Speaker 1: Welcome to another edition of the Dave Pash Podcast. We
Speaker 1: are presented by bet MGM, the official sports betting partner
Speaker 1: of the Arizona Cardinals, and by Hilo River Hotels and Casinos.
Speaker 1: You can follow us on Twitter at pash Pot for
Speaker 1: updates on future guests and reliving highlights of recent guests.
Speaker 1: Normally we talk Cardinals in NFL on this podcast, but
Speaker 1: one of the reasons we started this was to branch
Speaker 1: out into other sports and also talk with actors and
Speaker 1: comedians like James Rode and Frank kelliendo previous guests. So
Speaker 1: given that the Phoenix Suns are coming off a Western
Speaker 1: Conference championship, we thought we would talk with general manager
Speaker 1: James Jones about what to expect from the Suns here
Speaker 1: in twenty twenty one twenty two. I truly believe it
Speaker 1: would help you If our guys are available, I don't
Speaker 1: think there's anyone better. We will still talk football. James
Speaker 1: grew up in Miami and as a big Dolphins fan.
Speaker 1: He'll give us thoughts on the Cardinals and maybe even
Speaker 1: a comp an NBA comp for Kyler Murray. But we're
Speaker 1: also going to talk about the Suns how they got
Speaker 1: to the title last year, what he thinks of this
Speaker 1: year's team. Everybody's talking right now about DeAndre Ayden and
Speaker 1: the Son's electing not to give him that max extension.
Speaker 1: James will talk about that, what to expect from Devin
Speaker 1: Booker this year, and whether Chris Paul can play until
Speaker 1: he's over forty. And Lebron James, somebody that James Jones
Speaker 1: knows very well, won three championships with Lebron in Cleveland
Speaker 1: and Miami. James will give his most memorable Lebron James
Speaker 1: moment in the upcoming podcast. So thanks for tuning in
Speaker 1: as we talk a little NBA, a little NFL, a
Speaker 1: little Cardinals and Sons with Phoenix Suns GM James Jones, Well, James,
Speaker 1: obviously you have an incredibly busy week with the season
Speaker 1: opener Wednesday against Denver, so I appreciate the time before
Speaker 1: we get into the Suns and the twenty twenty one
Speaker 1: season as well as the upcoming campaign. I want to
Speaker 1: talk a little football with it because I know growing
Speaker 1: up in Miami, having played collegiately at the University of Miami,
Speaker 1: that you're a big Dolphin fan. So give me your
Speaker 1: take on the Dolphins so far here in twenty twenty one.
Speaker 1: I mean, well, thanks for having me. I really appreciate it.
Speaker 1: It's been a tough start to the season. You know,
Speaker 1: as a Dolphins fan, we've had some tough times, and
Speaker 1: you know, you you wish that you could take advantage
Speaker 1: of the early part of season with the weathers in
Speaker 1: your favor, you know, the humidity and the heat. We
Speaker 1: typically try to get off to a good start, but
Speaker 1: this year with the injuries, with two we struggled. But
Speaker 1: you know, coming off a tough loss against Jacksonville, I'm
Speaker 1: still bullish on this team, just because I believe in
Speaker 1: coach Flores and I think we have the right culture,
Speaker 1: we have the right mentality, and now we just have
Speaker 1: to make the right places at the right time. So,
Speaker 1: growing up, were you a Bob Greasy fan, a Dan
Speaker 1: Marino fan, both one or the other. Who is like
Speaker 1: your guy at the quarterback position when you were growing up? Um,
Speaker 1: I was a Marino era, like that was a Greasy
Speaker 1: before me. But you know, we had Mark Duper, Mark
Speaker 1: Clayton Marino. We had some really good some really good
Speaker 1: years and so I'm a Marino guy all the way. No,
Speaker 1: I know you're young, enough. I knew Greasy was way
Speaker 1: before you. I just didn't know because obviously they had
Speaker 1: the last undefeated season, true undefeated season, nineteen seventy two.
Speaker 1: How much attention do you pay to the Cardinals now
Speaker 1: that you're living here in the GM of the Suns?
Speaker 1: Oh Man, I watched them. You know, I've always said, like,
Speaker 1: I have such an affinity and a respect for football
Speaker 1: players growing up in Florida, being an ex football player
Speaker 1: up until I went to high school, of going to
Speaker 1: the EU and playing with a lot of the world's
Speaker 1: best football players, Hall of Fame, Bubble players, um, just
Speaker 1: understanding that team dynamic and and how hard it is
Speaker 1: to win every play and to win a game in football.
Speaker 1: I have the utmost respect for those guys, and I
Speaker 1: enjoy watching watching good teams. And you know, Arizona, the Cardinals,
Speaker 1: I'm here, you know, they're They're my one B team
Speaker 1: and it's been great to watch them grow. Um, you know,
Speaker 1: they're their teammates, like they're just like us. I view
Speaker 1: us as one big community, one big family of athletes
Speaker 1: and and and guys that are out there just trying
Speaker 1: to win and bring you know, pride and respect to
Speaker 1: their city. So it's been great to watch them. And
Speaker 1: you know, as much as you know, I wish the
Speaker 1: Dolphins become or remain the last undefeated team in recent history.
Speaker 1: I want to make sure I would. I would be
Speaker 1: more than thrilled to see the Cardinals just run the
Speaker 1: table this year. This is probably James an unfair question,
Speaker 1: but I was thinking about this last week because I
Speaker 1: did the MAVs Hornets preseason game last Wednesday, and I
Speaker 1: threw us out there, and then I thought, now, maybe
Speaker 1: it's not a good comparison. I was trying to think
Speaker 1: of a Kyler Murray NBA comp and I thought about
Speaker 1: LaMelo Ball because of just his incredible athletic ability and
Speaker 1: his talent level and his brain that probably he's probably
Speaker 1: more like in Mahomes in the realm of a Patrick
Speaker 1: Mahomes type than he is a Kyler Murray. Can you
Speaker 1: think of anybody who might be a Kyler Murray comp
Speaker 1: in the NBA? Oh man, That's that's a tough one. Um.
Speaker 1: I mean, but if I had to say, I'd probably say,
Speaker 1: I mean, I don't want to knock, but I'd probably
Speaker 1: say Trey Yon, just in the sense that, like you
Speaker 1: watch him as a as a smaller guy, but he
Speaker 1: just plays so big, like he has such a big
Speaker 1: impact on the game, so m and offensively just so talented.
Speaker 1: So I would say that more more than LaMelo. But
Speaker 1: I get where you're going with LaMelo because at such
Speaker 1: a young age that their command for the game and
Speaker 1: anticipating where guys will be and being able to make
Speaker 1: every throw in every play, especially when you need it.
Speaker 1: It's unique. So um, that's that's that's that's pretty spot
Speaker 1: on though. But I like to Trey Young. And honestly,
Speaker 1: if you really dig deeper, I mean, Steph is older now,
Speaker 1: but the way Steph in so many respects change the
Speaker 1: game and change the NBA with his range, Trey Young is,
Speaker 1: you know, kind of a disciple in that regard. I mean,
Speaker 1: Kyler is kind of changing the NFL a little bit.
Speaker 1: So I don't know the Steph comparison is there, but
Speaker 1: I do like to Trey Young because of just you know,
Speaker 1: how young Trey is. No pun intended, Yeah, I mean no,
Speaker 1: it's it's they're just they're just young. They're dynamic, man,
Speaker 1: like you know, they're they're they're smaller guys and you
Speaker 1: people always equate like being smaller at being a disadvantage,
Speaker 1: but when you have guys that can use it to
Speaker 1: their advantage and do it at a high level, you
Speaker 1: have to respect. So how's Larry doing, Fitzgerald. I don't
Speaker 1: know how much contact you have on a regular basis
Speaker 1: with fits, but obviously Cardinal fans are interested in his
Speaker 1: life right now post football, even though he hasn't come
Speaker 1: out and said that he's retiring, He's not obviously playing
Speaker 1: right now. So now, how much has Larry involved in
Speaker 1: the Suns And how often do you guys talk? I
Speaker 1: mean we connect, We connect regularly. He's always there to
Speaker 1: just you know, give words of encouragement or an inside
Speaker 1: or perspective, you know, as a as a high achieve
Speaker 1: or high performer for so many years, he just sees
Speaker 1: the game in sport in generally differently than most people.
Speaker 1: So he's good. You know, he's enjoying the time with
Speaker 1: his Family's enjoying the time you know, away from football.
Speaker 1: But I know that the Suns are doing well and
Speaker 1: the Cardinals are doing well, and so for him things
Speaker 1: are are awesome. So I'm curious James at this time
Speaker 1: last year obviously, last year was strange coming off the bubble,
Speaker 1: the performances you guys had in the bubble. I'm sure
Speaker 1: the expectations were higher than they were going into the
Speaker 1: previous year. But did you think coming into the season, hey,
Speaker 1: I put together a championship team, or were you unsure
Speaker 1: because of adding Chris Paul who obviously has had a
Speaker 1: lot of success but hadn't got to that point yet
Speaker 1: in his career and hoping that DeAndre Ayton would take
Speaker 1: the next step and mcel bridges and Devin Booker. Where
Speaker 1: were you at this time a year ago with regard
Speaker 1: to your thoughts on how deep you guys could go
Speaker 1: in the playoffs or even if you could get to
Speaker 1: the playoffs last year? Well, I mean, well, I thought
Speaker 1: we were legitimate playoffs contender last year, whether or not
Speaker 1: we get to the finals, even with the loaded roster.
Speaker 1: I've been around as long enough to never assume anything.
Speaker 1: You get into the playoffs and you're you know, we
Speaker 1: were fortunate. You can be one ankle spraining away from defeat.
Speaker 1: And so for me, it's always been the hurdle has
Speaker 1: always been get to the playoffs. And once you get
Speaker 1: to the playoffs, if you have a team that can
Speaker 1: be consistent night in and night out, and you have depth,
Speaker 1: you have a real shot. I think the best teams,
Speaker 1: best healthy teams, overcome the unhealthy, star studded teams, and
Speaker 1: so you just want to increase your odds. So I
Speaker 1: thought by adding Chris, we increased our odds drastically, giving
Speaker 1: ourselves a shot to make some noise in the playoffs.
Speaker 1: And then when you put together the performances of Devin
Speaker 1: and DA and mchl and Cam Johnson and Campaign you know,
Speaker 1: Jay Crowder and Tory Craig, when all those guys have
Speaker 1: their moments, you start to believe, like, okay, if we
Speaker 1: can maintain this consistently over the course of you know,
Speaker 1: these twenty eight games or sixteen games, we have a shot.
Speaker 1: And I thought we did last year, and I definitely
Speaker 1: believe we have another shot this year. It was so
Speaker 1: weird for us, James at ESPN, we didn't travel last year.
Speaker 1: I did a lot of your games, but I'd be
Speaker 1: in my house and I live in Chandler, so here
Speaker 1: I am twenty five minutes from the arena and I
Speaker 1: can't even see you guys in person. Thankfully, that's change
Speaker 1: this year. We're back in person. We were in the
Speaker 1: playoffs last year. But I didn't have any of your
Speaker 1: games in the playoffs, but I remember doing some games
Speaker 1: in January, and I think one of them was with
Speaker 1: Jeff Van Gundy and we both said I think it
Speaker 1: was the Milwaukee game. I'm trying to remember in January,
Speaker 1: but it was after the game, Jeff and I were
Speaker 1: both like, man, that's a legit team. Like that, that's
Speaker 1: a playoff team. And this was in January. When did
Speaker 1: you know that it was real that you guys were, Hey,
Speaker 1: we got a chance to do something special this year.
Speaker 1: Was there a turning point or a particular game where
Speaker 1: you really started to believe that it was possible you
Speaker 1: guys could do what you did. I would say there
Speaker 1: was a course of a few games, and it was
Speaker 1: after we got off to our start. I believe we
Speaker 1: were at eight and eight or eight and seven. We
Speaker 1: were close to a five hundred team at some point.
Speaker 1: And for me, I always say, you know, I told
Speaker 1: our guys going into last year that I mean, I'm
Speaker 1: gonna watch how we respond to the dip. I want
Speaker 1: to watch how we respond to the adversity early and
Speaker 1: see if if our effort changes, see if our approach changes.
Speaker 1: You know, see if we stick to our beliefs and
Speaker 1: we stick to our principles, or if we start to
Speaker 1: flounder and start chasing things outside of our nature. And
Speaker 1: and we were able to bounce back and string together
Speaker 1: some victories, but they were consistent, you know, they weren't
Speaker 1: you know, us reinventing ourselves. It was doubling down on
Speaker 1: what we believe point five, moving the ball to find, communicate.
Speaker 1: And so when I saw us do that early in
Speaker 1: the year, and I saw like everyone was committed to
Speaker 1: digging deeper and doubling down on our principles, I felt
Speaker 1: like we have a shot Because I mean I played
Speaker 1: a lot of basketball, watch a lot of basketball. You
Speaker 1: eventually revert back to your nature and you go back
Speaker 1: to your principles. And if you can lean on those
Speaker 1: in times of adversity, I know that they're going to
Speaker 1: serve you well in times or those opportunities present themselves
Speaker 1: for you to have success. As someone James who's used
Speaker 1: to winning, you won multiple NBA championships as a player,
Speaker 1: was the end of last year, how much of it
Speaker 1: was a celebration of what you accomplished? And maybe this
Speaker 1: isn't the right term, but how much of it was
Speaker 1: a funeral the way things ended, how excited were you
Speaker 1: for what you would accomplished and how disappointed were you
Speaker 1: for not being able to close it out. I use
Speaker 1: the word numb. You know it leaves you numb, And
Speaker 1: that works both ways because you know, if you have
Speaker 1: an experience or you experienced something that is like overwhelming,
Speaker 1: you don't know how to respond. You're almost kind of
Speaker 1: like at a loss for words. At the same time,
Speaker 1: if you experienced defeat like we did, it leads you
Speaker 1: kind of had a loss where like for words and
Speaker 1: emotions and thoughts. So I was numb, but I got
Speaker 1: to that place after having years of success and failure
Speaker 1: at the highest level in and But what happens is
Speaker 1: when you come out of that, you know that you
Speaker 1: don't want to see that spot again. You will see it,
Speaker 1: but you want to see it on the other side,
Speaker 1: Like you want to be numb from success, not defeat.
Speaker 1: And so it's it's a fuel for you. And I'm
Speaker 1: excited for what we can do this year because I
Speaker 1: believe all of our guys want that other side of
Speaker 1: that numbness. So let's talk about the team you have
Speaker 1: going into this game against Denver, you got the Lakers Friday,
Speaker 1: and then you're off and running. Obviously, everybody's talking right
Speaker 1: now about the decision not to give the five year
Speaker 1: extension to DeAndre Ayton. Can you tell us what went
Speaker 1: into that decision and why you guys decided not to
Speaker 1: do the extension for the five years. I mean, well,
Speaker 1: there are a lot of factors, but but ultimately we
Speaker 1: just we we just couldn't get off of or we
Speaker 1: couldn't agree that anything less than a five year max
Speaker 1: um was acceptable. And you know that that it's it's
Speaker 1: it's odd I talk about it. It doesn't change how
Speaker 1: we view DeAndre, doesn't change how we view this team.
Speaker 1: It doesn't change what we've done, you know, the moves
Speaker 1: we've made to continue to build this team and grow
Speaker 1: our continuity and improve our environment so that we can
Speaker 1: have like real aspirations and goals to win a title
Speaker 1: and and be legitimate contenders. UM. It just from a
Speaker 1: timing perspective, from UM UM like strategy standpoint, UM flexibility standpoint,
Speaker 1: the five year max just wasn't something that we were
Speaker 1: going to do, and you know, we didn't get it done.
Speaker 1: But like I said, that's just for now, Like we
Speaker 1: fully intended to help DeAndre and c DeAndre and his
Speaker 1: team progress and get something done. We just didn't get
Speaker 1: it done yet. So as a follow up, was this
Speaker 1: a financial decision? Then? Was this something that had to
Speaker 1: do with you? Just it's hard to project where he's
Speaker 1: going to be in five years. I guess my question
Speaker 1: is how much has this based on financial How much
Speaker 1: is it based on potential performance? No, it's it's it's
Speaker 1: it's a lot of it just has to do with
Speaker 1: the future planning of the team. It's not financials that
Speaker 1: that's not the issue, right Like you you try to
Speaker 1: project what your team and what your core guys will
Speaker 1: look like five or six years from now, that's tough. Um.
Speaker 1: You know, our our focus in our window is the
Speaker 1: next two to three years and then things can change
Speaker 1: three to four years from now and you don't know.
Speaker 1: So from a flexibility standpoint on both both sides, from
Speaker 1: a player and a team perspective, the five years just
Speaker 1: wasn't something that made sense. Are you concerned about his
Speaker 1: psyche where he is mentally because of this? Obviously he
Speaker 1: was hoping to get it he didn't, So are you
Speaker 1: worried James at all about kind of where he's going
Speaker 1: to be mentally if you talk to him yet about that.
Speaker 1: I mean, I care about DeAndre. We care about DeAndre
Speaker 1: just like we do the rest of our guys, and
Speaker 1: we know, you know, when guy's going to contract years
Speaker 1: that aren't on rookie deals, like it's it's an emotional time.
Speaker 1: It's one of those things where you question and wonder.
Speaker 1: So like I'm I'm concerned about our guys mental approach
Speaker 1: and mental state going into a year with increased heightened
Speaker 1: expectations to win a title, to be a title contender.
Speaker 1: So yeah, I care because you know, this is the
Speaker 1: toughest part of the job when you have to deal
Speaker 1: with the people that you care about and that you're
Speaker 1: committed to helping maximize an oppetite, their opportunities and maximized
Speaker 1: When you're in these situations, you you know, you you
Speaker 1: you concern yourself with how they feel and how they react.
Speaker 1: But we're going to be here to support him, and
Speaker 1: I think knowing DeAndre that he's going to respond Mike,
Speaker 1: he would irrespective of the results. He's gonna come out
Speaker 1: here and he's going to compete, and he's going to
Speaker 1: try to do whatever he can to help the team
Speaker 1: win and to be the best version himself. So and
Speaker 1: whatever it takes from us to do that. Like like
Speaker 1: I said, we're committed to doing it. So I'm one
Speaker 1: of the voters for the for the NBA Awards, and
Speaker 1: I voted Devin Booker second Team All NBA last year,
Speaker 1: and I just thought that he had a phenomenal season.
Speaker 1: And obviously I'm a little bit closer to it because
Speaker 1: I live here, but I also had many as Coach
Speaker 1: of the Year, and I was a little disappointed that
Speaker 1: I looked TIBs did a great job and the next
Speaker 1: had a great season. It just felt like, for whatever reason,
Speaker 1: and maybe it's just because the Suns weren't honest national
Speaker 1: television as much as they're going to be this year,
Speaker 1: that the love and respect that I thought that they
Speaker 1: deserve maybe they weren't getting from from some of the
Speaker 1: other voters. How did you guys feel about that? Is
Speaker 1: that something that angered devon or angered money or do
Speaker 1: you guys say, you know what that it really doesn't
Speaker 1: matter because there is a financial component to that to
Speaker 1: being named All NBA for the players, No, it does,
Speaker 1: It doesn't matter you know our guys are they compete
Speaker 1: for things above money, um and and so those financial
Speaker 1: incentives of perks aren't would drive them um and in
Speaker 1: the to the garner respect from the people that you
Speaker 1: work with daily and that know you matters so much
Speaker 1: more than the casual observer or people that are observing
Speaker 1: you from afar and so um we just talk about
Speaker 1: respect for the game. And you know, if if those
Speaker 1: that are watching our players are coaches, our staff and
Speaker 1: they can say that those guys sure respect for the
Speaker 1: game every time they compete, that's all we need, you know,
Speaker 1: the accolades, the attention, the recognition. It will come if
Speaker 1: you win, and if it doesn't doesn't bother us as
Speaker 1: long as we achieve our goals of being the best
Speaker 1: version of ourselves. What is the next step for Devin?
Speaker 1: He had a great season. He's still a young guy.
Speaker 1: What is he twenty four, twenty five and he's going
Speaker 1: into year seven. What are the expectations. What do you
Speaker 1: think is the next step for him? His toughness, man's
Speaker 1: really stood out obviously in the playoffs. That to me,
Speaker 1: above all else was the thing that I've in a
Speaker 1: lot of NBA people that I've taught to That really
Speaker 1: caught their eye was they knew he could score. We
Speaker 1: know he's an excellent shooter, but it was this toughness,
Speaker 1: you know, after the broken nose and you know, playing
Speaker 1: through that and getting hit several times in the face
Speaker 1: after that, just to double down on who he is
Speaker 1: and just to become better at at what he does.
Speaker 1: He doesn't have to change anything. He just needs to
Speaker 1: improve and become more efficient. So I think you'll continue
Speaker 1: to continue to see him figure out how to better
Speaker 1: balance his his stretches of aggressiveness, um, how to facilitate
Speaker 1: and be more efficient. So UM, I mean the kid,
Speaker 1: the kid competes and whenever you have a competitor, um,
Speaker 1: you don't put limits on him. You you just support him.
Speaker 1: You played in the NBA for a long time. You
Speaker 1: were a long time team, a team of Lebron James
Speaker 1: and I want to get to Braun in a second.
Speaker 1: But you know what makes Chris Paul tick And it's
Speaker 1: hard for an outsider like me to really get it.
Speaker 1: I mean I can talk to Chris and have over
Speaker 1: the years, whether he was with you guys, or the
Speaker 1: or the Thunder or Houston or the Clippers or even
Speaker 1: going back to New Orleans. You know, we've met with
Speaker 1: Chris and number of times over the years and you
Speaker 1: watch what he does in terms of his production, But
Speaker 1: there is an it factor to him. Why does he
Speaker 1: make such a difference? What is it specifically about him
Speaker 1: that you notice that wherever he goes, he impacts others
Speaker 1: and takes his team to a different level. I mean,
Speaker 1: because Chris is a mad scientist. I think if you
Speaker 1: to describe someone that lives by or subscribe to the scientific,
Speaker 1: scientific method, that would be Chris's. He's thirsty for knowledge.
Speaker 1: He's always questioning, you know, he's questioning what we're doing,
Speaker 1: how we're doing it, while we're doing it, why it works,
Speaker 1: why it doesn't work, Why would it work in a
Speaker 1: certain situation. Why wouldn't it work in a certain situation.
Speaker 1: Why is a guy struggling to have success in a
Speaker 1: certain play? You know why? You know this is a
Speaker 1: bad situation for our group. He just has that that
Speaker 1: mindset of always trying to improve, and so that's what
Speaker 1: makes him tick, like he's never satisfied, and when he
Speaker 1: has success, he's always trying to figure out why and
Speaker 1: why it will be sustainable or won't that's me personally,
Speaker 1: having spent time with him when I was at the
Speaker 1: Players Association and he's the president of the union, watching
Speaker 1: him balance and manage the NBA game and the union's business.
Speaker 1: You just hear him ask why a lot, and because
Speaker 1: he's so inquisitive, I think he finds answers like answers
Speaker 1: to these questions a lot faster than most people. And
Speaker 1: that's why he's able to have so much success in
Speaker 1: such a short period of time in different situations, because
Speaker 1: he is comfortable making people uncomfortable or being uncomfortable, but
Speaker 1: it's all in pursuit of knowledge and excellence, and so
Speaker 1: he's he's going to be arguably one of the greatest,
Speaker 1: if not the greatest point guard of all time if
Speaker 1: he continues to play the way he's playing for the
Speaker 1: next five to ten years. And that's a testament to
Speaker 1: his desire to be great. Do you really think he
Speaker 1: can go five to ten years? And I was going
Speaker 1: to ask you about Lebron James too, and how long?
Speaker 1: Since you're as close to him as anybody, having won
Speaker 1: multiple championships with Lebron both in Miami and Cleveland, how
Speaker 1: long do you think Lebron plays are we entering, as
Speaker 1: we watched Tom Brady play until his mid forties, are
Speaker 1: we entering a time in the NBA where he might
Speaker 1: see guys like Chris Paul and Lebron James play in
Speaker 1: two their forties Without a doubt, I think that happens,
Speaker 1: and I think it's because the assumptions that people make
Speaker 1: aren't grounded in the current reality. Training methods, the access
Speaker 1: to treatment, and like things that will in your careers.
Speaker 1: Not only are they more prevalent, but players than athlete
Speaker 1: so more than willing to double down and invest in it.
Speaker 1: And so those two guys spend a tremendous amount of money,
Speaker 1: personal resources, time and energy to maintain a certain level
Speaker 1: and improve. And when everyone tells you you need to
Speaker 1: slow down and you need to manage things, you need
Speaker 1: to back off. These guys that continue to find ways
Speaker 1: to stress themselves in positive ways that build resiliency in
Speaker 1: their games. And on top of that, the you know,
Speaker 1: their skill levels, accumulated skill they have, there's such at
Speaker 1: such a high level they can overcome some of the
Speaker 1: physical limitation, They can pick their spots and then they
Speaker 1: can make shots to make plays at absurd levels. So
Speaker 1: I think those guys are don't play as long as
Speaker 1: they want to play. I've always said, like, they're more
Speaker 1: likely to stop playing because they don't want to play
Speaker 1: anymore versus not being able to play. Do you have
Speaker 1: a go to Lebron's story when people ask you, Hey,
Speaker 1: tell me about Lebron James, tell me a moment that
Speaker 1: you'll never forget. Is there one of those? Are they're
Speaker 1: multiple ones or anything you can share James about a
Speaker 1: story that you recall from playing with him, where you
Speaker 1: just it reminded you how different he is and how
Speaker 1: unique he is as one of the greatest players to
Speaker 1: ever play. I just go back to the Chase Down
Speaker 1: block against Golden State. You know, he's playing forty eight
Speaker 1: minutes every night, and it's the end of the game
Speaker 1: in the most critical time, and he's a disadvantaged position
Speaker 1: and he's head down like a track star, full sprint,
Speaker 1: not even seeing what's in front of him, but just
Speaker 1: pushing the line, pushing the limit, and he goes and
Speaker 1: makes a block that says the season is a pivotal
Speaker 1: play amongst a bunch of pivotal plays that eventually led
Speaker 1: to a championship. And so you know that to me
Speaker 1: is the all out effort, because if he doesn't make
Speaker 1: that effort, no one ever says anything. It's just a given.
Speaker 1: You expect it to have an advantage. No one can
Speaker 1: him for not trying UM, but it meant that much
Speaker 1: to him and he had that much left in the tank.
Speaker 1: So like to be able to play at that level
Speaker 1: and to give it up at that level at that
Speaker 1: time in the game, when you know the odds say
Speaker 1: you're you're not going to be successful, it just it
Speaker 1: just shows that the guy's willing to do whatever it taken.
Speaker 1: It's capable of doing whatever it takes to make the
Speaker 1: play that ultimately determined U when or not you win
Speaker 1: or lose titles. James, You've had quite a meteoric rise
Speaker 1: in this business, going from being named general manager just
Speaker 1: a couple of years ago to being the NBA Executive
Speaker 1: of the Year. Was this something that you had thought
Speaker 1: about when you were a player. Was this something that
Speaker 1: after you stopped playing, you said, you know, I think
Speaker 1: I want to get into personnel and talent evaluation. When
Speaker 1: did this dream for you start? I mean, it was
Speaker 1: a fleeting thought while I was playing UM, and it
Speaker 1: wasn't you know, my goal coming into the NBA. I
Speaker 1: just wanted to be able to play at least ten
Speaker 1: years and uh, you know, accomplished a dream that I
Speaker 1: had as a kid to play professional basketball. And you know,
Speaker 1: that would have been the ride for me. But as
Speaker 1: I continued to play and played for different teams and
Speaker 1: you know, playing for the Miami Heat with pat Riley,
Speaker 1: you know, and seeing Patted an ex player and ex
Speaker 1: coach and executive, I saw the joy that had brought
Speaker 1: him to continue to be a part of the game
Speaker 1: and a different capacity, and you know, it sparked something
Speaker 1: in me that was like, if I had an opportunity
Speaker 1: to do it, I would seriously consider it because I
Speaker 1: didn't want to coach and didn't want to go into
Speaker 1: the front office to start. But then when you realize
Speaker 1: this the nature of it and how you can continue
Speaker 1: to be a team member for life, it's something that
Speaker 1: if you loved the game, that you're drawn to. So
Speaker 1: coming year was was an opportunity that was extended to
Speaker 1: me by Robert. I was afforded a great opportunity and
Speaker 1: whether or not I have deserved it or not, Like
Speaker 1: I didn't have any front office experience, so he took
Speaker 1: a shot on me, a chance on me, and you know, immediately,
Speaker 1: I knew that this was something that I can get
Speaker 1: into and that i'd be you know, that I'd give
Speaker 1: it all up for. And I was able to surround
Speaker 1: myself or you know, produce a team or build a
Speaker 1: team with some exceptional winners and leaders and some players
Speaker 1: that really care about winning. And I've been a beneficiary
Speaker 1: of that. I've been able to like sit and support
Speaker 1: and watch these guys reach crazy heights, and that's cool
Speaker 1: for me. So I just come I approached every day
Speaker 1: just knowing that someone paid the way as a basketball
Speaker 1: player for me, someone paid the way as an executive
Speaker 1: for me, and I just want to do my part
Speaker 1: and live up to it. Two more questions, James, We'll
Speaker 1: get you out of here. I had Steve Kim, the
Speaker 1: Cardinal general manager, on last week and asked him this question.
Speaker 1: So for fans that maybe don't know what it's like
Speaker 1: to be an NBA general manager, what is a typical
Speaker 1: day for you? You like in season, how much are
Speaker 1: you on the phone, how much are you looking at tape?
Speaker 1: How much are you talking to other gms and agents?
Speaker 1: What's a typical day in the Life of James Jones. Um,
Speaker 1: it's all those things, you know. It's it's you know,
Speaker 1: a typical day. You wake up, I dropped my kids
Speaker 1: off to school. I'm in the facility a by eight o'clock.
Speaker 1: And then from there it's we're getting ready for games. Um,
Speaker 1: we're tracking who our opponents are playing, We're tracking personnel,
Speaker 1: we're talking, tracking our individual improvement plans, doing recaps from
Speaker 1: previous games. Um, you have shoot around from there, Um,
Speaker 1: we have games at night, and so you're watching how
Speaker 1: our guys are responding to defeat or success. Um, you're
Speaker 1: looking at rotations, talking to coach talking. I mean, it's
Speaker 1: just a little bit of everything. Um, it's a team effort,
Speaker 1: but it's a whirlwind. And then at the end of
Speaker 1: the day, you know, Um, you're up at eight, you
Speaker 1: go to bed at eleven, You wake up in the
Speaker 1: morning to you know, fifty sixty emails and thirty text messages.
Speaker 1: You clear through those. You can do it all over again,
Speaker 1: and you're kind enough to spend thirty minutes on the podcast,
Speaker 1: which I appreciate. Last one for the Suns to win
Speaker 1: the NBA Championship, James, what has to happen this year.
Speaker 1: We have to be one of the healthiest teams. I
Speaker 1: truly believe if we're healthy, if we if our guys
Speaker 1: are available, I don't think there's anyone better. Love it. Hey, man,
Speaker 1: I really appreciate the time. I look forward to being
Speaker 1: on site to call some Suns games this year. And
Speaker 1: I know I'm supposed to be unbiased, but living here
Speaker 1: in the valley and you know, being around the team
Speaker 1: for twenty years, I'm rooting for you guys to have
Speaker 1: great success. So really appreciate the time. James, thanks, man,
Speaker 1: I appreciate it. So they're having from James Jones on
Speaker 1: why the Suns did not give DeAndre Ayton the five
Speaker 1: year max, also what he expects from Devin Booker this
Speaker 1: year and Chris Paul and he's pretty confident that if
Speaker 1: the Suns are a healthy team, there's nobody better in
Speaker 1: the NBA. And you know what, he might be right,
Speaker 1: James the reigning NBA Executive of the Year. So the
Speaker 1: Cardinals had the Texans this week Arizona, as you know,
Speaker 1: six and oh, the only remaining undefeated team and unbeaten
Speaker 1: through six games for the first time since nineteen seventy four.
Speaker 1: The thing that has stood out to me the most,
Speaker 1: not just last week against Cleveland, but overall is the growth,
Speaker 1: maturity and leadership of Kyler Murray. As Steve Kim said
Speaker 1: on this podcast last week pre snap, Kyler Murray is
Speaker 1: seeing things differently. He's beating teams with his brain, he
Speaker 1: is handling the pocket differently than he did last year,
Speaker 1: and we're seeing his leadership show up in different ways
Speaker 1: here in twenty twenty one. The touchdown pass to Christian
Speaker 1: Kirk showing that incredible athletic ability where he's running forward.
Speaker 1: The deefs to respect that he might run and certainly
Speaker 1: capable of taking it into the end zone for a touchdown,
Speaker 1: but instead, with a flick of the wrist, he throws
Speaker 1: a dart to Christian Kirk and puts it on the
Speaker 1: money as Kirk is going out of bounce. Kyler right
Speaker 1: now is playing better than anybody in the NFL. The
Speaker 1: Cardinals are playing better than anybody in the NFL. If
Speaker 1: they can win this game get to seven and zero
Speaker 1: going into a Thursday night home game against the Green
Speaker 1: Bay Packers, that will be the game that's talked about
Speaker 1: more than any other in the NFL next week. First
Speaker 1: things first, taking care of business, and that's what championship
Speaker 1: teams do. They take care of business against teams they
Speaker 1: should beat. The Texans have a lot of injuries. They
Speaker 1: have a lot of problems with their team to Shaun
Speaker 1: Watson's obviously not playing for other reasons, the Texans are
Speaker 1: not a good football team. The Cardinals are favored by seventeen.
Speaker 1: The Cardinals should win this game. To be a title contender,
Speaker 1: you have to do what you're supposed to do, and
Speaker 1: that's win this game and handily and move on to
Speaker 1: Thursday against Green Bay. Thanks so much for listening to
Speaker 1: the Dave Pash Podcast. Again, our thanks to Phoenix Suns
Speaker 1: general manager James Jones. We'll talk to you soon.