Greatest Underdogs with Justin Halpern

so it is seven pm on a Saturday. This is the first podcast of ours that I've done where I'm having a cocktail, so making tiving a cocktail, has sunglasses on, has biking shorts, and we're in our laundry nook uh. And we're actually joined by our guests for this episode, Justin Halpern. Justin, how are you doing? I'm doing good. Thanks for having me get the credits. I know I was gonna I was just like I felt myself rolling into the intro, was like, Okay, well, now are you

going to give them? Yes? Okay, you may know him from his TV shows that ship my dad says, Surviving Jack and now the very popular Harley Quinn is that those are those are great credits. Well, I don't know if all of them are good credits, but well they're all good because they all matter. You would be shocked the things that people will credit for comedians sometimes. But like she was on Comedy Knockout, and it's like, I'm

good for Comedy knock Out. I'm so thrilled to have the trophy, but I don't consider that at the top of my resume. It's great, it's it's a literal she has the actual tangible credit. It's a trophy that sits in our living room. Uh so I like to credit that justin how are you? You know, I'm doing pretty well considering all things that people are going through. I feel like I'm doing I'm doing I'm doing great. I got a I got a good beard which is even

more even more Jewish than I looked normal. How big? How big are we talking? We talking James Harden level or that's my beard measurement at this point. No, my beard looks like James Cardon's beard's child. Not that's good though. See, yeah, James Harden's beard is actually a little too much for me. I'm always like, I wish it was a little less, not that he cares what I think. So you describing yours that's actually right in my beard wheelhouse. Well, thank you, Magan.

I appreciate that. I feel good about it. A father of two, what are the ages? So my seven year old seven year old boy named Miles and then a four year old boy named Toby. Wow. Okay, so seven year old Miles, he's you're having to teach him. Yeah. Yeah, it's funny because like, um, so he doesn't zoom. Classes every day for his school and then they send us homework. And my wife is a rapis and so she's working

from home too. She's doing you know, teletherapy and and she works with a lot of veteran to a PTSD. So the other day I go when I get his homework out of the printer and I give it to him, and he's like, I don't know how to do this this one and normally you can do it all. And so I'm looking at it and like I'm like, I don't know what the funk. I don't know how to

do this either. First grade homework. And then and then I showed to my I showed it to my wife and she's like, this is an assessment to see if someone has PTS. I'd taking her work. She's doesn't. He doesn't happen. I genuinely for a second thought. The school had sent it as let it in and see how the kids are doing, you know, and all the ones that fail, we'll call CPS. It's like they're they're they're

sleeper self. Yeah, hey kids, we've got a special assignment. Um, you're gonna lift up your shirt and show us if you have any wounds. But justin I've actually I haven't asked a parent this, just because I don't want them to have to relive it in their head. But like, of the actual homework of a first grader, are there stuff and what specifically has like thrown you off or been like, I don't know either, it's been so long,

you know. The reason I was like, I was like, maybe I don't know how to do this is because they do common core. I don't know if you guys know what that is. It's this weird The public school system shifted a few years ago and it and it does this really weird way of teaching math, and it makes no sense that I can't understand it at all, so like they won't do seven plus four. It will be like seven groups have been associated with four groups, but four of those groups are not associated with the

other three groups. And you're like, I don't know what this is. Yeah, all my teachers and they're all like, Okay, here's the shortcut. Here's like the cheat code, Like use every single cheat code that I'm gonna give you. It was never like let's figure out why these things happen or like equal to each other. Well, I mean I can get in, I can get into a really philosophical discussion about this, but unfortunately, schools have had to pivot

to teach kids how to pass standardized testing. And I don't think that I personally don't believe that's how a child's knowledge should be judged. I think it should be judged on a lot of different things. I say, leave some children behind to do other things, not behind behind, but let them play in the dirt. And these kids, they don't make the vaccine. We don't all have to make the vaccine. Yeah, I was playing the dirt kid and I figured it out. It was just some alternative routes.

And here we are, so I'm glad you're doing so well. Um or not, I'm glad you love quarantine. No, I'm glad that you are doing well. I'm glad that you married someone who literally sounds like a saint. Um. You are from San Diego, and my hometown of Indianapolis has just acquired Some would say I'm not a great gift, but we got a gift from San Diego. And you are the first person from that town that I've talked

to since Philip Rivers became a cults player. And I guess I'm just looking for maybe like some advice, some hope, some negative whatever whatever you want to impart. All right, here's what you're right. First off, you're in store for, at some point during the season as probably the most inopportune time, he's going to endorse the worst senator Congress

candidate you've ever seen. It'll be like they'll be like some congressman who's like, I think that we should force everyone to have a child and women should strapped to a bed, and Philip Phillip will cut an ad for him. Oh yeah, So that's that's that's number one. Number two is I hope you like backbreaking? Pick six is because you know they're not my favorite, but I definitely uh, you know, luck look gave us a little appetizer of those we he had some, He had some, but he

had better politics. I think Phil is just like he's always good enough to keep you in the game. You know, you'll always you'll always be in the game in the fourth quarter, and then he just will never ever make the throw you need him to make. You know, like you you rooted for Peyton Manning for such a long time, Like Peyton makes those throws. Those are the throws. Those are like that's the only like if you can keep

him up right, he can make the throws. But the problem is the problem is this is like he just he forces ship late in the game, and it's like we would all laugh, like my buddies were all wet, all text each other watching the games because you could almost even like sense when it was coming, like watching a rerun of side of like sign fell, where you're like, oh, I know what, I know what Kramer does right here,

Like that's what it is. As a fan, I have to say that's almost more frustrating than just being bad from the beginning, because was like if the Colts, if whatever team you love. If they're down by four team going into the fourth quarter, you're like, I'm good, I'm gonna take a nap. But like, he's the type. It's like, it'll be close. You have to watch the you have to spend extra time losing. Yeah, that's exactly correct, like Charges.

I think San Diego. San Diego has not often thought of as a tortured sports city because it's a beautiful city and after the losses you can go outside and you can go to a figure, you can go to the you know, mountains or whatever you need to do. But San Diego has one of the most tortured fan bases. Like the Chargers have been good for a long time, but they lose in the most excruciating ways possible for as long as possible. And it's still and Philip is

like a big reason. Why Well, what did you tell me earlier, Megan? This morning you said to me, you have to pretend to care about Philip rivers and pretend to care. Yeah, I I woke up this morning and c J gave me a debrief of what I've done in my sleep, which is just tell me if you've ever experienced this. But like Megan in the middle of her sleep just went whoo, and then I told her she did this, and then she was able to pinpoint

what was happening in the dream. In my dream, I was at a Cults game and they sacked the quarter It was like it was one of those things where it was like there weren't specifics of who players were. But in the dream, I'm like, I am watching the Cults. We were. I was at an away game and the quarterback for the other team, the quarterback for the other team got sacked and I would and I didn't know I would in my sleep. But when he said that, I had forgotten the dream. But when he said that,

I was like, I went to a Cults game. I loved it. It's like, your your dreams sound so fun. Well, oh, I mean my dreams are actually pretty fun. I would say my awake head voices are very dark. You know. That's my that's my yang and yang. My inner monologue is not doing well. And like, bottom line, I was jealous of you that you were like watching a sporting event and that you could not predict in any state

of like just missing it so much. I mean justin you're also you're very talented, you know writer and showing her. But also I just wanted to talk to or make some sort of communication with someone who I played sports with, and you came to mind. So like, it's just great hearing your voice right now, and the fact that you tell us before the phone call it you were playing basketball with your son all day, Like, what what's your

setup over there? So we when I when we bought our house, we bought our house about ten years ago, justin get in in good for you, I know, I know, we we uh we. That's my thing is right after a huge crisis, I make a large purchase. Um, anyone saying they bought their house ten years ago, I'm like, you are screwged like you are so you are Jeff Bezos to me in my head right now, please please Well I am bald, so you know, um I Well, So I put in the first thing I did before

I had kids. I was like, I said to my wife, there was this area in the backyard that had this was just like covered in dirt, and I was like, we're gonna pay this and I'm gonna go to this company that puts in like a really nice court and had really nice hoop, and so it's not a huge area.

It's basically like you know, a key with five to ten five five five to ten feet on either side, and then it goes back to about like a little behind the free stro line, and then there's a small area that's like in college three that I can choose. It's kind of an oddly sha area, but it's big enough. Um. And so I put it in thinking that I would use it all the time, and I do, and I do use it, but my kids use it like non

stuff like my kids. It's so funny too, because like, you know, I didn't you know, I hadn't put my kids in any leagues yet. My older kid, I hadn't put him any any league, but he played don Stock. He played all the time. But I had no idea like how other kids were playing. So I put him in this league of six year old and he's dropping like thirty game. Oh my god, he's the Brownnie Jaynes of the little kids. That's so cute though, that's amazing. Yeah, So that's what we do. We played back. Did they

play there? They played? Probably? I mean my kids play like an hour and a half a day. Probably they played CJ. Is nodding and making faces like he's a pre pubescent boy who just found a girl's gone wild VHS Like he's like he's going like, oh yeah, well, because over the quarantine, I I panic. I like my former panicking was like I have to buy things so

I can entertain myself during this quarantine. And so far I've bought a ping pong table, a Papa shot, and then a like just one of those portable hoops for the driveway. And then like I think I've told Megan, yeah no, we're when we have a son. It's like the audacity of me to assume we're gonna have a son in that they will play basketball for what to validate my purchases now? Is now that I say? I mean, and if I said to him, well, what if you

don't want to play basketball with your daughter? You don't want to play basketball with your hypothetical daughter, that girl, dad, you don't care about her? Um so CJ. Yeah, he's dealing with a lot of Yeah. I just look out. I see all these basketball hoops, and I know that's where his love really lies. I went in my sleep to the Colts. It's like, I don't love you as much as them. It's okay, I just missed Justin and the guys that Tuesday night. You missed Justin and the

It's just yeah, it's a real competition. Beating you in in Pig is not he won't even let me play horse, not even good enough to do more letters. Um, okay, So we picked this topic last night, and then today a very like moving Nike commercial came out that like kind of stirred me and made me even more excited for this. So this is this is not the Cinderella, it's not the comeback, but it is the greatest underdog.

So someone who went into a situation no one thought they were the team went into it, no one thought they could win. Everything was stacked against them. And yeah, I just think this is kind of like a feel good quarantine topic. So it made me happy researching. Now, you cried about Paul George, but that's another well I cried about a different Yeah, there's you know, tears happened about your day? Um, all right, Justin, why don't you

kick us off with your your third pick? Okay? So I I also really loved this topic because I just love underdog stories. Um, and I there's so many that I loved um, So I picked the ones that I had like the most emotional reaction to perfect um and one ones that I like either experienced or re experienced when I learned about them if I wasn't alive with them. Okay, So my number three is that we believe Warriors beating the Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the two

seven uh NBA Playoff. For me, I watched, I watched that entire series. I love Baron Davis uh and it just felt like one of those things where no one expected in the win, but it was the combination of no one expected to win and then this like fan base that was like all tickets like old school season

ticket holders. The tickets were cheap because my wife's from the Bay Area, so like we would go to games and they'd be like nothing, like you could just like sometimes you could walk if you were just walking near Oracle that you could just somebody would just give you tickets for the game. It's like it was crazy. So it was this like crowd that was so electric and

so like insane. This team that played this like really weird like Don Nelson style of basketball that like was both was both at the same time, like ahead of its time and behind this time. So bizarre. And and by the way, the other thing people forget about that we believe team was that they had to go on a huge run just to make the playoffs they finished. It wasn't like they were like a forty eight and thirty four team. They were like they barely made the playoffs and they had to do go on a run

to do it. And Dirk was the m v P no I mean. And and in sports, especially in the n b A, you pretty much find out who a team is by All Star Break and there that everyone pretty much performs to you know, Uh, they're so like that. I remember that series being so insane. And then like the celebrities they started, Like I was like, I didn't know the Warriors had celebrity fans, but I think like Snoop Dogg at that time, and like I think Jessica Alba was like another Yeah, Kate Hudson, uh, And I

always loved the Warriors and those those uniforms too. We we did already have greatest uniforms, but like those are some of the sickest NBA uniforms ever. It is wild to hear you say that just like in two thousand and seven, the fan base was so different. Like part of the reason that the Warriors, I think we're not the most fun to root for during their very much dynasty.

Would you would like look around and be like, yeah, these are all like executives at Uber and Twitter and Facebook, and like it was like when Lebron was in Miami, You're just like, everybody looks like they smuggle cocaine. And I know that's not nice to say, but like you can you've seen the people courtside and you're like, oh, I mean the Warriors minority holder got had to like give us to give us shares away because he grabs

a black player too aggressively. It's just like, wow, in thirteen years it went from like they were underdogs to a dynasty, which is I mean, obviously extremely cool way to go. But the fans and like I wish it was still those fans that got to go to the games. Yeah. That's another like really good point is that you know, the tech money wasn't interested, Like if you were a tech company year Booth was like you bought your box for the Giant. You weren't in Oakland, you know, um,

and so it wasn't. It didn't have any of that like smart, smarmie like ship head vibe to it is just like all these hardcore Oakland fans and for you know, I'm sure you guys have been to Oakland, Like the vibe of that city is very much like don't funk with us, We love who we love. It was a greaters fans at Warriors games, which to me, I wouldn't prefer. Like that sounds so cool and wild. Um, okay, that's a great I love that you're picking from the heart to My third pick is heart for me because I

am like a true petty, spiteful bitch. Um. And so mine is the New York Giants defeating the New England Patriots in Super Bowl forty two. The first of the two, the first of the two. Um, now I have this third. This is obviously like such an incredible story and game. I have a third because if you're a team that makes it to the Super Bowl, you are inherently like

not that much of an underdog, like you're good. Even though they were ten and six, they were the first wild card team to ever win a Super Bowl, which is crazy to me. Um, they were a twelve point underdog, and the it just the Patriots were going in. They were sixteen and no on the season, then obviously undefeated in the playoffs. The Giants were like on fumes. Peyton was like what it can he do it? Coughlin is always red face and screaming. Never seems cool. They were

kind of like the antithesis of the Patriots. And the game was pretty lackluster. It goes into the fourth quarter, it's very low scoring, and then the fourth quarter obviously explodes. The Patriots go up. Then we have that third and five David Tyree catch, and then something I had forgotten was that Plexico Urus caught the game winner. And I actually have like love in my heart for Plexico. I know he shot himself in the leg literally, but um,

he was on wife Swap once. He was on wife Swap ones and I actually like thought he was really cool and cute. Um, so I was like, I was happy for him to do that. But yeah, I remember watching I was a senior in college and like my sorority sisters wanted to watch like the Patriots, we were about to watch history. It was about to be the Dolphins over again, and they they ended something historic and no one thought they could. And to me that is

like that puts them at the top. Yeah. I think the Patriots are like underdog makers almost, you know what I mean. Like I got so mad when they were in that Nike commercial, in a Snike commercial about like we can do it. It's like they don't inspire anywhere they are. They are at the Soviet Union. To me, well, oh yeah, listeners. Listeners hate when I go in on my listeners. I mean, like a commentar has been like,

why does this woman hate the Patriots so much? But yeah, I just it was I don't know, the giants, that's just like it was narratives. It's also fun to root for an underdog when it's in New York, like they're just used to the Yankees and beating and beating and beating. Yeah, and they kept showing Giselle and then like showing Eli's wife like ho home, and it's like, no, she's beautiful,

She's just not a supermodel. Yes. Also that there is something so great about every time the Patriots lose the high profile game, there's a small white receiver who dropped the ball in the middle of the field for them at a key point in the game that's so. And then it's like Belichick can't yell at him the same way he wants to. You know, Um, I have been at I've been at two of the three most recent Patriots super Bowl losses, and I feel like I played

a part in it. Okay, se al right, my number three, and I wasn't that miliar with it, but I didn't, you know, just in research today, I just forgot about this moment and got to like relive it. But Holly Home beating Rhonda Rousey uh in two thousand fifteen, like, and I've been fascinated with because I see her pop up every now and then on w w E. And then you know, I've been listening a little bit more to like UFC News because it was like the only

sport that's like, you know, operating at the moment. But you forget, like Ron, like I don't know, I don't want UFC, but I know like three names and it's maybe only Gregor, uh, Chuck Ladell maybe I've maybe forgot his name a year ago. And then uh and Rhonda Rousey, who I was like, man, she retired, Uh did some movies, but like she retired pretty immediately after she got beat she went on a three year reign and then like this fight that no one I don't think anyone cared about.

It was almost like an exit. I remember being like, oh, it's like just so we can watch Ronda Rouse. Yeah, exact, and oh my god, just rewatching it today and I made Megan come in the room to rewatch this. But like I it was one of the best fights I've ever seen. Great, I haven't seen that many fights, but like, Holly Home just lands these just like kicks, and it like you can almost see the want to ever fight

again leave ron A Rousey's body. It was like and then you And then I tried to read like about the one more match that she fought after that, and they were just like it was over and she ended up retiring. And then Holly Home I was like, oh, she probably doesn't fight that much more because I think she was a little bit older. I think she was

like thirty five when this fight happened. And I'm like, if football players careers are ending pretty early, like early thirties, like I can't imagine a professional fighter, but she just won to match back in January in m M. A professional and like and still going and Ron Arousey is just kind of like having a rocky post career like acting like acting. W Yeah, I think she just like there's something permanently she's attached. That was one of those two where it like made it into like the Today

Show news like it was. It was we all like fell in love with Aranda Rousey and like, oh my god, this this badass woman who just beats the ship out of everybody, and everyone was like yeah, and then she got the ship beat out of her and everyone was like plaice, So I guess yeah, we just it was. It was. It was everywhere. One fun fact about Rhonda's acting career is that remember she started that like Steven Soderberg action movie Do you remember that, which one like

at the height of her like Rhonda rousing is. I can't remember what it was called, but she was the star of it. And but she was so like bad that they actually dubbed her entire voice over the whole movie with with Laura Sanngia Como. The actress Laurasania Como who was in like Just Shoot Me, was rhondrowd of these voice for the entire movie. It's sucking bizarre if you could ever get a copy of that movie, can you and can you tell if they do a pretty

good job? You can't really tell, but you can, I mean you can tell if you know what she sounds like and what like Lord Sandi Comb comes like, yeah, that's not round, that's it's like odd for like budgetary reasons, like you can get something like that's like a working actress, like she's radio right, Like yeah, that's I got. I definitely have to watch it. But yeah, like she hasn't really had anything notable. And I don't want to like make this a good underdog because Rhonda Rousey light his

career has taken a little fall. But and that's how big she was. Um so Holly Holme and that now I'm gonna go back and watch some of Holly Holmes fints. Okay, I might, I might, I might. Okay, let's take a quick break and we'll be right back and we're back with our second picks, justin what do you got? Okay, So this one is you know, this is a very

talked about underdog person. But until I actually like went and did the research, I didn't realize like how how many setbacks this person has and my number T pick is Kurt Warner. And oh wow, because here's the thing about Kurt Warner. Like you all everybody knows that like he was bagging broken and short hair. Yes this is about his short haired um. But the thing that's crazy about Kurt Warner is he's hadn't, like really crazy, he hasn't really like crazy tragic setbacks during his rise to

becoming Kurt Warner. And one of the crazy things post is like, all right, so he was like the quarterbacks for the University of Northern Iowa when in college, but he started as the third string quarterback, right, So then he didn't even get to start until his senior year. And then he did and he's amazing, right, and then he goes he he gets cut by a bunch of teams. Then he goes into the Arena League. He does amazing in his one year at the Arena League, and he

get he finally gets a tryout for the Bears. And this is the craziest ship ever. He gets a tryout to the Bears. Right before the tryout, he goes on a honeymoon and he gets a spider bite on his arm, his throwing arm, and then he can he has to miss his tryout. He doesn't get it. He doesn't get to go to his tryout, which is like, so it wasn't like he was just like he was Brad Grocery. So then he was in. Then he had all of

these sets backs. And part of the fact is like he has probably like one of the like weaker arms in NFL history. I mean, that's why he was never really like a prospect or anything. But he just had this insane accuracy. And I think the fact that this guy not not only did he I mean people remember a greater show on turf, but like remember he also took the cardinal like you know to the you know,

like he he everywhere he went, he dominated. It was one of those things where like you always hear about players, like athletes who say, like, you know, I was shitty in practice, but if I can get in the game,

You're like, no, you're probably kitty everywhere. But he looked like one of these guys who like he just didn't impress and practice and it made it almost impossible for him to get a shot, and in the like one shot would get, he would always over perform, and he did that like ten times just to be able to get to the NFL, and then in the NFL he

continued to do it. But I'm always amazed at these guys who, like, you have eight seconds to prove your something and then they do it and they keep doing it. And so for for me, I just I didn't realize like how detailed is story was, and that was It's

really remarkable. I also think it says something like, I know they always talk about the curse of the Cubs, but the Bears inability to get a quarterback and then hearing this, it's like, I think that's a like somebody put a curse on the Bears quarterbacks because that is one of the most like failed positions on a team of all times. Like that they keep they always talk about like Mahomes. It's like you could have Kurt Warner too. He just he got in Hawaii. No Nick Foles is

laughed and he's wanted super Bowl. It's yeah, their their history is not what you're talking about. The Cardinals too, For some reason, the Cardinals are actual, Like I truly forget about my favorite athlete human being of all time was on the Cardinals at one point. I love Bruce Arians. I watched all or nothing the whole season, and I forget that they are a football team every time they Like if someone were like, name all the football teams,

I would get through all of them. I'd say the Tampa Bay Bucks last, and then I'd be like, I don't know, I forgot what is it just I have such a generic presence to them. I feel like, yeah, I don't, I don't know. Sometimes it is tough these teams that are that also like they're a baseball team. Like when you said the Giants, I was like, oh, yeah, that's teams that have the name in multiple sports. I tend to be like, we gotta pick one and move forward with that. Psyche. Oh that my brain is simple

and handle complex things. Okay, I love I love that you picked someone, um who is like good to root for, because my next pick is someone who is very hard to root for, and it is no, yeah, yeah, so o J beating the murder. I actually think it's one of the greatest center dabs of all time. Like we all were like, he's he's guilty, right, I'm sorry. No, So my second pick is John Daily winning the n p g A championship. Yeah, I mean I know him as a character. I guess it seems obscure to you guys,

and I'm such a homer. And I was like so proud of myself that I didn't pick anything Indianapolis. And then as I was like reading about this, I was like, oh, yeah, I was in Indianapolis. It was at Crooked Stick, a golf course that I once played so terribly at my dad like left the match. Um, But so this is the story and I love it a lot. Uh. Nick Price golfer, he had to withdraw from the PGA Championship because he was going to miss the birth of his first child, so he leaves. They go to the first

eight alternates on the list. None of them can make it to Indianapolis in time. John Daily is the ninth and final alternate. He drives through the night makes it to Indianapolis. He had never seen the course. Nick Price's caddy, whose name is Squeaky Midlands. I wrote it down just because I like his caddy had stayed like it was that fast. He was still there and he had like walked to the course, so he stayed on to be his caddy. Um. John Daily was a rookie. No one

knew who he was. Ninth alternate goes on and wins a major and then went on to become the p G as nine of the year. He won um the Open Championship in He's actually the only golfer to win two majors to never be asked to be on the Ryder Cup. And that's because, Yeah, he's a bit of a he's a bit of a goof. That's probably putting it nicer than he deserves. He's like, really, he's like, he drinks on the course, he cusses. He's kind of a Tanya Harding of golf. Like he has a blue

collar background. That's what I was going to ask. Do you think he's the underdog or his heart that with stands all that coke? He doesn't do. He doesn't do. No, he actually happens just when he said drive to the night. I'm like he had a quote at one or like a controversy at one point where he was like, all the they're all on coke. I'm an alcoholic. I'm maybe an alcoholic, but you test them for coke. I'm the cleanest guy on here, and it's like, Okay, that's not good.

These are some of my favorite career highlights. He's had um. He hit six balls in a row into a water hazard and scored an eighteen on a part five in a professional tournament. He was arrested outside of a Hooters. He's released two He's released two musical albums, and sang backup vocals on a kid rock song. Yeah, but is he a registered Republican? Oh? You bet your ask him and Philip like the same guy. Yeah. I don't like love. I don't love John Daily, who calls himself long John Um.

But to be just kind of like this, like quote unquote poor loser that no one knew, and to drive through the night and show up at a major tournament and win it, that's a little happy Gilmar. Yeah, oh absolutely, Oh yeah, I I would venture to guess that John Daily isn't taking social distancing serious. Absolutely, spend to a protest on the way. Yeah, there's like the McDonald's on the other side of the crowd. He's like, oh, I'll

shake some hands, all fist bump and then yeah. I mean like when I play when I get drunk and high and we're around friends, and like when I play YouTube DJ, I love playing. I don't know who the interviews with like Graham white guy or whatever on Fox Sports. But like there's an interview where he says he drinks twenty diet cokes a day and eats McDonald's fifteen times a week. This is he's your hero. I mean in

that way, yes, he's my hero. Like he has like Chuck Norris levels of of doing bad to your body. There used to be a golfer who and I cannot remember him, and he was um South American and he would smoke cigarettes and this is up until like five years ago, just smoking cigarettes on the course. And it kind of was like no one got mad at him the way that they got mad at John Dailey because it was like, oh, he's foreign, you know, and that's

just like like it was. It was almost worse for John Daily that he was blonde, because it's like, yeah, you can't get well, no, he's a piece of ship. Actually, I take it back, never mind cigarettes, dog, You're right, all right. Well for my second pick, we'll make this feel this will be a little bit feel good, uh, you know, an actual underdog. But my pick is Shokeem Griffin. And I don't know if you guys he shot in

place with the Seahawks. He's a linebacker and usually you know, I wasn't a big football fan until the last few years, but when I was working in the NFL really funny way, well, I mean, I wasn't a big football fan until I worked at the NFL. So working in the NFL is a great way to familiarize yourself with the sport. And you're just searching and searching for the actual good natured stories. And I actually chuck Keem Griffin's highlights started servicing and

I was like, Oh, this guys awesome. And then when Combine rolled around and I was looking at the roster and he wasn't in there despite getting defensive m VP. And actually, let me say this, so people say he doesn't have a hand, but what he has is that it's I think it's called an amniotic band syndrome that seems like I was doing to screw up the Howard pronounced it, but which means that you don't fully develop fingers on your hand. And he has a twin brother.

They went to UCF and both played for the Seahawks. But originally he wasn't He had one defensive m v P of his for his conference and then wasn't invited the Combine, so you know, just social media had such a backlash on them. They ended up inviting him after someone dropped out and he ended up killed. He was it was like, and I hated going to the combine and India, it was great to visit your family. I

just want to set up my emotions. It's like it was just really boring work and you're sitting there hours watching just the these dudes bench press and then you remember that this this kid wasn't invited the camp and he had twenty bench press twenty refs in bench press, and then he broke the record in the Ford. He got four point three eight fastest record for a linebacker

since they started recording stats. Uh. And then he end up getting drafted to the Seahawks and he started in his first game ever and is still on is still playing for the Seahawks. Yeah, I love him, like line becker him. And there's that commercial where they his brother built like a special bench press. No, they are. They are truly one of the most feel good stories. It's like them. And then Dominique Muciano and her long lost Romanian sister that doesn't have legs, whose parents abandoned her.

They're yeah, they're they're on the Mount rushmore a feel good sports stories. It's insane that he can play in the NFL because I'll wrestle with my kids and if I had one left hand, I lose to my seven

year old. Yeah. I mean, it's also an incredible blessing that he is kind of of amazing at the position that requires you to not really like you catch when yeah, yeah, when you see defensive ends that like break their hands, they literally just wrap it up and club people with it, and you're like, oh, that actually seems better like that,

that seems like a weapon. So he he has like the right body for it obviously, the right temperament and drive, and that his brother, it's his twin brother, and their parents are so amazing and lovely. They're just they're such a great family. I love them. They make the NFL seem good. Those are those good stories. C J. It felt like you wanted to talk more about how boring

Indianapolis was that um, maybe my my final pick. Now, yeah, you you really hated the combine, but you weren't even you were like in a ballroom that was like yeah, but you're you were like sitting in an office room. You're not like sitting out there watching them run. No, yeah, I am, uh okay, Well, then fucking get excited and I did, and then I was so excited that I went back to the NBA afterwards. But how how much weight did you gain at the combine? At the combine? Yeah,

I was so upset with myself afterwards. I like gon on scale and I was like, I have the number amount that it affected my body or my my just it was just I did not enjoy. That was the backbreaker for that job for me. Anyways, I don't want to revisit that. Um, all right, we're gonna take a break when we're right back with our final picks and we're back in justin just so you know how we do it. Since you are a guest, we're gonna have you be the final person who finally you're a big finale,

so make sure that pick is good. Feel free to sub anything out, Megan, who do you got for your number one pick? Okay, so this is a team. This coined phrases. I was not alive, but it has been just not even shoved down our throats. It's just something I feel like as Americans, we know about and that is the nineteen eighty miracle on ice. Does that feel?

I mean, I mean I saw the movie there. Well, that's the thing is, there's a thirty for thirty, there's an HBO doc, there's a Walt Disney film, and there was a made for TV movie. There's been four films made about this. Um. It was the nineteen eighty It wasn't even the gold medal game. It was like it was metal contention, but it was a round robin and the United States was playing the Soviet Union. The USSR had won five of the six last gold medals in hockey.

I mean they were heavily, heavily favored. The US team was like college players. There were only four players on the U S team that had any NHL experience. It's with this is not like a dream team situation American sport. Well, no, but they could take NHL. That thats just not how the system was back then. They were like, we'll just take our best collegiate players and it would be Christian Late. It's Christian Late Nurse going up against the Soviet Union.

And yeah, they were the youngest team in the tournament. They were playing very, very well, and then they get to this game that they were definitely going to lose. They end up winning for three l Michael's yells like I believe in miracles, and then what's crazy? They had to go on to play another game. They had to beat Finland in the next game to actually win the gold medal. There's been also documentaries about the Soviet Union side of this, and they were so upset as a

team they ended up winning the silver. They didn't even send in their medals to be engraved. Like their coach, I guess was like a full crazy person, like a psychopath. If some of these nineteen eighty Soviet Union players took that PTSD tests, I do not think they would pass um they they and all of them went on to be like really really famous NHL players and they've come

to terms with it. But yeah, it was like cold rory and it was in American It was these like young, hot, cool guys and and they won and it felt it just felt like why wasn't a life? But it seems like it felt like it was bigger than just hockey, Like it was like we are America. No, that's like the original sports miracle, like for the moments called miracle, right, miracle on ice. The movie is called miracle. Yeah, so like so many sports movies could have been called miracle,

but that gets to be it. I think they think it's a true miracle. Is there is there? Obviously maybe some xenophobia tied into that, sure, um, But then yeah, after was a good story after this, Um, the U S team did not go on to um beat the Soviet team for over a decade, Like they won that one game and then the team was so good they could not do it again. But gold medal. I don't

the men's name. You know, they're cute in America as a country, as an underdog, that's just so good to bring up, you know, well, obviously different than nineteen eighty but I'm very happy for those men. And yeah, it's just it feels very much part of like the cultural sports lexicon. Alright, Uh my number one pick, if you're going to pick America, I don't know. One honorable mention, and that was Appalachian State beating Michigan. I like remember that.

It was so funny to me, um, and I like Michigan. I just it was so cute and funny and Appalachian State, we all like can go to that place and know what that means. I don't really remember that. Yeah, but when you hear Appalachian State, you know what the people are saying. They're not like talking about pipes on front porches. They're talking about beating Michigan pipes on front. When I

think of Appalachia, I think of people playing fiddles and rocking. Oh. I thought it was like, was there a pipe situation? But just like ning, I was thinking more like double dragon. Um, but that was the great Smoky's I am getting my mountains confused. Okay, okay, No one never said let's go to Appalachia. No, no, unless it's like an actual kidnapper, yeah,

or horror movie. Yeah. Alright. My number one pick to no surprise Jeremy Lynn and why it is the biggest sports moment to me personally, No zero Asian representation really in any popular sport. And then it was in basketball. And here's the thing I'm you know, obviously, people like, oh he c J loves basketball. He's Asians with Jeremy, of course, But the thing is, I, for some reason got hat tipped to Jerem mel In like a week before it happened, Like no one knew who he was

sort of like Asian redde. Yeah, I'm on Asian basketball Redde. But what happened was so he went he played for Harvard, went undrafted, got bounced on a bunch of different teams, and then he got sent to the G League. He played for my hometown's G League basketball team, the Erie BayHawks, and I remember just like following our my hometown's G league team as a joke, like ironic and just seeing the different players that would end up there and then

ultimately quit basketball. Then I remember the picture of like Jeremy Land signs with the Erie bay Hawks, and I'm like, wow, the only other Asian guy to go through Erie. And then it cut to a week later he's on the next ten day contract, and I was like, oh, keep a slight little, you know, my radar on the next

and see if anything happens. Nothing happened until that like last game, then the last game of the ten day contract, and he blew up against the Jazz and then you know, I don't have to, you know, tell you guys about Lyns sanity, but it was insane. I cried during the the the game against the Lakers because I remember like he had gone on the street. Lind sanity was the biggest thing in sports in the wind pop culture and

and this is the perfect Kobe thing. But I remember the Lakers were about to play the Knicks and they asked Kobe, what do you think of this Jeremy Lynd guy, And Kobe's like, I don't know who you're talking about, and just completely played dumb, you know, Mamba mentality. However weird that was. And then Jeremy Lynn drops thirty eight in the garden against Kobe. I think he got like the winning buckets and like the last quarter of that.

I just rewatched that and I saw like a little baby, and you know the thing is, it didn't like stop there like the you know, he ended up on like four different teams and now is playing for the Beijing Ducks uh and made the All Star team. And it's just like no other Asian guard, especially like a guard UH is like rare. It's so one cool thing that I have. Uh So, when I was going to go to New York for work, and I was like, you know what, I love the NBA so much, I'm gonna

buy a ticket to a Knicks game. And so I bought it. A few a few months ahead of time. So cut too. I'm in New York and Lyn sanity is at its peak, won the games in a row. I'm there at the night. I'm there at the ninth game against the Hornets. People are offering to buy my tickets as I walk in for like crazy amounts of money. But Jeremy Lynn hadn't lost yet on the Knicks, and so I go to the game with Paul McCartney's there

like all kinds of crazy everything. And I got to see a game in Madison Square Garden that was like the most electric Madison Square Garden, which is the method of basketball gifts. And I remember feeling like overwhelmed being there, just like this guy's story, it's so fucking amazing. Yeah, I'm you knew in the moment too, because sometimes in sports you're like at something and then later it's like, oh, that was iconic, but like at the moment you're just

having fun. But to go into it and like it's already deemed insanity and then for him to live up to it. How No, c J, how do you feel about his corn rows? I can't defend I will never defend that. Yeah, when he started, did you also like a child. I was like, Jeremy, why are you tearing this? We built this up? He's in Wow, I can't believe. And I also can't defend his sketch comedy either. He

was doing some some sketches. He hired a whole social media team, but well, whose sketch comedy can you defend? You know? Like that's okay, We're all, you know, a lot of experiment. We all are doing front facing videos that maybe people don't like. Um, but I just didn't know we meant that much to you. Yeah, until the two thousand sixteen calves being a war game seven like those are that probably the only two things that like will make me sob up watching sports wise, did your

mom know who he was? Yeah? Oh yeah, yeah, Like yeah, when my mom knows, that's when you know it's a huge sport. And then she was like, he went to Harvard. Why didn't you? It's like, Jeremy, yeah, it doesn't solve the problem of like, hey, mom, I followed basketball my whole life and now I'm doing something. It's like, no, he went to Harvard too. And that's how my parents would explain things like you can become a comedian but first you have to become a doctor. And it's just like, no,

you can't do that. Jeremy was doing that. Yeah, I like that, Jeremy Lynn. And Jeremy Lynn became an NBA player but still hit all the Asian stereo day. Yeah, again, not helping us. Jeremy to Harvard makes an inappropriate hair choice, you know, alright, justin give us your number one pick. Okay, So this number one pick. I was three years old

when this happened. I don't remember it. But but again, I'm a huge basketball fan, and I'm also a huge college basketball fan, and I just remember, you know, you can't watch an nt double A tournament without seeing these highlights. I think it's actually in the like montage they play at the end um. And so I went my research and my number one pick is the A B three NC State wolf Pack winning the national championship against against

the Chimala Juan and Clyde Drexler in Houston. And the reason why I picked them is because I went through and I looked at their tournament run and it's actually insane that they got there. So they in the first round, there's sixty They played pepper Dine. They win by two in double overtime against pepper Dine. That's the first round, second round. Yeah, exactly like the pepper Powerhouse. Pepperdine. The second round, second round they beat UNLV seventy one to seventy.

The third round they take care of Utah pretty well. But then the next round against the lead eight versus Virginia, they win sixty three sixty two. So it's like squeaking by every single Remember this is like the Jimmy Valvano team. Um, then they beat Georgia sixty sixty, but then I went then they end up beating They end up beating Houston in that famous shot where it's a miss three at air balls and an nc State player grabs it and dunks it in the game. But the crazy thing is

is that Houston team. It had a team and Clyde Dressler, which are too arguably two top fifty NBA player had team's top twenty and and and Dressler top fifty of all times in college. They're not like fresh they're you know, they're they're like the best players on the team. NC State has one player who goes on to play in the NBA, Thorol Bailey. But the rest of the team. The rest of the team is a tiny They don't have anyone who could like a card Hakim in the post.

They have no one who can match up with Drexler. They decided to just knuck up the game because Houston is just putting up like every game, Houston's putting up just a ton of points in college. So as you stay and Valvedo just decided to like do the only thing they can do, which is like basically what Brad seasons they would Butler, you know, twenty five years later, which is like we're just going to turn this floor

into mud and no one's going to score. And so they did that, and they kept Hakim Elaje one, who was like probably top five center of all times. Yeah he was like he went number one in the Jordan's draft, like and no one has mad ever mad about that either, because Kim and like Drexler at Houston team were like the Sementi three win Warriors. They were the most like for sure thing ever and yeah, that's how crazy good

they were. And yeah, yeah you have to like, I know, Jimmy V. You know, Jimmy V is is my entry into them, and Jimmy V is all iconic and is just this larger than life because he's not here anymore, and he's momorialized so beautifully and ESPN like loves him and his foundation, and I really think that that like carries that spirit and underdogness through Like if they hadn't won that, I don't know if the Jimmy V Foundation raises as much, you know, like that. It's just they're

they're so tied together, Like oh my god. When yeah, I was recently reading the ESPN book and then when it got to him accepting that SPS Award, I was sobbing reading the book and that never happens to me, Like I just I love him. Yeah, those but like I remember even just like even for a while, ESPN would just run that one clip of him giving us

like over and over, and like I've seen that. I've seen that so many times, and every time I get like a total like his chunk in my throat, and I like in that image of him running onto the court, that like it's so rare. It's so rare you get to see a coach exhibit like pure ecstasy, like you get it's like what sports can do that no other thing in the world can do and like to be able to see it. In the end of that game, he's running out onto the court and arms are are

like what He's just looking for anyone to hug. Yeah, it's such a moment of like pure joy because you you know, you're looking at him. He's like, there's no way we should have won this game or even been here, and he did it, and it's it's just like I get chills just like watching it. I looked, so I watched the last like five minutes of it on YouTube to day before I did this, and it's it's it's so crazy, like everyone is so tense and you can see he's just like, why are we not winning? This?

Can't they can't figure it out. So rarely I think of March Madness as the number one like upset Cinderette, Like that's what it is. And so rarely do those team win, Like even the Butler, they make it to the national Championship, but they don't win. The Sister Jean Sister Jean is is one of my honorable mentions too, and it's like so fun, but it's usually sweet sixteen Elite A very rarely is it National Championship and almost never is it then winning. Yeah, you're always like, oh,

that's a nice story. Okay, Duke's gonna win that, you know. I like these little tiny stories. Anyways, let's see North Carolina wrap this thing up. Yeah, totally. It's a really good one. I had a lot of like emotional impact. And I remember, like the other thing about it is like my dad's not a huge college basketball fan, but he's a huge sports fan, and like I remember even being little and hearing him talk about it, and in fact, it's just like one of those moments that like permeates.

It's like you were saying, like your mom knew about Jeremy Lynn. Like I love those sports moments where they like they puncture through the sports bubble and they like leak out into the regular world and all the people who don't even give a shit about sports are like I remember that. Yeah. I'm mean, that's what the last dance for the last five weeks. Like friends who don't watch sports and they're watching and like, yeah, that's how

big of a deal they were. Um, And I love when when sports got I love when new sports are doing that, not recycling the nineties bolls for Paup culture. Now, hey, justin thank you so much for joining us. Um is there anything you want to plug? You have two books, you have Harley Quinn? What else where else can we find you what you want? Harley Quinn on SI by on demand I think, and then on the DC Universe

app that no one has but trial. Yeah, me and me and h wit split it because we yeah for the for Harley Quinn and for that Batman animated series from the nineties. Yeah, it's like on Twitter, I always see Harley Quinn like memes happening now like that. This is a sign of a for real good show when it's being used for memes. I think that's like what you aspired to now these days. Oh, absolutely, Like I want some woman who is who someone to make fun of someone else using a meme for my show. That

is basically to me, the best to confinsive. Actually, I do want to ask you too, with the announcement of the Snyder Cut releasing, like, has that where you like, Yes, it's awesome because now it's all of your screenshots in your show being used to talk about that that. I seriously was It's funny like when that when the Snyder Cut got released because we had done a Snyder Cut like joke, a little like seen making fun of people asking for the Snyder Cut to be released in our show.

And we have this like very stereotypical like neck dirty guy wearing a release of Snyder Cut show a shirt and yeah, and then that this became like he became the representative for people talking about the Snyder Cut. I was like, this is all I could ask Megan. I'll explain to you the whole Snyder Cut thing after this, and you'll be like, I don't care. No, I saw people talking about it. I definitely know what's kind of happening.

But it's yeah. I mean we went to see what we went to see Avengers, and I was like, where's Wonder Woman? And C was like, she's not coming. And I was like, well, this was false advertising, all right, so check that out. And Megan, where can we find you? You can find me in our house. Um, And then yeah, Megan Gaily on Twitter beating me at Ping Pong and losing in Papa shot to me, yeah, I'm not very good and you can find me at at C J Toldonald.

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