was sitting next
to goes, it's John, which was clearly not his name.
Guy goes, oh, yeah, John, who and he just said
John Denver And the guy, the guy at the golf
(33:02):
shop just says, oh, yeah, well this is Merle Haggard.
Take me off your list, you know, playing the game.
You know, it's a cold world out there.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
It is, man, it is a it's a cold, cold
world that's gotta be tough.
Speaker 4 (33:18):
Now.
Speaker 2 (33:19):
I know there's still Telemart, but I never answer calls
if I don't recognize the number. Like who answers the
phone if you don't recognize the number?
Speaker 1 (33:26):
Yeah, a little bit more like collor ID really put
a cramp into things.
Speaker 2 (33:30):
You know, it's the only people unfortunately, it's like older
people that just want someone to talk to them. Usually
that answers the phone, right, otherwise I'm not gonna answer
the phone.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
Yeah, like now, and like now you got to text,
you know, if you want to get a hold of
there's people that just there's people that you can call them.
They want to answer, but they'll text back. And it's
not that they're busy, they just don't want to have
a conversation. They just want to text.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
There is actually that that. I was seeing that story
a couple of weeks ago. That and I've got these
texts like, hey, you're driving in the carpoolane you know, yeah,
the toll roads. Yeah, the toll road scam people are
actually they're making money on that.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Yeah, hey you have an unpaid toll feed At the
next part, I almost clicked on the link just because
I actually did drive through a toll to.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
I did the same thing. I and like, how did
they know that I was? I thought maybe that I
had missed it or something like that.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
Yeah, closed, And then I looked at him like, no,
I already paid that, Like I know I paid that.
I paid that immediately when I got the bill. It
was like eighteen bucks or whatever it was.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
They just they must just be fishing, sending out thousands
of those like messages, right, Oh, I mean, how else
would they get your number? My number is not connected
to my car.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
Well, you know, it's the old call to close ratio
where you just throw enough at a wall and something's
going to stick. So if you make a hundred phone calls,
if you can get ten people on the phone, then
five of the ten you'll give a pitch to, and
maybe two of the five you'll get a sale fromt.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
So it's like dating jos I. When you're you're a
single guy, you got to ask one hundred women. Maybe
one of them will be dumb enough to, you know,
hang out with you.
Speaker 1 (35:03):
Yeah, just full of lies.
Speaker 2 (35:04):
Yeah, it's all full of lies. Theikeida life right there.
That's see you working radio.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
You must be doing well, yeah, yeah, yeah, sure.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Nineteen forty we're doing very well.
Speaker 1 (35:19):
You like my six It is uh Rogan and Rodney
AM five seventy LA Sports. It's Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox
in for the guys coming up next here though you
talk about the rich getting richer, speaking of money, the
rich get richer in the world of sports. Wait, do
you hear this story here on AM five seventy LA Sports.
(35:42):
AM five seventy LA Sports Rogan and Rodney, Except it's not.
It's Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox in for the guys coming
up here in a little over ten minutes from now.
We're gonna have some expectations, maybe a little peek into
the future for what you can expect from your La
Dodgers here in twenty twenty five as they come off
a World Series championship. So that'll be yours here again
(36:05):
a little over ten minutes from now. So, Ben, I
don't know if you are. You a big NASCAR guy,
you like you like Nascar?
Speaker 2 (36:12):
Bugget it, bugget it, bugget it, bugget it. Buggety Now.
I had a website years ago. I covered NASCAR for
the website because it was I was associated with Fox
Sports dot com. And I still get email from NASCAR people.
I know. I do not have the Nascar geen. I
remember when they used to have the races out in Fontana.
I went out there a few times for work. Uh,
(36:32):
but no, I got watched usually I watched the Daytona
five hundred. That's about it. What about you'd be a
big NASCAR guy, right, Jonas?
Speaker 1 (36:38):
You like the Yeah sure, yeah, huch Nascar guy. Yeah listen, yeah,
afraid to uh yeah, not afraid to partake. How about
the fact that Denny Hamlin won like the same slot
machine twice in Vegas. They're at Las Vegas more.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
There was a rumor was three times that he won.
Three he won uh Friday night, Saturday, and then supposedly
there was another one somewhere on.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
Sea, like like eight, there's a goe for eighty five grand,
there was one for one hundred and twenty five. But
he ended up winning like like a quarter of a
million dollars. Yes, on a slot machine, Like okay, but
like yeah, there's got to be either that's to lore
people into the casino, to be like, hey you could
be a winner, or somebody there got fired, like somebody
(37:28):
had some god. But there's no way. You've seen casino
where you know. Robert DeNiro is like tell them, guy, listen,
these slots are loose. Why are they loose? We got
it like people can't win, Like, well, you know, sometimes
people get lucky. He goes, no, that's not how it works.
That that's not how it works. I just find it
hard to believe that the same slot would pay out
that much if there's not either a glitch a screw up,
(37:50):
or they're trying to lure people in, like hey, look
these are how loose our slots are? You can win
a quarter of a million dollars here on three different
polls in one weekend.
Speaker 2 (37:58):
Yes, and it's really it's really good, Jonas, that a
guy down on his luck, it's really trying to put
you know, two pieces of bread together too raw, you know,
rotting bread to eat where sixty five million Danny Hamlin
would end up getting these dagpots there. It's good. It's
always nice when good things happen to people that really
need it, you know, hard scrabble streets of NASCAR. But yeah,
(38:21):
so I thought, and maybe I'm wrong on this, as
I understood it. All the slot machines are governed by
the Nevada Gaming counselor or something like that. They're all
kind of they're all kind of connected there. And every month,
i think it's every month they come out with the
report how much revenue they get. And I'm sure you've
(38:41):
talked about this, Jonas, We've all seen it. And the
biggest money maker, by far, is not any of the
table games. It's not the sports book. It's the slot machines,
and it's the penny slot machine. Yes, by far, people
make and you never you can't just bet a penny.
It's bull crap, you can't. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (39:04):
Look, one of my favorite things about Vegas. A lot
of people go there for the buffets. Some people go
there for the shows, some people go there for the clubs,
the nightlife, the food, like.
Speaker 2 (39:13):
All of that.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
Like listen and look, some people go there for other things.
And we're not here to judge.
Speaker 2 (39:19):
You got to go out tom for that.
Speaker 1 (39:21):
I mean, look, the reason why those guys are slapping
those pamphlets together in their hands when you walk by
on Las Vegas.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
There's a reason for that.
Speaker 1 (39:29):
Like those work, and they will come to the room
and you can, you know, argue if you want about
whether or not you want to give them the full
amount or a partial. But one of my favorite things
is when you walk by the penny slot machines and
you see somebody in their seventies with a ventilator and
a lung dart and they're just pressing away their life
savings and a penny slot.
Speaker 2 (39:49):
My favorite two is you're in the Casino Jonas and
they're doing the the good luck taps. You know, they
do like the taps, and they do like the prayer
thing around the slot machine. Oh is this a a
hand movements and then that'll unlock the money from the
slot machine. But yeah, yeah, yeah, every casino, I mean
even here, the ones around here. You go to the casino,
you see that, you know, they've got the oxygen chink.
(40:11):
They're they're wearing like hospital downs, like those those socks
with like the the grip on the bottom. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
the hospital socks. They got those things on and like
this right until the end. Man, that's Isn't that the
way you want to go out?
Speaker 3 (40:24):
Ye?
Speaker 2 (40:24):
I'm not sitting in front of a slot machine and
just trying to one big.
Speaker 1 (40:28):
Now have you ever did you ever get because I
don't know if it's still up or I don't know
if it's already torn down or if they're in the
process of tearing it down. Did you ever stop at
Whiskey Pete's before?
Speaker 2 (40:38):
Yeah? Come on, man, are you kidding me? Yeah, it's
it's believe it's closed. I don't know if they've torn
it down. But I used to love you know, I've
only flown to Vegas a couple of times. I love
the drive. I love the experience driving through the desert
on the way to Vegas. Like you got to stop
in in uh Apple Valley, Victorville. Oh that's the first
(40:59):
leg Barstow. You got the Del Taco and Barstow, like
the most famous Del Taco out there. You got all
the restaurants, and then Baker. I always loved Baker because
you've got you've got the mad Greek out there and
uh just like a little street and that's it with
all fast food restaurants. And then and then you get
the State Line and they had the greatest mall in Prim.
(41:23):
I love that they had a great outlet store, a
bunch of outlets stores that mall. Have you been, I
know if you've been there, it's a ghost ghost mall.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
Yeah, we we stopped years and years ago, we stopped
by there, and yeah, they had a bunch of stuff
out there.
Speaker 2 (41:35):
Well it's all the mall. They haven't torn it down.
But like there were three hotels there with the Buffalo Bills,
Whiskey Pets, and then there's like the Prim Valley Resort
and two of the three are closed. There's only one
hotel that's still out there. And I would always tell
my wife, is that why don't we stay here? I
mean it's cheaper and then we can you know, we
drive into Vegas.
Speaker 1 (41:54):
We want what is it like forty five minutes to
get to the street there or something like that spends how.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
Fast you drive, But yeah, it's not it's not far out.
But I was there, and that was the mall I
would I used to go to Vegas like you know
five six steps, you know, seven times a year, and
I would stop at that mall and I went back there.
It really shut down during COVID. It never reopened. All
the stores are gone. It's the most depressing thing. It's
like it's like it's like the Twilight Zone walking around there.
(42:19):
But Whiskey Pete's was great. Man, I don't go there
and hang out. And it just smelled like disgusting, you know,
it was dirty, but.
Speaker 1 (42:27):
It was it was like old gambling, you know, it
was old a carton of Marlboroughs and like you know,
it was the you got the coin bucket when you won.
You didn't get a voucher, like you held a bucket
underneath and all the time.
Speaker 2 (42:40):
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah. They had like the McDonald's and
they were like milkshakes that it didn't spill from like
the seventies that were still.
Speaker 1 (42:46):
In there, you know, on the floor build seven eleven
w w F cups where they had the wrestler on
the side of the coup. Yeah, I felt this connection,
like I felt more masculine, I felt more adults, you know,
at Whiskey Beats.
Speaker 2 (43:01):
And unfortunately it didn't survive.
Speaker 1 (43:03):
Yeah, I remember we drove out there and we stopped
at Whiskey Peats. We stayed there on a Thursday night.
The room was nineteen dollars and we ate hot dogs
that were a dollar, and it was like seventy five
cent shrimp cocktail, and I swear to got at one
point that shrimp got out of the bowl and walked away.
It was awful. And I thought to myself, Yeah, but
(43:25):
you know what, man, for nineteen dollars, like really, for
fifty bucks, you could gamble. You could stay the night,
you could have some beers and you had dinner, and
then you're up the next morning ready to drive to
the strip.
Speaker 3 (43:37):
You know.
Speaker 2 (43:37):
But well, well back in the day, you know, you
should not gamble illegally. And for some reason, California does
not have legal sports betting. But there may be a
time in my life, Jonas where I may have driven
out to the state line there just to put some
bets in legally, of course, all especially how you feel
you drive all the way out to prim to put
a bet in you end up losing. Yeah, it's just
(44:01):
you feel really good. Yeah, it's unfortunate. So well listen,
congratulations to Denny Hamlin.
Speaker 3 (44:06):
It's in.
Speaker 1 (44:07):
It's been a rough run for him. Some of the
rich people.
Speaker 2 (44:10):
Remember Mark Davis, the Raiders owner, won a jackpot at
the airport. Also, like kind what do you do if.
Speaker 1 (44:16):
You're seeing what what he walks around with? He's he's
won a couple of times over Mark.
Speaker 2 (44:22):
Well, you know it's his good looks. It's the he
likes pfans orange chicken. Yeah, we know what. We know
what he asked for dessert too.
Speaker 1 (44:32):
Hello, they're always those sweets look nice.
Speaker 2 (44:35):
Yeah, you know what what she sees him? I don't
know what.
Speaker 1 (44:39):
I can't imagine. It is a M five seventy l
a sports Rogan and Rodney, But it's Ben Mallard, Jonas
Knox in for the guys and up next. Some expectations,
realistic expectations. We've got the latest on Mookie bets. We're
getting you set for the opener in Tokyo against the
Cubs coming up tomorrow morning. And little peek into the future.
(45:01):
How good will this team be? It's all yours next
year at AM five to seventy LA Sports
It's Rogan to Rodney AM five to seventy LA Sports.
He's Ben Malor, I'm Jonas Knox in for the guys here.
Happy Saint Patti's Day to you and yours, Ben and
I will be taking you all the way up until
three o'clock here.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
It is the eve of Opening Day.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Would you consider that Opening Day Tomorrow's that count for you?
Or does Opening Day need to be here in the
States for you to really partake?
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Well, I'll be awake, Jonas. I'll be awake right after
my show, my overnight show, so I'll be I'll be exad.
But no, it's not. It doesn't have the same I
think Opening Day afternoon, Dodger Stadium, That's what I think
of Opening Day. I don't think of three in the
morning in Japan. I don't. Yeah, but hey, I'll tune in.
I'll hear the hear the game on the on the
way home on the radio. I'll be listening to the
(00:46):
play by play coverage from Japan. So excited.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Well, listen, I know somebody who's with us here now
who will be partaking an Opening Day because they're always
locked in, always ready to go. Covers the Lakers and
the NBA for the La Times. Dan Wiki at dan
Wiki Sports is where you can find him on x
Dan Happy Saint Patty's Day to you and yours. How
many n are you at this point? I mean, how
(01:10):
many green beers? How many Jamison shots? What are we
looking like here?
Speaker 3 (01:13):
So so I have graduated from Saint Patrick's Day drinking.
I will say though, when I was in college, the
Wednesday after Saint Patrick's Day was always my favorite because
you would get the two day Old Green Beer special
all like it maybe like trying to run through the
(01:35):
kegs that they didn't sell and it's you know, I mean,
it's not the freshest beer I've ever had, but you know,
a buck twenty five for a pine of green La
bat Blue. It's a lot of color happening in a glass.
But yeah, that was always my go to. There's a
great week, guys. Saint Patty's Day. Baseball Thursday my favorite
day of the year, the first day the INCA tournament.
(01:57):
Lot of stuff happening at Lee seven Lake games in
five days.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
It feels like, Yeah, but when I think you're from
you're like a midwestern Chicago, great great town for Saint Patty,
Like where's the spot in LA? Where's this? I don't
I was thought to just like, is there any any
neighborhood in LA which is known for Saint Patty's. It's
nothing like Chicago or Boston or something.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
No, no, no, no, I don't think so. I mean
I would think, right, if you want to get drunk
during the day in Los Angeles, right like to me,
like you head to the beach, generally speaking, you'll always
find someone there willing to get drunk with you.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Anywhere in the South Bay, Yeah, exactly, right like that.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
I mean I didn't want to like completely like neighborhood
pro probably beach. It seems like it's like probably a
slam dunk for it. You know, maybe you started a
golf course and end up there. But uh yeah, no,
that's where I would go.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
So now, Dan, we got to know, I know, JJ
Reddick provided a little bit of an update. It seems
like we're we're trending in the right direction. But what's
in a realistic timeline for the return of Lebron James.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
Yeah, I mean they haven't put one out there internally externally.
I think though, like they've got they've got a back
to back on Wednesday and Thursday, big games Denver, Milwaukee.
I would be surprised if Lebron James plays any of
those games based on what I've heard. They played Chicago
(03:25):
on Saturday, and then they go on the road, you know,
and it seemed like I don't expect him to miss
significant time on this upcoming road trip.
Speaker 4 (03:35):
But I think overall, and the reason.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
Why they're not putting a time table on it, the
reason why I'm not putting any timetable on it is
that it's it's a tricky injury in the sense that
there's always fear that it could get worse, especially if
it's not bad to begin with, right, so you want
to make sure it heals as much as possible. And
I think the good news is that this was not
a bad groin injury. It's not a bad groin injury
he suffered those before. This isn't going to keep him
(03:59):
out of playoffs. This isn't going to keep him from
being ready in time to participate in the playoffs.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
They just want to give it as.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Much time as possible to get it as healthy as
possible because really, you know, guys, this is.
Speaker 4 (04:12):
A team that has significant.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Belief and its capability come come to postseason. I think
Lebron is you know, he's shown that in his play right,
how hard he's played, how engaged he's been on the
defensive end. To me, those are all signs of a
player who thinks this team can make a long run.
And because of that, I would expect, you know, a
conservative approach, and that probably means he's not on the
(04:37):
court when they play Milwaukee and Denver again this week.
And that's disappointing because those are fun games, and those
are games where you want to see where the Lakers
stand against two pretty good teams. But guys, you know, uh,
this this team has made June, you know, type of
potential and belief and you don't want to waste that
(04:58):
in March. He can't win the title in March, but
he and lose one.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Now, Dan, what about the optics that last week the Lakers,
they were in Denver. I guess it was Friday night
and Lebron had come back to LA to suppose that
we were told get treatment on his injury, but then
he flew to Sacramento for high school back. The optics
on that are not good day, I mean, those are
not great optics. I know it was his kid's high
school game, but he supposedly came back to get treatment
(05:22):
and was growing and he flew up to Sacramento. So
is there more of that story?
Speaker 5 (05:26):
What?
Speaker 2 (05:26):
What are you hearing on that?
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Yeah, I mean, I think there's a little more to it,
I think right. Like, so, the the way the schedule
sort of broke was the Lakers started a four game
road trip. They were in Boston. They went to New
York City after that to play the Nets, and they
had a couple of they had two off nights in
New York City.
Speaker 4 (05:44):
And then and then they kind of embarked on.
Speaker 3 (05:45):
This like pretty brutal back to back right where you
played in Milwaukee on Thursday night, in Denver Friday night,
home Saturday game yesterday afternoon. Right, it's the start of
a six, six games, an eight day stritch. The Lakers
are the first team in two plus years to have
one of these. It's because they've had a game in there.
Tonight's game was rescheduled because of the wildfires. Look, the
(06:10):
Lakers and we can talk about messaging and all this stuff,
there was just no reason for ruiy Hachimura, Lebron, James
Jackson Hayes. For any of those guys to do that
Milwaukee Denver portion of the trip there just isn't like
it's a brutal trip. It's not fun. Anybody who's ever
flown into Denver before knows that it is, well, a
(06:30):
beautiful city. There is no worse city to be for
like twenty hours, because you spend eighteen of them at
the airport. It feels like driving into the city. It's
not a downtown airport. So look, that was all in
the books. And then and you know, he had an
opportunity then to go see Bryce play and it was
totally approved by the team.
Speaker 4 (06:51):
I think, you know, optically.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Like it's weird because they haven't really come right out
and said this isn't that serious of an injury, or
it is a serious injury. Like there hasn't really been
any official team stamps on it other than any sort
of day to day which is like you know, like
with my dad would say, like we all are. I
guess that's true for everybody, Like there's no that's about
as vague as it gets. And I think to me,
(07:16):
it's it's just they don't want to put a timetable
on this in any real way, but they also don't
want to say, like he could be out there playing
if he had to be, so they get caught in
this sort of middle ground, and you get people dissecting
videos of him reacting to see our canyon baskets. I'm saying,
he doesn't look that hurt, you know. I I I
think I think the good like this isn't this isn't
(07:38):
like full on rest. That's not what it is. I
think there is a component in this that there is
an opportunity to kind of get refreshed before that.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
And look, I generally think that, and.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
I've seen this happen this year, and we like and Bronni.
Speaker 4 (07:51):
Has played a small role in this.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Anything that you can do to get Lebron James, if
it's three percent more comfortable, five percent, or whatever it
may be, it's probably worth it.
Speaker 6 (08:00):
It.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
It just probably is. It's just probably worth it. After
twenty plus years, it's probably worth it.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Dan Wiki joining us here on AM five seventy l
A Sports, Ben Mallord, Jonas Knox in for Fred and Rodney.
What has been exposed the most in your mind with
his absence and the way this team has played over
the past few games.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
It's kind of weird. Uh, this is crazy. Can I
take this in a different direction? It's it was more
Jackson Hayes's absence. That's an insane thing to say all
out and.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
You said that on the radio. Just said that on
the radio.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
Dan, Can we run with that on the A five
seventy x account social media right now? Jack Lebron according
to Dan.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
Maybe I have been drinking today.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
Maybe that's what it is.
Speaker 3 (08:45):
And look, I think long term, obviously, like you don't
have a chance in the playoffs without Lebron James on
the court, you don't. But in Luka Donchen and in
Austin Reeves, you do have guys who at least offensively,
like can take on, you know, some of that shot creations,
some of that playmaking. You're covered there right And defensively,
(09:08):
Lebron has been incredible guys since like December, he's been
awesome and they've missed that. But you can replicate a
little of that with Dorian Finney Smith. You can replicate
a little of that with more Jared Vanderbilt minutes. They
have no Jackson Hayes plan b Like, there just isn't one.
He is their center. He is the guy who provides
(09:29):
them vertical spacing. He's the lob threat. I mean you
saw it in the first half against Phoenix. It's just,
you know, the way Luca can operate, you know, inside
three point line, drawing double and triple teams. It creates
the easiest baskets for a player. Uh really like sort
of like born to catch loobs from Lukatachich, Like that's
(09:50):
kind of what you like. You look at Jackson Hayes, Uh,
you know, seven feet to doll. He was a really
good high school receiver in Texas. It's just like throwing
the ball above the back, going to let him jump
and dunk. Like that's like he loves to do that stuff.
It's pretty simple and he's good at it. They really
really missed him more than they probably should feel comfortable with.
(10:12):
And I think that is if you know, when these
guys hit the deck and they do this is to say,
like you know, you can't absorb any injury, Like you know,
they're all problematic, Right, Luca goes down here in trouble,
Austin MUVEs goes down here in trouble. There there is
no credible plan. B. If Jackson Ase goes down, you
(10:33):
know Alex Plan is not a starter, can't be a starter.
Trey Jemison's on a two way contract. Christian Klok was
on a two way contract. Got the same types of
looks last night that Jackson As gets. He was one
for five. Jackson As, I think was like eight for ten.
So to me, that's just like he not having him
(10:53):
in those games last week was critical, critical, critical, critical,
because they can cover up some of the le round
stuff they're like they can't cover up like having a
seven foot guy who can run and jump. They're just
one of them on the team. Big picture, Lebron James
much more important. Obviously it's Lebron James. But I think
that's like watching them over the last week and then
(11:15):
seeing them against Phoenix, like you could see that, like
you can survive a stretch the way their roster's built
without without Lebron James, it's really hard for them to
survive a stretch. And this is probably a better way
to look at it. They can't survive it without Lebron James.
Jackson Hayes and Marie Hotchmurrow like that. They don't have
(11:36):
the roster to kind of handle missing those particular three starters.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Yeah, well one of the guys we've noticed that. I
saw the stats have been going around Austin Reeves. He's
played seven games without Lebron this year's averaging twenty eight
points a game. It's only seven games, it's a small
sample size. But if he were if Austin Reeves was
on like the Charlotte Hornets, there's some god awful team,
would he be able to do that? Or is this
just kind of a we your quirky thing in the
(12:01):
in the the way that the season's gone for the Lake.
Speaker 3 (12:04):
No, I mean I think he could be a I
mean you could do it, sure, you know, I think,
you know, I don't know. Are you a championship level
team if Austin Reeves is your primary shot creator, ballmaker,
ball maker, playmaker, ball handler. Uh, you know, I don't
(12:24):
think so, you know, can you be a playoff team? Probably?
I mean, look, there's a name that comes up a
lot when you talk to people about Austin Reeves. There's
two actually, Uh, you know, when you look at him,
and you look at him alongside Luca Dodgers, Lebron James,
you hear people talk about Jalen Brunson, right like that's
just you know, Jalen Brunson taking on a lesser role
(12:46):
in Dallas Luka Dodgicch gets a bigger opportunity in the Knicks,
proves that, you know, he's the kind of player and
has the kind of skills that can do this as
sort of a number one off offensive option.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
You saw it at times when when there was opportunity there.
You know, people say, like there's a similar pathway for
Austin Reaves. He's had games guys where you you know,
I wrote this in my story for Sunday, Like you
look at you look at the list of the people
who've done like the things that he's done, and you
can cherry pick these numbers, but it's like things like
thirty five points, thirteen rebounds, eight assists, four steals, right,
(13:20):
Like the list of guys who've had those games, it's
like it's like Pete Merivich and Michael Jordan and Larry
Bird and Austin Reeves. You know, like he had a
game earlier. They share for the Lakers, like the only
other Lakers to ever have it were you know, Kobe
Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, Lebron James and Austin Reeves,
and like these things have happened a handful of times, right,
(13:42):
like when the opportunity's been there for him before the
Luca deal. Guys, even like well after the trade, while
Luca was like still working the calf. I mean, you know,
you saw Lebron defer some offensive responsibility of Austin Leaves,
and the numbers were the numbers were really good, you know,
And I think the real challenge for this team, you know,
(14:02):
offensively is making sure that you know, Reeves is still
getting his in the way that Luca and Lebron are
as well. Right, Keeping all three of those guys as
engaged as weapons. Finding opportunities for all of them to
kind of to sort of run the show is going
to be important because if like they can find that balance,
I really don't know how you're going to guard them, like,
(14:24):
like offensively, Like just the skill set that those three
players possesses. There are not many teams in this league
that have kind of that level of like dynamic offensive
players on the perimeter.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
Dan Wyk joining us here on AM five seventy LA Sports,
Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox in for freend Rodney Here on
a five seventy, Dan, I am curious and I know that. Listen,
it's you know, the dust is settled, you know, where
we've all just accepted the fact that the trade happened
and all that. Have you gotten any more intel or
any more info as to why the hell the trade
(15:00):
was made, why Luca was available and made available to
the Lakers, and how that all went down? Have you
heard anything, because it's still fascinates me that we've not
gotten the real story. And I think everybody is in
agreement on that.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
I mean, you've you start to piece together like little
tiny things that you hear, you know, and that have
been you know, all this stuff has been reported one
way or another. You know, You've I've read stuff out
of Dallas, and I've heard stuff that you know, like
like Nico Harrison hasn't really made any like secret about
his ambition in Dallas, and it's not to be the
general manager for fifteen years, right that this has been
(15:35):
more about a short term thing for him. And so
when you're viewing things through a short term lens, you're
willing to to act with more short term interest, you know.
I think there are obviously, like when it comes to stars,
and dealing with stars, you take on the people around them.
You know, in this case, it was Dallas advocating that
(15:56):
he do it, and then you know, you find out
that maybe you're not as comfortab with some of those
things right in terms of like medical people and things
like that. It's not like an entourage issue necessarily, but
it's you know, like they want to be more conservative
with an injury, and you don't want to be as conservative,
And you know, are they really pushing him in the
way that that you want to push him? I think
(16:17):
there's elements of that. I think there were elements of
sort of cumulative frustration. I mean, they've been asking Luca
to stop arguing with the refs for seven seasons. I
think he has like six technical foy fourteen games with
the Lakers or something that like. And and you know,
I know when I get angriest with my children, it's
when I tell them the same thing over and over
(16:38):
and over again. And I think there were elements of that.
And play here. Does any of this make sense for
why Dallas would do this?
Speaker 4 (16:45):
Now?
Speaker 3 (16:46):
It doesn't. You don't do it. There's a reason why
other teams don't do it. There's a reason why I
was so shocking. The whole point is to get players
as good as Luka Dancic and then you do everything
you can to figure it out around them. Like that
is the point. That is how you build teams that
are good for a decade. Is you get a player
like this and yeah, and you you do things to
(17:10):
make it work. You know that has been the Milwaukee
Bucks plan. Uh you know that is what the Golden State.
Speaker 4 (17:15):
Warriors have done.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
It is what the Lakers have done for fifty years.
So they get a great player and they figured out
around that person. And Dallas had the player, and I
think let let the clutter get in the way of
sort of the which which should just be the kind
of the main thing, which is like you get the
special ones.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Well, Dan Nico Harrison say he doesn't want to be
a team for a long time. Do the Lakers hire
him as an advisor? As soon as he's fired by
the Mavericks in this summer? Do they bring him back
and they have a barat?
Speaker 3 (17:46):
I mean, I mean, look, I would would you want
someone who made that trade on your on your stad No?
Speaker 2 (17:54):
I I The thing I don't understand, Dan, is it's
one thing for Nico Harrison to say, Okay, I want
to trade Luca, but how on gods me on Earth
does the ownership of the Mavericks So okay, well that's fine,
we'll trade him. I mean, did did no one have
a clue?
Speaker 3 (18:09):
Like?
Speaker 2 (18:09):
I mean, it just blows me away that that got approved.
Speaker 3 (18:11):
My absolutely involved, I mean, ownership is absolutely involved in
this stuff. Right, Like, you're gonna make a trade like this,
it usually happens one of two ways, right Like, either
either ownership is the one thing, go do it, and
it does not appear that this was fully driven that way,
you know, or they have to get on board and
they trust the people that they have around them. Look,
(18:34):
I think for the the skewering that Nico Harrison has
gotten uh after this trade, like it has a race,
the fact that he's made a lot of other moves
that have been very good since he got that job
in Dallas, right, Like, there were people around the league
last year, but it was insane that he gave up
when he gave up to get PJ. Washington and Daniel Gafford, right,
and those two players like helped get the Mavericks in
(18:55):
the NBA finals. Like now, another big part of that was,
you know, the Kyrie Irving trades an another example. They
give him too much for Kyrie Irving. You can't trust
Kyrie Irving before the Achilles injury. Oh I'm sorry, the
knee in Dallas. You know, by all accounts, like Kyrie Irving,
(19:15):
Like one of the crazy things guys that happened in
the last two months of the NBA was Kyrie Irving
being the voice of sanity in an organization like like
that occurred right like he was the mature person in
Dallas kind of like trying to unpack all these really
complicated feelings that their fans were having and different things
like that. You know. So Nico had had a nice
(19:36):
run of moves and I don't know if it's you know,
feeling yourself a little bit or what it is or
something like that. Obviously his relationship with Anthony Davis, his
desire for more defense, Like I I can kind of
see how it gets you there. It just like it's
one of those things like someone just has to stop it,
(19:59):
you know, And it seems like more and more that
the people that normally would have been in position to
stop it weren't involved, you know, like Dirk Noavitsky. You know,
I think he said something on like a German podcast today,
I love that this is my life now, so I'm
judging through German podcasts, you know, said something along the
lines of that, Like, you know, over the last couple years,
he hasn't really been involved that much, you know, with
(20:21):
with the Mavericks organization, the same way like post Cuban,
that Mark Cuban, you know, thought when he sold this
team to day Telsons that he would have more say,
and you know that's that hasn't been the case. So
you know, he couldn't really he couldn't really put the
brakes on this in a way that you know he
would have liked to. I think of your ownership, and
you know, you have concerns about somebody, and you're concerns
(20:43):
about their commitment to being healthy, of their commitment to
being in peak physical condition. The reality of the new
NBA is that you're gonna have to pay that person
sixty some million dollars a year. I could see how
that might spook you a little bit, but again, like
you just get over it. You know, you get the
contracts on and then you figure out, you know, if
(21:05):
you have to ban carbs in your building. You do it,
you know, like whatever it is like you've figured out later.
And I think they got their process inverted on this,
and I think we're trying to be a little too
smart for their own good.
Speaker 1 (21:18):
Dan Wykey he covers the Lakers in the NBA for
the La Times. You can get him on ex Dan
Wykey Sports Dan again. You know, go get yourself a
green beer. I don't know if you want to go
PBR just like the old days, a little throwback for you,
but nonetheless, have yourself a good time. We appreciate a
few minutes of your time here.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
Enough PBR it'll be green eventually.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
Yes, that'll stop.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
I mean, by the way, Midwest guy, you know, old
style I would think would be the go to old.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Sounds absolutely awful.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
The PBR.
Speaker 4 (21:50):
PBR was my.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
Local, you know, I know it's more Wisconsin in Chicago
was like my local, like the hipster beer of an
expensive choice. But yeah, I know it uh old Milwaukee.
Speaker 4 (22:05):
Maybe if we're.
Speaker 1 (22:06):
Getting real, all right, I mean maybe, I mean whatever
whatever is going to get you to where you need
to get like that, that's that's really the goal here
for many people, to right. But but damn. We appreciate it. Man,
Let's do it again soon.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
Thanks Dr Sono.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
Guys good.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
We need to die something like you know, Chicago, they
die the Chicago River. Yeah, Chicago. We don't die anything
in l a right doing. I mean a lot of
stuff is naturally green, so we don't need to the diet.
There's no uh no green tents on venice anywhere. Like
they're not kill there might be.
Speaker 1 (22:42):
A whole different world.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
Hey listen, Kevin, it was somebody else's idea to put
us together. I don't know this is you know, you
got to feel the greens on. Come on, all right?
Speaker 1 (23:00):
So Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox in for friend Rodney here
on AM five seventy LA Sports. So we want to know,
how will you be partaking in the Dodgers opener three
am first pitch coverage here obviously on AM five seventy
LA Sports, the Home of the Dodgers. It'll be on TV.
But this follows Saint Patty's Day. How will you be
(23:20):
partaking in the festivities coming up tomorrow eight six six nine,
eight seven two five seventy. That's eight six six nine
eight seven two five seventy. We will hear who's got
the best plan in place? The voice for Game one
of the Dodgers defending World Series champion season, and those
calls are next here on AM five to seventy LA Sports.
(23:43):
AM five seventy LA Sports. It's Rogan and Rodney, except
it's not. It's Ben Mallard Jonas Knox in for the
guys here on this Saint Patty's da. It is the
eve of the opener for the Dodgers as they begin
the two game series in Tokyo, which, by the way,
Dodgers on Deck coverage. We'll start here tomorrow morning, two
am local time, first pitch at three oh five, and
(24:06):
there will be a re air of the game at
noon right here on AM five seventy LA Sports. So, Ben,
we were asking the question, what's the plan. There's people
out there you got, you gotta make a decision. How
are you going to handle this opportunity to do what
you and I do, which is be up at that
time during the morning every single day. That is just
(24:26):
our life with the schedule we have doing radio, and
so we wanted to know how are other people Dodger
fans listening going to be partaking in the game coming
up tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
What's the plan?
Speaker 1 (24:36):
And so we will go to the phones eight six
six nine eight seven two five seventy where I believe
this is Danny and Coasta Mesa. Danny and Coasta Mesa
is listening here. I know he is a p one
if you will, Ben of Fox Sports Radio and the
really Torch Am five seventy Danny, what do you got?
What's your plan?
Speaker 3 (24:53):
Man?
Speaker 7 (24:55):
My plan is like, yeahy opening day, man, We're in
the backyard bars, gonna grill some garnasalad about two thirty
in the morning, so on some onions, some corn and
drink a Lottas bloody Mary's what shots we want to take?
Speaker 4 (25:11):
Like every other game date. Yeah, I may be calling
between two thirty and three.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
All right, well I'll be, I'll be. I'm doing the
pre pregame show. I just realized that. Jonas said, Danny,
I'm doing I'm before Kate, So I I gotta like
one am man, I'm doing the pre pregame show. So
you gotta get out there early and start eating and drinking.
I was wondering if people are gonna tailgate, because normally
neighborhoods don't like people tailgating at two in the morning.
But hey, why not, man, go for it. If you
(25:36):
don't have a homeowers association, might as well do it.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
It depends on the neighborhood. All right, Listen, I'm not
trying to judge. Okay, but Danny, I believe that that
you know what I'm talking about here. So my in
laws are Mexican, I can assure you there is no clock,
there are no neighbors.
Speaker 2 (25:54):
They do not care.
Speaker 1 (25:55):
If they want to rage, they will rage, and everybody
just has a working agreement. Oh yeah, this is what
it is like. You're just gonna listen. The food's great,
the music's wonderful. It's just gonna go a little bit late,
and it might start a little bit early the next day.
Speaker 2 (26:08):
Just is what it is.
Speaker 7 (26:09):
Yeah, we'll be done by seven o'clock in the Morning's
all right.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
There you go get anybody's way. There's nothing wrong with that.
Speaker 2 (26:19):
Smelling like alcohol and you know food, and just knock
yourself out. Men, go for it, having your best life.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
There.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
I do like how it's well, the game starts at three.
You can't possibly be doing carne asada and tailgating. Oh
yes we can.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
Yeah, there you can't underest me the passion of the
Dodger fan base. But I mean, you got to go
out there by yeah, and we didn't ask him. He's
gonna take a nap first, he's gonna stay up all night.
But you know, what the heck, go for it.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
I mean, how would how would you recommend that?
Speaker 2 (26:47):
You know, how would you? I mean, there's I'm not
a napper. This is my problem. Like I I've not
been able to nap like when I when I'm up
for the day, I'm up for the day. So I
would just I would just power through. I would do caffeine.
This is my I don't I don't drink like coffee
or anything like that, but I would do like caffeine
something bit something like that.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
That still blows my mind. That you that you don't
drink coffee. That blows my mind. Not a not a
coffee drinker. Now, somebody who's got a little bit of
an advantage here, Mitch is in New Jersey listening here
on AM five seventy l A Sports Mitch. I mean,
come on, man, you're not really grinding through like Dodger
fans out here, because you're getting a six am first pitch.
Speaker 5 (27:23):
Hey, yeah, he's doing well well. First of all, Ben,
I don't know how you do without coffee. I'm retired now,
so this is really a soul to the room here.
I have a cat that chirps, I know.
Speaker 6 (27:36):
So I'm usually up at four five o'clock in the
morning my time, which would be two o'clock one o'clock
your time. So maybe i can turn on the pre
pregame show or I hit him and here the game.
It's funny, I can't hear the game on this channel.
Speaker 5 (27:50):
But I'm go to the Clippers app.
Speaker 6 (27:52):
I can hear the game because it says i'm I'm,
I'm not within ninety miles of la oh. Elie wants
to adopt New Jersey in New York City as another county.
Speaker 5 (28:03):
Maybe someday understand that's terrible to do with all thirty teams,
he means, all the fans and just have opening days, Uh,
in different cities around the world.
Speaker 6 (28:17):
Is that what?
Speaker 5 (28:18):
Because it has to be about money. But anyway, go Dodgers,
thanks to take my call.
Speaker 1 (28:24):
There is there's Mitch Mitch in New Jersey.
Speaker 2 (28:26):
Yes, I think we should go to like, uh, just
pick random, you know, cities and just put baseball there.
I mean, you're not spend the globe and just throw
throw a pin and you know we'll go to Kabul
next year. We'll see where we end up.
Speaker 1 (28:42):
I mean, who's not who's not into raise jays in
the Sudan? Come on, listen, did we not get this done?
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Please? The money maker Boba is huge out there, like
the Padres. Let me say, the Padres are big and
Guam there's a lot of pres. They love the Padres. Okay,
on their way to who knows where.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
It's uh, why not? You know at this point, you know,
let's just let's make it happen.
Speaker 3 (29:09):
That we are on.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
I know Terry in England, I guess some of my
guys Terry's listening. He's like seven. It was after seven.
I think maybe it's like eight now in England.
Speaker 3 (29:18):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
He's he's tuned in, so he's he's locked in. And
Robbie the Mariner fan and whatnot there. So the the
the p Ones are out there, Jones, I know your
guys are out there. Everyone's locked in here. Oh yeah,
they love it. Day night's doubleheader. It's so good. We'll
play two. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (29:33):
You know, if you're a big fan of sarcasm. At
a high level. This is the pairing that you would want.
This is the one that you were hoping for high level.
Speaker 2 (29:43):
Now do you.
Speaker 1 (29:44):
Think Kevin, based on your knowledge of how Fred travels,
do you believe that he's currently awake right now in
Tokyo or do you think he's trying to sleep whatever
he had off last night? Oh, Fred's trying to sleep
it off on whatever luxury hotel he's standing in for sure. Yeah,
we don't know where he's.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Fred is not giving that information, absolutely not. He's probably
not saying an Airbnb, right, he's my hotel guy.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
Yeah, this is nothing close to to Luca Lake.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
Not up to my standards, not up to my standards.
Please come on now.
Speaker 1 (30:17):
So I listen, enjoy it, but again be safe and
a reminder. The Dodgers on deck at two am, first
pitch three oh five, and the re air will be
at noon here on am five to seventy l A sports, Well,
what's the one of the World Series.
Speaker 2 (30:33):
C what's the earliest you can call someone? Because it's
five fifty in the morning right now in Tokyo roughly,
So is it like you have to wait till eight
because that we're not going to be here at eight
local time in Tokyo maybe like six thirty, maybe like forty.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
When when I was a telemarketer, there was of this
rule if you were calling people back East, that you
wouldn't do it before eight am. Before eight am, yeah,
like nine am was ideal, but not before a because
you did telemarketing.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
Oh yeah. Was that better than being the mascot of
Chuck E Cheese or was that worse?
Speaker 1 (31:09):
More comfortable? You know, you don't have the threat of
you know, some spoiled brat who's there for his sixth
birthday who takes a light saving or your balls when
you're not looking. You don't have to worry about that, and
so but yeah, telemarketing, you just that would be one
of the rules, like hey, listen, just don't call people
too early because you can you can offend them.
Speaker 2 (31:26):
Did you see that documentary a couple of years ago,
I think it was on HBO of the telemarketing place
out of Jersey that they had they had partnered. They'd
claimed they were part of like the police, and they
were raising all kinds of money, but they weren't actually
associated with the police, Like a total scam operation. You
love that you worked in telemarketing, man, you gotta check
(31:46):
that out. Let's right in your wheelhouse. They were like
they were calling people up saying, we need money to help,
you know, firefighters and police officers, and it was like
a total like they had some side deal with certain
factions of the police of fighter. I remember they weren't
the money. They were just pocketing. From what I remember
watching the documentary, they were just pocketing the money.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
You want to talk about some scumbags and characters that
work at a telemarketing place, there's uh tell.
Speaker 2 (32:12):
You, boy, I can I can only imagine. Yeah, it's amazing.
You know, did you have a script? Did you have
a script when you call people?
Speaker 1 (32:19):
Give me a little bit of a script. He just
got used to it at a certain point. But I
just I remember this guy called up one time. He
was because it was we would sell ink and toner
supplies back in the day for cash registers, and so
when it would get to this time of the year,
you would call golf shops around the country because the
pro shops will start to open up back east because golf,
you know, the weather was getting nicer and all that.
(32:40):
So they would need supplies. I just remember this guy
called up, and you know, the guy on the other
end was a little bit abrasive, and he says, well,
who's this calling. And the guy who was sitting next
to goes, it's John, which was clearly not his name.
Guy goes, oh, yeah, John, who and he just said
John Denver And the guy, the guy at the golf
(33:02):
shop just says, oh, yeah, well this is Merle Haggard.
Take me off your list, you know, playing the game.
You know, it's a cold world out there.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
It is, man, it is a it's a cold, cold
world that's gotta be tough.
Speaker 4 (33:18):
Now.
Speaker 2 (33:19):
I know there's still Telemart, but I never answer calls
if I don't recognize the number. Like who answers the
phone if you don't recognize the number?
Speaker 1 (33:26):
Yeah, a little bit more like collor ID really put
a cramp into things.
Speaker 2 (33:30):
You know, it's the only people unfortunately, it's like older
people that just want someone to talk to them. Usually
that answers the phone, right, otherwise I'm not gonna answer
the phone.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
Yeah, like now, and like now you got to text,
you know, if you want to get a hold of
there's people that just there's people that you can call them.
They want to answer, but they'll text back. And it's
not that they're busy, they just don't want to have
a conversation. They just want to text.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
There is actually that that. I was seeing that story
a couple of weeks ago. That and I've got these
texts like, hey, you're driving in the carpoolane you know, yeah,
the toll roads. Yeah, the toll road scam people are
actually they're making money on that.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Yeah, hey you have an unpaid toll feed At the
next part, I almost clicked on the link just because
I actually did drive through a toll to.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
I did the same thing. I and like, how did
they know that I was? I thought maybe that I
had missed it or something like that.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
Yeah, closed, And then I looked at him like, no,
I already paid that, Like I know I paid that.
I paid that immediately when I got the bill. It
was like eighteen bucks or whatever it was.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
They just they must just be fishing, sending out thousands
of those like messages, right, Oh, I mean, how else
would they get your number? My number is not connected
to my car.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
Well, you know, it's the old call to close ratio
where you just throw enough at a wall and something's
going to stick. So if you make a hundred phone calls,
if you can get ten people on the phone, then
five of the ten you'll give a pitch to, and
maybe two of the five you'll get a sale fromt.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
So it's like dating jos I. When you're you're a
single guy, you got to ask one hundred women. Maybe
one of them will be dumb enough to, you know,
hang out with you.
Speaker 1 (35:03):
Yeah, just full of lies.
Speaker 2 (35:04):
Yeah, it's all full of lies. Theikeida life right there.
That's see you working radio.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
You must be doing well, yeah, yeah, yeah, sure.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Nineteen forty we're doing very well.
Speaker 1 (35:19):
You like my six It is uh Rogan and Rodney
AM five seventy LA Sports. It's Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox
in for the guys coming up next here though you
talk about the rich getting richer, speaking of money, the
rich get richer in the world of sports. Wait, do
you hear this story here on AM five seventy LA Sports.
(35:42):
AM five seventy LA Sports Rogan and Rodney, Except it's not.
It's Ben Mallard, Jonas Knox in for the guys coming
up here in a little over ten minutes from now.
We're gonna have some expectations, maybe a little peek into
the future for what you can expect from your La
Dodgers here in twenty twenty five as they come off
a World Series championship. So that'll be yours here again
(36:05):
a little over ten minutes from now. So, Ben, I
don't know if you are. You a big NASCAR guy,
you like you like Nascar?
Speaker 2 (36:12):
Bugget it, bugget it, bugget it, bugget it. Buggety Now.
I had a website years ago. I covered NASCAR for
the website because it was I was associated with Fox
Sports dot com. And I still get email from NASCAR people.
I know. I do not have the Nascar geen. I
remember when they used to have the races out in Fontana.
I went out there a few times for work. Uh,
(36:32):
but no, I got watched usually I watched the Daytona
five hundred. That's about it. What about you'd be a
big NASCAR guy, right, Jonas?
Speaker 1 (36:38):
You like the Yeah sure, yeah, huch Nascar guy. Yeah listen, yeah,
afraid to uh yeah, not afraid to partake. How about
the fact that Denny Hamlin won like the same slot
machine twice in Vegas. They're at Las Vegas more.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
There was a rumor was three times that he won.
Three he won uh Friday night, Saturday, and then supposedly
there was another one somewhere on.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
Sea, like like eight, there's a goe for eighty five grand,
there was one for one hundred and twenty five. But
he ended up winning like like a quarter of a
million dollars. Yes, on a slot machine, Like okay, but
like yeah, there's got to be either that's to lore
people into the casino, to be like, hey you could
be a winner, or somebody there got fired, like somebody
(37:28):
had some god. But there's no way. You've seen casino
where you know. Robert DeNiro is like tell them, guy, listen,
these slots are loose. Why are they loose? We got
it like people can't win, Like, well, you know, sometimes
people get lucky. He goes, no, that's not how it works.
That that's not how it works. I just find it
hard to believe that the same slot would pay out
that much if there's not either a glitch a screw up,
(37:50):
or they're trying to lure people in, like hey, look
these are how loose our slots are? You can win
a quarter of a million dollars here on three different
polls in one weekend.
Speaker 2 (37:58):
Yes, and it's really it's really good, Jonas, that a
guy down on his luck, it's really trying to put
you know, two pieces of bread together too raw, you know,
rotting bread to eat where sixty five million Danny Hamlin
would end up getting these dagpots there. It's good. It's
always nice when good things happen to people that really
need it, you know, hard scrabble streets of NASCAR. But yeah,
(38:21):
so I thought, and maybe I'm wrong on this, as
I understood it. All the slot machines are governed by
the Nevada Gaming counselor or something like that. They're all
kind of they're all kind of connected there. And every month,
i think it's every month they come out with the
report how much revenue they get. And I'm sure you've
(38:41):
talked about this, Jonas, We've all seen it. And the
biggest money maker, by far, is not any of the
table games. It's not the sports book. It's the slot machines,
and it's the penny slot machine. Yes, by far, people
make and you never you can't just bet a penny.
It's bull crap, you can't. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (39:04):
Look, one of my favorite things about Vegas. A lot
of people go there for the buffets. Some people go
there for the shows, some people go there for the clubs,
the nightlife, the food, like.
Speaker 2 (39:13):
All of that.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
Like listen and look, some people go there for other things.
And we're not here to judge.
Speaker 2 (39:19):
You got to go out tom for that.
Speaker 1 (39:21):
I mean, look, the reason why those guys are slapping
those pamphlets together in their hands when you walk by
on Las Vegas.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
There's a reason for that.
Speaker 1 (39:29):
Like those work, and they will come to the room
and you can, you know, argue if you want about
whether or not you want to give them the full
amount or a partial. But one of my favorite things
is when you walk by the penny slot machines and
you see somebody in their seventies with a ventilator and
a lung dart and they're just pressing away their life
savings and a penny slot.
Speaker 2 (39:49):
My favorite two is you're in the Casino Jonas and
they're doing the the good luck taps. You know, they
do like the taps, and they do like the prayer
thing around the slot machine. Oh is this a a
hand movements and then that'll unlock the money from the
slot machine. But yeah, yeah, yeah, every casino, I mean
even here, the ones around here. You go to the casino,
you see that, you know, they've got the oxygen chink.
(40:11):
They're they're wearing like hospital downs, like those those socks
with like the the grip on the bottom. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
the hospital socks. They got those things on and like
this right until the end. Man, that's Isn't that the
way you want to go out?
Speaker 3 (40:24):
Ye?
Speaker 2 (40:24):
I'm not sitting in front of a slot machine and
just trying to one big.
Speaker 1 (40:28):
Now have you ever did you ever get because I
don't know if it's still up or I don't know
if it's already torn down or if they're in the
process of tearing it down. Did you ever stop at
Whiskey Pete's before?
Speaker 2 (40:38):
Yeah? Come on, man, are you kidding me? Yeah, it's
it's believe it's closed. I don't know if they've torn
it down. But I used to love you know, I've
only flown to Vegas a couple of times. I love
the drive. I love the experience driving through the desert
on the way to Vegas. Like you got to stop
in in uh Apple Valley, Victorville. Oh that's the first
(40:59):
leg Barstow. You got the Del Taco and Barstow, like
the most famous Del Taco out there. You got all
the restaurants, and then Baker. I always loved Baker because
you've got you've got the mad Greek out there and
uh just like a little street and that's it with
all fast food restaurants. And then and then you get
the State Line and they had the greatest mall in Prim.
(41:23):
I love that they had a great outlet store, a
bunch of outlets stores that mall. Have you been, I
know if you've been there, it's a ghost ghost mall.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
Yeah, we we stopped years and years ago, we stopped
by there, and yeah, they had a bunch of stuff
out there.
Speaker 2 (41:35):
Well it's all the mall. They haven't torn it down.
But like there were three hotels there with the Buffalo Bills,
Whiskey Pets, and then there's like the Prim Valley Resort
and two of the three are closed. There's only one
hotel that's still out there. And I would always tell
my wife, is that why don't we stay here? I
mean it's cheaper and then we can you know, we
drive into Vegas.
Speaker 1 (41:54):
We want what is it like forty five minutes to
get to the street there or something like that spends how.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
Fast you drive, But yeah, it's not it's not far out.
But I was there, and that was the mall I
would I used to go to Vegas like you know
five six steps, you know, seven times a year, and
I would stop at that mall and I went back there.
It really shut down during COVID. It never reopened. All
the stores are gone. It's the most depressing thing. It's
like it's like it's like the Twilight Zone walking around there.
(42:19):
But Whiskey Pete's was great. Man, I don't go there
and hang out. And it just smelled like disgusting, you know,
it was dirty, but.
Speaker 1 (42:27):
It was it was like old gambling, you know, it
was old a carton of Marlboroughs and like you know,
it was the you got the coin bucket when you won.
You didn't get a voucher, like you held a bucket
underneath and all the time.
Speaker 2 (42:40):
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah. They had like the McDonald's and
they were like milkshakes that it didn't spill from like
the seventies that were still.
Speaker 1 (42:46):
In there, you know, on the floor build seven eleven
w w F cups where they had the wrestler on
the side of the coup. Yeah, I felt this connection,
like I felt more masculine, I felt more adults, you know,
at Whiskey Beats.
Speaker 2 (43:01):
And unfortunately it didn't survive.
Speaker 1 (43:03):
Yeah, I remember we drove out there and we stopped
at Whiskey Peats. We stayed there on a Thursday night.
The room was nineteen dollars and we ate hot dogs
that were a dollar, and it was like seventy five
cent shrimp cocktail, and I swear to got at one
point that shrimp got out of the bowl and walked away.
It was awful. And I thought to myself, Yeah, but
(43:25):
you know what, man, for nineteen dollars, like really, for
fifty bucks, you could gamble. You could stay the night,
you could have some beers and you had dinner, and
then you're up the next morning ready to drive to
the strip.
Speaker 3 (43:37):
You know.
Speaker 2 (43:37):
But well, well back in the day, you know, you
should not gamble illegally. And for some reason, California does
not have legal sports betting. But there may be a
time in my life, Jonas where I may have driven
out to the state line there just to put some
bets in legally, of course, all especially how you feel
you drive all the way out to prim to put
a bet in you end up losing. Yeah, it's just
(44:01):
you feel really good. Yeah, it's unfortunate. So well listen,
congratulations to Denny Hamlin.
Speaker 3 (44:06):
It's in.
Speaker 1 (44:07):
It's been a rough run for him. Some of the
rich people.
Speaker 2 (44:10):
Remember Mark Davis, the Raiders owner, won a jackpot at
the airport. Also, like kind what do you do if.
Speaker 1 (44:16):
You're seeing what what he walks around with? He's he's
won a couple of times over Mark.
Speaker 2 (44:22):
Well, you know it's his good looks. It's the he
likes pfans orange chicken. Yeah, we know what. We know
what he asked for dessert too.
Speaker 1 (44:32):
Hello, they're always those sweets look nice.
Speaker 2 (44:35):
Yeah, you know what what she sees him? I don't
know what.
Speaker 1 (44:39):
I can't imagine. It is a M five seventy l
a sports Rogan and Rodney, But it's Ben Mallard, Jonas
Knox in for the guys and up next. Some expectations,
realistic expectations. We've got the latest on Mookie bets. We're
getting you set for the opener in Tokyo against the
Cubs coming up tomorrow morning. And little peek into the future.
(45:01):
How good will this team be? It's all yours next
year at AM five to seventy LA Sports
Roggin And Rodney News
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