The volume.
My buddy, former NFL scout John Middlecoff, his podcast is three and out. So it was interesting. I got a I got a text today from a NFL executive. Apparently the Rams were willing to move off Stafford, but they wanted a first round pick. They wanted and and by the way, you know the Raiders. We're going to give him one hundred million guaranteed, which I still think that'll be the upgrade the Rams make. But it just to
throw it out there. The Rams were willing to make a move if they could have two first round picks. What do you make of that? I trust my intel. It's somebody pretty tied to the situation. What do you make of that?
So you're saying that they would not have traded the Raiders for let's say a couple seconds.
Nope, they wanted a first It was but it's interesting. They're so close to the super Bowl. It is interesting that they would have considered that. Now you know, this is somebody that is close to it, So it's interesting. It's so hard to get close to the super Bowl, right, Like, thank god, the Niners have twelve picks this year, so that should fortify them and make give them another run because they've got you know, secondary and oline issues. But
it's it's even great teams. I mean, dynasty's close hard, like like you're watching Kansas City this year and you're like they're struggling to score points for the second year in a role. I just it is interesting they would have considered moving him for a first well.
I think Sean McVeigh was very candid last week when he was with his guy Whitworth's podcast, and he was open to say, listen, we can't quantify this guy's value to us on the field, but we can off the field when it comes to our salary cap. And we have limitations with the guy who's thirty seven years old. And I think you used to have a line was that you can't there's not a happy, happier or something.
Yeahier than happy.
And I thought this with Matt Stafford. Now, if they would have acquiesced and a team would have traded picks that would have made the Rams happy, would he have given the thumbs up instead of taking the one year forty We'll see what the you know in a week
what the number actually turns out to be. I think that it's not public kind of shows you that you know, the Rams didn't just give him a hundred ten million dollars, right they And I think Sean McVay said today on McAfee that's year to year thing, right, So I would imagine they gave him a little bump up and raise, but relative to the rest of the league, he's not making what he's making. My take was this, I'm not into telling someone to quote unquote take a pay cut
or what money means to them. But he's accumulated before this season even starts, three hundred and sixty million dollars, right, So I would imagine if his accountant's done pretty well. I know he's got a big family, probably nine figures in the bank and working for him, and investments like Mats Stafford's doing really really well. Not only will he never think about it as family, never will So it doesn't get any better than Sean McVeigh, does it. Why would he want to leave?
Well, it's just I saw a story today where Fred Couple said that brooks Kopka could, if he could, would go back to the PGA Tour from the Live Golf And again, I think I do think generational wealth does make you happy for maybe twelve months. You know, it's you. You get this kind of money, you set up trusts with your kids, or you know, you buy that third home if you're Brooks Kopka in that fourth car, and it does give you a sense of independence. But ultimately,
people john not to be Tony Robbins here. People like to be part of something. You know, it's not just the money. Like the PGA Tour is part of something, and it's an established something and there's credibility with it. That's not a shot at the Live Tour, which I've defended. But the Rams are something in Los Angeles, well owned, well run, well coached right now. The Raiders are a dream of what could be. The Rams are something. So I think I've always said this, don't chase money, chase
good management and you'll eventually make good money. Maybe not great money, but good money.
Yeah. And I think if you use the Live guys as an example, you know, Phil got a couple hundred million dollars, but he was already worth hundreds of millions of dollars. His was more of an f you to the establishment, right, d Chambeau, Brooks and DJ. These guys are not NBA, NFL players. So they get offered on one hundred and eighty million dollars, it is hard that changes their life. Matt Stafford making an extra fifty million dollars.
I mean you're talking after taxes or whatever. He's taken home twenty eight thirty million dollars is not going to change him or his family's life at all. But it will impact his football life, which, like you said, the Raiders or the Giants, which were the teams that look like all in, are not going to win next year. It's just not gonna happen, right. I don't even think it's possible with the Raiders, right, you just to compete in that division, even if you have a huge upgrade
at coach. I think Spy Tech is a young up and comer. But to think twenty twelve and Matt Stafford is living in the moment. So to me, the risk of getting the extra money, if it would have gone through, would have sent him backwards. I think in his football career what we saw forever in Detroit, he finally I felt like when he got to Sean McVay got to validate the career. This guy with all this talent. Honestly, these last couple of years, even more than the Super
Bowl year. It was like Matt Stafford. I mean, doesn't get much better than that. And I think it would have kind of been sad because it would have impacted the Rams. I'm sorry, Jimmy Garoppolo or forty one year old Aaron Rodgers. It would have been a drop off from Matt Stafford. So I'm just glad that he stayed and it worked out from a football standpoint, because this they have a good offseason, a couple moves here and there.
I mean, who's to say that they are, you know, a top two or three favored in the NFC to be a you know, win the Super Bowl or represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.
Yeah, I mean, I think I think that game against Philadelphia says it all. They're driving in a snowstorm and they get down to the fifteen yard line and they have a rookie center six round pick and they had finally gotten their offensive line right. And by the way, Philadelphia was a better team, better overall personnel. They almost snuck out of that puppy with the W and so and I've said this McVeigh doesn't really rebuild Shanahan feels like he follows up great seasons with clunkers. If like
Christian McCaffrey's not healthy, McVay wins every year. It's just they don't really they reboot, they don't necessarily rebuild the I was saying that, I think.
You know, you know one major difference. I think the two right now is McVeigh has I thought Kyle, because of his personality, would be a little more cutthroat. He's been emotional when it came to Debo re signing him and keeping him last year. With Ayuk McVeigh, it's like Jalen Ramsey cut you off, see you Cooper Cup this year, we're moving on right this offseason Stafford one year deal.
That's it. Where it's like the Niners found themselves in this weird predicament of they've got emotional with some of these players, and McVeigh kind of went to his grandpa's roots of Walsh. It's like, yeah, we're done here. And he's had to tactfully change, you know. With Goff he was a little too outspoken and even he said that like, I handled that wrong publicly. But this is a business.
We have to make tough decisions, and I think the forty nine ers found themselves in a rut because they tied themselves to every single player instead of you know, in football, the guy can be a good player, but you got a pivot. You can't sign them all.
Well, I mean Philadelphia is in that spot right now. Darius Slay is an easy cut. That's an easy one. You and I any fan could make that because they nailed their two you know, their two early picks at corners, right. The tougher pick is going to be do you keep the linebacker? Do you keep Aj Brown? And I've said this before, I would move off Aj Brown. It's in the NBA. When a big guy gets hurt early, he gets hurt. Often. When a receiver is verbal and outspoken early,
they're outspoken often. Des Bryant didn't get quieter, right, so Debo didn't get quieter. I would move off AJ Brown because you're so good at running back, O line, quarterback, tight end and Devonte Smith. I think that's an easy one. But but you don't want to think like a fan. But I think people will look at AJ Brown and go, he's so good. It's wide receiver you can find. Really,
Puku Naku is a fifth rounder. I mean, there's one or two positions in the NFL cornerback, wide receiver, running back. It's amazing how much talent there is in the fourth round. Like, there's all sorts of examples. So like I look at Philadelphia and Howie Roseman, who, by the way, you know the organization. He said after the Super Bowl, this is gonna look different. Not everybody's gonna love it. So to me, that was that was a little bit of a caution.
Guys were moving off some popular talented guys. You don't say that if you just have to cut Dare Slay. That's an easy one that nobody's losing sleep on.
Yeah, to me, the AJ Brown one would only be if they feel that relationship that Brandon Graham kind of let the cat out of the bag and then they tried to walk it back. It's like, come on, but you know, winning cures all in their relationship. I mean, he had a touchdown in the playoffs. He is when when healthy, one of the best what four or five six wide receivers in the league. I think the only way they would do something like that would be to
clear up some movement. If they could get Miles Garrett and by all accounts, they are going to be one of the lead dogs in those moves. So I think the thing was Zach Vaughn. This is what makes Howie and I would just say, consistent football teams maintain it or not. It's like, yeah, he's a good guy, he had an incredible season, but are we going to break the bank for a linebacker? And his history would say the Eagles and good teams do not.
That's right, right.
Let someone else give you four years, eighty million dollars and forty five million dollars guaranteed. And this is why you keep drafting and why you keep investing in it. And listen, part of being a good NFL team takes some luck. Sometimes you got a guy one year, four million dollars, first team All Pro. That's why you pay Vic Fangio five six million dollars. You know that's last year. He looked at this guy, special teamer, kind of outside linebacker.
Let's make him a middle linebacker under my tutelage, Patrick Willis Navarro Bowman, let's roll. So if I was Howie, I'd go, well, my return on investment is not the player, it's the coach. Why couldn't I do this again. Why can't we find a guy in the draft, maybe on the second day, second or third round. Let fang, you mold him like a piece of clay. He did it with Navarro Bowman. Why couldn't he That's the best case scenario.
But no one in a million years in the NFL would have said, Zach Bond first Team All Pro middle linebacker. No chance. And that's that, you know football more than all these other sports. The power of these coordinators, if you get it right, I mean, look at Spagnola, look at some of the offensive coordinators over the years, can.
Chase your franchise.
It's right because it's you're not paying them player money, You're paying them four five, six million dollars.
It's amazing to me how fans really really struggle and and like to me, aj Brown and Bonner the linebacker are pretty easy moves because I'm not going to disrupt that O line probably for the next three years. I'm I mean, I'm that O line. Maybe in two to three years Lane Johnson retires, but the core of that organization to me is now Saquon Jalen Hurts and that O line. Everything else. To me, I'll move, but you're finding this with Detroit. It's really I mean, think how
great people thought Dak was. I mean people really thought Dak was a top five quarterback when the Cowboys o line five years ago, those guys were all closer to their prime. Now we look up and go, Jesus, Dak's the most overpaid guy in the NFL by a long shot. So you know, I just think when I when I look at like when Tyreek Hill, Andy Reid moved off him, I never forget the day it happened. I was like, yeah, of course you move off him, like you got look
at the Pickstate guy at the time. I'm like, first round, second round, second round. I'm like Brett Fiach is going to hit on at least half of these. Of course you make the move. He's a deep threat. Those guys don't mean much in December and January when it's freezing and windy. So I mean, the AJ Brown one is easy. I'll go back to it. When a receiver Deebo is a prime example, when they start getting outspoken early, that doesn't go backwards and you're and by the way, you
won with him. You got to a couple of Super Bowls, Like I also think there at some point in a salary cap sport players become commodities and there's just you have to move them. They're chess pieces, and you say, well, where's the humanity? Come on, we all know the game here. This is the way it is with pro sports. By the way, in college now, kids leave their program all the time. They make promises, they commit, they leave. We all know this is how the game works.
One thing with AJ two, if that would be something they wanted to do, he still has a lot of value. He's still one of the best players in the league. I mean, you're not just kicking him away like Debo for a fifth round pick. It might bring you back like a second and a third. Yeah right, I don't know if you could get I mean they traded a first form, could they get a late first. I mean some of those teams don't have the most cap room, but you definitely probably get a second and a third. Yep,
you know, depends. I think there's always other moves. He's not just getting rid of a player to get rid of a player. You know that Milton Williams, the defensive tackle that really came on. They would love to keep. But guys like that are he's gonna get twenty million dollars a year, That's right, So I think they're always thinking the one thing the Eagles have been like since before I got there and ever since long after I left,
they will go big game hunting. I'm telling you, if Miles Garrett this is the Browns can say all they want, we're not moving on and listen. I would understand if you're a well run, competitive team, but given the Deshaun's situation, this is the time to just blow the thing up. And to me, he would net you multiple first round picks. So if that, if he's available, I think the Eagles would be front and center with the package of things that they would put in front of them to the
land that player and their owner. And how you manipulate the salary gap is you pay these insane bonus right right, If everyone plays under the same umbrella of the cap, but I can cut you a bigger signing bonus, then that's where guys sign up for.
Yeah, And for the record, fans tend to think all these owners are even No, they're not. Stan Cronk, Jeffrey Lewie. The Denver Broncos can pay more upfront than a majority of the teams. I mean, the Chicago Bears are just not an organization. I mean, the Packers have to get everything a boot approved. The Bears don't have that kind of money historically. So there was a moment this weekend Jerry Jones canceled his interview at the NFL Combine. And
the Cowboys have had a rough couple of years. I mean, they gave away a fourth round pick for Trey Lance. He couldn't beat out Cooper Rush. I mean, if Kyle Shanahan can make a quarterback accurate, he's not accurate. They gave up a fourth round pick for a Jonathan Mingo, the wide receiver five catches for the Cowboys, and again both those moves, you know, we all kind of went. Meanwhile, the Commanders gave up a fifth round pick for Deebo Samuel.
And it's really interesting as I look at Washington, not just because of the result, but between Adam Peters, Cliff dan Quinn, that move for Debo Jaden Daniels, and I don't think, like a lot of times there's recency bias. I honestly believe for the next decade, Washington is going to be one of the three best NFC teams. And I think, what's happening with the Cowboys Now they're becoming the old Al Davis Raiders. They feel like they are honestly, they are lost at sea. I mean they are giving
away picks now. I mean people don't understand. They may re work Dax contract. It's a ninety million dollar cap hit that is over double Josh Allen. They can rework it all they want to. What fifty eight I said this a year ago. I said they're going to start a decade of regression. It has happened so fast in this league. Shit goes south so fast. What did you make of the debo only giving up a fifth round pick?
Well, to me, you just look at the free agent class and you go, well, we don't want to get in any long because the whole thing was Washington has all this cap space, they need some more weapons for Jayden. And you look around you go, well, NFL free agency is the most overrated thing because high end guys never make it, and the guys that do you have to pay an absolute premium to get. Remember a couple of years ago, Christian Kirk got like four years, ninety million dollars.
He actually turned out to be okay. But you have to pay, you know, elite money for those guys, so I can get debo on a year to year contract. I have all this space. All I have to give up is a fifth round pick, and in the nil era, fifth, sixth, seventh round picks feel like diminished and watered down. I also think you get a guy who's a little motivated. People are calling him fat, you know, a little like Luca style. Adam Peters knows the guy well. Cliff Kingsbury.
You know, when you think back to Arizona, they used a lot of gadget players. Rondell Moore, the Purdue guy, different type player, but guys you can get behind the line of scrimmage. You know. I actually think it's a good scheme fit. He has excelled when they've had a route running wide receiver on the opposite side. Terry McLaurin, Brandon Nayuk to me, if you get a motivated Debo, it's a no brainer. We have all this cap space. I give him seventeen. All I have to give up
is a fifth round pick. And if you're the forty nine ers, you weren't gonna pay him seventeen million dollars here in a couple of weeks. So it's I think it's kind of a win win. The Niners are moving off, they don't have to eat any of the money. They trade to a team where the general was around, not only drafting him, but his good and bad moments, so knows his personality. Because the other thing, I mean, you've been saying it forever. Why you see it's gonna be
a little moodie. I mean they got a little like Hollywood actor to him. They need to be you just you have to know their personality. It's very rare to get like a Larry Fitzgerald. Most guys are more debo. And Adam Peters knows this player really well. And I
think the Jerry Jones thing. How often in any business that if the eighty year old patriarch of the operation is around and his name's not Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway, is it a healthy place to be when the guy's hovering, he's made an ungodly amount of money, he does not need to be there, and he's extra hands on. So Jered, you could argue Jerry's ego feels like it's only grown.
As they've quote unquote struggled over the last decade relative to some of their big seasons, and they've underwhelmed in the playoffs. It doesn't feel like Jerry's gone. You know what, I'm gonna let Steven and Will McKay and my coach take a bigger role. I'm just I'm just going to be more of a figurehead. He always doubles down. I'm cutting the check. My name's on that bad boy. I'm involved.
I'm a football guy, and he's not wrong. I mean, he played college football, he's been around his whole life. But unlike a lot of football guys, Jerry is addicted to business. Yeah, and the business of his team is marketing and all that. And it's just there's just a lot going on with the Cowboys, and you know, Micah Parsons.
You talk about Dak's cappit.
If they do give Mike a new deal and don't trade them, what's that deal? One hundred and fifty million dollars guaranteed for quarterback contract?
Brudal No.
I mean, so they're in three guys at a combine what like five hundred million dollars?
Crazy? I mean, I just you can't have three different players top of the market when only one of them, Ce d Lamb is top five at his position in the NFL. It's like, I mean, it's I had a very good year last year, predicting, very bad year, picking individual games, very good year, you know, picking teams. I got Washington and Denver and some of the upstarts. This year, I think New England is going to be a surprise playoff team. I think the Jets are going to go
sideways a little bit. They don't have a quarterback. I think Miami I kind of think they've topped out a little bit. All the motion and the tricks and smoking mirrors. I think there's limitations there. I think New England's going to be in play. And my other one is I think Dallas is potentially a five or six win team with Brian Schottenheimer. I mean, I have the good news is it's a good quarterback draft. I have to go out and get one if I was Dallas this year.
In fact, I think I heard Stephen Jones say this. I had another person tell me who I respect. Keep your eye on Kyle McCord out of Syracuse in the late second round. Do not be shocked if the Dallas Cowboys do go after Kyle McCord of Syracuse US Now they're not late second. I think Dallas made trade down in the second round to get a mid second pick. I am hearing more and more, and I went and
watched him about a month ago. Kyle McCord throws a really nice ball, and I thought about this if he had stayed, because Will Howard completed sixty one percent of his throws at Kansas State. He goes to Ohio State and complete seventy three percent of his throws. If you don't think that matters. If if Kyle McCord stays at Ohio State with Jeremiah Smith and Ibuka and the two NFL running backs, and Kyle McCord, who's a much better pro prospect than Will Howard, it's not even. It's not
Will Howard is like late fifth, sixth. In fact, somebody today texts me in the NFL he thinks after the combine he's a seventh round pick.
I think he had a bad combine.
Oh bad. I think I think Kyle McCord is going to end up being as good as any quarterback in that draft. This is my the hottest take is that he'll be the guy tell me I'm wrong.
Well, I think yeah. I watched a couple of Syracuse games this season and went, this is the guy that Ryan Day because let's face it, they blamed him for the Michigan loss two years ago and he got kicked out, and so I listen, I believed him. I was like, hey, this guy, if he can't make it there, maybe they're right. And then you watch them at Syracuse, who had their best season in a while. He was spinning. He's got
a big arms guy spiral. I think him and Jackson Dart because there are so many question marks with the top two guys with Cam and Chador. If you're talking about two guys you have the draft in the top I don't know one guy in the top five, the other guy in the top twelve. You can get these two guys. Historically, McCord is not going to be a first round pick, but even Jackson Dart would also have
been a second round pick. You could find the Derek Carrs, the Jimmy Garoppolos, these guys that can start for you, and if you do a good job building your team, you can win with I think The problem for the Cowboys is, if you look at the Dak Era, they really only had to deal with the Eagles, but he just kind of went back in over the last ten years, right with Doug Peterson and then Sirianni Era. Well, now
it's not just the Eagles, it's Washington too. So you add another team because Washington up until last year was a joke. The Giants have been terrible for what a decade plus, So now the Cowboys don't just have to deal with the Eagles, they have to deal with Washington. I mean, that's that's a huge problem. And even if they do draft mccor Jackson Dart whoever, let's say they draft a second round pick that does nothing for them in twenty twenty five and honestly does nothing for them
the next couple of years. That guy's they're kind of just hoping to get their Jordan Love, which is good big picture team building, but it does not help them trying to beat the Eagles or Washington in Week seven, when you're three and three and your season kind of feels like it's teetering.
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All right, he's one of my favorite guests, and it's a perfect time to get him. Marcus Thompson right for the Athletic. He's the author of the book Golden KD and Dynasties Really Plugged in. I you know, it's it's the Warrior's got a lot of good people covering him. I think Marcus does as good a job as anybody that covers a team in the country in any sport, and he is joining us. I mean, it's so funny because I watched a lot of Warriors basketball, and in my job, I got to watch a lot of stuff.
But you know, I just got into a habit, you know, for ten years of watching the Warriors, and I made a comment, I'm like, man, when Steph is off the floor, this is pre Jimmy Butler. I'm like, this is a boring ass team. This is a bad watch. And I said, I'd bring in Jimmy Butler just for energy and he'll just get everybody all worked up. So were you in when you heard Jimmy was coming? Were you in the it may not work camp, it'll work kind of camp, or it'll be sensational camp.
Which camp were you in? I might be at all three. To be honest with you, I might. I might have been in all three. You know it was it was difficult. I will say this up front. I didn't expect this.
I didn't expect like I mean, like, the one thing that's underscore for me, I love Andrew Wiggins. I think Andrew Wiggins is a really good NBA player, especially who he's become with the Warriors.
He's like a testament. So if you put him.
In a right situation, right, he'll be great for you. Like he probably shouldn't be the a one of a franchise, right, but if you put him in a good situation, he's great. Like he's a great teammate, plays hard Colin. There's a difference between an All Star and the Superstar. These teams are categorically different, and because of all the drama that was going down in Miami, and you know, even how Miami was like a middleague kind of team over these last couple of years, I forgot that Jimmy Butler is
a superstar. That to me is the thing cognitively if you said, yeah, you put another superstar next to Steph like that that's what he needs. But watching him with Jimmy, it reminds.
You like, no, Jimmy is one of them once, like.
He's he's a bit of a side show sometimes, but like he's one of those guys and it's instant. And the crazy part is he didn't even have to play well. Yeah, he doesn't even have to play well, and you could.
He's not shooting well right now, He's.
Not even taking his shots. Jimmy lives mid range. He's he's going he's going to the elbow and rising up. He's not doing any of that. He's just on the court. And by virtue of being Jimmy Butler on the court, he will punish you if you let him, and if you don't, then Steph will punish you.
So like that's the thing.
Like the moment he got there, you could feel the vibe.
Shanes just by him being there.
Like he shows up in his Alo sweatsuit at the Laker game. He didn't even sit on a bench, none of the things. You'd expect this dude to come in and be like, all right, I'm part of this thing. He just came in as Jimmy and to shas everything. And I was like, heyo, I didn't see that, Like I didn't see that happening in a way like it did.
Right. He's also I've used the word, he's a very intentional player, like possessions matter. He doesn't waste possessions. I always thought sometimes Wiggins could be a little bit of a floater. He would waste possessions. You weren't quite sure if he was on the floor. Jimmy's got more of a presence. He's more intentional. He gets to the free throw line, and you know, it also underscores something. And I've seen this with Lebron, with Luca is when you're
on a treadmill to nowhere. This is a long season and it's hard to get guys like Steph or Lebron fired up for an eight seed, right you give them. I said this, It's like Lebron and Steph have a new buddy in the neighborhood they want to show off to and they're just I mean, Steph's averaging like six more points. You only take one more shot. So I think it. You know, in football, you got eight home games.
You know, it's it's very urgent. It's hard for these guys who are at the mountaintop to get fired up for you know, a playing team. I feel like Steph is. This is one of these unintended benefits of making a trade with a great player. The great player drives to the arena, ready to show off, ready to perform. And you know now that the honeymoon, the new car smell may wear off. But there is something to be said
about the fit. Hell, Kuminga is not playing what when you watch When you watch Butler analytically, there were questions if he'd fit. Do you think he's more valuable on offense or defense? Right now? Right now?
Offense definitely, I mean by virtue of he's impacting one of the greatest offensive weapons in the history of sports in the way he is right, you can see it. Steph is a different dude. That's a monster. It's so crazy. He said it, and I didn't know it till I looked it up. The day they traded him, Steph took thirty six shots and then the next day he took thirty two. It was the first time in his career
he taking thirty shots in back to back games. He'd never done that before, and Jimmy hadn't even played yet. Just the fact that we got Jimmy, now let's turn up. So the fact that Jimmy has that impact on Steph, to me, brings that to it because you're right, like the part that's so very viscerally. They just were not good before. I mean they were, they were it was boring. They got guys who just don't go into the paint. Jimmy's message now is like, hey, you see what they're
doing to Steph. Just going to the paint. It's wide open. As a matter of fact, I'm going to show you. Just throw it down to me in the paint like I'm not doing anything else. I'm going to the rim. And you could see them saying, hey, that's kind of working. But without that, they're just chucking threes. They aren't really very good, and it was it was just draining life
out of Steph. So to me that that part has been such a jot, like they're they're like a top five offensive defense with Jimmy, but they were bad, offensively bad and bad and boring, like it's a bad combo. Right, you don't want to be bad and boring.
So you wrote that article on the suffering MAVs fans. Do you think when Cuban Cuban sold the team? Mark has a pretty good sense of business timing and exit strategy? Absolutely, why do you think? Why do you think Cubans sold? I tend to think everything Mark's again Mark. Mark is
very good at seeing around corners. I can disagree with him sometimes on loving NFTs and Bitcoin or politics or whatever it is, but it's it just feels like Cuban sold the team and it hasn't felt the same since he sold it.
You know the fact, Like when he sold it, I thought, is this a Vegas move? Are you sell it to the Vegas billionaire the Adamson family, right, the wife of the famous you know, Vegas casino guy, the one who got foleece by Mark Davis? Ily enough for the Raiders, But I thought, is this a vague gets moved? And one of the things that I've learned from Joe Lacup
and the whole A's the Bacca is. You know, Oakland has lost its teams, and it's all boils down to you got to be ready to spend one point five to two billion dollars own the stadium.
Yep. You just have to be able to do that.
And if you're not ready to do that, now you're relying on your local municipality to come up with the money.
And I'm like, I'm.
Thinking, cubansaw, do I want to spend a two billion dollar stadium or cash out and get my billions?
Right?
It's the opposite move of what John Fisher did with the A's sell the team to get billions or No. Now he's playing in like a high school stadium in Sacramento because they don't want to say it like that.
That's what I thought.
I don't think at any point he thought Luca was going to be traded.
You know why? You know why he didn't think that.
Because you don't trade Luca ever, at least you don't do it at twenty five years old, right, So I wouldn't be surprised if Cuban knew that it's going to be tough to get the stadium we need because remember he remember when he bought that team, and he was right. It was like, oh, they got the new fancy the lockers, and they treat the players top not like like you gotta be top notch now, and that's two billion dollars. That's two billion dollars. You just gotta have two billion dollars.
I think he saw it might be tough to get a stadium. Let me sell it. Let me let me take the profit instead of digging a bigger hole. And if that means the team goes to Vegas like that, it's off my hands, so to speak.
That's the best I can think of. But I agree with you.
One Cuban saw this seven steps away.
He was on it. I'll throw my Lebron theory at you. Lebron has always avoided a mess. So he leaves Cleveland. He plays in the Olympics and he's like, man, I got to play with good players. Dan Snyder can't get me. He goes to Miami four finals, Wade and Boshed, especially Wade is struggling to play back to backs. He bails. He's right. He goes to Cleveland, gets the title. Kyrie's like, I don't want to be here. We're maxed out. He leaves a second time. This time everybody's good with it.
He goes to the Lakers. People love Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma. He didn't. He got rid of him. Brings in a D eighty was great. And I believe Lebron realized as he aged about two years ago that he could not be on every possession every night the lead initiator, and Austin Reeves is more of a three or a four than a two. And so I think he was looking for Steph two years ago. Oh and he made overteers overtures and went back channels with Steph and stuff's like, man,
I'm good here. And then I think he was interested in Yoka, and I think it happened to be like, hey, do you want to come here. It's that that trial was part of conversation. How about yep, you could be here. He knew Jokic could also make the game easier for him. Denver's not interested. And I think when Cuban sold the Mavericks, I think Lebron went back channels thought to himself, here's the moment I'm going to make sure he knows I like him a lot. I think eventually he made it
known upstairs, guys, I'm getting older. I cannot play forty minutes. I love ad to death, but I can't be the play initiator every damn time down the floor. I can't do it. I mean there are times now when you watch him now Austin Reeves hasn't played in a couple of games. When Luca and Austin are there together, I mean, it's like Lebron's a scott a smile on his face. He just he's floating in the wing. It's and by
the way, he's got absolutely But I do think. I think, and this is not a criticism, I think Lebron's the smartest player in league history, arguably in a short list. I think he's calculated. And the idea that he just woke up one day and went, well, what do you know, we got Luca the perfect teammate. I don't buy that. I just I mean, Marcus, I'm not a tenfoil hot guy. But Lebron is too smart, he's too much of a businessman. I think he made he let everybody know Luca is
the target. You think I'm nuts, I don't.
I just wonder how you keep that quiet, because one thing le Bron hasn't been great at is keeping all this stuff quiet. So Okham's razor come into play. What's more likely that Lebron pulled this from behind the string, which I'm not saying is off the table, or Nico Harrison was like, I got the move.
That's gonna make me a legend.
I don't know.
Yeah, they're both kind of wild. Did he really just do this though?
Did Nicos just decide, you know what, I'm gonna call Rob p Linka, We're gonna make this happen. That's almost as crazy.
What did you make in New York watching them? What do you make of the next Nixon? Nix?
Is just disappointment. I'm I'm gonna give a pass because Towns wasn't not there. But for a team that can't shoot threes, they sure a jack at a lot. But I don't like their will at the end, and I wonder, I wonder if Thibodeaux has worn them down.
They they they their will on the defensive end. Has this it has? It can't just be Hartenstein. They're just not as good.
You can you can break them defensively, and that's that's gonna be troubling. Now again, playoff basketball is different. It's half court. The half court's matchup base. But I'm wondering, what are their legs like, like what what is what is their psyche like? After what is this year three, year four of TIBs And I don't know.
It's like it's Gi Santos.
It was g Santo's cooking there, Like we're not talking about like Staffle's cooler, like Jimmy Butler was okay. But they're getting out worked by guys who should be in the G League. They their will just breaks sometimes, like if you watch Knicks, they just they just decide to give up and then it's like Brunsley, go save us. So I don't I mean, obviously Boston and Cleveland are at the top. But I'll tell you this, if I'm New York, I don't want them Pistons in the first round.
I'll tell you that much. You know, you don't want to see them Pistons in the first round. That that young, hungry team full of athletes who willing to fight. Yeah, nah, I don't know if they have the will. So again, they didn't have Town, so that's something. But I'm I'm worried about the Knicks team. I'm not quite steven A. Smith Lever worried, but I'm worried about the Knicks team.
Well, I've watched them play Boston twice, and I've watched one of the Cleveland games and they attacked Karl Anthony Towns in the pick and roll. I mean, they just attack them. I don't know.
Towns is not going to solve this problem in the playoffs. No, they might be able to score more, which will help you get some teams. But if it's talented, Yeah, he's talented, Yeah, no question, he'll he'll go out and get you some buckets in the playoffs and he'll he'll create some moments. But like this team, you know, if they get either Boston or Cleveland in the second round, I just don't know. And they have to get they have to get one of them.
Right, Yeah, they just don't match. Cleveland is so effic Cleveland and Boston are the two best teams in the league. They can defend the rim, they can defend the perimeter. They've got scoring guards, they've got scoring wings. They they're both efficient. Yeah, yeah, it's I always if Derek White is it's some night's the fifth best player on your team.
That is a that it's almost like they you know, with the new taxes and the new ceilings and the the way it works in April all the second apron Ship. It's like Boston for about two years beat it. They've got a roster that you couldn't build right now, but they kind of grandfathered it in and they just got too many good players.
Yeah. In Cleveland, man, that DeAndre Hunter trade was like unfair.
They were already really good.
They's got another And that's the thing about all these guys like that, you got to be able to guard wings. And you look like you just listened like four people of Boston who gu guard wings. Cleveland just added up another guy. They've got guys who could guard wings. That to me is gonna be like I'm not putting Oklahoma City in there yet because I want to see them in the playoffs guard wings or guard the explosive point guard.
Like.
They've got the bodies, they got the the stats right, they write pretty well defensively. Playoffs are different, Monster, It's just different.
It's just and this Cleveland team, you've had Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley. You know last year they kind of disappointed us. Oklahoma City feels like Cleveland last year. Yea really impressive but not quite ready to go on the road and give you a plus play stuff from from role players on the road. I think Cleveland's ready to do that now. Mobley just Mobley's better every year.
Yeah, and and again they've added the upgrade pieces to like they didn't just run it back with the same team.
And that's that's what we're gonna see about. Okay.
See, maybe Shaye is just that good where he figured it out like he felt it. They lost to Dallas, they went to work and got better. Maybe he's enough and Jalen Williams is enough next to him. I just want to see it first because experience matters a lot.
Man.
It's just the playoffs are a different monster. Like if they get Yokic. I love Chick Holgren. What is he doing with Nikola Jokic, Like, that's that's just gonna be a tough like you have to fight, You got to fight out of that series. You know, Jamal Murray shows up, it's over. He'll always show up. But what he does, it's pretty good. Right, So that and russy, Like you have to fight to get out the West. So I'm curious about how all the kind of fight Oklahoma City have.
If they got it, they should, they should be in the finals. If not, it's gonna be a long off season for Sam Presty because he's got like a bounty of stuff. That's like, at some point you probably need to cash in all these assets you're so famous for and get something, right, go go go get you honest. Then if if you can't win, like go do something with all that's who that's where Lucas should be.
I'm like, hey, give me all that stuff for Luca.
That's right, he should be in Oklahoma City with my seven picks, three young players and defensive stoppers and all that that, like, if they got to win. Otherwise, Sam Presty needs to go in and cash in that winning ticket he's got, or the winning tickets.
Well, I mean every other NBA draft is you know, fairly talentless. This past draft. It just there's not a lot there. So like you can have all these draft picks, but what you have to do is when you get that every third draft, when it's really deep, when you go all in and then then I mean, I couldn't tall the last time we had great back to back drafts. That's just not the way it works anymore. You get like a good one, a bad one, a moderate one, a good one. So I think, okay, I think Presty's sharp.
You know, it's I worry about Homegron long term, his body. But they got waves of players. Do you want to see KDE back there? It's interesting Jmack on my show today. I don't know if it's a very attractive place for KD. But I will say this, I don't know his relationship with Presty. If you're asking me if there's a dude that works, it's Oklahoma City and KD because he doesn't need the ball. He is catch and shoot and SGA needs the ball. So yeah, I mean, I'd catching a
lot of chips. That's it'd be a two year experiment. But Jesus him homegrown Sga Williams, Jesus, that is a lot of buckets.
That's a lot of buckets, a lot of fin buckets too.
Marcus Thompson, great senior man. Love seeing you. Likewise, likewise, it's hard out here in the streets.
I got my new assignment I'm covering figure skating World Championships for the Athletic.
I am an accomplished Olympic writer.
Now, Colin, I was in Paris covering track and field and now I'm going figure skating. Can you imagine me at the figure skating I'm in this thing. I'm out here college.
Wow. Good for you. Well you're a great writer. So you've got the ability to do different, different things. I'm taking advantage of it now. I'm looking forward to this. So yeah, yeah, let's go up.
Next time, we're going to talk about with the quad God in advance of the winter.
I can't promise you that for the Athletic. The very talented Marcus Thompson, Thanks buddy, thanks for having me, my guy,