All right, what's going on drivetime Thursday afternoon, about five minutes past the hour of two o'clock. Tell you what man, Forty degrees and sunny hits different in late January. I know a lot of people are hoping we get snow in the benches. I'm not one of those people.
Snow in the mountains.
The sunny down here and I'm all for it. So it's about forty one degrees in sunny at about two o five here in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah, right outside our Broadway Media studios, and as it is every.
Single day, it's good to have you along for the rids men's check. It's beyond the mic.
That's Port Larson behind the glass, jam packed Thursday shows. We're inching closer and closer to the weekend. It's a lot to do on the program today to Utah Jazz.
Welcome in an old friend.
Tonight, Rudy Gobert and the Minnesota Timberwolves are in Salt Lake City to take on the jazz. That's a seven o'clock Mountain time tip. Minnesota's played a little bit better as of late after a really rough start, and the jazz are an unserious organization, But Minnesota in town tonight seven o'clock is your tip.
A fun night of NBA basketball.
Last night, the New York Knicks beat the Denver Nuggets at Madison Square Garden and fun, fun game, And the Knicks are kind of this outlier in pro basketball right now. All five of their starters play over thirty five minutes to night, and obviously Tom Thibodeau has been criticized quite a bit for his approach in the past, but the Knicks our fun team to watch this year. Fun game between the Mavericks and the Pelicans. The t Wolves weren't
action last night. They were in Phoenix, they beat the Suns, and now they're here in Salt Lake City, so excuse me. Second out of a back to back from Minnesota taking on the Jazz tonight.
Fun night last night.
As the Warriors beat the Thunder despite Shay going for half a hundred once again, and so the NBA high speed out of the trade deadline kind of a lighter night tonight. With five total games in pro basketball, TNT has a double dip. It's going to be the Hawks and the Calves and the Rockets and the Grizzlies, Rockets and the Grizzlies, the return of Dylan Dylan Brooks to Memphis as the Rockets are playing really, really well. So
that's a big game tonight at the FedEx Form. We'll do a little NBA basketball on the show today is we're high speed ahead to the trade deadline. That February sixth, the trade deadline. Another rumors surfaced earlier today that the Jazz and the Kings have been engaged in talks for a deal that would land John Collins in Sacramento.
Will the Jazz be active? Will they do anything?
They've already sent three picks to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for an unprotected twenty thirty one.
So we'll get to that.
Super Bowl fifty nine Chiefs Eagles on Sunday, February the ninth. Kansas City has won seventeenth straight game decided by one score. This is a rematch of the Super Bowl a couple of years ago when looked like Philly was gonna get them, and then Kansas City came back, because that's what Kansas City does. But the latest on the Super Bowl coming up. The latest on the world of pro football. The New Orleans Saints are still trying to find their head coach after a former Cowboys coach Mike.
McCarthy said thanks, but no thanks.
He's gonna wait for the coaching higher cycle in twenty twenty six. Kellen Moore apparently is the favorite there, but he's the offensive coordinator for the Eagles, so he's busy right now. Another football player accused of inappropriate behavior during massage sessions, So we'll get to that bad look.
Certainly on the program today.
College basketball local top of Mind Awareness Craig Smith will join the program tomorrow the head coach of the Running Utes. They're back in action, coming up on Saturday, one o'clock tip time out of Oklahoma State.
Three.
The next four games on the road. One home game there.
Is on February the fifth, So next week Colorado will be in town, and then it's at West Virginia at Cincinnati, and on February the fifteenth, Rock Chock Jayhawks.
We're gonna have to get Bill Riley on the show that week.
I wonder if Bill ever thought he'd be calling a Kansas game here in Saul Lake. Of course, Bill that is his alma mater, So Bill be on the call for Kansas Utah in Saul Lake byus figured something out, man. They played a lot better as of late. They've won three straight, they've won four or five. That one loss was here in Salt Lake City to the Utes. They're on the road at UCF home against Arizona, then at Cincinnati West Virginia. Really good win for them against Baylor.
Kennon catchings. If you're wondering why pro scouts like that kid, and apparently twenty five thirty pro scouts at that game. Man, he was lights out, played really really well. So college basketball top of mine right now. The Utah women continue to play well, back to back wins over.
Kansas and BYU.
They are going to take on Arizona coming up tomorrow six thirty and that will be on FS one.
Of course, you can hear the game on our station.
That game is here in Salt Lake at the Huntsman Center, So head on up and support those Utah Utes.
Utah Hockey Club fans were.
Present and witness to a historic goal. Quite frankly, Sydney Crosby Sidney Kid twenty years in professional hockey, scored the game win or overtime as the Penguins beat the Utah Hockey Club three to the Utah Hockey Club after winning three straight, they've now lost three straight game. They're three straight games. They're back in action tomorrow taking on the Blue Jackets. Daisy Week for our friends at the Delta Center.
The Delta Center is home to several events this week, and Utah Hockey Club fans were treated to a fake vote. Did you pretend to vote for the new name last night? It's gonna be the Mammoth, isn't it. It's gonna be the Mammoth.
I'm afraid that's gonna be the deal.
Utah wassatch was forced upon you without any input, So if you want to know whether or not your vote matters, I guess that's kind of the example. The spin from the SEG group is that that's in place of the Yennie because they want to create some corny snowman to
be the mascot. But for the next three home games, Utah Hockey Club will pretend to allow you to vote on the name, and then they will take your email address and use that for data for qual tricks, and then they're just gonna pick the name they want to go with. So, anyway, are you interested in the truth?
You really care?
I don't know, man, it seems like these days most people are not RSL. Another preseason match today, we're high speed ahead to the first game of the calendar season. It's a CONCACAF match down in Costa Rica, I believe, and CONCKCAFF Champions Cup first leg, and then we'll launch into MLS play. So we're kind of inching towards spring. Today feels a little spring ish obviously, plenty of winter left with February and Mark, so a lot to do. Busy show on the program today, Busy show on the program.
Today with a really really good guest list.
We'll bring in Andy Larson right off the top for all the latest on the Utah Jazz, latest on the trade deadline.
Maybe do a little RSL with Andy today, and.
Then talk about the current situation with the naming process for the Utah Hockey Club.
I know Andy has some thoughts on that.
Scott Mitchell one of the best to ever do it at the University of Utah, former NFL quarterback. We'll do mostly pro football with Scott today. We'll do a little Super Bowl preview and if Tom Allows of course late us on the Big twelve Utah football situation.
We've already talked about the odds that.
Were released and the Bill Conley SMP plus twelve team CFP projection that included the utes. Not sure how I'm not sure if people are excited about that or like here we go again, but we're bringing Scott today on the program. Former producer of this program. He is on the masthead as a founder of the Drive. Now he's over with our friends at the Utah Jazz and he is the play by play voice of the Utah Stars. He's the play by play voice of the Utah Royals.
He's a very busy young man. JP John Paul chunga live in studio that we'll do a little sports court on this Thursday afternoon. Andy Larson, Scott Mitchell, JP, Shanga, Me, Spence checkets, all of you the great listeners. Happy Thursday to you and that guy Porter Larson producing the program on a Thursday. Did you attend the game last night to give your email address to Qualtricks or pretend to vote?
Were you there?
I voted five or six different times with five or six different emails that were not mine to just to to make sure I got my voice heard, but none of my data harvested.
It's gonna be the mammoth, isn't it. So yeah, it's gonna be the mamoth.
I think so, but I'm not entirely sure. I think I think it'll be the mammoth of the hockey club going forward. And you know, I'm fine with either of those. I just think the process to the unveil could have been a lot cleaner. And that's still underway. But uh yeah, we'll get to a bunch of that with Andy, catch up with JP, and go from there on a on a Thursday edition of the show.
By the way, I sneezed seven times before the show started, seven like right before the show started. I think that might be a personal record. Do you have a personal record for consecutive sneezes?
I don't know if I I have data on that.
You don't.
Ques should ask Qualterricks.
What kind of communists doesn't track their sneeze their sneezes? Everybody has the personal record for sneezes. I guarantee it.
I grew up with a allergy to cottonwood trees in the river bottoms full of cottonwood trees, so I've gone on sneezing fits that have lasted like minutes before. I feel like, so, I don't know. I don't know.
It's up there though seven straight might be my record, and it was right before I cracked the mic, and I'm like, all because I'm usually a three sneeze guy and then I'm done with it.
I'm also a very aggressive sneezer.
If you're watching on YouTube and you saw me before the show, there's something about my makeup where, like, you know, there's some like women who sneeze and it's cute, You're like, oh, that's cute, it's quiet. I am an aggressive sneezer. I don't know why I always have. Well, you know why. I do not know what you know what sneezes are? Please please tell it's your sins and evil escape? What are you talking about? Did you join a cult overnight?
What do you mean it's the evil escaping? Isn't that like an old Isn't that like an old?
Now?
I feel like you just made that up.
I think that's like an old belief of some some beliefs.
Well, yes, to your point, it makes sense. We'll leave that there.
Andy Larson will be our first guest right out of the gates on a Thursday afternoon. A lovely sunny Thursday afternoon here in Salt Lake City. But the ESPN seven hundred Cash kickoff is here. It's sound for your shot to win one thousand dollars in cash. To pay your bills, Text fun right now to five oh eight seven seven seven one thousand. Text fun to five eight seven seven seven one thousand for a chance to win one thousand dollars in cash in this nationwide contest. Good luck from
all of us at ESPN seven hundred. All right, Andy Larson, our first guest on a Thursday afternoon. But before you get Dandy, courtesy of our good friends, your good friend, you're good friends too. It's Standard Restaurant Supply. It's your one stop shot for all your tailgate needs. Stop by their convenient location in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Check them out online. Our good friends at Standard Restaurant Supply. On a Thursday time. Now for your opening tip.
Welcome to the Drive with Spence. Check it so on Utah's number one Sports Talk Now into the studio of ESPN seven hundred to set the scene for the show.
The opening tip of.
The Drive is brought to you by Standard restaurants. Why your one stop shop to build the best tailgate in town. Standard Restaurants supply thirty five hundred Southwest Temple.
So it was kind of kicking this around earlier this morning. As you know, of course, the Super Bowl is upon us in you know, about seven eight days or so, coming up a week from Sunday. Of course we'll get you ready for the big game coming up next week. It'll be Super Bowl Week between the Chiefs and the Eagles. Once again, it's a rematch of a couple of years ago, Super Bowl fifty nine down in the Big Easy down in New Orleans, and a lot of conversation about Howie
Roseman and Roster construction for Philadelphia. And you know, ultimately what you need as an organization to be very, very successful, not just to have a couple of good years and then head back down to the spot where nobody.
Pays attention to you anymore.
I mean, Jerry West always talked about the difference between good and great is simply consistency. Can you do it night in and night out as an organization? Can you win year and in year out? And even if you're not winning championships, do you at least have a chef,
and in pro basketball, that's really all you can ask for. Like, you know, we've talked about this, and you know, I'm gonna land the plane here as Rudy Gobert's in town and we'll do a little little, you know, little content today on the Wolves Jazz trade that was consummated for Gobert of course a few years ago. Always found to kind of revisit that when Rudy's in town. But the roster construction what's important, And for me it's always been ownership in front office.
Of course, you need great players talent period.
And of story, I can remember a number of years ago, college professor of mind asked me to go go interview somebody who had a job that I thought was interesting that maybe one day i'd like to do. And Scott Layden was the general manager of the Jazz and part of the interview process was you're supposed to ask this person who the most important people are in the organization and why. And this was nineteen ninety seven, nineteen ninety eight, and I asked Scott in our interview process, okay, who
are the most important people in the jazz organization? I thought he was going to say Larry Miller, GAO Miller the ownership. He didn't even pump fake. I thought he might say Jerry Sloan. He said, it's John Stockton and Carmelone. So those are the two most important people in this organization, because when you can win at a high level, it cures a myriad of sins. That's a frank leyden line that he's used often a lot about simply the importance.
And Gordy Chiesa always drops the line when Carmelone made free throws it was better for the state's economy. So yeah, you need the talent period. End of story. And a lot of the conversation about the way the Chiefs had constructed their roster can be reduced to fifteen under center. Now it's not just him, but a lot of it is him. We saw what happened to the Patriots when Brady took off to Tampa Bay. I mean, when you have one of those dudes under center, it changes the
course of your organization. It changed the course of what you can be on the field as far as winning goes.
And when you win, everything changes.
And you know, roster construction in the NFL is a little bit different than roster construction and pro basketball, but there are some similarities as far as organizations and structures that historically speaking have bred great result because we really find ourselves in a difficult spy right now with this Jazz team and this process that already is in you know, nearly three years in the making and really hasn't bred a lot of things that are tangible outside of marketing.
You know, you've got a lot of assets, You've got a lot of picks. But as I said, when the Gobert trade went down and everybody said, oh man, I cannot believe what the Jazz got for Rudy Gobert, Well, ultimately, like yes on paper, but only time will tell whether
or not this was a good deal. Only time will tell whether or not the Jazz talent evaluators and roster constructors were able to, you know, turn any of these draft assets and any of these picks into not rotational pieces, but good players that can bring you back to where you were before you decided to trade Gobert and Mitchell and everybody else. Roy Spognanovitch, Conley Quinn leaves, Dennis Lindsay leaves brand new era of Jazz basketball that at this
point has not bred anything that's very exciting. And of course, when you look back, e Wolves get Rudy, and Rudy's been really good for them. I'm not sure that it was ever going to lead them to a championship. And that ownership group after that deal was left in flux and there's this weird thing going on with a lawsuit Alex Rodriguez on one side, and you know, ultimately they had to make a financial decision. So they move on
from Karl Anthony Towns. They're bringing Julius Randall. And if you're a Jazz fan, that's awesome because Randall is like Westbrook to me. You can have him. If you want to be in the Julius Randall business, you can have him.
Man.
And that's why I think Minnesota has kind of come back down to earth. But just to revisit it real quick, Minnesota gets Gobert, the Jazz received Malik Beasley played here for a minute and then it was ultimately traded. At the time, I believe I was the Lakers. I think he's in Detroit now. Patrick Beverly never played here. Leandro Bamarro not really sure what the deal is with that dude. The Jazz did get Walker Kestler, who's really good and
really young. That was a value piece of that trade because Walker was the number twenty two pick in the draft by Minnesota Jared Vander who's now a Laker. So the one player they received was Walker Kessler. So they get a twenty three first round pick already been used. They get a twenty five first round pick that will potentially be used coming up this year, because I don't do not think the Calves are going to come back down to earth to the point where Minnesota's pick will
be the pick that goes to Phoenix. So I would imagine the Jazz are going to have that Minnesota pick this year. They get a twenty six pickswap. I don't think that's going to be used. I would be surprised. A twenty seven first round pick, a twenty nine first round pick, so four first round picks, one pick swap,
and Walker Kessler for Rudy Gobert. So but at this point you can really analyze it as simply go Bear versus Kessler, right until we know what the draft capital turns into, until we know exactly what the Jazz have been able to do with the pieces they.
Receive for Rudy. This is still a very incomplete trade.
The trade they just made with the Phoenix Suns has been celebrated by a lot of nerds online that analyze these things, but we still don't know what that's going to look like. You sent three first round picks, all three of them most likely in the late first round, to Phoenix in exchange for a wild card in exchange for a twenty thirty one unprotected pick from the Phoenix Suns. We will not know what that deal breeds until twenty
thirty one. Maybe the Jazz are the cousin that drives up to Idaho and buys a lottery ticket and comes home and they they're rich all of a sudden because they win the lottery. But we won't know that, right And So, when you think about the roster construction process in pro basketball as it pertains to the type of market that the Jazz exists in, what gives you hope that the Jazz at some point could finally get this thing done after fifty plus years of basketball and no titles.
I always point to the Spurs dynasty that essentially started in nineteen ninety nine when the Spurs beat the Knicks. They had David Robinson and Tim Duncan on that team. Duncan was I think in his second year and David Robinson was at the end of his career, and it was a number of years, well it was only three years actually until they were able to win another one. The Lakers with Kobe and Shack were able to get their three titles between in two thousand and two thousand
and two. Spurs went in two thousand and three, they went again in two thousand and five, they went again in two thousand and seven, and it even extended all the way to twenty fourteen when San Antonio beat Miami with Lebron James four to one. So because san Antonio was able to build a team that was not just able to win a championship or two, but truly was a dynasty for a number of different years.
You know.
Ultimately, I've always kind of looked at them as the benchmark for why I still believe it is possible for the Jazz to do the same thing, because we can't look at Miami when Lebron and d Wade and Bosh just decided to team up. We can't look at Los Angeles because the NBA players want to live in La you know, even you know past Honasty's, the Golden State
Warriors with Stephen Curry. I mean there there are actually more things that we can be analogous with with the Jazz and Golden State that meets the eye, because Golden State did draft, develop, and retain and then they were able to add pieces around Steph Clay and Draymond. But all three of those guys were drafted by Golden State, they were developed by Golden State, and they were retained by Golden State.
But only after those three started to show.
Some special things did a former All Star like Andrea Wwoodala want to come play for Steve Kerr and Golden State. So yeah, I mean there are some things that we can draw parallels to. But san Antonio, starting in nineteen ninety nine going through twenty fourteen, with essentially fifteen sixteen years of top shelf basketball's always been the blueprint for me.
Say yes, if you can do it there, you can do it here.
All due respect to san Antonio, it's not the spot if you've ever been there. A Salt Lake City, at least in my opinion's a better city. And then recently we have some other examples. So yes, I am reaching here and stretching here to try to give Jazz fans a little hope because the current iteration under this new ownership group has not provided much hope at all. And
recently there are other examples that we can lead in. Okay, So two years ago, the Denver Nuggets, by the way, they were your cousin who drove up to Iado to get the lottery ticket and then came back down to Salt Lake and watching powerball boom. They win the lottery.
It came in the form of the forty third pick in the draft, where they received Nicola Jokic, who has been the best player in pro basketball quite frankly for six seven years and when he is done who he will be known as the best player of this generation. And he's having another phenomenal year. I think Shay's the MVP,
but Jokich is right there. And so that's a blueprint you can look at because Denver is not a city that's all that bigger than Utah and excuse me, Salt Lake, and it's not a city that's a destination, and it is a city that needs a little bit of luck, just like we do here. The other example I'll lean into is the Milwaukee Bucks in twenty twenty one. Now it's very easy for me to say, do what Denver did,
do what Milwaukee did. But that's where the golden ticket has to come into play, because just like Denver won the lottery with Jokic, Milwaukee won the lottery with the honest And still every time I lock into a Bucks game and Gianna says the honest thing, I still believe they're gonna have something to say when it comes to
winning a championship. You could be a little bit analogous with the Toronto Raptors title back in twenty eighteen, twenty nineteen, but they won that title with Masaiyu Jerry being able to negotiate a deal that was a rental for Kawi for one year, and that was Pete Kawai. At the time, he was probably a top five player in pro basketball. But the other examples, I mean, look, you can't really use the Celtics. We already talked about the Nuggets. Then
there's the Lakers, there's the Warriors, there's Miami. You know, a couple of different times the MAVs had one title when Dirk went peaked Dirk and they beat to Miami Heat as well. It's tough to look at most of the examples and say, Okay, they did it this way, and the Jazz can probably do it that way as well. But there are some examples, certainly in the past, and the NBA is different now. But that San Antonio, you know,
that peak San Antonio fifteen year run. And then the international guys that don't seem to move teams as much as the domestic guys do. Know. I get pushed back when I say that, but it's just the data that we have. If Dallas gets one with Luca, there's another one. Dallas is a big market. I think they're number six, So it's not as clean of a parallel as it is between Salt Lake and Denver, or Salt Lake and Milwaukee, and of course saw Lake and San Antonio.
But it's tough right now.
And I know that a lot of fans just want to go to a game, and that's why Jazz fans continue to show up, and maybe you learn a little something about Isaiah Calier and Walker Kessler and some of these young players. But the road between where the Jazz are now and where a team like Oklahoma City is is a marathon, and I can't even sit here and say they're two three years away from being back in the mix. It feels like it's more more than that. It feels like it's four or five six. Are you
willing to be patient with that process? The only time will tell I misspoke, and one of my NBA nerd friends let me know, So let me clear this up, because I'm.
Sure everybody was so upset.
San Antonio won the championship in twenty fourteen over Miami, but the year before Miami them so my bad.
All right, so hopefully everybody's day is fine.
We were talking about kind of markets where you can be analogous with roster construction, and they've won championships with Salt Lake City, San Antonio small market, Salt Lake City small market. Our next guest is not a small market talent, but he does work here. His name is Andy Larson. On a Thursday. Andy, Happy Thursday, buddy.
How are you.
I'm good man, I'm good.
I'm good.
So that's kind of where I started the show today, just talking about some roster construction stuff, and you know the recent examples of Denver with Jokic and Milwaukee with Giannis, and then of course the San Antonio dynasty. Just trying to because look, it's a rough scene and I'm not going to break down the recent Drew you Banks minutes, like, we're just trying to figure out how we can give this fan base some hope that may be a championship
is in the future. And of course a lot of this is, you know, the context is a lot of luck. It's Jokic in the second round, it's Giannis in the mid f it's that great team with Duncan, and you need luck and the Jazz haven't had it.
But what are your thoughts on that for the fan base out here.
Like can we ever win a championship and some of examples that we could be a little bit analogous with, Yeah, I.
Think it's possible, and I think you're right. So like San Antonio is a reasonable complict. They are similar size cities and similar front offices. You know, like Greg Popovich and Archie Buford were really clear that they built that first version of the Spurs kind of on the model of what the Utah Jazz could be in in the.
Late nineties and.
Kind of a small market team that works hard that kind of builds a roster together, and you know, the Spurs want a championship and the Jazz didn't, but I certainly don't think it's impossible.
For the Jazz too.
And he fast forward even to today where you know Dier and Fox wants probably out of Sacramento, is looking for his next home, and the San Antonio Spurs look like an attractive destination for him to him because they have Victor and women Yama, and he can imagine playing with one of the league's best talents for.
The next five years.
Right, So I think it does all start with the draft. But if you are able to nail that, and you are able to get really, really really good talent in the drafts, then yeah, everything can come together and you can actually win titles.
And I was driving the parallel between the NFL teams that are left standing and what they've done to kind of build, because you know, Philly on paper has superior talent to Kansas City. Kansas City has fifteen under center and they have Andy Reid. And ultimately, building a roster in pro basketball is a little bit different than it is in Pro football, but the Pillars remain the same
and it's ownership front office. Now, you have to have talent obviously, and of course you want a guy that can coach.
I think the Jazz have that guy that can coach for sure.
I think we all believe if Will has really really good talent at some point, well we'll see him maximize good Town. We've seen him maximize mediocre talent. So I think we all believe they have the right guy on the bench. But do they have the right guy in charge? They have the right guy as far as the ownership group, do they have the right guy in the front office.
I think that's very much still a question mark Andy.
Yeah, and you know, I think so a couple of questions. Yeah, does does Danny Ainge draft well? I think is a question. You know, clearly his draft picks worked out for the Boston Celtics, you know, but they're also a number of question marks with him kind of later on in the draft and then frankly with the Jets. The sixth picks that Danny Ainge has made over the last two years
have not been you know, successful picks. I think it's fair to say, you know, and those guys are still young and can develop, but have not set the world on fire in their first first year or two. And then yeah, ownership, you know, I think Ryan Smith impressed me by, you know, paying the luxury tax in the first year, but he's obviously the branding stuff, both with the hockey club and the Jazz have been big missteps. I think it's fair to question, you know, a variety
of other moves. I also think that in the NBA, if you have the player and coach, it kind of doesn't matter. And I look across the Rocky Mountains of the Denver Nuggets, where the crankies are known as really cheap owners and are not putting together a terrific front office there in Denver. You know, they're they're not a highly regarded front office or a highly regarded ownership group.
But still because they had Nikolay Jokic, and because they put together good players around them who played their best basketball, and then I think Michael Malone's a really, really good coach. Yeah, they were able to win a title and and so you know, you just kind of us like the right intersection of things to come together at the right time in order for it to work out. But I don't think that like this ownership group is going to prevent the Jazz from winning a title or anything like that.
And I want to be clear because I said, you know, as far as the front office, to have the red guys in charge, and you know, Danny's track record speaks for itself. I'm not necessarily concerned about whether or not Danny's good at his job. I just wonder how present he is. I just wonder how involved he is. We see him in a lot of college games, and he does some media here or there. And I don't think you're gonna meet anybody around pro basketball that doesn't really
respect Justin and I certainly do as well. But to your point, when you have the talent, when you have the coaching, that seems to be you know, some things that can maybe cover up certain issues with the ownership group or the front office. And I anecdotally I shared this earlier. You know, when I was in college, a professor of mine gave us all an assignment to go interview somebody who's doing something currently that we think would
be cool to do at some point. And I sat down with Scott Laiden, who was the GM of the Jazz at the time, and one of the questions we were supposed to ask them, is who are the most important people in the organization? Who's the most important? Who are the most important people in your business?
And why?
And when I asked Scott that, I thought he was gonna say, Larry Larry Miller, thought he was gonna say.
He didn't even blink. He said, it's.
John Stockton and Carmelone like period, end of story. Two most important. Uh, you know, the two most important people, not players, two most important people in the organization. So maybe it is just a matter of when you find those unicorns. You know, Denver is your cousin that drove up to Idaho to get the lottery ticket and they won the lottery with Yo Kitchen the second round, and Milwaukee did it did it with Jannisman first round.
Maybe that's what this is. Maybe that's all it is, and we're just overthinking it.
I kind of think so yeah, and like not that everybody, like everybody does matter, right, Like we saw the last iteration of the Jazz kind of failed to put a good enough core around Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Goobert, who also, you know, just weren't top five players. We also saw that, you know, the previous group before them failed to put a good enough group around John Stockton and Carmelone, right, Like, that's ultimately why the Stoking Malone team didn't win the title.
On an office does matter, but you're right, like, in the end, it's probably the quality of star players that
you have. And you know, I think that's why a little bit what the Jazz are doing with the tanking makes some sense, because Cooper Flag does look like a really top number one prospect, and if you do have every chance to go get him, even if that chance is only a fourteen percent chance, which it is, I think you have to open your organization to that possibility because you know, frankly, without him or without that caliber player, or you're not really going.
Anywhere all Right to the current situation where we find ourselves with the Jazz, Let's start with, and I don't know who to credit here, but about two weeks ago I saw something where it's like, yeah, Sacramento's in on John Collins, and maybe that's something that comes down and
goes through. You've got some intel here, So you talked to John about it and what so tell us what John had to say when you downed this to him and what you're understanding about A whether or not they were close to making this deal, and B whether or not it's still on the table.
Yeah.
James sam who's one of the best beat writers in Sacramento, reported that the Kings had come gotten to final talks in a trade conversation with the Jazz about John Collins, and in particular, they were gonna send Kevin Herder, Trey Lyles, a first round pick and a second round pick to the Jazz for John Collins. Brett Siegel, you know, presented that package. He's the reporter who did that. But everyone agrees those were kind of basically the terms of the deal.
And then for whatever reason, those final contract negotiations that either fell apart or put on ice. Apparently, James ham says again the King's reporter says that they had even told the players that John Collins was coming to Sacramento, which is pretty wild, right, Like you you rarely hear of a team telling a group of players that this trade is going to be done if it's not done yet, right.
So I went to John Collins today at shoot around and just asked him about that, frankly, and said, hey, you did you.
Know about that? And he he didn't.
You know, it was pretty clear he was honestly, he asked me to repeat it twice, like he had not heard about this potential trade to Sacramento. He had seen like the rumors that hey, maybe the Kings might be interested, along with a couple of other teams, but he hadn't heard those rumors. So I thought that that was interesting.
And then, you know, but he said, look, he's also not playing right now because he's on the trade market and because the Jazz were tanking, and and he you know, I think his trade in some ways does make sense to him. And he's kind of in this Catch twenty two where I think he likes Utah and he likes the situation.
He likes his teammates, but.
You know, he likes Will Hardy, so on and so forth, but I you know, would prefer to play basketball. And it has been kind of a frustrating year for him. So you know, he's trying to be a pro and is a really I think, a great guy to talk to, is really friendly.
With the media.
It's just a tough situation and he knows. You know, look, we're a week away from the trade deadline. The Kings are clearly very interested, and that could still happen with the Deer and Fox Steel. But from his point of view, he's he's right in and out for the next week and trying to stay focus on what he can control, which is obviously not these trade rumors.
Did you say Kevin Herder Trey Lyles a first and a second?
Did I hear that right?
That's what Brett Siegel reported at Clutch Points.
Feels like a lot for John Collins question mark.
Yeah, and yet, so like Kevin Herder has had a really bad season, and so the Kings are kind of have been willing to put him, you know, they've benched him, They've been willing to put him into trade conversations because he does have a relatively big contract and he's only shooting thirty percent from three this year. So where I would have considered before this season Kevin heard it to be a real plus. They no longer think of him
that way. I kind of would buy glow on him and see, you know, what he could bring to the Jazz. You know, I would be kind of excited about that move.
Even just one to one.
But it looks like, yeah, Kevin Herder plus Ray Lyles plus a pick was the offer reported. And again I've heard that kind of package from not just not just Siegel, not just the Clutch Points guy, but from from other sources as well.
Any other rumors out there about potential moves. I mean, I think I said this to you a week ago. It's hard to know. I mean, I know the guys I trust, and I go to their individual websites or I go to their individual socials, but I don't I don't know, man, My Twitter algorithm is so messed up. Sometimes I'll just get a random trade rumor or a link, and I always click on it, and they always talk about the Jazz. And we're hearing Colin Sexton, We're hearing
Jordan Clarkson. So what are you hearing as far as other potential moves that the Jazz could make prior to the deadline.
Yeah, I guess I'm not hearing anything specific other than the columns to Sacramento king stuff about individual players to individual teams, you know, Like I'm with you, I'm reading those reports. By the way, Like the website, hoops type is really useful, and gms and executives around the league also use hoop type to kind of get to kind of combine and compile these rumors all in one place.
But yeah, you know, so like I think there is league wide interest in Colin Sexton, or I guess not league wide, but there are some teams interested in acquiring him as a scoring guard. Jordan Clarkson is less attractive, I think, just because he's been playing less well on the court.
And you know, there are even like some.
Drew Eubanks mentioned out there, which is kind of interesting as like a potential backup center for a.
Team that may need them.
I don't know that the Jazz are going to get a lot in those trade conversations for some of those other guys, but it is interesting that there does seem to be those names floating around the markets as potential answers for some of these teams.
So oftentimes, and I you know, tongue in cheek about the Drew u Banks minutes earlier. I mean, Drew U Banks is a good backup center. You know, I'm not saying he doesn't have value, but there are times where I'll see rotational decisions and just kind of roll my eyes, like, all right, there's nothing there but the keyante George coming off the bench. Decision is not nothing, because I've talked to you about this, most of our national NBIA guys about this too. At some point you got to figure
out who he is. At some point, you got to figure out whether or not he's part of the future plans. At some point you have to figure out whether or not he has a role for a team that actually is trying to win. And my analysis of him on a good team is that he is a scoring combo guard off the bench. Now, the Jazz have one in Colin Sexton, they have one in Jordan Clarkson.
There's some redundancy on the roster, but what.
Do you perceive the goal is with Will now bringing Key off the bench and starting Isaiah Callier.
The goal is, and we asked Will about this in press conferences in otherwise, the goal is to get Kiante to play defense, you know, straight up, like, uh, we as much as it could be cool to, you know, ellivate Isaiah Collier and you know he's playing kind of pass first basketball. The goal is to give Kiante a little bit of a wake up call, like, hey, what you're doing right now isn't enough, and uh he simply has to try more on the defensive end or else. He is not an NBA player. He is the worst
defender on the worst defense in basketball. I guess now that Jabs are the second worst defense in basketball. Progress Uh it is, it's and then also, you know, and if you can maybe get away with that if you're a seller offensive player and he's shooting thirty eight from the field thirty percent from.
The field on offense. So like it's just meant to.
Be a wake up call to Kiance George, you have to play defense. You have to start trying more on that end. I've seen him try a little bit more in the.
Game since the benching.
The problem is, he told us the other day he's never had a coach before will Hardy get on him about his defensive play before. And that's wild to me, Like, how, you know, how have you gone through twenty years of coaching before having.
This happen to you?
But heck in an AAU world where he's like a top recruit and known for his scoring and shooting crowds, I also kind of understand how that might have happened. And so this is a new world for Kyant and I think like even when he tries he's still not good on that end, but it's got to.
Start with effort. I think that's what the Jazz are hoping.
For by moving him to the benches, is to see more of that effort and to see his focus change so that you know, it's it's not about whether or not he looks at a game as a success based on how many points.
He has, but on what he does on both ends of the floor.
Probably because he came up in AAU, he was never coached to play defense, but Scott Drewid Baylor is thought to be a defensive minded coach. That that is a pretty stunnied admission, not gonna lie.
Agreed, and I was. I was surprised at that too. It's like, not even at the college level. And you know, I didn't go back and forth with Keante on that, but he said, that's the first time in his life that a coach has been on him about his defense. And again, that's surprising to me. It wasn't surprising when I when I told well Hardy about that to him, just because like you know, a we see it on the floor and be that's like, that is.
The environment where guys kind of are in right now.
Where coaches are afraid teams are gonna guys, you know, really talented players are going to transfer AU programs or transfer colleges. Like there is kind of this reluctance right now to coach, and it's think, you know, there are some really good young players who try really hard on the defensive ends. But for some players, and I give Idea Callier Frankly a lot of credit there where he was the number one high school recruit and clearly is giving a better effort on defense than Kyante.
So you know, I don't.
Think all the kids are are screwed necessarily or anything, but in Kyante's case, it's just got to be so so so much better.
All Right, Minnesota is in town tonight, and that always gives us the ability to look back on the Rudi Goobert deal and the Rudy Gobert trade and analyze where we're at with it today now.
When the deal was made, I.
Felt like I was the only one that was like, look, we'll see I mean on paper, yes, was it a lot, Sure it was a lot, but only time will tell. The player they received was Walker, and Walker's really good, and it's really exciting to see what he's done this year and potentially analyze what he could be if he keeps working and stays healthy. The pick that they've viewed so far was Kiante very very much still out. All the other players they received in that deal, no longer
on the team. In two years in Minnesota, Rudy more or less has done more or less what he did here. Maybe outside of those two three year you know, real peak go bear years Minnesota, I thought, you know, last couple of years, maybe one of the teams in the West that may have a shot. They made a financial move because their ownership situation is in flux, get rid of Karl Anthony Towns. But as we sit here today, looking back on the deal a number of years ago, what's the Andy Larson take.
Yeah, I mean, I still think we're in that kind of same position where the most valuable picks are still to come. Walker Kessler is still a very good piece. I'd still rather be on the Jazz side of the deal,
kind of in a vacuum the Jazz. I think the Jazz hoped when they made that trade that they would have a short rebuild right like that, rather than draft all of those players with all those picks they would be able to trade them for a star moving forward, and that clearly not happened, and that goal has been delayed, if not abandoned. Right like that, let's start there. But
what happens with the other picks really matters. And you know, I think the Timberwolves are probably less good than they hope that they would be after the trade, right Like, Look, they're what two or three games.
Above five hundred right now, and.
I do think you've seen significant slippage this year from Mike Conley and Rudy Gobert, and you know, Joe Ingles is not an NBA player anymore. And yeah, as a result, like you know, if I'm betting over the next heck, just over the next five years, which player I'd rather have on my team, I'm probably taking Walker Kessler over Rudy Gobert, just because of how old they are and
what happens to players as their age curve advances. So ultimately, yeah, I'm still kind of taking the Jazz's end of the deal, and as in the value.
Proposition, and it's up to the Jazz to make the best.
Of those picks that they do have from Minnesota leftover, So all right.
Away from the Jazz. We have some breaking news. We will not play our cheesy breaking news sounders. But according to the Utah Hockey Club, you just came down three minutes ago. I'll just read the tweet. Hey, Utah Hockey fans, we listened to your feedback and dug in all the qual tricks data from last night's survey. No, they didn't for the team name. It's clear that the Outlaws should be in the mix instead of Wassatch, so we're swapping it out. The surveys will continue at the reen on Friday. No,
they won't Sunday and Tuesday. Liar for you to vote, No, you won't for the options which are now Utah Mammoth, Utah Hockey Club and the Utah Outlaws.
What's your reaction to this whole cluster?
You know what.
I'm I mean, that's a good change.
Look, I was really frustrated yesterday with.
Them with the PR.
Side of it, right Like, I had a really frink conversation with someone from SEGPR yesterday and the hallway of the Delta Center, and we went back and forth pretty well. I tweeted what I tweeted. Look, I do not the whole wash. That thing was a bad idea, and it's like it's a good idea. It's good thing that they've replaced it without laws. I think that they have replaced it without laws makes it make sense, makes it uh,
makes it more fans centric than it was before. Clearly that in my brain, Like when I scrolled through Twitter, was kind of the second most favored of the of the team names that I had seen, And I think that that makes it a real contest again, right, Like I thought what they had set up yesterday was fake and was yeah pointing towards Mammos, because your choices are between a team without a name, a team that a team named that sug had inventioned that nobody wanted, and
the Utah Mammoths. And now, okay, all of a sudden, you've got a second real option there. So I'm exceeded to see what happens there. I guess the other thing I would say there is that probably means they got the heads up from their lawyers that they could confidence
trademark outlaws, and that's a good thing. So wild the process has been convoluted, and I disagree with the idea that the SEG is unique in its connection with fans in the history of professional sports or whatever they put in the press release last night.
This change is good.
No that you pointed it out, because the last paragraph in the press release ruled.
I'm like, who wrote this, Abraham Hicks, and I'm going to read it.
The commitment SEG has to involve the fans in the community in the naming process is unique in the history of professional sports. SEG said they're on track to announce the permitted team name before the start of the twenty five twenty six NHL season. That's not even unique to Utah, let alone all the professional sports.
Like that is a wild assertion.
Look, I pointed that out on Twitter yesterday and they said, that's not remarkably false.
That's that's our opinion. And it's like, I just wish you well. So many of the people over.
There come from a tech background, right where everything is the way the success in tech is through selling high dreams, regardless of whether or not you're making money, regardless of whether or not you're kind of doing well in real world terms, and there is so much of that attitude that that permeates SEG. I think in general, I thought that paragraph was an example of that. I think how this naming process a little bit has been an example of that. And you know, again in a lot of
other different ways. That being said, you know, credit when credit is due. This swap today that you just told me about I didn't know about is a good thing.
I love. They said, that's their opinion.
That reeks of Kelly and Conway talking about alternative facts.
But anyway, do you have it?
Do you have a preferred name that you'd like to see when this when this thing comes to a close.
Oh, I don't know now that it is mammoth verus Outlaws, I'm not thought about it. I probably go outlaws then. I like, uh, I like the alliteration there. I like the I like that it's kind of real to Utah history and like a very neat way. Yeah, I think you know, off the top of my head, on two's outlaws of those three, give.
Me one reason why you're optimistic about the lads this year?
Do I have to?
I mean, I just give me one if.
There's got to be one, Andy.
Okay, the midfield is still awesome, right like yeah, like Oheita and Anelli and public reads coming back to school, milm Placio has been great. I'm meeting with those guys tomorrow for chat about the off season and the season to come, and I'm excited to kind of learn what I learned in that conversation tomorrow morning.
All Right, buddy, well, appreciate the time. The sun is shining, so golf is right around the corner. We got to get out when when the snow's gone.
Okay, let's do it. I need it, all right, Andy Larson, Salt Lake Tribune.
I always appreciate data sign for the latest on the Utah Jazz and data and such at Andy B. Larson is where you find him on social media. All right's still a few days away from Super Bowl fifty nine, but never about time to talk football. I never know where our next guest is. He could be in Hawaii, he could be in Germany. He could be golfing, he could be grinding on tape. I'll let him tell us, Scott Mitchell, where you're at. Not a Thursday afternoon.
Just sitting in the living room on the couch. I'm actually building a studio spence, so wow, Yeah, I think I'm going to be joining the ESPN network of stations here in a couple of weeks.
Do you have something?
Do you have something you'd like to I was going to say, do you have something you'd like to announce to our audience and quite frankly all of us over here.
Yeah, So the old Sister station, I guess, I guess you'd call it that nine sixty.
Sure.
I'm going to be doing a show in the UH in the afternoon from one to two, so on that station.
Do we have a name? Do we have a name in place?
Scott?
I don't know.
I'm thinking the Hour of Power or the Power Hour, or the Lunch Hour or because it's only an hour, and I gotta you know, I got to swing for the fences with the hour. So I'm gonna I'm gonna bring the best, the deepest cuts and takes and just fly off the rails for about an hour on the radio. That's what I'm gonna do.
I like it The Power Hour with Scott Mitchell. Let's do the Power Hour with Scott Mitchell.
I like that. Okay, all right, and you know what, Rail, you.
Know, you know what, Scott. Just for you, I'm gonna workshop some things tonight. I'm gonna send you a couple of ideas how about we do that.
I would love that. Okay, yeah, let's do it. Well.
Very exciting, very exciting, all right, Scott, let's stock a little super Bowl. But before we get there, let's sock a little. Let's loock a little conference champs conference championship games, and then we'll move on. Let's start with Philly and Washington. We had you on last week. I thought you did a good job of articulating just how exciting your one for Commanders fans was.
With Jayden Daniels under center.
I thought Philly would win, but I thought it would be close, and they smoked them. So takeaways NFC Championship, Philly moves on, Washington goes home.
Yeah, And really, it's football is about the trenches, and it always is. I mean, you can talk about the marquee players and the stars and the superstars, but it's the guys up front. And Philadelphia might be the best team in the NFL up front right now on offense and defense. They had guys injured on their offensive line and they were still being very, very effective. And you know, on the other side of it, you have no rookie quarterback has ever taken their team to the Super Bowl.
So it's a tall order, but when I hear stats like that, it just tells me it's about time someone did. And that's kind of why I picked Washington. And I you know, I've just been so impressed with Jade and Daniels. But this Philadelphia team, Uh, it's they're gonna be a tough out. They're they're really really athletic in the secondary, and they've just they've been like glue on on the receivers for the teams pretty prolific offenses, and they've they've
really stepped up their game. And you know, it's gonna be interesting to see how well the Chiefs handle that, you know, because it might take Patrick Mahomes doing a little running magic, and he's done more of that into the playoffs, and uh, but it's it's gonna be a tough out. And then you know, sa Kwon Barkley, as you know, he's such a talent. And I've heard people say, oh, look, you know, the the running back is now pack in the NFL, and and I don't. I don't believe that's
necessarily true. What I believe is what is always the case, and that's talent. Talent always finds a way to rise to the occasion no matter no matter what position where it is. And sa Kuon Barkley is a special talent and he's a guy that they figured out how to, you know, how to be explosive. And coaches in the NFL they don't care like they're just like, wherever I can find production, wherever I can move the ball, wherever I can have a mismatch, That's where I'm gonna go.
And and they have that ability. And part of it is Jalen Hurts is a guy that can run as well as throw the football and and so there's just an honest factor with him in the game. And you kind of saw that where they really played off of each other so nicely and so so they're they're gonna be tough offensively and and and you know they've been there before and and so they're not this moment isn't bigger than them for the Eagles. Uh, you know it'll be.
It's gonna be hard. It's gonna be hard for Kansas City to actually win this game.
I always roll my eyes when I hear people say, well, the running back position is dead or the center position is dead in basketball, Like you know, every you know for for a long time, everybody's saying, well, if you do not have a six seven six ' eight wing, dominant wing in pro basketball, you can't win a championship.
Small players, point guards don't move the needle. And then Steph Curry was like, oh yeah, I mean, ultimately, the top end talent, you cannot blanket a position by saying this position is dead because the top end talent at any position, Scott will always move the.
Needle, running back, right guard, whatever it is.
If you can have top end talent, then all the conversation about a position or group being dead is just dumb.
No, it really is. It's a great point. I mean, these these athletes can't they can't go excuse me for being this body type or being this position type. And and it just it just how it's just how it is in the NFL, and they they just find a way that that talent and and I'm you know, I'm sure the same thing is is the case in the ABIT.
You know, you think of Michael Jordan coming along, and like they've never seen a player like Michael Jordan, and now you see a lot of players like that, and and and Steph certainly, you know he he kind of changed the whole whole dynamic of of how the game's played and the position and and you know, it's it's
it's really about. I just remember early on in my career and Gene Upshaw, who was the president of the Players Association, and they were trying to ratify this whole idea of free agency, and he just said, there's always going to be stars there, and they're just they're they're going to come from all different kinds of places and positions, but there's always going to be stars. And this league ultimately is driven by those stars, wherever they come from.
And the league knows this. You know, they're going to promote the heck out of out of whoever is that is that star. And they don't they don't care what what position it is. I mean, you look at a guy like Taysom Hill undrafted, uh, but just the guy has talent and they figured out how to put him on the field. And quite frankly, Jalen Hurts, who's in the Super Bowl, was initially drafted because the Philadelphia Eagles
thought he was the next iteration of Taysom Hill. They drafted him to be kind of that specialized Swiss Army knife guy and lo and behold he actually turns into a quarterback. And Taysom Hill didn't you know? So? Uh So, the talent is one of those things. You know, Puka Nakua, who's one of the top receivers in the NFL. He it is because he's good and and and so there there's always a place, there's always a position, you know. You I think another guy who's done that is Vilichick.
And you you know, you get some of these, you know, Wes Welker's or Julian Edemans, and they go, those guys are undersize, they can't play, and they go, no, they can. You put them in the middle of the field here and let them let their talent shine and they'll get open and they'll catch the heck out of the football and they'll make your offense so much more explosive and
dynamic and productive. But it's just it's again, the NFL will find whatever nook and cranny, whatever position, whatever uniqueness it is, if you can play, you will stay.
Let me ask you, Yeah, you know that's good. That's good.
I just stay tuned one to two on our sister station coming soon, The Power Hour.
Scott Mitchell.
Since I asked you about Jadeen Daniels last week, let me dig into your thoughts on Jalen.
Jalen Hurts so Philadelphia.
Last year, only Carolina, Chicago, and New England have fewer passing yards per game.
Jalen was number ten in QBR.
He's the last ranked quarterback of any qualified quarterbacks in the postseason in QBR.
But for some reason, I still really like him.
I feel like maybe I'm on an island here, but he It's interesting that we have a team in the Super Bowl where the coach is in question and the quarterback is in question, thought to be the two most important pieces of pro football. But what do you like about Jalen and what bugs you as somebody played that position?
Well, I don't. I don't like Jalen Hurst. I love him, actually, and I'll tell you why. Here's a guy who went to Alabama, leads him to a national championship, goes back and gets benched in the national championship game for TUA, and then stay, doesn't transfer, doesn't pout, doesn't complain, takes his medicine, finishes out, and then goes to uh Oklahoma as a grad transfer and really turns it around because
Jalen was not a good passer. And then he goes to the NFL and he goes, as I said earlier, as this novelty and then he can you know, he kind of converted himself into a guy could actually throw, and it to me, it was really remarkable because I really did think he was going to be like a Taysom Hill, where you know, he couldn't really throw that well. And there are people that say maybe he still can't do it. But the guys why I love him is
because he's stuck through all of that stuff. He looked at where he was weak and he figured out how to make it actually a strength of his and he's a winner. He's he's been a winner. He's a guy I like these guys that you know have have kind of been through some stuff and got a little bit of a chip on their shoulder and and he just feel like he's kind of that guy that like, don't count me out. And and the worst thing you could ever do is like tell me that I'm no good,
because I'm gonna I'm gonna prove you wrong. And and that grit and that toughness is part of why this team is in the super Bowl and why they're there and why they can why they can win it, and he, I mean, he's got enough around him on I mean as a whole football team that you know, he doesn't have to be Josh Allen. He doesn't have to be the superstar guy by himself. He's you know, he having a second fiddle in in uh saquon Is has probably
been a huge benefit to him. And yeah, I just I just wouldn't count out Jalen hurts.
It all speaking of Josh Allen's go over to the AFC Championship Game, and on Friday of last week, I said, I'm riding with the Bills. It feels like it's Josh's time. But I fully anticipate sitting on my couch on Sunday evening going, you idiot, what are you doing?
And that's, uh, that's what happens.
So your takeaways of Kansas City just doing Kansas City things, finding ways to win, and what's your take now on yet another exit from Josh Allen and the narrative around him moving forward.
It's a tough one. And it's tough because I mean Josh actually played pretty decent. Uh, you know, in the game, and but you could just tell that that anchor still on his around his neck. You could see when the game got closed, or you know, they'd show visions of him on the sideline. You know, most most guys are like stone face. You know, they don't give you any expression, and you can just feel the worry or they're like, oh my goodness, here this goes again kind of thing.
And and it kind of impacts your your your ability to play because that last drive when they just really needed it, whether it was calling plays or what they were doing, uh, you know, it just it was kind of it was playing kind of small, you know, it's almost almost tentative. Uh, you know, Kansas City goes, look, we're gonna There were two different plays and two critical situations. One where Patrick Mahomes rolls out and actually runs for
the first down. And then there was another play that's really it's a zone and a man concept and and that you know, something that that they you know, called probably a million times, and he throws the ball to the back out of the backfield and it's it's the clincher. And and Andy Reid's talked about this and every co you know, every play they have these plays, you know, for those situations, like you know, unveil your best play
in that critical situation. And one that's you know, it's and instead of well, let's just run our quarterback for a quarterback sneak three or four times. And and so I just I think in order for Josh Allen to get over that hump, there's got to be more play to win. You know, damn the torpedoes full speed ahead.
You've got to be more bold and more creative. And some of the things they're actually doing and hopefully will because he's you know, he's a really good talent, and they're a really good team, and they're really close, and it's just unfortunate you have to play Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes at their very best. That's that's hard to hard to get over.
Speaking of that, we'll move over now to Super Bowl fifty nine Caesars A super Dome, New Orleans, Louisiana, and it's a rematch of a game a couple of years ago that felt like Philly was on their way and then Kansas City, you know, they did what they do, They came back and they wanted to get in. Kansas City is a slight favorite. I thought this line would move and it hasn't at all. For the for seventy two hours. Now it's the Chiefs minus one point five
the over unders forty nine point five. What you gotta tell you, Scott about this game coming up on Sunday the ninth.
And I'm sure that slight advantage is just because of the experience of Patrick Mahomes and and Andy Reid, and they just they just understand. It's almost like they you know, they just expect to be there and this is just just this normal territory for them. Winning a Super Bowl is really hard, and winning a second one is harder, probably the hardest thing to do. And and now the third one is you know, it's it's kind of house money. It's like who cares at this, you know this point.
So there's there's any pressure on Kansas City extra. I know a lot of people are going to make a big deal about a free peat because you know, it's never been done in football, But I just don't think it's really gonna bother them. They both of these teams are are pretty complete, you know, on both sides of the ball, and I just, you know, I just I just feel it's going to be a good game. I don't think anyone's gonna get blown out of this game.
I don't think the Eagles are going to be like overwhelmed, you know, or intimidated or or anything like that. I feel like there's energy and you know, gas still in the tank for the Chiefs, because that's an emotional thing to go through and win seventeen games in a row, not just seventeen, but in a row by one point one score or less. That just kind of, you know, after a while, gets on your nerve. You think of
that old gunslinger. You know, he's been in that gunfight so many times that now just he just kind of has just little trembled to him. Or or you know, saving Private Ryan. You know, after a while, it just you get the yips, you know, you get you know, he just the nerves just they just take over and they and it doesn't feel that way for the Chiefs. They feel like, cool, we got a chance to win.
We know how to do this at the end of the game, and they and they do it, and so I just I feel like something in me just says this is going to be just a really good football game and something that a lot of people will win, and I really think it's just going to come down to at the end of the game, you know who manages the best and who who who can find that way to just get that drive, that one drive laid
in the game that seals the deal. That's what I really think, this whole game is going to come down to.
All right, Scott, before I set you loose, get ready the way too early. Twenty twenty five, twenty twenty six twelve team CFP projection from Bill Connley of ESPN with his sp plus data and out of the Big twelve representing the conference. According to Bill Conley, is the University of Utah in the twelve team CFP next year. Give me a Scott Mitchell hot take on that.
Well, the covers weren't there, you know, I think it felt that way. I mean, it was just a painful season. Utah was in every game pretty much, even the Colorado game that got away from him. In the end. They were they were It was a it was a it was a winnable game until you know, they just kind of could get nothing going offensively. So you have a defense, it's gonna be good. It was really good last year it's gonna be as good, if not better again this year.
And then and then you just add some offense, you know, just just find some production offensively. And I really like what I really like Jason Beck. I've had a chance to talk to him, you know, quite extensively, actually, and I like what he's all about is his style, his philosophy, and and and coach Whittingham is putting him in a position to really implement what he knows, what he believes,
and he's got his quarterback that he believes. So so there's not even though that you have these new players coming into the program offensively, they're not new to what's
going to be going on. So so you're really you're not going to have that longer like learning curve that you would if you just brought a bunch of athletes in off the street and they go, okay, we're gonna you know, if you're way ahead when the quarterback knows the offense very well, and uh, and then these other people can come along and and and there's some players offensively, they have some weapons. They're going to play to who they are and what their strengths are. And the Utah
gets any kind of offense. Next year they're gonna they're definitely going to be competitive and can win every single game they play in next year. So I don't think it's that far actually, all.
Right, all right, I love it, Scott. Thanks for the time, buddy. Have a great week and weekend. We'll get y'all soon, Okay, all right, love it, all right, Scott Mitchell. Before we catch break, I want to tell you about my friends at Prize Picks, best place to get real money sports action. With over ten million members and billions of dollars in awarded winnings, Prize Picks has made daily fantasy sports accessible
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Use the promo code ESPN seven hundred to get fifty dollars instantly after you play your first five dollars lineup. Download the Prize Picks app today. Use the promo code ESPN seven hundred to get fifty dollars instantly after you play your first five dollars line of Prize Picks. Run your game all season long. All right, we're gonna bring in John Paul JP Chunga joins us coming up in just a little bit.
We'll do a bunch of everything with JP.
We'll get back to some college and pro football in the five o'clock hour. But you feel that sunshine outside today? Do you feel that forty degree sunshine outside today? Well, the consistent, sunshine is on its way. And if you are like me, and if you get out as much as you can to play golf. Do you have a dog, you like to go hiking? Do you like to get
out and go mountain biking. Well, you have a tremendous amount of sun exposure that quite frankly, is dangerous even though we all love it, it's dangerous if you don't stay on top of it. Now we have a new client on the show. They're friends of mine. It's Ogden Clinic, Hadley Dermatology. We have traded j for the smarter, better looking, older dermatologist. It's doctor Michael Hadley Liven Studio. Doctor Hadley.
How are you, sir? I'm great.
Great to be here is fence and get to meet you in person and see your setup now awesome.
I appreciate you coming in so like like I said, and look you you play golf like I do. And you are like the foremost expert with this stuff in the state. So early detection can literally save lives. Tell our listeners who are like us, they want to get out and play golf, they want to hike, they want to hang out of the lake. Why it's dangerous to wait and how they how they can come get checked at your spot.
I appreciate the question. I mean as Utan's we live in a great place to recreate. We we love to be outdoors. We love to ski, like you say, hike, golf, you name it. Kids are running around playing soccer. All the things, uh that we we love about our state unfortunately come at a cost. And particular something that's a bit sobering. We are actually number one for incidents of melanoma in the nation.
I know that.
That's why, more than double the national average. So you think, oh, California, Florida, Arizona, Texas. Now it's Utah, and people scratch their heads and say, well, why is that? And ultimately it boils down to a variety of factors. Certainly genetics were fair skin. We have a lot of sunny days. We're in a high desert. But the principal thing is altitude. Every ten thousand feet you go up, you increase the intensity of sun about
forty percent. So here in Salt Lake City forty five hundred feet, you know, up at alta or over eight thousand feet, Park City six thousand. So that comes at a cost, and that cost is of unfortunately melanoma, other cancers as well, basal cells squamso cancers. So yeah, I'm a dermatologist, but my specialty is a technique of removal when these cancers are diagnosed. I'm a mose surgeon, which is a technique where we use microscopes to get rid
of them and that. But my message here is, don't wait for me, get out, get checked out, do more prevention before you see me. And there's a number of things that we can talk about to limit you seeing me. I always choke with my patience. You don't want to see me, You want to see other guys first. Sure, yeah, before you see me. You're kind of the last stop.
So let's let's get into some prevention stuff and then we'll end with the deal you have for our listeners. Because every time I see Jason, he's like, dude, you're golfing all the time. You got to come see me, You gotta come see Mike and I need to get in. But before we get to the deal, how can people at least operate as safely as possible prior to seeing you the last stop?
I mean, it's the same stuff you probably always have been told sunscreen, and when people ask me what the best sunscreen is, it boils down to the sunscreen that you use.
Yeah.
I have a lot of ideas of different types of blockers, physical blockers in titanium, et cetera. But I'd really prefer you just put something on, particularly where the sun is most intense. Hats, protection with clothing, etc. All those things are good, but I'd like to take it to another level. I think there are other things out there that science has now been showing us is very helpful with prevention. These would be what I'd put into a category of topical potent.
Antioxidants.
These are products you actually put on your skin that have been shown with good scientific data. There's over fifty five peer reviewed scientific studies valid validating that these things work. So you can put it on your face, especially where you're going to a lot of sign As a golfer, I put it on daily. I joke with my patients, I don't know who my skin cancer surgeon's going to be, right, It's not gonna be my brother, right right, No, I'm joking, he'd be great. But these are things that we can
do in a more preventive manner. In addition, to the things that we've heard about to just take it to another level. Given our climate, we're in a really difficult place.
As far as skin cancer goes.
Excellent knowledge. Now for our listeners that are listening to this, and they're going, oh, I got to get in. You know, if I suspense's golfing, I'm golfing. You know, we're hiking, and I got to get in because again, early detection. And look, I can attest to this because I had a brain tumor that we caught early and luckily I was able to have surgery and I've lived when if I waited a few more months, I would have died.
So let's help our listeners call to action, come see you so they can get in front of this before it gets too bad.
So what's the deal you have for our listeners. The deal is to kind of get people on the antioxidant.
We're going to give a twenty percent discount on our most potent topical antioxidant.
It's a skin suticals product.
If they called the number, say that they heard it on the show, we'll give them that and we'll also do a free skin analysis, which will essentially show them their damage and kind of get them a little bit more motivated. I would say to use these sorts of products.
Okay, So there you go twenty percent off the topical cream and then a free skin analysis, which is a big deal. I mean, you can go up there and just get checked out for free, but you have to call the number. Call it right now here. It is eight oh one six five seven five six six four eight oh one sixty five seven five six six four. You know, there are very few bands that are directly tied to one individual guest, but I think we have
a brand in War on Drugs guest. The bit continues as one of the original founders of The Drive, the original producer of the drives on the mast head, the Dylan Moska bits of the Drive now with our friends at the Jazz and the Royals.
He's very busy, John Paul J P. Chunker. How are you, buddy? So explain this to me. Oh, here we go. Okay, right off the top. I want to know, Yeah, when.
You tell guests at time, okay, is it that time or is it ten minutes later?
Should I build in a buffer next time I appear on the show.
Well, you're in the business, you know, the business sometimes you have to pay the bills, and when a client shows up for an on air hit, sometimes you have to bump my guy for about ten fifteen minutes.
So tomorrow's podcast. You can always get these podcasts Utah jazz dot com.
Uh huh.
I talked to Tom Crean. Nice.
If I told Tom, hey, I'll talk to you at three o'clock and then not show up until three fifteen, do you think you'd.
Be okay with it?
No?
I think Tom would be rather upset. I think so too.
But if you explain to Tom that you did have to take ten minutes to interview a client that's helping pay your bills, I think it might be understanding. And as somebody who's been in this business on that side of the glass, understanding how your salary is paid, I would imagine you have some empathy for me today.
How many final fours have you been to? Fair enough? The answer is zero? How are you pal? You're a busy, busy guy. These days.
We got Stars play by play, we got Royals play by play coming up, of course, all the pods.
You're heading on a jazz road trip. How are things?
It's tremendous. It's good to be busy. I know you are toiling in the content minds from two to five. No, it's six, live man, two to six.
Not to mention four or five hours of prep prior to it's true, and all the games that you watch grinding, because you're definitely not going to the games.
I've been to that.
I've been to five, and I told you I'm going to go to ten. So I'm halfway through and we're about halfway down with the year. I'm on track to live up to my promise.
Young man.
We'll see you about that. But it's good to be busy. I enjoy I'm enjoying it.
I'm enjoying the foray with the Stars, who now have signed Isaiah Thomas for a second stint. I know there are few things in life that you love as much as Isaiah Thomas loves basketball. Like the only comparison I think for you is Brooks Brothers, Vineyard Vines, Sperry's.
It's more of a more of a j Crue guy.
Back in the day, I did go through an Abercromi and Fitch phase that's now over. I do have a couple of Sperries, But yeah, basketball for Isaiah Thomas is fine Northeast where for me, I understand what you're saying.
He loves this game, yes, and I've been able to be around him for both stints, and that comes out of him every time you talk to him, and I think it's super refreshing in this time when you can be cynical about sports, he could say, you know, I'm going to put on a poll on my Twitter what
should the Utah Hockey Club's name be? When you could be cynical about those things, you can know that there are real, pure people like Isaiah Thomas who actually love basketball, love playing playing It doesn't matter where they would play it. He will do it in the G League just to get his shot back in the NBA. And it's such a great show to put on for the fans who go to the Mavericks Center, who watch the G League. And I'm privileged to be alongside that NBA journey for Isaiah Thomas.
Breaking news with the hockey club.
Wassatch is out Outlaws in Outlaws Mammoth Hockey Club. As you give your email address to qual Tricks, what what box will.
You be checking?
Well, I first I have to put a Twitter poll on on X or whatever just to see see I have to update because they knocked out Outlaws.
I like Outlaws. You like Outlaws.
I like Outlaws. It's fun. It's a little West. You could own the West motif okay, and could yield a pretty cool mascot. All right, so JP goes Outlaws. You know my take, stick with the Utahey club man. I actually like it. I think it's classy. Don't overthink it. I don't need some corny mascot, and the mascot doesn't have to be tied to the name. The Jazz mascot is a bear. You can do Utahey Club. You can come up the mascot. I like the colorways. I think the logo's nice.
I like what it is. That's just me to bear in jeens sometimes.
Bear yes sometime. Does he still do the sled down the stairs thing? Or is that now no legal stepped in with that?
Is it bygone era of NBA mascot but one that I missed? Yeah, oh if I'm with you, and you can find on YouTube, I'm sure.
Speaking of the stars, we had a little Cody Williams action right, looked pretty good.
It was awesome. Yeah, yeah, So what was it like to call those games.
So the thing that I think people should realize when it comes to the G League, and I try to make sure I come across this in the broadcast. As much as the result matters, it doesn't. It doesn't matter the result. What matters is what the guys are going and doing and if they're listening to coaching and getting the more time that they need to develop. So Cody Williams is an example. When he was with the Stars. This is a guy who at most in college shot
thirteen attempts from the field. He was getting that in the first half. So him getting the confidence to get out there to show his skills, not play tentative, not play safe, because there were times during the season with the Jazz where he was playing that was a star as you could just cut it loose and you do it in front of tens of people, and that's a good thing because you need to have the pressure the world, the weight of being the tenth overall, pick off your shoulders.
You need to just play free, you need just go. And Cody Williams was able to do that with the Stars, and I'm sure he's going to get another stint as well. But the confidence piece has definitely shown out when he plays with the Stars.
How would you excuse me articulate to the listenership what that level of competition really is, because you know, Broni goes down, he drops thirty thirty three, And what you want is your draft picks to go to the G League and be simply the best players. And I didn't see a ton of the Cody stuff, but I saw the numbers and it looked like he did what they were hoping he was going to do.
But it's not NBA competition.
It is a lot of people trying to play for their jobs, trying to play for their lives, trying to get back in the league, or trying to cut a paycheck.
So, as you've been watching it as the voice of the team, now what's the competition like, Well, I think in the G you see a lot of desperations, something you're familiar with. Oh yeah, yeah, things don't happen to you that happened for.
You exactly, And so that desperation as a driver you're going to sometimes against Scalabisier, who if you remember that name, twenty sixteen first round draft pick. He's trying to find a way in the league, Isaiah Thomas is trying to find a way in the league. They don't care where you're drafted. They don't care that Isaiah Collier is twenty eighth overall coming in out of USC big guy who cares.
They want to take you down. And in a game in the G League, Isaiah Callier went out there and did exactly what you were saying, which was be the best player on the floor, score thirty six, did it confidently shot the three, which is something that he needs to show at the NBA level. If he gets that shot, I think you know you watch him with some of these passes with the Jazz as of late, He's going to be a pretty good point guard because he has that in his mentality and he's wiring.
This competition.
This level is one that tests how much you love the game, how much you want to be Isaiah Thomas, how much you want and accept assignments of playing at a lower level because it's it's summer league, but more structure, because these players have played a little more together. But also realize so many of these guys don't care where you came from, don't care what your draft position was.
They're fighting for an NBA job, and executives are watching from all over the year the world, Europe, Australia and executives in the NBA. Everybody's playing for a job out there.
Scott A text will real quick, JP is using point guard to label players send I thought it was positionless basketball.
Wow, you're titled tailing right now.
I just thought it was positionless. I didn't think were supposed to use those terms with this team. That is not your grandfather's Utah jass, That's what I've heard.
But I mean Isaiah Callier is a point guard.
He is, and he has lead guard tendancies, and I don't think anybody else on the roster has.
I like him a lot more than I thought I was going to. I'm not gonna lie the so he was talking. I I remember talking to him because I talked to him frequently.
You know, what do you what is there? Is there a nickname that we have for Isaiah?
Yet?
Really you want a nickname? So you haven't been watching the G League broadcast? I thought that's what we do?
Call you by his name? Come on, man, is that really it? I think it's Zay everybody calls him.
Did you just make that up?
It?
Come on I'm doing radio here.
That's pretty good. No, but here's the thing that's that's good. But it also tracks. I could totally see somebody, you know, no for the caller by by by name. I could see somebody coming up with that and be like, hey, get Bowler on the line. This is what we're going with tonight.
Call your daddy. Shout out to Trev. Do you mind if I do a read to pay some bills before you break? Is that okay with you?
Please?
Thank you because apparently my gosh, all right, time for the PGA Tour Leaderboard at and t Pebble pro Am going on right now, brought to you by you went to golf. The new G four to forty driver delivers faster ball speeds along with ping's game changing forgiveness. Wow, that's good in golf and in life. There's a lesson there. The G four four zero irons are designed for more
distance and control it. You went to golf five sixties, twenty one hundred, South JP Wonderkins Rising Star, Bright Shining Star, Busy Boys Live in Studio, Former producer this program, former producer here at ESPN seven hundred. How often do you think back and say man, I wish I was still a Broadway I wish I was still doing afternoon drive producing. That has to be a fat that pops in your head a lot. I think about it. Yeah, often I can't say that's the case, but.
You do think about it. I think about it. You miss us, don't you.
I do miss the place. The people were, great relationships you make along the way. It is true, you know, I miss Jan Brownsteam.
Jan still doinger thing. You know real golf radio? Is that what they call it?
You know, you tell Alfredio sorry, shout out to bet on the other station. You tell golf radio every Saturday. Jan and my guy Pugs.
But seeing Jan here at the office, seeing the people who work around here, big game, James, our guy pd I know exactly. I remember when he interned here, when he was a part timer. Now he's running the place. Dreams come true, John Paul.
It's cool.
It's seeing careers grow, people grow, and you know this place. You can have your dog in the studio now, yeah change, Yeah, single father. So dude comes to work with me?
Now?
Is it kind of wild?
The turnover here though, Like you walk in and a lot of people that were here once upon a time, very much or not.
Half of the office is now gone. It's yeah, it's a little interesting, but that's radio. I knew it when you get into it that sometimes things change and the only thing that's constant is that it's very much like the get league.
Look at you, well done before we get back there.
Uh crooksy, Okay, we got to do a little bit of it, man, we have to do a little We're here for the lads, you know that, sure. And I don't want to upset you. Well, I don't do angry, confront confrontational radio. You know that that's not the not part of the ethos of the show. So I don't want you get angry. But single record points, single record goal scored, club records last year in a single season set, and they they break it down piece by piece. What has this been like for you to witness?
Well, my heart broke when they got rid of the Moose. Oh no, I know that's when it officially broke.
Has it ever been the same since the Moose? I mean, let's be honest in what hasn't and the the heights that they reached last summer, chi Cho being the MVP front runner better than Messi. I know, I'll say it now that viral sound right there. I'm a little peeve that he's gone, So I'll say better than MESSI the way they were playing, and then to see that player, that team, this organization dismantle it.
I just.
It's unreal how much turnover there is in this team. And mind you, there was a flicker. Yeah, I was moved a little bit when Diego Luna got smacked in the face and you see him and him and Clayton Keller side by side. Sure, I got a little moved by that poach shouting him out with Dunny my guy. Okay, I start thinking, hey, I get back in. But then I realized how many people are gone, How the moose
isn't there. How it's just not the same anymore. Yeah, and for a team last summer, where I go to the games, I sit in the fans, I'm amongst the people. I'm wearing a scarf like everybody else. The noise that would happen when Chicho was on the ball, it was deafening. The twenty thousand at the riot always sold out. I still call it the Rye.
I like it.
It will always be there. It will always be the ride and will always be sold out.
The sound that would come once he was on the ball was unlike anybody else, only comparable to the Maestro Javier Morales.
And he's gone. So I don't know.
They have to win me over this year, and they're gonna have to do it from a studio calling game remotely.
Wait a second, are you out on RSL this year? They have to convince me, Wow, this is big news. I mean big Gav is gone. Gav's gone. Yeah, he was supposed to be the future, and that's what I call him. Anderson Julio and Oh shipped out.
I don't know anything about any of these strikers, but at least the midfield is still dialed in. We got our guy a Mecca shout out, Nate Bench. Apparently he's gonna wear the captain's arm band.
Pobs.
My guy joins the show yesterday to drop that little tidbit. So at least we have Oh, and by the way, just so you know, goals by Committee, Diogo Lachlann Okay, Dom, I call him Dom, you can call him Mark Zuke. I don't care, but I'm choosing because this is how I lived my life to be glass at full goals by committee, not bemoaning players of the past.
I'm glad that the talking points have gotten out. Trey has written him up, handing him out to his lackey's in the media, and you're repeating them on air.
Do you disagree with the assertions Chico was amazing last year.
You need somebody to pour in the goals come playoff time, because I even last time when I came on here, I was saying, this is a playoff or bus team. This is the point that I'm going to, you know, show me in the playoffs postseason. Come on, I don't care, Darryl.
It's the regular season.
Mori.
Time needs to get to the final and they didn't.
As a fan and a student of the beautiful game internationally, Ratha Cabral thirty five year old Brazilian keeper, rich and experience, leadership from the back, good with his feet, potential option to also where the captain's armband. You gotta be excited about what's in goal.
I'm glad that the email blast went out and you checked the inbox.
I read all my emails. Hockey Club, Jazz Stars, RSL, you name it. Okay, you mentioned glad let's move to the back line. RSL Legends club legend, homegrown Jay Glad next to what I've heard is a calmer, more poised, grown up version of Brian Vera.
Right.
We got wonder Kins, Alex Katranis on the left, a healthy competition on the right, feeding into a holding midfield group that features Nelson Placio, Brian o'hada, aforementioned a Mecca Anelli returning from injury, Vegas favorite for MLS Comeback Player of the Year, Pablo Ruiz.
So when Ben Simmons posts he's shooting threes in the summer with his trainer, do you come in and you say, I can't wait, can't wait. This is gonna be big year, big year for the Australian Ben Simmons.
He's gonna expand his range, He's gonna shoot jumps out. Don't do a ton of Benson on the program. But your point is well taken. Okay, Yeah, So bottom line is you're out on RSL and now they have to win you back.
They have to win me back. I'm open available, but right now they do have to win me back.
Will you get emotional opening night MLS action? After of course, CONCACAF Champions Cup. When RSL is at PayPal Park and the starting nine for San Jose is one Chico ro Ango, will you get emotional?
Yes, yes, I will understand Arena on the other side as well, Big game Bruce, of course, because those guys gave me a lot of good times in my life with the US men's national team and with real Salt Lake.
Now neither connected to ourselves based.
Off of what Danny Ainge and Justin Zanik were able to get for Gobert, which I call the hall. What's fair to say about what Kurt Schmidt did not get for Chicho Rongo. I mean, if we're trading stars in Utah, we want a haul. We don't want to be had. What's fair to say about the RSL front office.
I think that they need to take a book out of Age and Xanik and look for desperation. Desperate teams Phoenix very desperate. They're like, we gotta get draft picks to get Jimmy Butler and find somebody to take Bradley Beale, who nobody wants because he has no trade clause and the numbers outstanding. So how about we trade twenty thirty one's first round pick a year where Devin Booker will be in his thirties. If he stays in Phoenix, Duran is done and Duran is gone.
Gil's already done.
Desperation is the thing you need to traffic in if you're RSL and I didn't see a desperate team with San Jose. I didn't see a desperate team that was clamoring for Chicho services.
Is it time to say that this club belongs to Diego Luna, who I call moon Man by the way, because he's grown up. Yeah, once upon a time, moon Boy, I call him moon Man is a Diego's club now.
So again, when that picture showed up him in Kels, I call Himkels Nice. I like that, uhc go clubbers. So when that side by side happened, there was a flutter. My heart was tickled, but it wasn't an off okay to get me back on the club.
This is rough man, You're a lifelong I mean I have a picture of you on my phone of a young JP Chonga next to Jason Christ and then a mature grown J. P Chunger outside of the studio with Jason Christ after he was brought back to the club. You are what I call a lifer, and at this point you're telling me that you're out until they bring you back in case Stanza stuff they do.
They need to convince me. Okay, it's like a big cat.
He was able to switch his allegiances from Boston to Chicago. I'm allowed to switch allegiances too. It's o okay, it's fine.
Wait a second, who would be your backup MLS team? Don't say it. It's not that team.
Okay, good, it's not that, not that team breaking hearts today? Yeah, uh MESSI you'd go Miami. I'd go Miami. I'm a front runner.
Yeah, Santy.
I was at training when little Santi would be practicing penalty kicks with a huge inflatable ball playing aside as his dad was training with Thomis and Olave and the entire crew. So like, I I go back with this team, and and now I need to be convinced a little bit. But that that's okay. Things Wayne, people can come back. It's it is the cycles of life.
Nate Bench would say that he thought you were a believer. That's what Bench would say. I stand up on my feet, I do it. I was there. You shout it out out of down.
Okay, believe me, I was freezing at the Eastern Conference final, such a dumb league in Sandy, Utah against.
New York against the New York Red Bulls. Was it off the post? Yeah, that's right? Good knowledge.
All right, we'll get back to the jazz and moment because we have not talked about the deal. But let's do a little Royals as the voice of So they finished last season like on fire. Can they start the way they finished and maybe be a playoff club this year?
Absolutely, the way that they were trending was a playoff team in the way that Jimmy Kunerats was organizing the side. They have a bona fide star in Ali sent Nor, the last first overall pick in the NWSL draft. They did away with the draft, very forward thinking so that they could have labor piece and keep this league going in the NWSL. But if you're going to watch anything on the Utah Royals, it is that number nine Ali sent Nor, because she's one of the best talents in
all of American soccer. She got capped by the US women's national team in England at Wembley before seventy thousand people to take on England. Recognized by the best coach in the entire world, Emma Hayes, she coaches the US women's national team. She has acknowledged how good Ali sent Nor can be and she's just twenty years old. So you're gonna get in on the very ground floor of the war on drugs. You're going to see them when
they're playing clubs, much like you did. Thank you when you saw them at Urban Lounge and you finally a little admission.
I have a T shirt. You don't.
The way you speak about that day is the way that people will speak about Ali sent Noor because she has so much talent, a rocket of a shot. She was the US Young Female Player of the Year, and fully just because of how talented she is. She can shoot from distance, she can finish inside the box. And because of the way that they played last year five wins down this stretch, they can do even more with Ali Senton or unleash this season.
RSL dot com for both RSL and Royals tickets.
You can hear our guy, John Paul and the call, all right, with the time we have left, we'll do at a little jazz. We'll get back to the jazz Walker all right, one of my favorite things. It's not just what he's done when he's played, it's the way they look when he doesn't play. It's such a massive difference. And obviously you go from Walker Kessler to Drew you Banks and a young Kyle Philipalskier what have you, it's gonna be a little bit of a difference. We were
talking about the Gobert deal. Walker, of course, Minnesota takes in twenty second. He's part of that deal. He lands here.
We know the deal. Year one, awesome, Year two, not so much. Year three. This to me is the A plus jazz story of the year.
They're not gonna trade him, sorry, Jake Fisher, whoever else is riding about it like that, to me is a hang up unless you get blown away. But nobody is going to, I think, step up to give Danny and Justin what they would want for this young player. That's doness rookie deal. So what have you seen from him when he has been playing? And then the difference between this team when they have Walker on the floor and then when he's sitting.
He's been awesome, awesome this year.
The physicality that he's playing with taking the challenge of a struggling year two being.
Mister America. That that had to have driven the show a couple of days.
Was that the narrative when he played for Team USA and couldn't get off the bench here, No, no, no, I'm talking about Miss America. Oh come on, I apologize. I thought you meant his Team USA basketball experience.
No no, no, no, no no.
Not really into those types of storylines, but hey, whatever whatever sells, whatever plays Real Housewives of salig City.
Stuff over here. You're not watching Coke. I only watch for a coach shop pep talk, and that's not part of the deal anymore. So I'm out.
Well, it seemed like Walker Kessler got a coach Shaw pep talk this. He's been lit on fire. Every time he's around the rim. He's affecting shots. He's deterring people at the rim from attacking him. He's you see the shot chart, bend. If you want to see the impact of what Walker Kesler has on the Utah Jazz, check a game where he's in the shot chart. Check a game when he's not there, and check that shot chart because it is drastically different the shots.
The green dots that you.
See at the rim more than when Walker's not there, less of them xes that are red when he is there.
Are you really watching Real Housewives of Salic City? Somebody asks to is it season three? I think so. I tapped out after season one. Okay, i'might have to get back on board.
Do you know the origin story of Walker meeting Abby Abby Stalker, the current Miss America?
Yeah I do, let's hear it. It's Bruce Pearl. Bruce was the guy that connected them because Walker's mom noticed a striking young woman who is an auburn you know, dance team or cheerleader, and she says to Walker, hey, Walk looks pretty nice over there. Walker, you know, the bashful one isn't going to say anything. But a couple of weeks later, Walk's mom goes over asks Bruce Pearl, hey,
who is that gal? Bruce finds out, gives the number over to Walker's mom, transfers Walker's mom to Walker, and match made in Heaven.
How tall is she? I think she's pretty normally sized four.
Or five and he's seven. Yeah, well, big Dave, your guy, My dad six ' six, dad five two used to the gap in height. So shout out to Abby miss Usa sh shout out to Walker having a great year. All right, you referenced in passing the deal the Jazz made with Phoenix. Now, initially, I think a lot of people are like, Okay, what exactly are.
We doing here?
And then you dig into it and obviously they've done their calculation on Cleveland and they're like, yeah, they're good this year. It's gonna be good for a while. The least favorable the three probably the Cavs.
Certainly this year.
Two years from now, and then four years from now, we'll see, but it's still the least favorable.
So I would guess it's in the twenties.
You send three picks, most likely in the twenties to Phoenix and the off chance that they're pivoting in twenty thirty one, and if you look at their roster right now, it appears that that's a good bet. Now, they do have an owner that likes to spend, and maybe he goes all in every single year just to try to and look, it's not a good approach. The super team thing didn't work in Brooklyn, it's not working in Phoenix.
But what's your reaction to what Justin and Danny decided to do consolidating some picks for a really good value pick on the market in twenty thirty one.
But yeah, the point is that they're getting something that could be a lottery pick. It's completely unprotected, which is a unicorn in the NBA these days. It's rare that you get that in the Lakers pick, which is lightly protected. I think, yeah, top four, But the fact that you can still have a lottery bound pick for the Lakers betting against two teams that get desperate, and I think it would be prudent for the Lakers not to do anything at the deadline because this team isn't going to
win a championship, by the way. But besides that, the Phoenix situation, sensing the desperation of a team that will continually spend, but is it getting you? At some point They're going to have to pull the plug on this team at some point because right now, mediocre results, you're not in the top six, you're not a threatening team to the top squads in the West. You think that's that team's going to win four rounds in the playoffs two. I don't think they win two rounds. There's no chance
that they do that. So unless Mattieshbia is an owner who just likes writing checks and continually getting mediocre results. They are going to have to at some point reset things and go for the rebuilding route of the NBA, which is to build through the draft, to lose a bunch, to have to take your medicine at some point, and right now they haven't really done that. The big hit on their draft pick is Ryan Dunn, the other guy, OsO Igadaro.
You of course know this. Obviously.
He played against the Salt Lake City Stars on Tuesday, getting a G League assignment, but he's not in the rotation right.
They don't have ways to.
Improve this team other than trading Bradley Beal, and nobody wants Bradley Beal.
Yeah, so they're stuck.
Betting against them is a wise move, and getting that twenty thirty one unprotected pick is a big coup for Age and Xanti, especially in.
The era of the second Apron that, as you know, is punitiff. I've heard I read Bobby Marx. Yeah, I read Bobby Marx.
Who doesn't I wake up and I think about Bobby Marx, like, who, my gosh, what is the former assistant general manager for the new jersey nets doing right now?
Punitive? Yeah, that's punitive, all right? Before I set you loose Gobert Rudy back in the building tonight. How about it is Walker playing? I believe he is okay, good, good, So that'll be fun to watch those two go ahead to head as Rudy rolls into town. It's just a fun way to reminisce about what it was like to watch him grow. And you know, Dennis Lindsay joined the show right after they drafted him, and the term he used, I'll never forget it. He said he was treated like
a circus freak at the combine. People didn't know what to do with him, you know, and he kind of felt bad for him because he was like over in the corner, like this big lanky guy who really didn't have a great feel for anything, if we're honest, Like couldn't even get up and down the floor, wasn't coordinated with the basketball. He's one of the great success stories of this franchise. You know, he evolves into Defensive Player of the Year, All Star and loved it here, wanted to stay here.
And I was always a big Rudy guy.
You know, we've talked about it, so as he rolls into the building tonight, now should Jazz fans remember the big fella playing for the Timberwolves now.
As a true franchise legend, buying into the program. One of the best moments of Quinn's development histories is seeing him become what he became. And I think back to a game, maybe his first year, where they're going against the Process Sixers and Jeremy Grant is pushing him around in the post Jeremy Grant, And at that point, Jeremy Grant wasn't even NBA ready. He was just coming straight
out of Syracuse and pushing around this seven footer. And then to think back on that guy to where now he's posting pictures of himself shirtless because he's becoming Adonis. That's hard work, that's true love of the game stuff. That those are the guys you want to bet on.
And for the Jazz to have bet on Rudy Gobert with that draft pick wearing the number twenty seven because he felt slighted to be picked there because all these people have doubted him day after day after day, not thinking this kid from France could make it in the NBA. And to see that he's become a four time Defensive Player of the Year, a franchise staple in two places. It's a real credit to him, and fans here should appreciate what he gave for the franchise.
And I still hate the way he's treated around the league. I think it's so lame. But anyway, all right, so good it was.
That's the other thing, like the Rudy and on. Being a part of the cult of defending Rudy online also pretty fun because people don't agree with you and you get to be mad all day. I think it's like a healthy outlet for sports, and knowing that the world's against you, you can play a little black hat action.
I like that.
I enjoyed that he kind of fed into it the beef with Shack Oh, come on, it was perfect sports fodder. And I think Rudy, because he attracts this hate from people, is a funny guy to see in the NBA and see all the success that he's gotten.
Royal much deserved.
Indeed, I agree Royal's play by play stars play by play. Now, let's talk about the pod before I set you loose. Where can people go get all the jazz podcasts?
Utah Jazz dot Com. Next up Tom Crean. He was on the call for Colorado BYU, so I want to give his thoughts on yegor little ky Kyu.
Okay, you can use that on the show.
Thank you. I was looking for something with that.
Kevin Young, we're talking prospects. I also asked him about the Jazz's rookies because he recruited Isaiah Collier.
He was at Georgia in the Neck of the Woods. Tracked him.
He stays connected to the game, a real basketball sicco I know you are too, indeed, and he's going to be on the podcast tomorrow. Make sure you check it out. Just look up the Utah Jazz Podcast Network. Anywhere you get your podcasts, I prefer Apple podcasts, but you can use Spotify, you can do use Stitcher, you can use anywhere you get your podcast.
Grinder of tape, Knower of Ball, John Paul always good to see you, buddy, Good to see you all right?
What's going on?
Drive at five time you're commute home on this Thursday afternoon? Gets rolling right now. It's been a sunny and warm January day. As we are preparing to turn our calendars to February, next week. Congratulations, slow clap for everybody.
Way to go.
If you're anti January like I am, this is a good week, final week of January. But we had about forty two degrees was the high today. It was sunny in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. We have not had a forty plus degree day in quite some time, so offering a little hope maybe sunshine on the way.
Of course, plenty of months and weeks out of cold weather.
But I mute home on a Thursday, starts right now, and we appreciate you making us a part of your day today and every day. We've got the NFL Pro Bowl Skills Game Challenge tonight. Hayden and Eli Manning tell you what man for a post football career, those two have been able to really parlay some fun personalities into a lot of media opportunities.
Looks like, Terry Cruz is your MC tonight?
How much porter of the NFL Skills Challenge Pro Bowl Style Action?
What you watch tonight on on ESPN.
I am currently finding out that it's happening tonight, So I'm with you.
I actually had no idea.
That should kind of answer it. I mean, I'll probably see something of note on social media later.
I don't know what they're going to do. I don't know who's even involved. I don't know if NFL players give a rip, if they're even in the Pro Bowl. I do think, you know what's interesting, They have it in contracts, which really probably should stop because I think Drake May is a pro bowler.
This year, I'll do Russell Wilson as well.
So the first first skilled skilled challenge, excuse me, right out of the gates, is called passing the test. So each quarterback has forty seconds, you earn an additional ten seconds with each correct trivia answer. What I guess they're asking quarterbacks trivia. So on the AFC side you have Joe Burrow, that's kind of fun, Drake May, Russell Wilson. On the NFC side you have Jared Goff, Sam Darnold,
and Baker Mayfield. So if you are a football junkie, and I know a lot of you are waiting for the Super Bowl, super Bowl fifty nine coming up on February the ninth down in the Big Easy in New Orleans, Philly and case if you're just starving for football content, the worldwide Leader, as you covered tonight, it is passing the test. Little skills challenge action for the Pro Bowl players in Pro Football. A little bit of breaking news
on a Thursday afternoon. First of all, in case you missed it, the Utah Hockey Club has punted on the Utah was Wassatch because it was a horrible idea in the first place. Utah Outlaws has now been brought to the table as a potential name for the Utah Hockey Club. So your final three, and if you are going to Utah Hockey Club home games, you have the option of going through the motions of pretending to vote, so you can give qual Church.
Your email on the following three.
The Utah Hockey Club, Okay, the Utah Mammoth, and now the Utah Outlaws. The Utah Wasatch has been thrown aside. Porter, you were very anti Utah Wasatch yesterday on the show. Are you a fan of the replacement option for the Utah Hockey Club the Utah Outlaws.
Yeah, it's better, it's better. There's historical ties.
You know.
I've been I've been running the UH. I think out out of these, I'm with Outlaws.
I think.
You can go back to the original lists of twenty or so, and there were some that I liked a little better. But yeah, I mean I I've talked about the history of the outlaws in this state and how that really does tie in. There are some connotations there that you may have to deal with in a branding segment, but I think that one gives you a good option for a mascot, a good option for logos, for branding, for apparel, for merch. I think Mammos is fine in
that direction as well. And we've already talked about the Utah Hockey Club, which is clean and a good logo, a good look to me. So although the process has been clunky, it has been messy, and I think it could have gone a lot better if you just handled a little bit more of it behind closed doors. Although all that is true, I think they've landed on three options that I'd go either way on any of them. I'm cool with them all.
Quick Google search of the most famous outlaw in the state of Utah brings up But Cassidy, there we go, and you might have you might have a little knowledge.
I understand, potentially on the man born as Robert Leroy.
Parker Robert Lee Roy Parker, Circleville Utah scout Out, Shout Out, Hard, shout out today.
Yeah, my third cousin, mister but Cassidy. So there's there's familial ties there.
Do you have any like cool Butch Cassidy paraphernalia or anything not Butch Cassidy, but my third kid? No, okay, like Kit Curry, is I here talking?
No?
No?
Is it a Butch Cassidy in the Sundance.
Sundance Kitch Harvey Longabah by the way, good knowledge, that's a deep pull.
Harry longah Bah. So it was actually off.
Okay, now now you're bragging.
But yeah, I don't have his stuff. But my third great grandfather, who helped establish the Outlaw Trail, which is like a secret network of trails that go up through uh a good part of like northeast Utah and down into into the desert, I do have some stuff from him. And Butch Cassidy used some of our family kind of outposts and cabins back in the day as well, So there's some cool history there.
So, according to the Utah Education Network, shout out to them, big shout out, Big, big shout out on a Thursday and a piece written by John D.
Barton entitled Outlaws.
In Utah because the pushback on this name is there aren't any outlaws in Utah right now, which, oh Contreier shout out to our guy the Bowl. Oh right, I mean, there are several outlaws in Utah County. They're stealing money from ward members and putting it in fake securities and claiming that they're trying to do good and they go to jail for a while.
There are a lot of those bros.
There are.
There are a lot of outlaws in our state.
That's an interesting tie to the outlaw ning. But yeah, they're still around.
So according to our guy John D. Barton and the Utah Department of Education, Outlaws in Utah. Butch Cassidy, or he as he was christened Robert Leroy Parker, is best known, is the best known of Utah's outlaws rivalry and the fame of even Jesse James Billy the Kid. Cassidy and his gang the Wild Bunch were among the most successful of Western outlaws.
There you go.
And I like to add they targeted only banks, train barons.
Oh now, don't paint him as robinhood here and the rich.
This actually take dead aim at the rich boys fence. Hey, hey, check out the Twitter profile. This Actually, now that we're learning more about outlaws in Utah and the rich history, you might need to get involved to drop some knowledge on the people as to why this name actually works.
I am happy to get involved. As far as the educational process, as you mentioned, we'll we'll show, we'll have a show and tell on old outlaw paraphernalia. I'm happy to do that. But yeah, there's there's a lot of different ways you can go with that, that branding, that nickname. So I'm on board with it, and I'll reserve my actual vote till I decide between the remaining.
Shout out to a lesser known member of the gang named Henry Wilbur meeks, I'm familiar with.
This young man, Henry wil no Elsie Lay mentions.
Well, I'm getting there.
So Henry Wilbur Lenk's was a former Mormon who latched on to Butch casting the Sundance Kid and his gang.
He was from Wallsburg, Utah.
Shout out to Wallsburg, whether where his father was a freighter named Harvey Logan, better known in gang circles as Kid Curry. He had come home from a small Ranching family in Montana. Many other outlaws throughout the era had nothing extraordinary in their backgrounds. Most were from common backgrounds, and many became outlaws due to the conditions of the times.
Some outlaws were careful from where they from whom they stole, and at times shared with those in severe need with whom they came into contact, fostering the robin hood myth. Though it must be remembered that his only natural to rob from the rich. After all, they're the ones with the money worth stealing.
That is true. This is according to our guy John Bates from the Utah Department of Education. That is true.
Harvey Logan, his brother Lonnie Lonnie Logan, shut up?
Are you serious?
I do have a pretty good I'm in deathite knowledge here.
I didn't mean to tell you to shut up, that was true.
No, I mean, listen, we don't get into Outlaws of the West very often.
Well we have to now because our hockey team might be named the Utah Outlaws.
But yeah, I do like that you bring that up. I do like that you bring that up because there are very much and rightfully so, there are plenty of negative connotations with outlaws with I mean just to be completely frank westward expansion of white people joining this land. Right, there's a lot of negative connotations. There's a lot of dark history there, but there are also pretty cool stories and some pretty fun ones mixed it.
Have you watched American Primeval on Netflix?
I started it, I saw some of it.
Is it any good?
It's really so, It's done really well. Okay, The cinematography is awesome. The portrayals of characters are awesome. Like the grittiness you get from it is cool and it follows the storyline. But my one beef with it is it's kind of purporting itself as documentary.
While isn't it like a docu drama series?
Right?
But it's mixing in a lot like the cities aren't real. Okay, The storyline is is a little so my thing is someone from Utah who likes the history and studying it. There was a lot of inaccuracies, I'll say, but there was also a lot of good representation of how gritty that time was.
Our guy John D.
Barton from the Utah the not the Athletic Department, the Utah Education Department continues as the Western Frontier, we're learning about the outlaws kids. Okay, So Sports Soccer Radio today we're in class because the Utah hockey team has now announced the Utah Outlaws as a potential name for the club, and so a lot of people online are saying, wait a second, the state doesn't have outlaws.
Well, Porter knows that that's faults.
And so as we continue to learn about how this stuff kind of came down as the West, including Utah quote grew up, it was developed by ranchers, miners, Timberman, the army, and small farmers and homesteaders. The last group was particularly important to Utah because Brigham Young and his
desire to see his followers pursue certain lifestyles. The disparity of wealth between the homesteader and larger interests usually was great, and those who had to live quote, hand to mouth, uncertain of their next meal, often helped themselves to a small portion of the profits of the more fortunate others through honest endeavors. Themselves turned a blind eye to those
who even things up even a little. Many, if not most, big ranches improved their start by branding strays er mavericks, and then, once large and prosperous, they condemned small time operators who did Likewise, this led to range wars, murders, and hostility. Our ranches might even sanction means to eliminate smaller competitors.
Sounds like it was wild back then. Yeah, that's the wild wild West.
I mean, that's history that we've talked about. My family was here in eighteen forty five. They were out here, ranch and sheep, trying to mind their own business. At the time, Spence, this was Mexico, right, And you know, at a certain point, and we talk about this in modern form, things reach a stage where the man who holds the gold maybe holds a little too much of
the gold, too much of the golden rule. And yeah, it was putting like regular people who were just trying to mind their business and ranch in positions where they could not compete because of the way that farming was happening, factory farming, the start of kind of factory farming, and giant corporations pushing farmers off their land, stealing their cattle. And back then there was really it was tough to track, it was tough to find and prosecute, so they took stuff into their own hands.
It feels like the Utah outlaw name is gained some traction. Most Western outlaws identified with the common people. Backgrounds of some members of the Wild Bunch show easy identification with the small ranchers and farmers who were so common throughout the West. Our guy, Butch Cassidy. Can we call but Cassidy our guy because he's a family member of yours?
I think the third cousin is close enough. He's our guy.
Can you get one of his direct descendants on the show, like maybe a great great great grandchild?
Good question if we're going to be the outlaws.
So our guy, Butch Cassidy raised on a small ranch in southern Utah by Mormon parents. Elsie Lay, originally from Ohio, had migrated west to Colorado.
I had twenty minutes to prepare on Gobert. By the way, we'll get there.
That's okay.
Had migrated west to Colorado with his family. Then, after a failed romance, sorry, Butch hang in there. Choose love once again every time. That's my angelou jes loved one more time? Every time, Butch hanging there. After a failed romance, he drifted into his outlaw ways and infamy with the Wild Bunch. His mother was tall and slender, His father was a handsome man known for reading and being a top of bronco rider in Ranchant and had away with women and horses.
That dude sounds like John Dutton from Yellowstone. Not gonna lie. Uh.
So you mentioned Harry longba is a the Sundance Kid Harry loangaba ya Longabah. Okay, so he was thought to be from Pensylvan Pennsylvania, where he claimed to be from. Quote a good family, lesser known member of the gang. We already talked about our guy, Henry Wilbert Meeks. It sounds like Porter.
If we land on the Outlaws, the mascot should be Butch Cassidy.
In some form.
I don't think it should be a certain person now, you know, maybe based off of somebody I don't. You know, I am biased here, so I don't feel like I should step in. But uh yeah, if there's anyone that you're you're basing it off of, at least loosely, that's uh, that's got to be one of the considerations.
Finally, the Outlaw Trail, which ran from Mexico to Canada, was comprised of key friendly ranches coupled with hard to find hideouts. Here we go such as our Guy Robert Roost and Brown's Park, which ran through Utah's path. Here the majority of the population was Mormon, and here the outlaws reception is especially peculiar. Mormons, for the most part, abhorred violence and crime, yet many outlaws were on friendly
terms and local citizens. An explanation for this is possible through understanding Utah's economic situation of the late eighteen hundreds. Mormons had long been outcast themselves socially, politically, and economically, and in the late nineteenth century suffered severe persecutions at the hand of the government over the practice of polygamy.
This is a sports talk radio show. There's little wonder that Mormons felt resentment and distrust towards outside interests, whether government or big business, hence the birth of Butchercassidy.
There you go, There you go.
I think we have our name.
Yeah, you're talking me into it, and I'm one that doesn't need to be talked to much into that one.
So final piece, Kids, Final piece for today. An examination of the lives of most Western outlaws most likely would reveal lifestyle of night riding, missed meals, hot pursuits, poorly tended wounds, broken friendships and economic deprivation. They were usually
brokeer hiding, unable to spend stolen money. There was little glamour in the real lives of outlaws our hockey team's named Potentially, they experienced difficult family relations, long trails, and fear of treachery with the knowledge of that, regardless of the cause, they were outlaws and anyone can turn them
in for the reward money. Yet it was reported Let's Land the Plane that Utah's cowboy outlaws were often gentlemen in their manner, Often outgoing and friendly, they pose little threat to the average citizen, and their selection of targets for robbery at times maintained an identification with the common people while becoming hated enemies of big business. These are socialists,
these are cowboys day, these are disruptors. These outlaws were products of the times and gained, if not the respect, at least the tolerance of their fellows and the near curlt worship of today's Western history enthusiasts.
You went right through it all, period, full stop. We learned a lot today on.
The program One more outlaw, quick story, Go ahead, bring it.
So.
You mentioned the outlaw trail. There Okay, my third great grandfather and his father who were on the run from US Marshalls. That is why they were out here scouting land for the Mormon Church. They helped informally establish the Outlaw Trail. They hid those guys as they came through. You'll hear stories of them going through the Wahsatch Back Park City Coville area while they were stopping at my
family's property. There's still a cabin that kind of stands on one of our places where those guys would hide out in certain moments.
But my.
Third great grandfather, he actually published in the Deseret News in eighteen fifty three one of his trails that he had staked. It went from Salt Lake to what is now Lake Tahoe. But after he published that trail so that people could start using it, he waited on the trail with four Piute Indians and robbed people as they came by using the trail that he had published in the Deseret News, robbing the weary travelers who were then using his trail.
If you're going to rob the whites, bring the piotes, yeah, I mean, I mean, that's an excellent approach.
It's not a bad strategy. He taught them from English too, which I thought was that's actually interesting.
You know, it's wild. The more things change, the more they remain the same. And if you do not learn from history, you are what doomed to repeat it. The combination of corrupt politics, unfair banking and lending policies lais a fair economics, and unregulated business practices.
Where does this sound from?
That?
I don't know.
All serve to sharpen the distinct between the rich and those less fortunate. This is not twenty twenty five, but it might as well be known as social Darwinism.
Survivor of the fittest.
In the jungle way of life, justified the wealthy and condemned the poor as social classes based upon the wealth where established small farmers and ranchers came to distrust, distrust, and often resent big business and politicians.
So finally, okay, we'll land it here.
Many law abiding citizens took secret satisfaction in the fact that the outlaws were bloody in the nose of the rich. The robbery of a train, payroll, a bank, or even a large mind had little if any effect on the small farmer and the rancher. That's twenty minutes on the history of Outlaws in Utah, and I think and I think we've landed on the new name of the hockey club. I seriously had twenty minutes ready for Gobert and Rudy and the jazz.
Hey, I think we went in the right direction.
I like it.
And you have knowledge that no many people around here do. All right, wrapping it up Thursday show, a little breaking news.
I was going to talk about this early in the five o'clock hour, but we gave you a twenty five minute history lesson of Outlaws in Utah. As the Outlaws now, one are the options for the Utah hockey clubs named. The NBA All Star Reserves have been announced and there
are no jazz players. Nobody's surprised about that. So the East All Star Reserves Pascal Siakam, Jalen Brown, Darius Garland, Kate Cunningham, Evan Mobley, and Dame Lillard, as well as Tyler Hero out West, it's Anthony Edwards, Anthony Davis, James Harden, Jaron Jackson, Junior Alfred and Shangoon, Jalen Williams, and Victor Wembanyama first time All Star obviously for Victor women Yama. So it's a different format. In case you guys even give a rip, you probably don't. NBA announcing the fourteen
All Star Reserves tonight. The game itself has a new format. The All Stars are going to be split up into three teams. Day Night's Rising Stars Champion becomes the fourth entry into a three game mini tournaments, and of course we'll find out who the starters were and then they'll be split up into three teams as opposed to two in the past.
So there you go.
Jazz and Action I Action tonight taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves. Rudy gober back in the building. We did not get to the Justin Justin Tucker story. Justin Tucker's come out and said the therapists allegations are false, but six massage therapists in the Baltimore area have the Qus Ravens kicker Justin Tucker of inappropriate behavior. Deshaun Watson, of course, was the pioneer.
With all this stuff. That's probably the wrong term, but gross.
So there you go, All Star Reserves, Jazz and Action tonight, and good NBA basketball tonight.
It's kind of a light night.
Utah men's hoops will be back in action against Oklahoma State coming up on Saturday. The Utah Women Welcome in Arizona coming up tomorrow six thirty at the Huntsman Center. Game can be seen on FS one. Utah Hockey Club back in action tomorrow against Columbus BYU Men in action on Saturday, two o'clock on the road at UCF.
Did we forget anything? I think we were very thorough and comprehensive on the show today. I think we were.
I'm sure we're forgetting something.
No, I think we covered it. I think we did football. We did college football, pro football, we did jazz basketball. We even did a little RSL with John Paul. You know, it's weird. I don't know what this is, probably age. The past couple of weeks. The past couple of weeks, I've had two really weird situations occur. I thought I was forty five for like ten days. I'm forty six. It's not a huge gap, but somebody was asking me, like, Hey,
when's your birthday. I'm like, oh, it's in March, and like, yeah, I'm turning forty six. And it didn't even phase me. I did that like three times over the course of ten days. And it wasn't like some desire to be younger. I just it's like, you're forty five. I was off by a year. I did that for like two weeks.
After a certain amount, they're just kind of just another day, right.
That's rude. That's mean.
Not saying you're old.
No, you were saying that I'm old, and that's fine. Forty six of them, that's I'm aging. It's a few birthdays.
I also aggressively prepared my day. I think it was Tuesday. Let's see, I'll tell you exactly what day it was.
I aggressively prepared my day, had a sitter for Duke and had everything ready to go to go down to the Delta Center on Tuesday night to watch the Jazz play the Warriors. They were they definitely were at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
Did you go downtown?
I did not, but I almost did, the only way I've done that before you. The only reason I.
Didn't is because I came in to do the show and I was ready to go, you know, had a sitter for the dog, and then we had an MBA guest on I'm like, all right, let's talk Jazz Warriors. And then I pull up the game, I'm like, oh, they're on the road. Yeah, so two just total mind farts. I guess over the past couple of weeks.
It's January.
It is all right.
Craig Smith coaches show coming up on the other side, Porter what comes our way? On a Friday edition of the Drive.
Speaking of that guy, Craig Smith hops on the show. On a Friday edition of the Drive, We'll chat with Spencer Nelson some more college hoops, NBA all Star stuff reactions with one Richard Smitty Smith talking some jazz as well, the return of Smitty and super Bowl Champ ahead of the super Bowl one Terrell Burgess twintsppro.
Oh very nice.
That'll be a great Friday show. Get your weekend start out the right way, but special. Thank you on this Thursday to Andy Larson and Scott Mitchell, to j Peachunga. If you miss any of the sound from the show, go to the website ESPN seven hundred Sports dot Com. Download our app. ESPN seven hundred app is free in the app Store. Then for what we do in our space podcast page, check us out, follow wherever you good show, subscribe, rate review saying nice things, give us all the stars.
You will be eternally blessed.
He's Porter, I'm Spence saying Tonight Craig Smith Coaches Show with our guy Ryles comes up on the other side right here. Aud ESPN seven hundred ninety two ONEFM proud to be part of Utah ZESPN Radio Network