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Speaker 1: This is Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre.

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Speaker 2: What is up Straight Fire, Fam, It's me Jason McIntyre,

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Speaker 2: Straight Fayer for Thursday, October twenty third, and we have

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Speaker 2: a phenomenal interview. Today. I spoke to Uron Whitzman, former

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Speaker 2: Fox Sports NBA writer. He writes about the NBA for

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Speaker 2: a lot of places. He wrote this big time book

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Speaker 2: on Lebron. His book is the one that generated all

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Speaker 2: that Russell Westbrook buzz about the Will Smith story. It's

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Speaker 2: great stuff. You're gonna love our chat. Well, we spoke

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Speaker 2: for a long time early on Wednesday, and then you know,

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Speaker 2: I went to my daughter's middle school volleyball game. They're undefeated.

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Speaker 2: I drove my kid to a chess match, and then

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Speaker 2: it settled in to watch Victor Webbin Yama. And I

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Speaker 2: think I told you guys yesterday I was going to

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Speaker 2: bet on the Spurs plus two and a half. First

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Speaker 2: of all, that was easy money. They won by thirty

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Speaker 2: or whatever the score was. But a lot of stuff

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Speaker 2: happened in the NBA last night. And we're not gonna

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Speaker 2: I'm not gonna do NBA every night. It's the first week,

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Speaker 2: so just let me cook, Okay, The Knicks and Cavs

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Speaker 2: played an interesting game, a lot of injuries and you know,

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Speaker 2: Nicks come out on top. It was it was fun.

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Speaker 1: You know.

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Speaker 2: The Orlando Magic looked pretty good. Charlotte Hornets, oh my gosh,

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Speaker 2: they are dynamic, LaMelo ball blah blah blah. But uh

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Speaker 2: oh yeah.

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Speaker 1: VJ.

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Speaker 2: Edgecombe, who I think I mentioned on this preview pod

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Speaker 2: about how good he is for the Sixers, had thirty

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Speaker 2: four in his debut. He was phenomenal. Sixers win at Boston.

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Speaker 2: I think I told you, guys, watch out for the Sixers.

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Speaker 2: But everything Cooper Flag's debut, it was whatever. You know.

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Speaker 2: Cooper Flag's debut for the for the Mans was fine.

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Speaker 2: Ten points, ten rebounds, first starting point guard have zero sists.

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Speaker 2: Not great. He was a minus twenty nine and thirty

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Speaker 2: two minutes. But again, it doesn't really matter. As a

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Speaker 2: matter of fact, nothing matters, guys, because what Victor went

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Speaker 2: ben Yama did last night for the San Antonio Spurs

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Speaker 2: felt like a seminal moment in the NBA. And this

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Speaker 2: is not hyperbole. If you're just waking up and you

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Speaker 2: haven't seen the highlights, Holy hell, Victor Weemnyama is different

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Speaker 2: as the kids like to say, Okay, so it's starting

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Speaker 2: to make sense why Victor Wemnyama last year only he

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Speaker 2: shot a ton of threes. He would hang on on

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Speaker 2: the perimeter and it didn't make sense. They're like, oh,

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Speaker 2: he's soft, he's a typical Euro blah blah blah. So

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Speaker 2: last night against the MAVs, he scored forty points on

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Speaker 2: twenty one shots. He shot two three pointers. That's it.

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Speaker 2: He was one of two from three, and it was

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Speaker 2: pretty phenomenal. One as he got fouled on the play

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Speaker 2: was crossing up. Derek Lively went behind his back. It

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Speaker 2: was filthy. It's like, what the hell. And Victor Wemanyama

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Speaker 2: shot eleven free throws. So everything he did last year

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Speaker 2: and you thought, oh he's soft, he's a year he

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Speaker 2: wants to hang on a printer. Uh. He was smart

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Speaker 2: about it. He wasn't ready to go bang inside last

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Speaker 2: night after hanging out with the Shaolin Monks this offseason. Okay,

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Speaker 2: Victor Wembanyama is built for the moment, folks. I've never

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Speaker 2: seen anything like it. And it was forty points, fifteen rebounds,

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Speaker 2: three blocks. At times it looked like you know, your

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Speaker 2: sixth grade kid or your six year old son has

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Speaker 2: a birthday party, right, and your six year old son

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Speaker 2: and all his friends are playing basketball, and the dad

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Speaker 2: goes out there and he's just swatting shots like it's

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Speaker 2: a comedy act and just dunking on kids at times.

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Speaker 2: That's what wee ben Yama looked like. But here's the thing.

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Speaker 2: He was doing that against Anthony Davis, one of the

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Speaker 2: better defenders in the league, an All NBA player. He

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Speaker 2: made Anthony Davis look tiny and folks, again, it's one

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Speaker 2: game you don't want the hyperbolee. But I put this

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Speaker 2: on social media last night. All I want for Christmas

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Speaker 2: is Victor Wee bann Yama to have a healthy career

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Speaker 2: because what I saw last night that's unstoppable. And on

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Speaker 2: the heels of watching show Heyo Tani with the Dodgers

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Speaker 2: do some transcendent stuff again Otani, and we didn't talk

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Speaker 2: about this enough last week ten strikeouts pitching and hit

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Speaker 2: three homers at the plate, and I saw all these

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Speaker 2: goofy Instagram videos by like you know, content creators about

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Speaker 2: oh time traveling to talk to Babe Ruth about this

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Speaker 2: guy show Heyo Tani. It is somewhat funny, but then

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Speaker 2: you have to just step back and be like, Holy cow,

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Speaker 2: the stuff Otani's doing is that hasn't been done in

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Speaker 2: like seventy years, eighty years now. I don't even know

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Speaker 2: Babe Ruth in the twenties, and he's doing it way

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Speaker 2: better than Ruth. What I saw last night from one

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Speaker 2: Mian Yama, and I'm not kidding, looked to me like

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Speaker 2: some transcendent basketball talent. He looked like he's redefining the

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Speaker 2: sport of basketball. And what's possible. I mean, Otani is

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Speaker 2: potentially gonna usher in an entire new era of basketball

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Speaker 2: of baseball players. So Tony's gonna usher in a new

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Speaker 2: era of baseball players that basically think, why can't I

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Speaker 2: pitch and bat? Why not just because nobody did it

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Speaker 2: for for the longest time? Oh TONI did it, Why

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Speaker 2: can't I try it? And I believe Wembin Yama is

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Speaker 2: going to potentially I mean, he's Yannis with a three

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Speaker 2: point shot, and oh, by the way, he's like five

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Speaker 2: inches taller and Giannis is pretty dominant. Okay, what we

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Speaker 2: saw from women Yama last night was just unbelievable stuff.

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Speaker 2: I mean, his leap from year two to year three

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Speaker 2: just all I want is him to be healthy. That's it.

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Speaker 2: I mean a lot of people think Jordan's a goat.

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Speaker 2: I'm on record as Lebron I'm not ready to say

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Speaker 2: wen Ben Yama is going to be the goat, but

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Speaker 2: the potential for him to be the greatest basketball player

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Speaker 2: in the history of the sport is without question there.

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Speaker 2: Like Cooper Flag's awesome. I think Cooper Flag can be

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Speaker 2: an All NBA player. I think Cooper Flag could be

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Speaker 2: an MVP. Nobody can be the has the potential to

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Speaker 2: be what Victor Webbinyama can be Nobody just because of

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Speaker 2: his size. I mean he's getting the ball in like

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Speaker 2: the the middle of the lane is just going up

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Speaker 2: and dunking it. And again, the MAVs have seven foot

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Speaker 2: of Derek Lively who's a shot blocking machine, and Anthony Davis.

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Speaker 2: They have some of the best interior defense in the NBA.

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Speaker 2: And Wemby abused them, folks, he was fifteen of twenty one.

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Speaker 2: Like if you look at his shot chart, you go

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Speaker 2: to like the ESPN box Score and you go look

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Speaker 2: at the shot chart, you could see where all of

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Speaker 2: webmbin Yama shots are and you're like, oh, so last

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Speaker 2: year it was a lot of spraying from around the perimeter,

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Speaker 2: and at the time, you know, people were ribbing him.

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Speaker 2: Oh he's soft, he doesn't want to smoke inside, he

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Speaker 2: can't handle it. Blah blah blah. Folks, It's it makes

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Speaker 2: sense now. He was not ready, he was not strong enough.

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Speaker 2: He would have gotten seriously injured. I'm looking at his

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Speaker 2: shot chart. He hit that one three that ended up

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Speaker 2: being a four point play, and a lot of the

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Speaker 2: rest of his shots are in the lane. He did

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Speaker 2: hit one outside the paint, two three outside the paint,

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Speaker 2: everything else at least one foot in the lane. So

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Speaker 2: Wembin Yama is basically saying I'm strong enough, I'm ready

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Speaker 2: to do what Yannis is doing. And late in the game,

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Speaker 2: I watched the Spurs start to double team him, and

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Speaker 2: that's just good luck with that. I mean, he brings

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Speaker 2: the ball above his head. He's he's like at that

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Speaker 2: nine foot mark. But practically, you know, I mean, it's like, nobody,

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Speaker 2: you're not stealing, you can't double Wembin Yama. He's gonna

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Speaker 2: easily make the right pass. And it's like, that's kind

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Speaker 2: of scary. Now, I don't want to get up make

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Speaker 2: any quantum leaps about the Spurs winning the title this year,

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Speaker 2: although not gonna lie, nothing's off the table. Okay, what

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Speaker 2: I saw last night is, you know, it was kind

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Speaker 2: of trippy. If you had done mushrooms, been in a

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Speaker 2: we'd been in a como for three years, done mushrooms

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Speaker 2: and you just came woke up, that sounds kind of

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Speaker 2: somewhat far fetched, and you were just watching this, you'd

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Speaker 2: be like, who is this alien on the basketball court?

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Speaker 2: What is happening right now? I mean, guys, I'm I'm

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Speaker 2: just telling you. Even if you don't like the NBA,

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Speaker 2: I don't, I don't really care. You know, watching Wembin

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Speaker 2: Yama is that's that's an out of body experience, like,

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Speaker 2: oh my gosh, I've never seen anything like it. And

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Speaker 2: again a lot of people think the Mads are gonna

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Speaker 2: be good. PJ. Washington's a good wing defender. They started

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Speaker 2: him on Wemby, it was like, that's not go bar.

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Speaker 2: Then they put Ad on him. Yeah, he's taken Ad off.

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Speaker 2: The dribble from the three point line, not happening. Derek

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Speaker 2: Lively crossed him up behind the back, three splash and

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Speaker 2: the foul. Again. I'm in awe of what I just saw.

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Speaker 2: And I've never really been a Spurs fan. Honestly, I

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Speaker 2: thought the Spurs were boring. Obviously I completely respect Parker Ginobili,

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Speaker 2: Duncan Robbinson, all those guys, tremendous talents. Just never was

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Speaker 2: a Spurs fan. And there's a guy online on ig

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Speaker 2: who I've been talking to for a few years. He's

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Speaker 2: a He's a big Spurs fan. He follows and cox

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Speaker 2: it closely, and you know he's like, come come to

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Speaker 2: the dark side, Spurs, not Anna lie. I want to

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Speaker 2: see the Spurs on TV every week. I want to

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Speaker 2: see Wemban Yelma. I have peacock, so you know I'm

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Speaker 2: gonna be locked in. Guys, I got buddies with season

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Speaker 2: tickets to the Lakers. I'm just gonna ask them, can

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Speaker 2: you circle this Wemby dates? And can I get to

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Speaker 2: the front of the line, Like I need to see

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Speaker 2: this guy in person. I mean, I'm just blown away

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Speaker 2: by what he was able to do. Now, it is

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Speaker 2: just one game. You don'tant to overreact, but it's hard

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Speaker 2: not It's not like he's a rookie. This is year three,

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Speaker 2: and the thing is he looks totally different. He's not

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Speaker 2: this wiry, sheepish guy. He's confident, he's swagged out. He's like,

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Speaker 2: I got next that hell I got now, I don't,

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Speaker 2: I don't. I'm so fascinated to see how teams are

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Speaker 2: going to defend him. So up next, where's their schedule?

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Speaker 2: Up next? They are at Zion on Friday night, and

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Speaker 2: then there are against Brooklyn. Oh, shoot, there here against

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Speaker 2: the Lakers on November fifth. Let's just check the old calendar.

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Speaker 2: See what I got on November fifth. Oh, I'm gonna

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Speaker 2: go ahead and get that on the calendars. Try to

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Speaker 2: try to beat the wife to it so I can

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Speaker 2: get a hall pass and go to hopefully see Wembin

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Speaker 2: Yama against Luka Danciic. We don't expect Lebron back by then. Honestly,

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Speaker 2: I don't have any money Thursday night football real quick

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Speaker 2: before year on Watsman. I have zero dollars on this

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Speaker 2: game as of now. Frankly, the NBA kind of threw

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Speaker 2: me off, so I haven't looked at the line. Let

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Speaker 2: me call it up right now, I think I saw

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Speaker 2: Chargers three. We pretty much know what the deal is here, right.

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Speaker 2: The Chargers offensive line continues to crumble Minnesota wants to

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Speaker 2: bring pressure. The Chargers just got cooked by Daniel Jones

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Speaker 2: and Jonathan Taylor's run game. Jordan Mason, is he gonna

200
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Speaker 2: go wild? Total forty four and a half. I would

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Speaker 2: look to the under. We have seen dog doing fairly

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Speaker 2: well on Monday Night football, Carson Wentz against Jesse Minter.

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Speaker 2: I mean, then again, I hype Jesse Winter's defense and

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Speaker 2: that quarters look last week, and Daniel Jones had no

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Speaker 2: problem with it, mostly because Jonathan Taylor is just opening

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Speaker 2: massive holes. The Vikings run game is not as formidable.

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Speaker 2: I'll go the under. I'll go seventeen thirteen Chargers. Given

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Speaker 2: recent Thursday night games, it seems like it's going to

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Speaker 2: be more high scoring than that. But you got a

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Speaker 2: great coach in Harball. You have a really good offensive

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Speaker 2: mind in Kevin O'Connell. It's too bad JJ McCarthy isn't playing.

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Speaker 2: That's Harbo's old guy. I mean, I'll go under forty

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Speaker 2: four and a half. No significant play for me, It's

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Speaker 2: not a contest play. These lines this week are wacky

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Speaker 2: and there's so much happening. Unfortunately, you know, Victor Webber

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Speaker 2: Yaba just stole the show. I mean, i haven't even

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Speaker 2: talked about this. Lamar Jackson kind of sort of returned

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Speaker 2: to practice, but it didn't look like he was gonna play.

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Speaker 2: I don't know what to do with a lot of

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Speaker 2: these games because the lines are huge. Survivor is hellish.

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Speaker 2: So I'm gonna let this stuff marinate and then we'll

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Speaker 2: come back Friday with picks and all that fun stuff.

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Speaker 2: Up For now, I want you to enjoy a very,

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Speaker 2: very fun interview I had with your own Weitzman, NBA

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Speaker 2: writer who wrote the book a Hollywood Ending the Dreams

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Speaker 2: and Drama of the lebron Lakers.

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Speaker 1: Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in

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Speaker 1: the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio

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Speaker 1: dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to

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Speaker 1: listen live. You know, Jason likes to think he knows

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Speaker 1: everything when it comes to sports.

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Speaker 3: I know what sports fans want, but for.

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Speaker 1: Everything he doesn't, he knows the guy who does.

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Speaker 3: Let's just say I know a guy who knows the

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Speaker 3: guy who knows another guy.

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Speaker 2: All right, let's welcome back to straight fire Boy. This guy,

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Speaker 2: he's all over the news. You write a big time book,

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Speaker 2: you get all these great story reason anecdotes Iran Weitzman,

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Speaker 2: author writer. He's written for Fox Sports. The book is

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Speaker 2: called a Hollywood Ending The Dreams and Drama of the

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Speaker 2: Lebron Lakers. By the way, Uron, obviously, welcome back to

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Speaker 2: the pod. I'm just curious, are you getting just are

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Speaker 2: Lakers fans coming after you? Does it feel like you're

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Speaker 2: under attack?

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Speaker 3: Hasn't been so, I'm not looking we are phrased. I

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Speaker 3: scan the mentions. I'm very vain. I'm not cover tend

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Speaker 3: like I don't look at the mansions. I obviously do

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Speaker 3: anyone who says that they're lying, right, Okay, it's a

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Speaker 3: lot of these, some of the like the aggregating accounts

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Speaker 3: that pick it up like you can't really look at all.

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Speaker 3: Then it's this a lot that's going on there. I

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Speaker 3: haven't seen. I've got a few. I got a few.

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Speaker 3: I got a few dms.

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Speaker 2: Uh.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, if I ever come at Lebron again, I'll weep

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Speaker 3: you up. Someone you know, nonsense. I posted some someone

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Speaker 3: said it's always the jew reporters who are doing that.

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Speaker 1: I like that one.

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Speaker 2: Oh gosh, they got that. That's iggressive.

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Speaker 3: They were like, you're on to me, Yes, that's it.

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Speaker 3: So honestly, I haven't been Yeah, I don't know. It's

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Speaker 3: been a little weird, but I haven't been too bad.

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Speaker 3: I don't think we see.

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Speaker 2: So I loved I love this topic. You know, I

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Speaker 2: had it several book ideas I got close to and

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Speaker 2: then I'm like, this is a lot of work. I

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Speaker 2: don't I got to ask how long did this take?

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Speaker 2: And I guess, b did you try for any cooperation

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Speaker 2: with Lebron? And what was that?

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Speaker 1: Like?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, so it took it basically three years basically the

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Speaker 3: whole process start to finish. Right, Oh my goodness. Yeah,

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Speaker 3: pretty wild. I mean I spoke to like, I mean,

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Speaker 3: I can go into it for a little bit, but

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Speaker 3: I viewed like nearly three hundred people the way I

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Speaker 3: read everything like literally basically any like news article, feature

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Speaker 3: from the past whatever, ten fifteen years like all nowadays

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Speaker 3: it's it's a gold mine, but adds a lot of work.

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Speaker 3: There's so many podcasts and so many player podcasts, and

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Speaker 3: like again, it's overwhelming this. You can find gold in there,

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Speaker 3: especially if you like, you know what you're looking for

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Speaker 3: and you kind of quotes that don't stand out, but

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Speaker 3: if you have another anecdote, you kind of connect them,

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Speaker 3: so but just go through all that. It was a

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Speaker 3: lot Lebron. Yeah, Lebron, I mean I always want particip

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Speaker 3: I knew he wouldn't not because then, like Lebron deservedly

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Speaker 3: so has decided like he doesn't really do long form

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Speaker 3: introduce it downs anymore unless it's for his own Why

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Speaker 3: would he give his story to me if he can

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Speaker 3: make it a Netflix documentary? And I begrudge I do

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Speaker 3: not begrudge him at this at all. Like I thought,

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Speaker 3: maybe when we get the fact shacking at the end,

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Speaker 3: maybe they'd want to engage it in. But again he's

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Speaker 3: reached that point man, like God bless you, he doesn't.

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Speaker 3: So I tried, but he they weren't interested.

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Speaker 2: What about like a Maverick Carter people in his orbit,

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Speaker 2: Rich Paul, did they? I mean, I'm assuming you tried

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Speaker 2: to talk to them face to face via text email?

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Speaker 3: Yeah you do? You know, no, I engage nobody. Nobody

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Speaker 3: in his orbit wanted to have on the record conversation.

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Speaker 3: Some you have people, some people you do stuff with.

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Speaker 3: You know, and I'm not saying specific, but some people

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Speaker 3: you talk to on background or off the records, they

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Speaker 3: can help with notes. Nobody wants to do on the record. Again,

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Speaker 3: also in the NBA world today, just very few people

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Speaker 3: like you get. You'll get like people who refuse to

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Speaker 3: put their name. It's become accepted to not put your

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Speaker 3: name on something, even if it's irrelevant, like it just

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Speaker 3: you can't keep names on it, like the bar, and

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Speaker 3: it's hard to fight against that. So just to go

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Speaker 3: with that sometimes.

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Speaker 2: Well, I guess at that point it's like, I don't

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Speaker 2: even want people knowing I talked to this guy. Correct

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Speaker 2: then it's out there and then it's like, oh, maybe

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Speaker 2: he's the leak for that story and you kind of

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Speaker 2: get shafted. So I totally get that. So that's makes

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Speaker 2: it an uphill climb. However, you're able to score some

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Speaker 2: major antidotes. You're all over the Daily Mail. I mean,

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Speaker 2: you had, like probably the definitive NBA storyline before the

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Speaker 2: season is Russell Westbrook thing. Now, I do want to

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Speaker 2: ask you. I'll be upfront. I am a lebron guy.

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Speaker 2: I do think he's the goat. I think he certainly

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Speaker 2: passed Jordan with the title over the where he went

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Speaker 2: to the Lakers. I've been over this a lot. That

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Speaker 2: being said, well, i'll call him out when he's wrong,

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Speaker 2: I do need to ask in this Russell Westbrook encounter

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Speaker 2: with the will Smith situation. So the one nugget that

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Speaker 2: I found fascinating was Darvinham left to go bring back

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Speaker 2: Lebron and ad okay, And I don't know if we're

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Speaker 2: we know what Darvin Ham said. Maybe he said nothing,

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Speaker 2: but yeah, yeah, is there a world where maybe Darvin said, Hey, guys,

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Speaker 2: I can't believe you walked out? Can you act? Can

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Speaker 2: you get in there? I don't give a crap if

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Speaker 2: you don't hear like Will Smith, act like you're engaged.

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Speaker 2: Ask questions and Darbendham says that, and then Lebron goes in,

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Speaker 2: and that leads to the questions, is there a world

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Speaker 2: where that happened or not? It's not even possible.

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Speaker 3: No, for sure, I genuinely do not know what was.

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Speaker 3: Like I've joked a few people, I don't know what

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Speaker 3: Darbenham said. And like I saw someone again talk about

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Speaker 3: checking the mention someone was making fun of like Darbendham leadership.

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Speaker 1: I was like, I don't know.

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Speaker 3: That seemed like the opposite. Yeah, he was able to

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Speaker 3: get them back in the room, Like god, well that's

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Speaker 3: pretty impressive. So I don't know what he said what

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Speaker 3: he said the part like not you people miss out.

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Speaker 3: I'm sure like the main subjects are going to misinterpret

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Speaker 3: it like this that part and the that Stuff' written

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Speaker 3: the book well for two reasons, right. One it's to

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Speaker 3: show what Westbrook felt about Lebron, which is really important, right,

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Speaker 3: It's really important. It's not me saying as the phoney

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Speaker 3: and I, by the way, I agree with you. Like

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Speaker 3: the part that I've found so interesting is again look

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Speaker 3: at like the response and I've all these mentions go

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Speaker 3: again him team Russ, team Russ, Bronzo phony. Fine. We

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Speaker 3: talked about that a second. The idea that the Westbrook

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Speaker 3: experience in LA went poorly, The notion that that went

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Speaker 3: poorly because Lebron might be fake sometimes is so detached

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Speaker 3: from reality is insane. It was Westbrook, right, and it's

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Speaker 3: just kind of telling the show how people feel about

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Speaker 3: Lebron and specifically in LA that people would latch onto that.

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Speaker 3: But it was all Westbrook and Lebron being a phony

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Speaker 3: or not. It's irrelevant to how to how the Westbrook

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Speaker 3: experience played out. That said, like writing about Lebron, Lebron's

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Speaker 3: a really important seminal, not just figure in American sports

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Speaker 3: or American culture, right, And I felt like having even

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Speaker 3: if I didn't get the Westbrook anecdote, right, even if

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Speaker 3: I didn't get the will Smith one, I think it

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Speaker 3: would have been important to put the parts about sort

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Speaker 3: of the movie quotes and the books and whatever.

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Speaker 1: Like.

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Speaker 3: I think that that's part of his personality. If we're

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Speaker 3: talking about Lebron as a person, that stuff needs to

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Speaker 3: be included. But it doesn't. But I'm with you, Yeah,

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Speaker 3: I'm with you on this.

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Speaker 2: So I'm looking at Russell Westbrook. He's been on six

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Speaker 2: teams in seven years. Yeah, right, exact, and suddenly this

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Speaker 2: is about Lebron. And I'm not criticizing you were it's

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Speaker 2: the narrative around, like the story because oh you're right, yeah,

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Speaker 2: team Russ. Actually, I don't know, Guys, he's been on

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Speaker 2: a different team every year practically for seven years. Like

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Speaker 2: that's maybe it's it's like when everybody, Man, I can't

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Speaker 2: believe everybody hates me. Why are all these people being

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Speaker 2: mean to me? Hey man, maybe you're the asshole. Maybe

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Speaker 2: it's about you, you know, Like, I don't know. I'm

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Speaker 2: not bashing Russ. I know people love to pile on him.

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Speaker 2: I don't know, to talk to me a little bit

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Speaker 2: about the process, like being around the Lakers that often.

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Speaker 2: I'm assuming you maybe went on the road with them sometimes,

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Speaker 2: I don't know, Like what was it like being in

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Speaker 2: the Lakers orbit? You know this is basically, you know,

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Speaker 2: the Dodgers and Yankees rolled into one, so I did.

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Speaker 3: It was so it's funer, it's funny as all. I'll

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Speaker 3: get to that a second. I did spend time with

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Speaker 3: them early on. I live in New York, and I

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Speaker 3: actually I'll answer that, like, I think that I think

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Speaker 3: that was helpful in a way. I think being an

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Speaker 3: outside sometimes allows you to write about things and subjects

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Speaker 3: and teams from a different perspective and like and not

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Speaker 3: that I want to burn bridges, but I'm also not

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Speaker 3: like I don't get credentials in the Lakers, Like that's

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Speaker 3: not my home NBA city. I don't need that for

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Speaker 3: my day to day job. And I'm not getting Lebron

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Speaker 3: interviews vaguely, so again, like it doesn't mean I'm trying

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Speaker 3: to like I'm saying bleep them like I don't care,

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Speaker 3: but just means I don't have to manage relationships, and

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Speaker 3: I don't bet grudge of people will do like if

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Speaker 3: you're a beat writer, that's that's an essential part of

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Speaker 3: the job, and that's that your job is different when

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Speaker 3: you parachute in and I have a different job and

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Speaker 3: the ability to look at things from an outsider. So

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Speaker 3: then I would start being around the Lakers a little

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Speaker 3: more at the beginning, but early on it was clear

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Speaker 3: that they weren't thrilled at me being around, which was fine.

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Speaker 2: And wait, wait, is that the players or the team

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Speaker 2: or the own the team?

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Speaker 3: The team players didn't care the ownership. The ownership ends.

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Speaker 3: And there's a member of the pr staff wasn't so

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Speaker 3: great to me, which is whatever, okay.

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Speaker 2: Cool, well, hold on, hold on, define not so great?

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Speaker 3: You would like I would go up to a player.

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00:20:53,560 --> 00:20:57,600
Speaker 3: They would tell players she specifical whatever they excuse me, sorry,

423
00:20:58,320 --> 00:21:01,280
Speaker 3: would tell what tell people players don't talk, don't talk

424
00:21:01,320 --> 00:21:03,640
Speaker 3: to him. Even though even if that wasn't I don't

425
00:21:03,640 --> 00:21:05,560
Speaker 3: even think sometimes I was coming down from the organization, right,

426
00:21:05,600 --> 00:21:07,720
Speaker 3: I think that was sometimes just going rogue. I don't know.

427
00:21:08,080 --> 00:21:10,600
Speaker 2: Wait, I just was in front of the players and.

428
00:21:10,720 --> 00:21:13,600
Speaker 3: Like after whatever, like you know, when I'm not there, right,

429
00:21:13,680 --> 00:21:17,680
Speaker 3: like if you know, or'll say yeah and just whatever.

430
00:21:17,800 --> 00:21:22,000
Speaker 3: So all that combined with the notion that when I

431
00:21:22,080 --> 00:21:24,000
Speaker 3: started this, like a lot of these players were younger.

432
00:21:24,920 --> 00:21:27,040
Speaker 3: I realized, my brother's with me, butter not necessarily being

433
00:21:27,040 --> 00:21:28,679
Speaker 3: around the team regularly. Now it's good to check in,

434
00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:31,600
Speaker 3: but like you know who's on the teams. Gabe Vincent,

435
00:21:31,680 --> 00:21:35,199
Speaker 3: he knows Lebron, He's not him and Lebron not best friends, right,

436
00:21:35,240 --> 00:21:37,320
Speaker 3: These guys who are barely there, Jared Vanderbilt, like these

437
00:21:37,320 --> 00:21:39,320
Speaker 3: are guys. I didn't need to get these guys to

438
00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:42,159
Speaker 3: get these this Lebron perspective. What I will say is

439
00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:43,840
Speaker 3: being around though, Like I went to a game on

440
00:21:43,840 --> 00:21:46,200
Speaker 3: the road of Miami and I'm there and it's get

441
00:21:46,280 --> 00:21:49,200
Speaker 3: like an example, so the media Lebron made, wait, don't

442
00:21:49,240 --> 00:21:51,560
Speaker 3: do his media. I don't remember it, but basically someone's talking.

443
00:21:51,640 --> 00:21:53,119
Speaker 3: Let's say it's Austin Reeves and he goes in a

444
00:21:53,119 --> 00:21:55,359
Speaker 3: Separd room at the locker room. All the Beat reporters

445
00:21:55,400 --> 00:21:56,840
Speaker 3: have to go there because they have the job, and

446
00:21:56,880 --> 00:22:00,600
Speaker 3: I'm hanging back and it's basically Anthony Davis, Lebron, Vanderbilt,

447
00:22:00,600 --> 00:22:02,119
Speaker 3: and a couple of staffers and I'm just there, just

448
00:22:02,119 --> 00:22:03,840
Speaker 3: like you know, you never know what happens. And this

449
00:22:03,920 --> 00:22:06,040
Speaker 3: is the prologue in the book, but Lebron. They start

450
00:22:06,080 --> 00:22:08,680
Speaker 3: talking about contracts and Lebron's asked, you know which contract

451
00:22:09,119 --> 00:22:11,080
Speaker 3: meant the most to you when you literally put pen

452
00:22:11,200 --> 00:22:14,199
Speaker 3: to paper, And it evolves into this conversation about like

453
00:22:14,240 --> 00:22:16,080
Speaker 3: Anthony David saying, Lebron, what do you think you would

454
00:22:16,080 --> 00:22:18,640
Speaker 3: be worth? You should get paid if you weren't, there's

455
00:22:18,680 --> 00:22:21,159
Speaker 3: no salary cap, and then having this conversation about it.

456
00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:23,800
Speaker 3: It's like being around that and I'm just I'm just

457
00:22:23,800 --> 00:22:25,200
Speaker 3: like a fly on the wall. I'm not saying anything.

458
00:22:25,200 --> 00:22:28,240
Speaker 3: I'm just listening and like taking notes and it's just

459
00:22:28,320 --> 00:22:31,320
Speaker 3: fascinating here. And Lebron's answer is four years, five hundred million.

460
00:22:31,320 --> 00:22:34,280
Speaker 3: He's talking about how much value he brings to the organization,

461
00:22:34,359 --> 00:22:36,240
Speaker 3: to teams and cities and how he always wins a

462
00:22:36,280 --> 00:22:39,200
Speaker 3: championship after two years, and it was such a revealing glimpse.

463
00:22:39,200 --> 00:22:42,320
Speaker 3: And honestly, I looking back, I remember being like, I

464
00:22:42,320 --> 00:22:44,680
Speaker 3: think he under it. I would have thought he would

465
00:22:44,680 --> 00:22:46,639
Speaker 3: say a billion, right. I was a little surprised, like

466
00:22:47,119 --> 00:22:49,200
Speaker 3: four for five hundred, it's kind of low. Shay Gildris's

467
00:22:49,240 --> 00:22:51,879
Speaker 3: alm was there right like, so, so I could have

468
00:22:51,880 --> 00:22:53,639
Speaker 3: gotten higher, but it was just around the team. So

469
00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:55,480
Speaker 3: some moments like that, it's good to be around the team.

470
00:22:55,520 --> 00:22:58,440
Speaker 3: But I realized I was gonna I was going to

471
00:22:58,520 --> 00:23:01,399
Speaker 3: get most of my value talking to former people or

472
00:23:01,440 --> 00:23:03,879
Speaker 3: other people or secondary characters.

473
00:23:03,600 --> 00:23:06,119
Speaker 2: You know. In talking about Lebron's with the Lakers, I

474
00:23:06,160 --> 00:23:08,480
Speaker 2: feel like, obviously, listen, he's gonna get a lot of

475
00:23:08,480 --> 00:23:10,480
Speaker 2: the criticism and he's gonna get a lot of the props.

476
00:23:10,480 --> 00:23:13,560
Speaker 2: They win the title. Hey, Lebron built his team. They

477
00:23:13,600 --> 00:23:16,160
Speaker 2: don't get anywhere. Well, Lebron wasn't great. He got hurt.

478
00:23:16,200 --> 00:23:19,760
Speaker 2: You know, it's weird. Anthony Davis was a seminal figure

479
00:23:19,840 --> 00:23:22,560
Speaker 2: in the Lebron in the Lebron era. I'm just curious,

480
00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:25,080
Speaker 2: how do you think what's his legacy? Like, couldn't get

481
00:23:25,080 --> 00:23:26,960
Speaker 2: out of the second round in New Orleans, goes to

482
00:23:27,000 --> 00:23:30,119
Speaker 2: the Lakers, awesome, wins the championship. I don't know, is

483
00:23:30,119 --> 00:23:31,640
Speaker 2: he gonna get out of the second round ever again

484
00:23:31,680 --> 00:23:34,879
Speaker 2: anywhere else? Like, I mean, on some level, when do

485
00:23:34,920 --> 00:23:36,199
Speaker 2: we have to applaud Lebron for that?

486
00:23:36,600 --> 00:23:38,520
Speaker 3: You know who he reminded. It's funny. He actually kind

487
00:23:38,520 --> 00:23:40,439
Speaker 3: of reminds me. It's like a it's paw gasol ish

488
00:23:40,600 --> 00:23:43,360
Speaker 3: kind of similar. Not just Lakers, but just like ultimate

489
00:23:43,440 --> 00:23:47,360
Speaker 3: number two. Right, I'm over simplifying it, but number two, yeah, right,

490
00:23:47,440 --> 00:23:49,880
Speaker 3: and just fits that role and maybe not number one

491
00:23:49,920 --> 00:23:52,600
Speaker 3: for different for and sometimes that's not just about skills,

492
00:23:52,640 --> 00:23:54,920
Speaker 3: that's also about disposition. Like you know, in the book,

493
00:23:54,920 --> 00:23:56,960
Speaker 3: I dive into Anthony Davis a lot and talk to

494
00:23:57,000 --> 00:23:58,879
Speaker 3: high school coaches and people grew up with him, and

495
00:23:58,920 --> 00:24:01,359
Speaker 3: he just wasn't in alpha like that, which is not

496
00:24:01,400 --> 00:24:04,000
Speaker 3: an honestly, probably makes you a better like person I'd

497
00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:05,720
Speaker 3: rather be friends with, right, But in terms of being

498
00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:08,080
Speaker 3: on the court, it just he wasn't built that way.

499
00:24:08,080 --> 00:24:11,760
Speaker 3: And that's fine and even and Lebron. I mean, that's

500
00:24:11,760 --> 00:24:13,520
Speaker 3: one of my favorite random stories in the book is

501
00:24:13,560 --> 00:24:17,080
Speaker 3: after the trade, Anthony Davis comes and he's coming in

502
00:24:17,119 --> 00:24:18,879
Speaker 3: like that first off season there and he's coming in

503
00:24:18,960 --> 00:24:20,600
Speaker 3: let's say it's nine thirty or something every day and

504
00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:22,800
Speaker 3: he's getting there the first week and Lebron's always done.

505
00:24:22,800 --> 00:24:25,080
Speaker 3: He Anthony Davis goes to Lebron, I thought you said,

506
00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:26,480
Speaker 3: if I come here, we're gonna work out together. And

507
00:24:26,560 --> 00:24:28,720
Speaker 3: Lebron goes, yeah, but you have to do that. You have

508
00:24:28,760 --> 00:24:30,040
Speaker 3: to get here, you have to get here earlier than

509
00:24:30,080 --> 00:24:31,520
Speaker 3: this to do that. And like it was such a

510
00:24:31,520 --> 00:24:34,920
Speaker 3: telling little moment from both sides, right, and Lebron really

511
00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:38,840
Speaker 3: took upon himself to be a leader of Anthony Davis

512
00:24:38,840 --> 00:24:41,440
Speaker 3: and kind of bring him along to a level where

513
00:24:41,440 --> 00:24:43,320
Speaker 3: they could win a title. So for sure, Yeah, it's

514
00:24:43,320 --> 00:24:43,960
Speaker 3: funny you say that.

515
00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:47,280
Speaker 2: So I talk about my men's leagues, various basketball leagues,

516
00:24:47,520 --> 00:24:48,880
Speaker 2: and we have a guy on our team who played

517
00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:50,760
Speaker 2: quarterback at Notre Dame. And then you know, he tells

518
00:24:50,760 --> 00:24:52,720
Speaker 2: me he works out at like five thirty in the morning.

519
00:24:52,720 --> 00:24:55,159
Speaker 2: I'm like, oh, I'm in. I'm in totally. And then

520
00:24:55,200 --> 00:24:56,760
Speaker 2: I go to a five point thirty workout. I'm like,

521
00:24:56,760 --> 00:24:58,159
Speaker 2: oh man, this is freaking earlier.

522
00:24:58,880 --> 00:24:59,840
Speaker 3: I can't handle this thing.

523
00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:02,320
Speaker 2: I lasted like maybe two or three weeks and then

524
00:25:02,359 --> 00:25:05,240
Speaker 2: that was it. And hearing this from yeah, Lebron, he's

525
00:25:05,280 --> 00:25:08,520
Speaker 2: a grinder's and Anthony Davis kind of not right.

526
00:25:09,359 --> 00:25:11,640
Speaker 3: It's I wouldn't even say not not because I hear

527
00:25:12,000 --> 00:25:14,240
Speaker 3: I would flip it. I think it's Lebron. It's that

528
00:25:14,359 --> 00:25:17,639
Speaker 3: like that's a superpower, like the ability. It's the ability

529
00:25:17,720 --> 00:25:21,280
Speaker 3: to do to the next level. And honestly, that's the

530
00:25:21,320 --> 00:25:25,560
Speaker 3: thing that like, that's what separates him. Obviously the gifts,

531
00:25:25,560 --> 00:25:28,560
Speaker 3: the physical all that stuff unbelievable, but like the stuff

532
00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:30,560
Speaker 3: that he's doing that anyone could work that hard that

533
00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:32,680
Speaker 3: others don't, and that's what separates him in the greats.

534
00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:34,119
Speaker 3: And like, it was one of the things I want

535
00:25:34,160 --> 00:25:35,879
Speaker 3: to dive into is just what that actually looked like.

536
00:25:35,920 --> 00:25:37,880
Speaker 3: I thought it was important. Dude, we all know the cliches.

537
00:25:37,960 --> 00:25:40,399
Speaker 3: Yeah he works hard, yeah, blah blah blah, but like,

538
00:25:40,400 --> 00:25:41,760
Speaker 3: what does that actually look like? And I got so

539
00:25:41,760 --> 00:25:43,760
Speaker 3: many great anecdotes. You know, people would joke that he

540
00:25:43,760 --> 00:25:45,760
Speaker 3: has his trainer, Mike Mancias, and that they're sitting around

541
00:25:45,760 --> 00:25:48,200
Speaker 3: playing poker, and like he pops out of a trap

542
00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:51,320
Speaker 3: door with like Lebron's two eighteen salmon and kinwah. Right,

543
00:25:51,359 --> 00:25:54,000
Speaker 3: It's like everything is so regimented and just we haven't

544
00:25:54,040 --> 00:25:56,520
Speaker 3: mapped out hour hour. Michael Beasley told me he knows

545
00:25:56,560 --> 00:25:58,639
Speaker 3: if Lebron for years, and he's like it looks like

546
00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:01,119
Speaker 3: a bleep in NASCAR pit stop there sometimes just like

547
00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:03,640
Speaker 3: he's doing space jam line he's got massages going on,

548
00:26:03,680 --> 00:26:07,040
Speaker 3: Like literally, the amount of energy and effort that it

549
00:26:07,119 --> 00:26:10,920
Speaker 3: takes to be that great for that long is something

550
00:26:10,960 --> 00:26:13,760
Speaker 3: that separates him. So yeah, Ad, he's not wired like that.

551
00:26:13,960 --> 00:26:16,399
Speaker 3: It probably hurts him, But it's more that Lebron is

552
00:26:16,480 --> 00:26:19,240
Speaker 3: so like that, he's so special in that regard.

553
00:26:20,200 --> 00:26:24,199
Speaker 2: Well, it's funny in men's leagues and pick up. One

554
00:26:24,240 --> 00:26:26,560
Speaker 2: of the guys is a body double for Lebron and

555
00:26:26,560 --> 00:26:29,320
Speaker 2: a bunch of commercials okay, and he's like that guy

556
00:26:29,480 --> 00:26:33,840
Speaker 2: never eats anything without permission from his trainer, and he

557
00:26:33,880 --> 00:26:36,800
Speaker 2: gets a massage every day, every other day, and I'm like,

558
00:26:37,640 --> 00:26:39,840
Speaker 2: he wants to be the best. Now, I am curious

559
00:26:40,119 --> 00:26:42,960
Speaker 2: when you started you obviously had a perception of Lebron.

560
00:26:43,200 --> 00:26:46,720
Speaker 2: By the end of the book, did that perception or

561
00:26:46,840 --> 00:26:48,639
Speaker 2: view of Lebron as the goat or I don't know

562
00:26:48,680 --> 00:26:51,800
Speaker 2: where you rank him, Did any of that change, because

563
00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:54,160
Speaker 2: I mean, you talked to three hundred people about somebody. Listen,

564
00:26:54,240 --> 00:26:56,399
Speaker 2: you talked to three hundred people about me. You're probably

565
00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:58,440
Speaker 2: gonna find some guys who say some really bad stuff

566
00:26:58,440 --> 00:27:00,399
Speaker 2: about me. Now, I don't think many. I like to

567
00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:02,320
Speaker 2: think I'm a nice guy, but I mean, it's a

568
00:27:02,320 --> 00:27:03,600
Speaker 2: lot of people to interview.

569
00:27:03,840 --> 00:27:05,560
Speaker 3: Ah By inside of the fire. I guess the fire

570
00:27:05,600 --> 00:27:09,000
Speaker 3: trucks are coming as we're talking. I uh no, it

571
00:27:09,080 --> 00:27:12,119
Speaker 3: is fascinating, right, So the goat stuff, to me, it

572
00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:14,520
Speaker 3: was more the personality and the legacy stuff I was

573
00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:19,480
Speaker 3: diving into and like that I found interesting. How do

574
00:27:19,520 --> 00:27:22,359
Speaker 3: I phrase it? I left me it's not a great answer.

575
00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:24,880
Speaker 3: I left being a little more confused by him, which

576
00:27:24,920 --> 00:27:27,040
Speaker 3: is almost ironic because you would think it's like you

577
00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:29,399
Speaker 3: have more clarity as we dive in than something and someone.

578
00:27:29,840 --> 00:27:32,520
Speaker 3: But just I have trouble Matt wrapping my arm around

579
00:27:32,560 --> 00:27:36,560
Speaker 3: what he wants, what his goals are. His Lakers tenure

580
00:27:36,600 --> 00:27:39,800
Speaker 3: has been really strange, really really strange, just in terms

581
00:27:39,840 --> 00:27:43,960
Speaker 3: of we come in, we say we're okay not winning

582
00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:45,800
Speaker 3: a title right that year one, we're not contending, We're

583
00:27:45,840 --> 00:27:48,239
Speaker 3: joining the young guys, Lonzo and Brandon Ingroom and all

584
00:27:48,240 --> 00:27:50,119
Speaker 3: those guys, and then very quickly we blow that up

585
00:27:50,119 --> 00:27:52,120
Speaker 3: and say, not that's okay, that I want Anthony Davis.

586
00:27:52,160 --> 00:27:55,000
Speaker 3: We win the title, and then he's giving the Lakers

587
00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:57,760
Speaker 3: all this latitude they never gave other organizations before in

588
00:27:57,840 --> 00:28:02,080
Speaker 3: terms of not wanting being okay, not being a championship contender.

589
00:28:02,640 --> 00:28:04,920
Speaker 3: And you know, the one thing I can't get over

590
00:28:05,040 --> 00:28:06,600
Speaker 3: is the like, the Hennessy Ad has made me think

591
00:28:06,640 --> 00:28:09,040
Speaker 3: about this a lot, right, the recent Hennessy aad. So

592
00:28:09,080 --> 00:28:11,560
Speaker 3: the part about that that i've again the same work,

593
00:28:11,600 --> 00:28:13,760
Speaker 3: confusing and the strange, right, and this is almost answer

594
00:28:13,920 --> 00:28:16,440
Speaker 3: put a bone on the cou answer like to find

595
00:28:16,480 --> 00:28:18,800
Speaker 3: cash out, you know, make your money. I don't care whatever.

596
00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:21,919
Speaker 3: But the idea that Lebron when he comes into his

597
00:28:21,960 --> 00:28:24,000
Speaker 3: Lakers tenure, one of the things he's most known for

598
00:28:24,760 --> 00:28:27,680
Speaker 3: is ushering in this era of player empowerment and I'm

599
00:28:27,680 --> 00:28:30,880
Speaker 3: the boss, and you run things, and and that not

600
00:28:30,960 --> 00:28:32,720
Speaker 3: just on the court, Like we run our own businesses,

601
00:28:32,760 --> 00:28:34,159
Speaker 3: me and Mike Maverick Carter Rich, like we have our

602
00:28:34,160 --> 00:28:36,600
Speaker 3: own agency, our own businesses. If we have an endorsement,

603
00:28:36,600 --> 00:28:38,840
Speaker 3: we're taking points on there, right, Like different all that

604
00:28:39,520 --> 00:28:42,160
Speaker 3: is dipping our toes in political orders at times, right, Yeah,

605
00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:44,120
Speaker 3: especially around twenty twenty. I dove into a lot of that.

606
00:28:44,800 --> 00:28:47,000
Speaker 3: And now we're the Hennessy Ad. And what we're doing

607
00:28:47,080 --> 00:28:51,480
Speaker 3: is we're leveraging our ability to capture attention in the

608
00:28:51,520 --> 00:28:54,800
Speaker 3: zeitgeist for the purpose of helping a brand. We have

609
00:28:54,880 --> 00:28:58,040
Speaker 3: nothing to do, nothing to do with sell some alcohol. Right,

610
00:28:58,360 --> 00:29:01,560
Speaker 3: So again, like I'm don't care. But it's a strange

611
00:29:01,640 --> 00:29:03,720
Speaker 3: journey and honestly one that usually we see the other way.

612
00:29:03,800 --> 00:29:05,920
Speaker 3: Usually you see like kind of like those decisions early

613
00:29:05,960 --> 00:29:08,440
Speaker 3: in life and careers and later on people aside. You

614
00:29:08,480 --> 00:29:10,680
Speaker 3: know what, I want to start going, Uh, I want

615
00:29:10,680 --> 00:29:12,160
Speaker 3: to make my own thing. I want to be more serious.

616
00:29:12,160 --> 00:29:13,920
Speaker 3: I want to talk about politics. I want to build

617
00:29:13,920 --> 00:29:17,120
Speaker 3: whatever it is. Right, And it almost seems like we're backwalking.

618
00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:20,400
Speaker 3: So they answer your question, I'm just like, yeah, he

619
00:29:20,440 --> 00:29:22,200
Speaker 3: confuses me. He confuses me.

620
00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:24,520
Speaker 2: But let me let me ask you. Maybe I missed

621
00:29:24,520 --> 00:29:29,200
Speaker 2: something on the Hennessy ed. Is it his brand of

622
00:29:29,560 --> 00:29:30,040
Speaker 2: like is he an?

623
00:29:30,400 --> 00:29:32,160
Speaker 3: I don't think as far as I know, no, maybe

624
00:29:32,200 --> 00:29:33,960
Speaker 3: I'm wrong right, As far as I know, no, as

625
00:29:33,960 --> 00:29:35,640
Speaker 3: far as I know, it's no different than like the

626
00:29:35,720 --> 00:29:37,840
Speaker 3: DraftKings commercials. Maybe I might be wrong, right.

627
00:29:37,840 --> 00:29:41,040
Speaker 2: Obviously he's paid handsomely by him correct, correct, but how

628
00:29:41,120 --> 00:29:42,960
Speaker 2: handsomely we don't know. But yeah, if he has like

629
00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:45,160
Speaker 2: an equity, if hey, we'll give you an equity stake,

630
00:29:45,200 --> 00:29:47,400
Speaker 2: do a big blowout, you know, Like I don't.

631
00:29:47,200 --> 00:29:49,280
Speaker 3: Know right that that could be for sure, that could be.

632
00:29:49,360 --> 00:29:50,600
Speaker 3: I feel like if that was the case, we might

633
00:29:50,640 --> 00:29:51,960
Speaker 3: have learned about that. But maybe I'm wrong.

634
00:29:52,040 --> 00:29:52,480
Speaker 2: Possible.

635
00:29:52,600 --> 00:29:56,080
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's it's it's funny because it's it's

636
00:29:56,120 --> 00:29:57,880
Speaker 3: a weird, like it's hard to explain to people, like

637
00:29:57,960 --> 00:29:59,640
Speaker 3: where it's a weird line to draw. We're like, no,

638
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:02,680
Speaker 3: the DraftKings ad So again, I find a little weird.

639
00:30:02,720 --> 00:30:04,880
Speaker 3: I don't care. I find a little weird to just

640
00:30:04,880 --> 00:30:06,160
Speaker 3: be chilling like that if you're him.

641
00:30:06,400 --> 00:30:08,960
Speaker 2: Okay, so I'm gonna peel back the curtain now. Yeah.

642
00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:09,240
Speaker 3: Please.

643
00:30:09,760 --> 00:30:13,240
Speaker 2: I haven't revealed a lot of this, but you know,

644
00:30:13,280 --> 00:30:16,440
Speaker 2: I started at Fox twenty sixteen, and then in twenty

645
00:30:16,520 --> 00:30:18,800
Speaker 2: I think it was twenty seventeen. They came to me

646
00:30:18,840 --> 00:30:20,440
Speaker 2: and they're like, hey, we've got a partner. I'm not

647
00:30:20,480 --> 00:30:23,520
Speaker 2: going to say the company. Would you be willing to

648
00:30:23,560 --> 00:30:25,320
Speaker 2: fly to New York host this thing?

649
00:30:25,920 --> 00:30:26,120
Speaker 1: You know?

650
00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:28,640
Speaker 2: Uh, and then we'll fly you back first class all

651
00:30:28,680 --> 00:30:30,719
Speaker 2: that and we'll give you X amount of money. And

652
00:30:30,760 --> 00:30:33,640
Speaker 2: I was like, you're giving me that much money to

653
00:30:33,720 --> 00:30:36,240
Speaker 2: do that? Of course I'll do it. At a heartbeat,

654
00:30:36,280 --> 00:30:38,040
Speaker 2: aren't you kidding me? Like, oh, I tell the wife

655
00:30:38,040 --> 00:30:39,960
Speaker 2: were celebrating and it's not even that much. It's not

656
00:30:39,960 --> 00:30:42,560
Speaker 2: even that much money, but it was like the fact

657
00:30:42,560 --> 00:30:44,320
Speaker 2: that I would be willing to do it for that

658
00:30:44,720 --> 00:30:47,560
Speaker 2: little amount of money, like you know, a big time

659
00:30:47,720 --> 00:30:51,320
Speaker 2: person probably would not. But I mean, I'm assuming Lebron

660
00:30:51,400 --> 00:30:53,120
Speaker 2: got a lot of money, and what did it take

661
00:30:53,160 --> 00:30:54,880
Speaker 2: for him to do a Hennessy ad You're on like

662
00:30:55,680 --> 00:30:56,320
Speaker 2: maybe a day.

663
00:30:56,920 --> 00:30:58,560
Speaker 3: This is where I so I don't disagree it. That's

664
00:30:58,560 --> 00:31:01,400
Speaker 3: why I was saying, I kind of all at my line,

665
00:31:01,440 --> 00:31:04,239
Speaker 3: my weird line, but to me it makes sense. Is

666
00:31:04,280 --> 00:31:06,440
Speaker 3: the teaser tweet? Right, And I know it sounds crazy.

667
00:31:07,040 --> 00:31:10,840
Speaker 3: It's like again you're leveraging your fame and your image

668
00:31:11,600 --> 00:31:14,600
Speaker 3: and you're and you're making fun of the decision beforehand

669
00:31:15,400 --> 00:31:17,320
Speaker 3: in a way like that to me is like where

670
00:31:17,360 --> 00:31:20,160
Speaker 3: it's different. Well then it's no longer. Yeah, sure, I'll

671
00:31:20,160 --> 00:31:22,440
Speaker 3: set a couch for a I'll set a couch and like,

672
00:31:22,560 --> 00:31:24,240
Speaker 3: or I'll shoot I'll shoot commercials with Kevin hard for

673
00:31:24,280 --> 00:31:26,160
Speaker 3: four hours and get you know, seven figures on that.

674
00:31:26,600 --> 00:31:28,040
Speaker 3: And again, I know it's a weird line and some

675
00:31:28,040 --> 00:31:30,360
Speaker 3: people don't agree, but to me, it's just it's just

676
00:31:30,440 --> 00:31:34,240
Speaker 3: different and it's fine. I just again, like I feel

677
00:31:34,240 --> 00:31:37,640
Speaker 3: like that tweet ten years ago would have been for

678
00:31:37,880 --> 00:31:41,520
Speaker 3: the launch of Uninterrupted that he owns, or the launch

679
00:31:41,560 --> 00:31:43,920
Speaker 3: of Clutch Sports, which which is doing, or like something

680
00:31:43,960 --> 00:31:47,040
Speaker 3: like that, or I prop the I promised school or

681
00:31:48,360 --> 00:31:50,480
Speaker 3: I don't know, calling down Trump a bum I don't know, right,

682
00:31:50,680 --> 00:31:53,880
Speaker 3: something like that, like like just different and it's not

683
00:31:54,040 --> 00:31:56,280
Speaker 3: and maybe it could be like just older and like

684
00:31:56,440 --> 00:31:57,120
Speaker 3: cool whatever.

685
00:31:57,120 --> 00:31:59,200
Speaker 2: You just mentioned it getting older. As you're explaining that,

686
00:31:59,280 --> 00:32:02,680
Speaker 2: I'm like, what if Lebron realized, Hey guys, this is

687
00:32:02,720 --> 00:32:04,640
Speaker 2: the last time I could get one of these paydays,

688
00:32:04,800 --> 00:32:07,200
Speaker 2: could be for for Hennessy, like you know, when I'm

689
00:32:07,240 --> 00:32:10,000
Speaker 2: retired for three four years from now, I'm not doing this.

690
00:32:10,040 --> 00:32:12,440
Speaker 2: If I'm the owner of like the Las Vegas NBA team,

691
00:32:12,520 --> 00:32:14,280
Speaker 2: I'm not doing this crap. Let me just take it,

692
00:32:14,560 --> 00:32:16,280
Speaker 2: you know, pay for this that and the I mean,

693
00:32:16,320 --> 00:32:18,440
Speaker 2: I don't know, I sound very defensive of Lebron.

694
00:32:18,720 --> 00:32:21,000
Speaker 3: No, it's it's it's I find it an interesting conversation,

695
00:32:21,040 --> 00:32:21,400
Speaker 3: I really do.

696
00:32:21,760 --> 00:32:24,480
Speaker 2: How did anything get left on the cutting room floor

697
00:32:24,520 --> 00:32:27,400
Speaker 2: that you really wanted in any anecdotes that the book

698
00:32:27,480 --> 00:32:28,800
Speaker 2: was like, we're going to have to pull that.

699
00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:32,320
Speaker 3: No, so I'll give you an answer. So anything that

700
00:32:32,360 --> 00:32:35,240
Speaker 3: I've like, I'm pretty big on. If I haven't verified,

701
00:32:35,280 --> 00:32:36,880
Speaker 3: and it's there, like and I think it's good, it's

702
00:32:36,880 --> 00:32:40,400
Speaker 3: going in right, and if like otherwise not the thing

703
00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:44,040
Speaker 3: I try to hone in on and I couldn't quite

704
00:32:44,080 --> 00:32:46,440
Speaker 3: get there. I wrote a lot about Rich Paul. I

705
00:32:46,520 --> 00:32:48,720
Speaker 3: find them interesting, really interesting, and clutch sports is a

706
00:32:48,720 --> 00:32:49,200
Speaker 3: big part of this.

707
00:32:49,280 --> 00:32:51,040
Speaker 2: Now he is he the one dating Adele?

708
00:32:51,560 --> 00:32:53,600
Speaker 3: That is correct? Yeah, okay, it's a hell of a rise.

709
00:32:53,680 --> 00:32:57,080
Speaker 3: So Rich Paul started his UH and his first job

710
00:32:57,080 --> 00:32:59,320
Speaker 3: in the industry was at CIA for Leon Rose now

711
00:32:59,320 --> 00:33:01,480
Speaker 3: the president of Nicks and world famous world Wide West

712
00:33:01,760 --> 00:33:04,320
Speaker 3: now the Knix. I don't know whatever executive I whatever's

713
00:33:04,360 --> 00:33:06,720
Speaker 3: title is, but he's the famous world NBA power broker.

714
00:33:07,280 --> 00:33:09,200
Speaker 3: And they had some falling out at some point, the

715
00:33:10,000 --> 00:33:12,000
Speaker 3: CIA people and Rich Paul. And this is documenting, like

716
00:33:12,040 --> 00:33:14,680
Speaker 3: there's stories about this and well told and the New

717
00:33:14,760 --> 00:33:16,480
Speaker 3: York Post has writen about this because it's impacted mixed

718
00:33:16,480 --> 00:33:18,760
Speaker 3: free agency stuff and it's a lot of he said,

719
00:33:18,800 --> 00:33:22,320
Speaker 3: he said, And I tried to nail down and really

720
00:33:22,400 --> 00:33:26,320
Speaker 3: get like, okay, what actually happened here? And and the end,

721
00:33:26,400 --> 00:33:28,480
Speaker 3: I just couldn't get it there where I basically just

722
00:33:28,520 --> 00:33:31,640
Speaker 3: took like two thousand words exit out and basically YadA YadA.

723
00:33:31,640 --> 00:33:34,200
Speaker 3: It over five years, right, I just like didn't feel

724
00:33:34,200 --> 00:33:36,360
Speaker 3: comfortable about it. So that's I know, it's like, that's

725
00:33:36,360 --> 00:33:37,960
Speaker 3: the best answer I can give us something where like

726
00:33:38,000 --> 00:33:39,560
Speaker 3: I felt like I was almost there and something that

727
00:33:39,600 --> 00:33:42,120
Speaker 3: would have been really interesting and a really revealing look

728
00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:45,920
Speaker 3: into the universe that sort of surrounds the NBA, right

729
00:33:45,960 --> 00:33:49,000
Speaker 3: this ecosystem, and just like one person would tell me

730
00:33:49,080 --> 00:33:51,479
Speaker 3: something that call the other person that doesn't check out

731
00:33:51,520 --> 00:33:53,640
Speaker 3: even though it's about them, and it just became a disaster.

732
00:33:53,720 --> 00:33:54,720
Speaker 3: I just had to care rid of it.

733
00:33:55,360 --> 00:33:58,280
Speaker 1: Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in

734
00:33:58,320 --> 00:34:01,640
Speaker 1: the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio

735
00:34:01,800 --> 00:34:05,880
Speaker 1: dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to

736
00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:06,680
Speaker 1: listen live.

737
00:34:07,400 --> 00:34:11,520
Speaker 2: So I'm looking at the Lakers history with Lebron Yeah, okay,

738
00:34:12,719 --> 00:34:15,040
Speaker 2: we'll skip over the Lonzo stuff because they were refixing

739
00:34:15,040 --> 00:34:16,759
Speaker 2: the rosters. So then they go to the Bubble, win

740
00:34:16,800 --> 00:34:20,040
Speaker 2: the title or they beat the heat. Okay, the next year,

741
00:34:20,520 --> 00:34:23,040
Speaker 2: if memory serves, they were like a top three seed.

742
00:34:23,719 --> 00:34:26,080
Speaker 3: Yeah, so I can't yeah, go ahead.

743
00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:29,840
Speaker 2: On one, and then Anthony Davis gets hurt.

744
00:34:30,120 --> 00:34:32,319
Speaker 3: Right, yep, and Lebron I believe that Series two.

745
00:34:33,040 --> 00:34:34,799
Speaker 2: And they lose. They were up to one and I

746
00:34:34,840 --> 00:34:36,839
Speaker 2: think they were leading in game in Game four. I'm

747
00:34:36,840 --> 00:34:38,879
Speaker 2: not one hundred percent on that final thing. So then

748
00:34:39,320 --> 00:34:41,480
Speaker 2: Ad hurt, Lebron hurt. So the next year they don't

749
00:34:41,480 --> 00:34:43,279
Speaker 2: make the playoffs. That was the year Lebron was hurt.

750
00:34:43,320 --> 00:34:44,960
Speaker 3: Right, That was all they trade for us. So this

751
00:34:45,040 --> 00:34:48,120
Speaker 3: is almi solid. This is they trade for Russell Westbrook

752
00:34:48,160 --> 00:34:50,520
Speaker 3: after that year. And to me, this is this is

753
00:34:50,560 --> 00:34:53,040
Speaker 3: a huge mistake. This is a huge moment, and I

754
00:34:53,040 --> 00:34:55,279
Speaker 3: don't think it's enough. Uh, people don't look at in

755
00:34:55,320 --> 00:34:57,440
Speaker 3: the proper way, right, so everyone focuses on the bubble

756
00:34:58,280 --> 00:35:01,400
Speaker 3: and that, And I think the real the season that

757
00:35:01,520 --> 00:35:04,799
Speaker 3: was truly impacted by COVID was the year after the bubble, Right,

758
00:35:04,880 --> 00:35:06,640
Speaker 3: That was the season that was bananas, right, That was

759
00:35:06,800 --> 00:35:09,120
Speaker 3: guys are in and out. Some of arenas have fans

760
00:35:09,120 --> 00:35:11,319
Speaker 3: somes don't you know if you're exposed about two weeks,

761
00:35:11,320 --> 00:35:12,680
Speaker 3: So just the whole thing was crazy. That was the

762
00:35:12,760 --> 00:35:15,080
Speaker 3: year Giannis One probably had COVID, right, we all think,

763
00:35:15,080 --> 00:35:18,880
Speaker 3: but he won any they won the title, and the

764
00:35:19,000 --> 00:35:22,440
Speaker 3: Lakers had seventy one days between the end of that's

765
00:35:22,520 --> 00:35:25,680
Speaker 3: title before the start of the next season. And they

766
00:35:25,719 --> 00:35:27,680
Speaker 3: come out great. They come out great. They start that

767
00:35:27,680 --> 00:35:29,280
Speaker 3: that's year they have Marcus soul and then it shoot,

768
00:35:29,280 --> 00:35:31,239
Speaker 3: they start things go where they start out really strong

769
00:35:31,239 --> 00:35:33,160
Speaker 3: and they just fall apart. I should say fall apart.

770
00:35:33,280 --> 00:35:37,160
Speaker 3: It doesn't. They don't finish strongly. Guys get hurt and

771
00:35:37,360 --> 00:35:40,840
Speaker 3: for and I they react very strongly. The Lakers and

772
00:35:41,000 --> 00:35:44,240
Speaker 3: Lebron right, both sides wanted to add somebody. They react,

773
00:35:44,320 --> 00:35:47,240
Speaker 3: they have they react to that loss, where in hindsight,

774
00:35:47,280 --> 00:35:49,440
Speaker 3: it should have just been you know what, this was

775
00:35:49,440 --> 00:35:51,840
Speaker 3: some crazy shit like this was. These were the crazy

776
00:35:51,880 --> 00:35:54,320
Speaker 3: eighteen months we got out of bubble. We got hurt, Like,

777
00:35:54,400 --> 00:35:56,279
Speaker 3: let's just reset, let's run it back, Let's not do

778
00:35:56,360 --> 00:35:59,080
Speaker 3: anything rash and see what happens. Let's keep Gruso called

779
00:35:59,120 --> 00:36:01,000
Speaker 3: the Pope. We're gonna keep go Alow. Lebron in ad

780
00:36:01,640 --> 00:36:04,840
Speaker 3: we don't need to make any rash decisions. And Lebron

781
00:36:05,080 --> 00:36:08,600
Speaker 3: and Rob Polinka's front office, both independently and together, decided, no,

782
00:36:08,680 --> 00:36:10,560
Speaker 3: we need to add a star, we need more help,

783
00:36:10,600 --> 00:36:12,960
Speaker 3: and they overreact to that loss. And I think that's

784
00:36:13,239 --> 00:36:15,640
Speaker 3: if we're talking about like Lebron's tenure, I think that's

785
00:36:15,680 --> 00:36:18,680
Speaker 3: the mistake that gets overlooked, like that offseason.

786
00:36:18,520 --> 00:36:21,000
Speaker 2: That Okay, so they missed the playoffs. I looked it up.

787
00:36:21,080 --> 00:36:24,479
Speaker 2: Lebron played fifty six of eighty two.

788
00:36:25,120 --> 00:36:27,320
Speaker 3: Right, it's Westbrook's first year there, right, which was disaster.

789
00:36:27,480 --> 00:36:31,080
Speaker 2: Eighty played forty, so eighty missed half the season. Westbrook

790
00:36:31,080 --> 00:36:33,560
Speaker 2: played seventy eight. They had Carmelo Anthony at.

791
00:36:33,520 --> 00:36:35,520
Speaker 3: The Yeah, they put together it's awful. Rod. This hilarious

792
00:36:35,560 --> 00:36:38,120
Speaker 3: roster of like you know, guys Dwight Howard, Jean Rondo.

793
00:36:38,200 --> 00:36:39,839
Speaker 3: I think this I have in the book. There's like

794
00:36:40,520 --> 00:36:42,480
Speaker 3: Rob Polinka in the first meeting of training, kid walks

795
00:36:42,480 --> 00:36:44,560
Speaker 3: in and goes, there's more collective Hall of Fame talent

796
00:36:44,600 --> 00:36:46,440
Speaker 3: than any room. Emverer and I guess he might have technically,

797
00:36:46,560 --> 00:36:47,879
Speaker 3: like there's a bunch of Hall of famers there. He's

798
00:36:47,880 --> 00:36:49,439
Speaker 3: probably technically a monk.

799
00:36:49,800 --> 00:36:52,319
Speaker 2: But yeah, so they missed the playoffs and then next

800
00:36:52,400 --> 00:36:56,080
Speaker 2: year they get to the conference finals. Now there was

801
00:36:56,120 --> 00:36:58,920
Speaker 2: some luck involved, No, No, they beat the Warriors. They

802
00:36:58,920 --> 00:37:02,080
Speaker 2: had Warriors at Curry. Yeah, so they get to the

803
00:37:02,120 --> 00:37:05,000
Speaker 2: conference finals. They lose to the Nuggets. That was like,

804
00:37:05,440 --> 00:37:07,279
Speaker 2: weren't the first three games kind of close? And then

805
00:37:07,320 --> 00:37:08,200
Speaker 2: Denver just pulled him out?

806
00:37:08,360 --> 00:37:11,319
Speaker 3: Yeah, Denver was better. Like that was a uh you know.

807
00:37:11,560 --> 00:37:13,560
Speaker 3: That was the first time, probably second time. It was

808
00:37:13,560 --> 00:37:15,839
Speaker 3: like the Delva Doova Finals year where Lebron against the

809
00:37:15,840 --> 00:37:18,000
Speaker 3: the Durant Curry Warriors and this group where it was

810
00:37:18,040 --> 00:37:20,880
Speaker 3: like they were almost like the plucky underdogs. It was

811
00:37:20,960 --> 00:37:22,880
Speaker 3: just but yeah, they were overmatched.

812
00:37:22,880 --> 00:37:27,239
Speaker 2: It hurt was twenty three twenty four because I think

813
00:37:27,239 --> 00:37:31,000
Speaker 2: that was a series Jamal Murray hit two game winners, right, yeah, yeah, yeah,

814
00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:34,160
Speaker 2: so they were they were not that far behind the Nuggets.

815
00:37:35,160 --> 00:37:36,719
Speaker 2: I mean they were close. Would you would you not

816
00:37:36,760 --> 00:37:37,520
Speaker 2: agree they were close?

817
00:37:37,719 --> 00:37:40,040
Speaker 3: They were closed? Yeah, I think they were overmatched, but

818
00:37:40,040 --> 00:37:42,359
Speaker 3: they did. Yeah. I mean listen, they were by by

819
00:37:42,440 --> 00:37:44,480
Speaker 3: literally by the score. They were close right now, Like

820
00:37:44,520 --> 00:37:46,680
Speaker 3: I think typic Man at ESPN that always makes the

821
00:37:46,760 --> 00:37:48,759
Speaker 3: joke about like hang the banner for the sweep, like

822
00:37:48,800 --> 00:37:50,440
Speaker 3: close to sweep in history, right, which I think is

823
00:37:50,440 --> 00:37:50,799
Speaker 3: a good joke.

824
00:37:50,880 --> 00:37:52,880
Speaker 2: Yeah, we had them on the podcast, yes, yes, yes.

825
00:37:52,800 --> 00:37:57,880
Speaker 3: Yeah, which I respect. But they were close, but they weren't.

826
00:37:59,400 --> 00:38:02,280
Speaker 3: It wasn't it. I think most people if they had.

827
00:38:03,120 --> 00:38:05,280
Speaker 2: But it was close. It wasn't like the gap was massive.

828
00:38:05,320 --> 00:38:09,080
Speaker 2: This wasn't like the Lakers with Phil Jackson getting swept

829
00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:10,719
Speaker 2: off the floor by the yellow ender back in the core.

830
00:38:10,840 --> 00:38:13,400
Speaker 2: It wasn't like that. And then last year, I think

831
00:38:13,840 --> 00:38:17,360
Speaker 2: Luca Reeves and Lebron played like twenty games together.

832
00:38:17,360 --> 00:38:19,560
Speaker 3: Maybe yeah, then the roster was up ended. It was

833
00:38:19,600 --> 00:38:21,200
Speaker 3: a trade that it was a trade that would make

834
00:38:21,239 --> 00:38:22,719
Speaker 3: them more. Like they knew it, I mean, I don't.

835
00:38:22,760 --> 00:38:24,960
Speaker 3: I assume they like it. Probably you up endo the

836
00:38:25,000 --> 00:38:26,439
Speaker 3: roster in the middle of the year for a move

837
00:38:26,480 --> 00:38:28,600
Speaker 3: you have to do, right, Like it's a no brainer obviously,

838
00:38:28,640 --> 00:38:31,479
Speaker 3: But if i'd be if you're asking them, like, you know,

839
00:38:31,680 --> 00:38:33,120
Speaker 3: if you don't win a title this year, you guys

840
00:38:33,120 --> 00:38:34,799
Speaker 3: are all killed, what are you making the trade or not?

841
00:38:34,920 --> 00:38:37,080
Speaker 3: They might maybe they say no, right, I don't know

842
00:38:37,120 --> 00:38:38,719
Speaker 3: if just for that one year, I'm making this up,

843
00:38:38,760 --> 00:38:41,160
Speaker 3: like in terms of do you have more were they

844
00:38:41,200 --> 00:38:43,040
Speaker 3: more likely to win a title before the trade by

845
00:38:43,080 --> 00:38:45,040
Speaker 3: keeping some continuity, right, I don't know, but for that

846
00:38:45,160 --> 00:38:47,040
Speaker 3: just last year, But obviously it's a great trade, you know.

847
00:38:47,120 --> 00:38:49,919
Speaker 2: So and then that brings us to this year. And

848
00:38:50,520 --> 00:38:52,719
Speaker 2: I mean again this is more guessing than anything, but

849
00:38:52,760 --> 00:38:55,839
Speaker 2: based on three years of reporting being around you know,

850
00:38:55,920 --> 00:38:59,120
Speaker 2: the Lakers and Lebron and people around him and who

851
00:38:59,200 --> 00:39:02,200
Speaker 2: know him, are you of the belief he finishes the

852
00:39:02,200 --> 00:39:03,799
Speaker 2: season with the Lakers or do you think he tries

853
00:39:03,840 --> 00:39:07,680
Speaker 2: to force his way out because he's never been traded technically,

854
00:39:07,680 --> 00:39:09,960
Speaker 2: I mean sign and trade. You know that he wanted,

855
00:39:10,320 --> 00:39:13,840
Speaker 2: but it's tough for me to envision the Lakers moving

856
00:39:13,840 --> 00:39:16,120
Speaker 2: off him. It's also tough for me to envision Lebron

857
00:39:16,160 --> 00:39:18,080
Speaker 2: going to the Lakers and saying, can you please trade me?

858
00:39:18,440 --> 00:39:20,399
Speaker 3: Yeah, I don't think he's good. I don't think he'll

859
00:39:20,400 --> 00:39:24,319
Speaker 3: be traded also just for those reasons and also for

860
00:39:24,360 --> 00:39:27,680
Speaker 3: like the sentimental reasons, and it's the you know, political reasons,

861
00:39:27,680 --> 00:39:29,880
Speaker 3: but also he's got a he's got a huge stalary

862
00:39:29,880 --> 00:39:31,840
Speaker 3: and just salary cap reasons. It's really hard and nobody

863
00:39:32,480 --> 00:39:34,000
Speaker 3: you know, who's the team would be the Calves, right,

864
00:39:34,000 --> 00:39:36,440
Speaker 3: that's the team. And they're not trading, like, they're not

865
00:39:36,440 --> 00:39:38,920
Speaker 3: giving up Jared Allen and you know Garland or Garland

866
00:39:38,920 --> 00:39:40,640
Speaker 3: for Lebron, and you need those contracts to match that.

867
00:39:40,719 --> 00:39:42,520
Speaker 2: I don't even know if I'd want them for Lebron,

868
00:39:42,840 --> 00:39:44,720
Speaker 2: because then you're left in with them for years.

869
00:39:45,040 --> 00:39:46,880
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean, but he there so yeah. I mean, listen,

870
00:39:46,920 --> 00:39:48,920
Speaker 3: if if the Calves came and offered Jared Allen and

871
00:39:48,960 --> 00:39:51,840
Speaker 3: Garland for Lebron, the Rob Polink could be like, I

872
00:39:51,840 --> 00:39:54,239
Speaker 3: got another one of these steals. Oh my god, please wait,

873
00:39:54,280 --> 00:39:56,759
Speaker 3: you you really think so? Yeah? I think so. I

874
00:39:56,760 --> 00:39:57,080
Speaker 3: think so.

875
00:39:58,480 --> 00:39:58,800
Speaker 1: Wow.

876
00:39:59,400 --> 00:40:01,239
Speaker 2: Hold on, let me let me let that marinate. So

877
00:40:01,480 --> 00:40:06,600
Speaker 2: you'd have Luca, Reeves, Garland eight and.

878
00:40:08,160 --> 00:40:10,399
Speaker 3: You'd have to make some something, you have to make

879
00:40:10,400 --> 00:40:11,480
Speaker 3: some separate stuff.

880
00:40:11,239 --> 00:40:14,319
Speaker 2: Alan, Alan, I just think the only problem is that

881
00:40:14,600 --> 00:40:18,160
Speaker 2: locks in pretty much your roster with Luca for like

882
00:40:18,239 --> 00:40:18,919
Speaker 2: the next three years.

883
00:40:19,040 --> 00:40:21,080
Speaker 3: So that's interesting, Okay, that's and that brings us to

884
00:40:21,120 --> 00:40:23,920
Speaker 3: the so asking what happens. I think we're at a

885
00:40:23,960 --> 00:40:27,560
Speaker 3: fascinating point. And I don't think he knows, right, I really,

886
00:40:27,560 --> 00:40:29,000
Speaker 3: I could be wrong. No one's told me this. I

887
00:40:29,080 --> 00:40:30,080
Speaker 3: don't think he knows.

888
00:40:30,239 --> 00:40:30,759
Speaker 2: I would agree.

889
00:40:30,840 --> 00:40:32,960
Speaker 3: Yeah, what he wants, how he wants this to play out.

890
00:40:33,080 --> 00:40:36,840
Speaker 3: And I think he's adjusting too, for the first time

891
00:40:37,080 --> 00:40:39,760
Speaker 3: in his life in twenty five years professional life, certainly

892
00:40:40,719 --> 00:40:44,600
Speaker 3: not being in control right He's a expiring contract literally

893
00:40:44,600 --> 00:40:46,399
Speaker 3: has never happened before in the NBA and for him

894
00:40:46,400 --> 00:40:50,200
Speaker 3: in his NBA career. I listen, I don't know that

895
00:40:50,239 --> 00:40:52,520
Speaker 3: he wanted to get an option picked up on the Lakers.

896
00:40:52,640 --> 00:40:54,480
Speaker 3: I can assume he would, because why would you want

897
00:40:54,480 --> 00:40:58,080
Speaker 3: an expiring contract. Rob Polinka was asked on media Day

898
00:40:58,120 --> 00:41:00,640
Speaker 3: about Lebron's future and said, we love then to finish

899
00:41:00,640 --> 00:41:03,000
Speaker 3: his story here, which is a beautiful answer that also

900
00:41:03,040 --> 00:41:05,719
Speaker 3: doesn't answer the question, right, Like does that mean I

901
00:41:06,440 --> 00:41:09,400
Speaker 3: joke that, like, we love the Lebron to finish his

902
00:41:09,440 --> 00:41:12,160
Speaker 3: story here parentheses and that better be after this year, right,

903
00:41:12,239 --> 00:41:15,799
Speaker 3: Like that's kind of how it seems. So I don't

904
00:41:16,320 --> 00:41:18,120
Speaker 3: And he's also in the past, he's been big on

905
00:41:18,280 --> 00:41:20,240
Speaker 3: since the Miami days, I don't take pay cuts anymore.

906
00:41:21,200 --> 00:41:22,759
Speaker 3: He's got to balance a lot of things here, and

907
00:41:22,800 --> 00:41:24,440
Speaker 3: I think he's trying to figure that out. And there's

908
00:41:24,440 --> 00:41:26,200
Speaker 3: also le BRONI aspect you all forget, like this is

909
00:41:26,200 --> 00:41:29,840
Speaker 3: Bronni's last guaranteed year with the Lakers, So I yeah.

910
00:41:29,480 --> 00:41:31,359
Speaker 2: Oh, so the Lakers could move off both of them?

911
00:41:31,800 --> 00:41:34,680
Speaker 2: Yeah right, wow, let me ask you this, So let's

912
00:41:34,719 --> 00:41:38,640
Speaker 2: just spin it out. Let's just hypothetical Lakers win the championship,

913
00:41:38,680 --> 00:41:42,640
Speaker 2: blah blah blah. Lebron's now a free agent. You win

914
00:41:42,680 --> 00:41:44,640
Speaker 2: the title with Lebron, do you say, hey, thank you

915
00:41:44,640 --> 00:41:46,840
Speaker 2: for your service, Pal, you were amazing. We'll catch you

916
00:41:46,880 --> 00:41:51,760
Speaker 2: on the flip side, or do you think like they say, hey, Lebron,

917
00:41:51,800 --> 00:41:53,480
Speaker 2: I'm not asking you to play for the minimum? Can

918
00:41:53,560 --> 00:41:57,200
Speaker 2: you play for twenty five? When he said a hell no.

919
00:41:57,320 --> 00:41:59,759
Speaker 2: And then but then the question is who's gonna pay

920
00:41:59,840 --> 00:42:02,120
Speaker 2: him fifty mil for a guy who's going to be

921
00:42:02,120 --> 00:42:04,200
Speaker 2: forty two in December twenty six.

922
00:42:04,560 --> 00:42:06,680
Speaker 3: So this is the thing, right, the money part, it's

923
00:42:06,760 --> 00:42:08,600
Speaker 3: part of this is for him to decide what he's

924
00:42:08,600 --> 00:42:10,600
Speaker 3: willing to do contract wise, like if he was going

925
00:42:10,640 --> 00:42:13,720
Speaker 3: to take a you know, not minimum, mid level whatever,

926
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:15,839
Speaker 3: mid level okay for sure, not me in a mid

927
00:42:15,920 --> 00:42:17,600
Speaker 3: level and the Calves like they would take him a

928
00:42:17,640 --> 00:42:19,279
Speaker 3: second it would be a great fit, right, and it

929
00:42:19,280 --> 00:42:21,160
Speaker 3: would be it would be he'd fit in. And the

930
00:42:21,160 --> 00:42:23,919
Speaker 3: part about Lebron that I thought want to make clear

931
00:42:23,920 --> 00:42:25,799
Speaker 3: because sometimes we talk about him an ending like he's

932
00:42:25,800 --> 00:42:27,799
Speaker 3: still awesome and even last year he was second team

933
00:42:27,800 --> 00:42:30,000
Speaker 3: All NBA. So yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, he's not like

934
00:42:30,000 --> 00:42:32,520
Speaker 3: a top five guy anymore, which got whatever. He is

935
00:42:32,560 --> 00:42:35,960
Speaker 3: still an awesome, awesome player right at the minimum in

936
00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:37,680
Speaker 3: All Star Like, what's gonna be a bad year if

937
00:42:37,680 --> 00:42:39,239
Speaker 3: he has a bad year for him twenty five and

938
00:42:39,280 --> 00:42:41,960
Speaker 3: five with a fish and shooting and great passing twenty

939
00:42:42,000 --> 00:42:47,040
Speaker 3: five games like, that's like, that's fantastic. So there's that part.

940
00:42:47,320 --> 00:42:50,200
Speaker 3: The part about the Lakers, which is sort of it's

941
00:42:50,200 --> 00:42:52,160
Speaker 3: a question hanging over all this is they're also in

942
00:42:52,200 --> 00:42:54,319
Speaker 3: the middle of an ownership change, and yeah, it's going

943
00:42:54,360 --> 00:42:56,680
Speaker 3: to impact and I don't I don't Honestly, I don't

944
00:42:56,680 --> 00:42:58,040
Speaker 3: know much about the new owners. I know them as

945
00:42:58,040 --> 00:42:59,840
Speaker 3: like the Dodgers owners. I don't know how they operate.

946
00:43:00,120 --> 00:43:03,719
Speaker 3: I don't know. Yeah, that'd be a decision that would

947
00:43:03,719 --> 00:43:04,880
Speaker 3: be up to them at some point, right, if the

948
00:43:04,880 --> 00:43:07,440
Speaker 3: ownership change happens, Like what do we do we want? Oh,

949
00:43:07,480 --> 00:43:09,120
Speaker 3: do we want the first major move we're doing to

950
00:43:09,120 --> 00:43:11,160
Speaker 3: say bye bye the Lebron Maybe they don't care. I

951
00:43:11,600 --> 00:43:17,959
Speaker 3: don't know, right, And that's an interesting aspect to all this. Yeah,

952
00:43:18,120 --> 00:43:21,000
Speaker 3: I'm again it's an answer. I don't know because but

953
00:43:21,200 --> 00:43:23,120
Speaker 3: I said I don't know because I know so many

954
00:43:23,120 --> 00:43:24,800
Speaker 3: of the figures here and I have so much insight

955
00:43:24,840 --> 00:43:27,160
Speaker 3: into them, and I'm just fascinated to see we have

956
00:43:27,239 --> 00:43:30,359
Speaker 3: like all these all these things meeting it ahead that

957
00:43:30,360 --> 00:43:32,640
Speaker 3: don't always drive together. And something's gonna have to break,

958
00:43:32,640 --> 00:43:33,719
Speaker 3: and I don't know what it's gonna be.

959
00:43:34,080 --> 00:43:37,279
Speaker 2: All Right, He is Iron Whitzman, the Hollywood ending the

960
00:43:37,440 --> 00:43:42,080
Speaker 2: dreams and drama of Lebron's Lakers. Hey man, congrats on

961
00:43:42,120 --> 00:43:44,359
Speaker 2: the book three years. That's amazing. It just came out

962
00:43:44,360 --> 00:43:49,560
Speaker 2: this week, get out Amazon, Kindle. I'm an audiobook guy. Yeah,

963
00:43:49,600 --> 00:43:51,640
Speaker 2: I mean it's better driving out here in La. I'm

964
00:43:51,640 --> 00:43:54,360
Speaker 2: just coming home from work, driving to work, you know,

965
00:43:54,400 --> 00:43:57,799
Speaker 2: forty five minutes and I listen to books. So it's awesome. Man.

966
00:43:57,840 --> 00:44:00,400
Speaker 2: I'm happy for your success and uh, congratulations.

967
00:44:00,520 --> 00:44:02,000
Speaker 3: I appreciate it a lot. Thank you so much