WEBVTT - LeBron & Lakers BEEFING? Will Luka stay? Caitlin Clark-Paige Bueckers RIVALRY BREWING? | Nick Wright 0:00:01.840 --> 0:00:04.440 Welcome in What's Driving Nick Wright Episode three forty eight. 0:00:04.480 --> 0:00:08.080 This episode, as always brought to you by our friends 0:00:08.480 --> 0:00:11.959 at boost Mobile. This episode, What's Right Nick Wright just 0:00:11.960 --> 0:00:13.880 told you brought to you by boost Mobile and straight 0:00:13.960 --> 0:00:15.640 to the voicemail, which we'll get to in a moment, is 0:00:15.680 --> 0:00:18.320 also brought to you by boost Mobile. A few programming notes. 0:00:18.360 --> 0:00:22.440 We're on today on Monday because I am doing first 0:00:22.480 --> 0:00:25.520 things first and then I'm flying to Las Vegas to 0:00:25.600 --> 0:00:29.640 broadcast the World Series of Poker Final Table. We will 0:00:29.680 --> 0:00:31.960 talk about that on the back end of the pod. 0:00:32.840 --> 0:00:36.800 I was up until three thirty in the morning last 0:00:36.880 --> 0:00:41.159 night watching the live stream of the Final Table. I 0:00:41.240 --> 0:00:44.320 then finally had to wave the white flag, got up 0:00:44.320 --> 0:00:47.960 at seven thirty this morning, and there was still two 0:00:48.000 --> 0:00:51.440 and a half hours that I hadn't seen yet of 0:00:51.520 --> 0:00:54.200 the to get down to the final nine. So if 0:00:54.200 --> 0:00:56.800 you're a poker fan or a poker buff, we will 0:00:56.840 --> 0:00:59.880 recap some of that on the back end of today's pod. 0:01:00.120 --> 0:01:04.319 Also demands not on today's pod, not because he was 0:01:04.480 --> 0:01:08.320 out partying for his birthday, but because as a wash 0:01:08.440 --> 0:01:11.039 twenty seven year old, he decided he just needed to 0:01:11.080 --> 0:01:14.759 do his day job today and he has Tuesday mornings off, 0:01:14.800 --> 0:01:17.840 doesn't have Monday mornings off, so he's at work at 0:01:17.880 --> 0:01:20.160 Fox right now. So I will carry us through the 0:01:20.200 --> 0:01:23.520 next forty five minutes or so. Speaking of straight to voicemail. 0:01:23.560 --> 0:01:26.479 Brought to you by Boost Mobile. Cooper Flag after an 0:01:26.520 --> 0:01:28.880 awesome second game of Summer League, struggled a bit in 0:01:28.880 --> 0:01:31.680 his first game, shut down for the rest of Summer League. 0:01:31.800 --> 0:01:34.319 Chelsea wins the FIFA Club World Cup, and then one 0:01:34.360 --> 0:01:38.120 of the most awkward lingering trophy presentations with them in 0:01:38.160 --> 0:01:41.959 the present and something that I was unaware of, but 0:01:42.319 --> 0:01:45.800 the producers just sent me the link to Drake covered 0:01:45.880 --> 0:01:50.840 up his Lebron tattoo with an SGA tattoo. Listen, I 0:01:51.320 --> 0:01:54.680 am not going to get into the Drake Lebron relationship. 0:01:54.960 --> 0:01:58.120 What I am going to get into is this. If 0:01:58.440 --> 0:02:02.240 I were in Drake's inner circle, which I'm not, and 0:02:02.280 --> 0:02:03.960 he's like, you know what, I gotta cover up this 0:02:04.080 --> 0:02:10.040 Bronz tattoo, I might say, Hey, maybe not another NBA player, 0:02:10.639 --> 0:02:15.040 maybe not. Maybe let's maybe let's learn our lesson that 0:02:15.040 --> 0:02:20.640 that getting tattoos of people you loosely have relationships with 0:02:20.800 --> 0:02:24.000 because they are fellow celebrities and in this case also 0:02:24.160 --> 0:02:29.959 Canadian that might one day lead to a triple cover up, 0:02:30.400 --> 0:02:35.480 because who's to say that in six years, Drake and 0:02:35.840 --> 0:02:39.400 Lil YACHTI aren't gonna get into a beef and SGA 0:02:39.520 --> 0:02:42.520 is gonna pick Little Yachti's side. I'm just saying, all right, reminder, 0:02:42.720 --> 0:02:45.680 like rate subscribe, review, free advice if you wanted it, Drake, 0:02:45.880 --> 0:02:49.960 Uh like rate subscribe review, to the YouTube channel, to 0:02:50.040 --> 0:02:53.840 the podcast feed on Spotify and iTunes, watch this or 0:02:54.040 --> 0:02:56.800 like this on YouTube. All that stuff. We appreciate it. Okay, 0:02:57.720 --> 0:03:05.359 So the summer of Lebron continues a bit and there 0:03:05.480 --> 0:03:13.639 was a very seemingly interesting article written by Ramona Shelburne 0:03:14.360 --> 0:03:19.920 and Brian Windhorst that kind of set off a lot 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:26.800 of conversation over the weekend and it dropped I think 0:03:27.960 --> 0:03:32.040 Friday Friday morning, yet we weren't on TV, and then 0:03:32.200 --> 0:03:35.800 there was a Dave mcminnimon report, and then there was 0:03:35.840 --> 0:03:41.000 an article edit that I find the whole thing fascinating. 0:03:41.360 --> 0:03:46.080 So I'm not going to go through every single stanza 0:03:46.080 --> 0:03:48.040 of this article, but I am going to go through 0:03:48.080 --> 0:03:51.640 it considerably because I actually in credit to Chris Broussard, 0:03:52.160 --> 0:03:55.160 who on our first Thing's first morning meeting. Just a 0:03:55.200 --> 0:03:58.240 moment ago when we were talking about doing this topic, 0:03:58.280 --> 0:03:59.760 he was like, how much of the audience do you 0:03:59.800 --> 0:04:02.080 think actually read the article? I was like, Oh, that's 0:04:02.080 --> 0:04:05.480 a good point. Brew. So the beginning of this article 0:04:06.280 --> 0:04:11.320 is incredibly detailed about a May third meeting at Craig's 0:04:11.760 --> 0:04:16.800 Restaurant on Melrose in West Hollywood, a place I have 0:04:16.920 --> 0:04:20.640 been to I think once in my life with my 0:04:20.680 --> 0:04:25.239 buddy Colin Cowherd, and where they where Ramona and Wendy, 0:04:25.480 --> 0:04:28.760 and this feels like Ramona's side of it. They're just 0:04:28.839 --> 0:04:31.240 because of the LA based reporting, but I don't know 0:04:32.800 --> 0:04:40.200 detail a meeting between Luca Plenka Reddick and Luca's manager 0:04:40.360 --> 0:04:44.960 Laura Lara Beth Seeger where we find out what doors 0:04:45.000 --> 0:04:49.400 they went in, what wine they drank, all of this, 0:04:49.720 --> 0:04:53.760 and it's incredibly detailed and it talks about that meeting, 0:04:55.040 --> 0:04:59.520 but that is not what people are people's takeaway or 0:04:59.560 --> 0:05:03.520 the throat of the article is because the article's headline 0:05:03.560 --> 0:05:07.360 even Lebron James Luka Ancic inside the most delicate superstar 0:05:07.480 --> 0:05:13.360 transition in NBA history. So the reason for that scene 0:05:13.480 --> 0:05:19.719 setting it would appear is that Luca was at this 0:05:19.839 --> 0:05:26.080 meeting and Lebron was not, which I don't find odd 0:05:26.120 --> 0:05:30.400 at all personally, because the Lakers' first order of business 0:05:30.440 --> 0:05:34.920 this summer, and they treated it as such, was to 0:05:35.080 --> 0:05:41.120 cement and secure their relationship with Luca because they desperately 0:05:41.279 --> 0:05:45.360 need him to sign a contract extension this summer. Now, 0:05:45.360 --> 0:05:47.960 whether that's a four year deal or a three year deal, 0:05:48.480 --> 0:05:51.200 he can do four for two two twenty three or 0:05:51.279 --> 0:05:54.640 three for one sixty. The reason for doing the three 0:05:54.680 --> 0:05:57.120 for one sixties, the article lays out, is it might 0:05:57.160 --> 0:06:01.480 set up better more money long term and future. But regardless, 0:06:02.520 --> 0:06:07.160 they need to make sure lucas locked in, and they 0:06:07.200 --> 0:06:09.800 need to do everything possible to get Luca locked in. 0:06:10.160 --> 0:06:13.640 And if I were running the Lakers, I certainly wouldn't 0:06:13.880 --> 0:06:17.440 be like, well, anytime we're meeting with Luca, Lebron has 0:06:17.520 --> 0:06:22.960 to be there because these are the Lakers. Attempt to 0:06:23.080 --> 0:06:28.240 compete this season is in one bucket. The Lakers playing 0:06:28.320 --> 0:06:32.080 over the next three, five, ten years is in another bucket, 0:06:32.520 --> 0:06:37.920 And both of those buckets necessitate a locked in, dialed in, 0:06:38.520 --> 0:06:42.920 committed Luka Doncic. So that is priority number one, and 0:06:42.960 --> 0:06:48.120 I think Lebron understands that the single most important thing 0:06:48.160 --> 0:06:51.600 for the Lakers this summer is to get Luca resigned. 0:06:51.920 --> 0:06:57.400 So I wouldn't have viewed that as scandalous. Oh, the 0:06:57.520 --> 0:07:01.240 Lakers had a meeting with Luca without Lebron there, but 0:07:01.320 --> 0:07:04.720 it was treated like it was in this article, like 0:07:04.839 --> 0:07:10.240 it was a fork in the road where the Lakers 0:07:10.280 --> 0:07:13.119 are going down the Luca path rather than the Lebron path. 0:07:13.200 --> 0:07:21.320 And again that is it is incredibly logical, and I 0:07:21.480 --> 0:07:26.800 anybody that thinks Lebron is put off or yeah, is 0:07:26.920 --> 0:07:32.760 bothered by the fact that the Lakers priority number one 0:07:33.560 --> 0:07:39.520 is making sure Luca is a Laker long term. Doesn't 0:07:39.560 --> 0:07:43.360 know Lebron James and doesn't understand the way he views 0:07:43.480 --> 0:07:52.600 Luca and what he understands about the NBA. Now it 0:07:52.600 --> 0:07:56.040 it is absolutely fair to say. And then I'll get 0:07:56.040 --> 0:08:01.400 back to the article that Lebron feels like, all right, 0:08:01.640 --> 0:08:05.400 while trying to get Luca locked up long term, we 0:08:05.440 --> 0:08:08.520 should try to win right now because we were the 0:08:08.560 --> 0:08:13.080 three seed last year. Because I'm still playing at a 0:08:13.560 --> 0:08:17.800 undeniable top ten level, Luca is going to go into 0:08:17.840 --> 0:08:20.280 next year as one of the three biggest favorites to 0:08:20.320 --> 0:08:23.960 win league MVP. That's a team that, if you make 0:08:24.000 --> 0:08:27.360 the right moves, can compete for a championship. But those 0:08:27.400 --> 0:08:30.200 two things not only are they not mutually exclusive, they 0:08:30.200 --> 0:08:34.480 are not in conflict at all. There is nothing better 0:08:34.559 --> 0:08:38.680 for Luca's long term future with the Lakers than him 0:08:38.760 --> 0:08:44.319 stacking awesome seasons with the Lakers starting immediately. So then 0:08:44.360 --> 0:08:48.440 the article goes on to discuss, you know, it talks 0:08:48.440 --> 0:08:51.760 about that Lebron released the statement, and again I think 0:08:51.800 --> 0:08:55.280 the statement is worth, even though it's now a few 0:08:55.280 --> 0:08:59.400 weeks old, worth reminding people exactly what it's said. We 0:08:59.520 --> 0:09:03.160 understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the 0:09:03.160 --> 0:09:06.640 future is from Rich Paul. We do want to evaluate 0:09:06.679 --> 0:09:09.480 what's best for Lebron at this stage in his life 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:13.800 and career. He wants to make every decision he has 0:09:13.880 --> 0:09:18.480 left count and the Lakers understand that, are supportive and 0:09:18.600 --> 0:09:22.800 want what's best for him. I looked at that statement 0:09:22.920 --> 0:09:29.640 as very clearly saying listen, it would seem what's best 0:09:29.679 --> 0:09:34.199 for all parties is continuing this partnership and trying to 0:09:34.240 --> 0:09:37.240 win a title right now. But if you guys, for 0:09:37.400 --> 0:09:44.560 some reason or another, think that you either can't win 0:09:44.600 --> 0:09:49.680 a title right now, or making moves to try to 0:09:49.760 --> 0:09:55.160 win a title right now while you still have Lebron 0:09:55.320 --> 0:10:00.120 James at an all NBA level, is actually going to 0:10:00.440 --> 0:10:05.439 hurt your chances of winning multiple titles down the road 0:10:05.559 --> 0:10:09.680 with Luca. Well, if that's if that's how you feel, 0:10:09.679 --> 0:10:12.640 and that's the road you're gonna take, then we should 0:10:12.679 --> 0:10:15.480 discuss whether or not you want me to be I 0:10:15.559 --> 0:10:16.800 want to be a part of this and you want 0:10:16.800 --> 0:10:18.360 to be a part of this. That to me was 0:10:18.520 --> 0:10:25.680 very very straightforward and again not scandalous, and I think 0:10:25.720 --> 0:10:30.520 the way most people, if they were advising Lebron James 0:10:30.520 --> 0:10:35.439 would would see it as well. And then the article 0:10:36.440 --> 0:10:43.920 gets a little confusing because it it then just quotes 0:10:45.520 --> 0:10:52.959 anonymous Western Conference executives on their opinions. One Western Conference 0:10:53.000 --> 0:10:56.040 executive chalked it up to an elaborate pout because the 0:10:56.120 --> 0:10:58.920 Lakers hadn't offered James a new contract extension. More on 0:10:58.960 --> 0:11:01.920 that in a moment. Another Western Conference executive felt it 0:11:01.920 --> 0:11:04.120 was an attempt to press the Lakers front office to 0:11:04.200 --> 0:11:06.840 go all in on building the team this season and 0:11:06.960 --> 0:11:10.439 away from its strategy to keep the cap sheet as 0:11:10.480 --> 0:11:13.240 clean as possible for the summers of twenty six and 0:11:13.360 --> 0:11:17.160 twenty seven after James's salary comes off the books. So 0:11:19.160 --> 0:11:24.120 I care less about the Western Armage executive's feelings and 0:11:24.320 --> 0:11:32.040 more about if that is the Lakers strategy, that we 0:11:32.200 --> 0:11:36.480 are certainly out of the Lebron business after this year, 0:11:38.240 --> 0:11:45.120 and we think we are going to be better positioned 0:11:45.160 --> 0:11:49.120 to win titles by getting out of the Lebron business 0:11:49.520 --> 0:11:54.400 and using his fifty two million dollars on free agents X, Y, 0:11:54.480 --> 0:12:00.320 and Z. That's an interesting opinion. I'm very cure us 0:12:01.240 --> 0:12:05.680 what free agents they think they are going to get. 0:12:05.760 --> 0:12:10.800 And this is an important point here because I don't 0:12:10.840 --> 0:12:14.800 know if you guys have noticed, but free agency isn't 0:12:14.800 --> 0:12:17.560 what it once was in the NBA. And I'm not 0:12:17.679 --> 0:12:22.960 talking about second Apron stuff. I'm talking about the fact 0:12:23.040 --> 0:12:28.920 that guys over the last decade have transitioned from letting 0:12:29.040 --> 0:12:36.439 contracts expire and hitting free agency to signing extensions as 0:12:36.600 --> 0:12:42.400 early as possible, and then if they want to leave, 0:12:42.960 --> 0:12:54.560 simply demanding a trade, and the Lakers plan of well, 0:12:54.760 --> 0:12:59.040 we're just going to sign. I'm curious again who it 0:12:59.200 --> 0:13:02.160 is they think they're going to sign. Now they're the Lakers. 0:13:03.120 --> 0:13:07.079 Lebron chose to save them after six years in the Desert. 0:13:08.720 --> 0:13:14.920 Lebron then greatly helped them get Anthony Davis, and then 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:18.920 Nico Harrison gifted them Luke ad ancicch that they were 0:13:18.920 --> 0:13:22.320 only able to get because they had Anthony Davis. But 0:13:23.280 --> 0:13:28.160 they don't have this cupboard of when they traded for 0:13:28.200 --> 0:13:36.079 a d they had multiple former number two overall picks 0:13:37.000 --> 0:13:39.280 and the number four pick of that draft they were 0:13:39.280 --> 0:13:43.240 able to include in that trade. That's not there. And 0:13:43.360 --> 0:13:47.559 I just don't see this. Oh my goodness, Jannis is 0:13:47.600 --> 0:13:49.480 a free agent in a year and if you have 0:13:49.480 --> 0:13:52.679 your cap sheet open, he'll pick La So's It's curious 0:13:52.679 --> 0:13:54.640 to me, But a lot of the moves the Lakers 0:13:56.120 --> 0:14:03.280 have made her curious to me. And then there's this. 0:14:04.400 --> 0:14:07.640 The Lakers had made their statement in not offering James 0:14:07.679 --> 0:14:11.560 a contract beyond this season. It was abundantly clear that 0:14:11.600 --> 0:14:13.800 the twenty one time All Stars time has face. The 0:14:13.880 --> 0:14:16.320 Lakers had for the first time a planned end date, 0:14:17.360 --> 0:14:20.800 even if James's record setting NBA career did not. And 0:14:20.840 --> 0:14:29.240 this is where the reporting gets interesting to me, because this, 0:14:29.440 --> 0:14:35.040 to me feels Ramona is incredibly plugged in with the Lakers, 0:14:35.600 --> 0:14:38.520 and for reasons I don't totally understand, and we've talked 0:14:38.520 --> 0:14:43.320 about me not understanding it. Wendy and Lebron have had 0:14:43.360 --> 0:14:46.400 something of a falling out, it would appear, and so 0:14:47.200 --> 0:14:51.000 I think it's safe to say the info on this 0:14:52.920 --> 0:14:59.480 is Lakers info. And then Dave mcminnimon, who is pretty 0:14:59.480 --> 0:15:03.680 plugged in with Lebron and said he's you know, it 0:15:03.840 --> 0:15:07.000 was not quoting anonymous people close to him, was quoting 0:15:07.280 --> 0:15:11.720 Rich Paul directly. Dave mcminnimon then reports during Summer League 0:15:11.760 --> 0:15:17.400 two days later, oh, by the way, look, we didn't 0:15:17.720 --> 0:15:22.640 ask for nor want a contract extension. And then there 0:15:22.760 --> 0:15:30.200 is the other reporting, which is to me interesting because 0:15:31.600 --> 0:15:36.320 the article initially said that when the Bus family agreed 0:15:36.320 --> 0:15:38.560 to sell a majority stake in the franchise Mark Walter 0:15:38.640 --> 0:15:42.320 on June eighteenth, Doncic was given a heads up and 0:15:42.360 --> 0:15:47.480 notably posted congratulations on social media. Lebron James was given 0:15:47.520 --> 0:15:51.440 no heads up. The article was then edited and it 0:15:51.560 --> 0:15:54.880 writes now, after the publication of this article, sources said 0:15:54.920 --> 0:15:59.040 James was notified of the sale via his representation, but 0:15:59.160 --> 0:16:05.920 he did not post any public acknowledgement. And then it 0:16:05.960 --> 0:16:07.800 has the part then, of course, the coup de gras 0:16:07.880 --> 0:16:11.080 the Lakers, by not offering James extension, indicated they were 0:16:11.080 --> 0:16:14.280 comfortable having him on the roster's inspiring contract, a rare 0:16:14.360 --> 0:16:19.160 position for a superstar player of his caliber. So I 0:16:19.200 --> 0:16:30.000 don't there is there are pretty clearly at this point 0:16:30.320 --> 0:16:37.120 it is a less than a happy marriage, and it's 0:16:37.200 --> 0:16:43.480 for reasons. And this is the part that I've spent 0:16:43.520 --> 0:16:46.320 a good deal of time thinking about. But I just 0:16:46.520 --> 0:16:55.360 can't totally understand why. And you might say, ah, Lebron 0:16:55.520 --> 0:17:02.800 is Lebron's doing this? But here is to me a 0:17:03.680 --> 0:17:09.160 like a fair and Lebron is obviously doing a lot 0:17:09.200 --> 0:17:12.800 of this, But is there reason for it? As and 0:17:13.080 --> 0:17:16.399 is are there reasons for the Lakers doing what they're doing? 0:17:16.680 --> 0:17:22.000 So let's just go through the blow by blow of it. 0:17:22.040 --> 0:17:27.520 Is there a reason to believe that Lebron is not 0:17:27.720 --> 0:17:32.480 okay taking on a secondary role within the organization, not 0:17:32.640 --> 0:17:38.200 that I've seen. What I saw was for four years, 0:17:39.320 --> 0:17:44.159 Lebron all but begging Anthony Davis to take the car Keys, 0:17:44.600 --> 0:17:48.400 an ad god love and future Hall of Famer great player, 0:17:50.480 --> 0:17:53.560 couldn't quite do it and wasn't willing to do it. 0:17:54.840 --> 0:18:02.480 They then trade for Luca Lebron correctly does not ask 0:18:02.600 --> 0:18:07.560 Luca to change his game at all. Lebron changes his 0:18:07.640 --> 0:18:14.200 game massively and all of a sudden turns into maybe 0:18:14.240 --> 0:18:18.800 the Lakers' best defensive player is far and away their 0:18:18.840 --> 0:18:22.800 best defensive player and arguably their best overall player in 0:18:22.840 --> 0:18:28.680 the postseason, and greatly changes the way he's playing while 0:18:28.720 --> 0:18:37.080 doing nothing but support Luca, who famously Lebron's on the 0:18:37.119 --> 0:18:40.920 record that the only guy he ever tried or wanted 0:18:40.960 --> 0:18:45.080 to get to be a Lebron athlete, wearing like the 0:18:45.760 --> 0:18:49.400 way Jordan has Jordan athletes at Nike, A Lebron spinoff 0:18:49.400 --> 0:18:53.399 sneaker was Luca, a guy who Luca who modeled his 0:18:53.440 --> 0:19:00.679 game after Lebron and was his childhood idol. So the 0:19:00.800 --> 0:19:04.520 idea that, well, these guys just won't fit that has 0:19:04.680 --> 0:19:08.919 not been the case at all. And then there is 0:19:09.000 --> 0:19:14.280 the well, we just don't think we can compete with 0:19:14.400 --> 0:19:21.520 these guys. I think that is a loser mentality, and 0:19:21.560 --> 0:19:28.080 I think it is beyond optimistic that again, if you 0:19:28.400 --> 0:19:38.440 simply remove the name and the age when talking about 0:19:38.920 --> 0:19:45.359 Lebron and say, hey, what is the likelihood over the 0:19:45.400 --> 0:19:51.280 next four years if the Lakers were to move Lebron 0:19:51.720 --> 0:19:55.040 move on from Lebron and they don't. They This article 0:19:55.080 --> 0:19:58.240 talks about they don't want to trade him, They want 0:19:58.320 --> 0:20:02.119 him to just leave in the offseason, either into retirement 0:20:02.520 --> 0:20:07.200 or free agency for nothing. Who is the guy? How 0:20:07.240 --> 0:20:12.080 are they replacing second team all NBA production? Where is 0:20:12.119 --> 0:20:18.119 that coming from? And why would they not say, right now, 0:20:18.200 --> 0:20:27.840 this moment, we have something an asset we're not going 0:20:27.880 --> 0:20:32.120 to have we're not guaranteed to have at all three 0:20:32.200 --> 0:20:36.560 years from now, which is two top ten players, So 0:20:36.680 --> 0:20:40.760 maximize this window. I think that's foolish. But I also 0:20:40.800 --> 0:20:43.040 if I were running the Lakers, wouldn't go three straight 0:20:43.080 --> 0:20:46.760 off seasons without making a single trade. If I were 0:20:46.840 --> 0:20:49.439 running the Lakers, there are a lot of things I 0:20:49.480 --> 0:20:53.080 would not have done that Rob Blinka and the Bus 0:20:53.160 --> 0:20:57.240 and Rambis family have done. But that's what they've done, 0:20:57.400 --> 0:21:00.919 and so I do. And I know this for a 0:21:00.920 --> 0:21:02.680 lot of you guys are not gonna be surprising coming 0:21:02.720 --> 0:21:08.719 from me. But I I do understand lebron side of 0:21:08.760 --> 0:21:16.439 the frustration. I don't understand the Lakers side of the frustration. 0:21:17.760 --> 0:21:22.080 And if it's that, and if it's that, well, you know, 0:21:22.400 --> 0:21:26.240 Lebron's a lot to a lot to deal with. Yeah, man, 0:21:27.440 --> 0:21:31.639 every all time great athlete ever is a lot to 0:21:31.680 --> 0:21:36.840 deal with in one way, shape or form, And people 0:21:36.920 --> 0:21:41.560 keep saying nothing tougher than dealing with an all time 0:21:41.640 --> 0:21:47.400 great who's not great anymore. And that's that's the part 0:21:47.440 --> 0:21:55.080 of this that I find so puzzling. It's almost as 0:21:55.119 --> 0:22:01.760 if the Lakers are frustrated that Lebron hasn't fallen off Lebron. 0:22:02.480 --> 0:22:10.320 The Lakers post Westbrook debacle, which obviously Lebron had influence on, 0:22:12.560 --> 0:22:18.000 have treated every year as if, well, Lebron's not going 0:22:18.080 --> 0:22:22.280 to be that good and therefore it wouldn't make sense 0:22:22.359 --> 0:22:25.560 for us to leverage everything to try to win at 0:22:25.560 --> 0:22:30.040 this moment. And then each year Lebron shows up on 0:22:30.080 --> 0:22:34.240 the All NBA team. Each year Lebron comes to work 0:22:34.320 --> 0:22:38.680 and gives you twenty five, seven and seven, it's like, okay, 0:22:39.640 --> 0:22:46.600 what do you need? And now, like I understand why 0:22:46.720 --> 0:22:50.960 Lebron might say, you know, I don't want to sign 0:22:51.000 --> 0:22:54.840 an extension because maybe I do want to hit free 0:22:54.920 --> 0:22:58.880 agency and then in my final year go back home 0:22:58.920 --> 0:23:01.600 to Cleveland or may find a way to play with 0:23:01.720 --> 0:23:06.960 staph and under the new CBA me making fifty million 0:23:07.119 --> 0:23:11.600 dollars doesn't make a lot of sense. And next year 0:23:12.800 --> 0:23:16.520 there could be teams with some cap space more than 0:23:16.520 --> 0:23:19.400 the minimum that I wouldn't mind going to play for. 0:23:19.800 --> 0:23:23.240 I understand why Lebron might say I don't want the extension. 0:23:25.000 --> 0:23:30.479 I don't understand why the Lakers wouldn't say, hey, you 0:23:30.520 --> 0:23:36.760 want to tack one more year on this. So a 0:23:36.800 --> 0:23:39.720 lot of this is just to. 0:23:39.800 --> 0:23:43.280 Me more. 0:23:45.520 --> 0:23:52.760 More evidence that when the Walter family does come and 0:23:52.840 --> 0:23:57.280 take over and they do a true audit of the 0:23:57.320 --> 0:24:03.280 decisions and decision makers, that the people in charge of 0:24:03.320 --> 0:24:07.200 the Lakers should be anxious. And I understand that all 0:24:07.240 --> 0:24:09.240 the reporting is Genie bus can run the team for 0:24:09.280 --> 0:24:14.639 the next five years. Let's check back in four or 0:24:14.640 --> 0:24:19.760 in three and see who's running the Los Angeles Lakers. 0:24:20.640 --> 0:24:24.000 And let's also check back in four or three and 0:24:24.119 --> 0:24:31.919 see if this cap space of twenty twenty seven played 0:24:31.960 --> 0:24:37.280 out the way they hoped it would. But I cannot 0:24:37.320 --> 0:24:46.600 imagine this article landed softly on Lebron's desk, where it 0:24:46.840 --> 0:24:53.920 is a lot of innuendo and a lot of Lakers 0:24:54.880 --> 0:25:02.800 pretty naked Lakers personnel whispering the ears of Ramona and 0:25:02.840 --> 0:25:07.800 Wendy about essentially how eager they are to get out 0:25:07.840 --> 0:25:13.520 of the Lebron James business. Me personally, if I'm trying 0:25:13.560 --> 0:25:18.360 to win NBA championships, I'd love having two top ten 0:25:18.400 --> 0:25:23.159 guys on my team. It doesn't seem like the Lakers 0:25:23.240 --> 0:25:27.800 necessarily feel that same way. All right, folks, something special 0:25:27.880 --> 0:25:29.800 is about to happen in the Big Easy, one of 0:25:29.800 --> 0:25:32.400 my five favorite cities in the country. UFC three eighteen 0:25:32.840 --> 0:25:37.639 coming to New Orleans, and it is absolutely stacked. Drafting Sportsbook, 0:25:37.840 --> 0:25:40.880 the official sports betting partner of the UFC, has all 0:25:40.960 --> 0:25:45.639 the action you need. We're talking Holloway Poyer three, the trilogy, 0:25:46.040 --> 0:25:49.760 BMF's titles on the line. More than that, it's Dustin 0:25:49.800 --> 0:25:53.480 Pourier's last fight. That's it, the final walk, one of 0:25:53.520 --> 0:25:58.040 the all time greats. You taking Holloway's volume or Poitier's power. 0:25:58.359 --> 0:26:01.960 If you've never bet UFC DraftKings, don't worry. Just pick 0:26:02.000 --> 0:26:04.720 something simple, like a fighter to win, and make your 0:26:04.760 --> 0:26:08.360 pick straightforward and easy. Like I told you last week 0:26:08.400 --> 0:26:12.359 with the boxing, it's again. I'm not acting like picking 0:26:12.400 --> 0:26:14.960 the right side is easy, but it is. You don't 0:26:15.000 --> 0:26:18.560 have to be an expert on rear naked chokes to 0:26:18.640 --> 0:26:21.480 know I got to pick a winner here and you 0:26:21.520 --> 0:26:23.800 can do it that way. Check this out. New customers 0:26:23.840 --> 0:26:26.479 who bet just five bucks get one hundred fifty dollars 0:26:26.520 --> 0:26:30.399 in bonus bets instantly, a huge boost to get started. 0:26:30.440 --> 0:26:34.119 Do not miss Poyer's final fight. Download the DraftKings sportsbook 0:26:34.160 --> 0:26:39.040 app right now and use code right that's code WRIGHD 0:26:39.440 --> 0:26:41.359 for new customers to get one hundred thy dollars in 0:26:41.400 --> 0:26:44.359 bonus bets instantly when you bet just five bucks only 0:26:44.400 --> 0:26:48.040 on DraftKings. The Crown is yours. 0:26:48.240 --> 0:26:50.880 Gambling problem called one eight hundred gambler in New York 0:26:50.960 --> 0:26:53.359 called eight seven seven eight open wire text hope and 0:26:53.440 --> 0:26:55.920 wy AT four six seven three six nine In Connecticut, 0:26:55.960 --> 0:26:58.240 help is available for a problem gambling called eight eight 0:26:58.240 --> 0:27:00.520 eight seven eight nine seven seven seven seven or visit 0:27:00.600 --> 0:27:04.000 CCPG dot org. Please play responsibly on behalf of Boothilka 0:27:04.040 --> 0:27:07.359 Cinnamon Resorting Kansas twenty one on over agent. Eligibility varies 0:27:07.400 --> 0:27:10.080 by jurisdiction Voyd and Ontario. Bet must win to receive 0:27:10.119 --> 0:27:13.600 reward minimum minus five hundred odds required. Bonus bets expire 0:27:13.640 --> 0:27:15.720 one hundred and sixty eight hours after issue. In four 0:27:15.720 --> 0:27:19.399 additional terms and responsible gaming resources see DKNG, dot co 0:27:19.560 --> 0:27:20.400 slash audio. 0:27:20.600 --> 0:27:25.800 All Right, the other piece of this is is Luca 0:27:25.880 --> 0:27:30.320 gonna sign this extension? And my answer to that question 0:27:31.080 --> 0:27:37.159 three weeks ago would have been, obviously, the Lakers have 0:27:37.320 --> 0:27:41.240 built in inherent advantages. They now have one of the 0:27:41.400 --> 0:27:45.320 richest ownership groups in the league. Luca really likes being 0:27:45.400 --> 0:27:49.480 by the ocean, he said, as much. I would imagine 0:27:50.200 --> 0:27:57.720 for international players, big cities are always preferable because you're 0:27:57.760 --> 0:28:03.720 more likely to have a real community of Slovenians like 0:28:03.840 --> 0:28:05.919 and again I don't know how much Luca cares about that, 0:28:06.080 --> 0:28:10.359 but it's obviously easier to find a thriving you know, 0:28:10.560 --> 0:28:15.719 Slovenian or Serbian or Nigerian or any of you know, 0:28:15.840 --> 0:28:19.000 any international community in a place like New York or 0:28:19.119 --> 0:28:23.159 LA then it might be in Milwaukee or Cleveland. And 0:28:23.200 --> 0:28:26.080 that again, that's not an indictment any of those places. 0:28:26.080 --> 0:28:32.280 That's just the reality of geographics and demographics, or not geographics, 0:28:32.280 --> 0:28:37.800 but demographics. So I would have said very and Luca's 0:28:37.840 --> 0:28:42.760 statement about being excited to win championships with the Lakers 0:28:42.760 --> 0:28:46.640 and Mark Mark Walter and all of that, I would 0:28:46.640 --> 0:28:48.720 have said, the odds of insigning since in the summer 0:28:48.880 --> 0:28:51.640 like ninety five percent. I think the way the Lakers 0:28:51.640 --> 0:28:58.480 screwed up the Dorian Finney Smith thing is potentially troubling, 0:28:59.480 --> 0:29:06.880 and I think the way the Lakers are not so 0:29:07.160 --> 0:29:13.040 subtly dissing Lebron James, who, again as a reminder, the 0:29:13.120 --> 0:29:15.360 Lakers were in the midst of the worst six year 0:29:15.400 --> 0:29:18.800 stretch they had had in the history of their franchise 0:29:19.360 --> 0:29:23.320 in the total wilderness, a bottom two record in the 0:29:23.480 --> 0:29:27.120 entire NBA over the half decade before Lebron got there. 0:29:27.600 --> 0:29:33.000 Within two years, within one year, he delivered them Anthony Davis. 0:29:33.040 --> 0:29:36.440 Within two years, he and AD delivered them a championship. 0:29:36.640 --> 0:29:38.720 And then because they had AD, they were able to 0:29:38.720 --> 0:29:43.680 get Luka Ancic and he's still performing at a six 0:29:43.720 --> 0:29:49.120 in the league in MVP voting level. For them to 0:29:50.560 --> 0:29:57.800 lucas not an idiot now be leaking stuff to ESPN 0:29:57.880 --> 0:30:03.160 about how excited they are to be done with Lebron, 0:30:04.120 --> 0:30:10.680 I can't imagine Luca's happy about that. And again, the 0:30:10.760 --> 0:30:14.800 Dorian Finney Smith thing really matters because of the relationship 0:30:14.840 --> 0:30:18.680 he had with Luca and the fact that the team 0:30:18.960 --> 0:30:21.480 gets a touch worse going from Dorian Finney Smith to 0:30:21.520 --> 0:30:29.640 Jake Laurravia. So I I would have said it's ninety 0:30:29.760 --> 0:30:34.880 five percent that Luca will re sign this summer. I 0:30:35.040 --> 0:30:42.320 now will say it is seventy five percent. I still 0:30:42.440 --> 0:30:54.800 think it is overwhelmingly likely, but I would say it 0:30:54.880 --> 0:31:00.160