LeBron Breaks Record, Rashee Rice Reaction & Likely, Maybe, What If - podcast episode cover

LeBron Breaks Record, Rashee Rice Reaction & Likely, Maybe, What If

Apr 02, 20241 hr 10 minEp. 230
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Episode description

0:00-19:59 Iowa def. LSU 

20:00-38:20 Angel Reese Postgame 

38:25-45:04 LeBron Aging Like Fine Wine

45:05-49:05 New Playoff Format Pitch

49:06-59:13 Rashee Rice Update

59:19-1:01:34 Donovan Mitchell’s Future

1:01:35-1:02:42 Penix Pro Day Reaction

1:02:41-1:04:12 Zach Edey NBA Prospects

1:04:13-1:05:05 D.J. Burns Linked to NFL 

1:05:06-1:09:20 Nick and Damonza Q&A



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Transcript

Speaker 1

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Speaker 2

Welcome in What's Right with Nick Right? Episode two twenty six. What a night of college hoops last night? All the women's side of things we have. I'm the great statistician from First Things First. Dusty is about to text me the exact number. But there is a chance that both the men's and the women's all time single tournament scoring record goes down in this tournament. Zach Edy for Purdue, fresh off his forty point performance, has scored one hundred

and twenty points through four tournament games. The all time record for a single tournament is NBA jam Legend Flame thrower Glenn Rice, who had one hundred and eighty four points for Michigan thirty five years ago in a NCAA tournament. So Edie needs to average thirty two and a half points. He needs to obviously make the final and score sixty five total points in his next two games. Caitlan Clark, I don't know what the women's record is. That's what

Dusty's looking up for me right now. Caitlin Clark has one hundred and thirty six through four tournament games. She is averaging and incomprehensible thirty four, seven and ten through the tournament. And so if she can get past Yukon and get to the final against South Carolina, I've got to imagine she's got a great chance at setting that record. So a wonderful night in women's basketball yesterday, a wonderful

night in basketball in general. We will discuss that I'm gonna give young people some advice in relation to what Angel Rees said after the game. Also, folks really were mad at me, it would appear, for not discussing the Rashi Rice situation on television yesterday. That is not a great television topic because there's not much to say with the information we have, but I'll discuss it here. We'll do all that talk some NBA play a game of likely maybe what if. But first, here's what missed the

cut for today's show. A UFL kicker that reportedly hadn't kicked the field goals in high school hit a sixty four yard game winner. Beyonce releasing a country album pretty good actually, and the Chiefs signed Carson Wentz Demons welcome in shades. Look great. You're gonna get your new designer shades when I see you in a week and a half. But in the meantime, I like the rotation you're going

through the chief sneakily. I think might be listening to my old Cam Newton advice, which was I said they need to sign Cam specifically for goal line and QB sneak situations. Carson Wentz, great at those things. That might be what my guy Brett Veach is doing. And so Carson Wentz coming in to be a backup quarterback for the Chiefs. But of course the new was last night. Demons are the lead eight games on the women's side of the bracket, So you go ahead.

Speaker 3

Yeah, So Kaylin Clark put on a clinic versus LSU. Last night got their revenge from last year. Juju Watkins dropped twenty nine, but USC came up short and couldn't go. Couldn't killed cage buckets in Yukon. You predicted that last night will be the greatest night in women's history or women's hoop history. Sorry about that women's history.

Speaker 2

Yeah, yeah, I'm not sure what night that would be, but in women's basketball history. So here's the deal. Yeah, lived up to my expectations. Yukon's better than USC. I understand USC. I shouldn't say that USC had the higher seed. I'm not shocked at Yukon won. And people should remember that Page was the best player in the sport, arguably as a freshman, like Juju has the argument at least

aside from Caitlyn Clark. And then Paige missed time because she got hurt, and now Page is reminding everyone who she is now. Juju is maybe has the highest upside of any female player I've ever seen, and at her age and her skill set and her size, We'll see what she continues to do. Demanda, you got to see her in person. We didn't talk about it on the show.

Speaker 4

But I mean she is.

Speaker 2

An amazing defendermates seems like right, I mean, she's exceptional, but she'll have her time, and I'm glad that we're gonna get Caitlyn. It would have been awesome to get Caitlyn against Juju, but Caitlyn against Page is pretty dope. And then sitting on the other side of the bracket is South Carolina, which is gonna win the whole thing.

Speaker 4

They're undefeated.

Speaker 2

No, I mean, they've got the best coach in college basketball, They're the best roster in college basketball. They the I mean, South Carolina is the best team. It would take a more than what Caitlyn did last night against LSU by Caitlin or Page to beat South Carolina. But either way, it's an unbelievable run for both these programs. But I want to talk about Caitlin first. I do think and I hate to start negative, but I will do it. Agree.

I thought Kim Mulkie's game plan was perplexing. I thought just asking Haley van Lyt deer up was a curious decision that she didn't go away from. They didn't start blitzing her or put flage on her until the game was out of hand. With four minutes left, and it'd be like Haley was yes, and Haley would struggling massively on the offensive end. So in theory and Haley had

a brutal tournament. I feel badly for her. She's the young lady that was at Louisville last year, had the little back and forth with Caitlyn and then transferred Lsu to be with a better team, and she listened. She shot twenty one percent from the field in the tournament, in twenty one percent from three. It was a brutal tournament for but she. You can't ask anybody to just

play one on one man defense on Caitlyn Clark. That's what Mulki asked Hailey van Litt to do, and it was when you watched how she was playing offensively, the only way that made sense was, Okay, you're dealing with that because of what she's giving you defensively. But the poor lady was getting cooked defensively. There's nothing anybody who was going to be able to do against Kaitlyn last night. And that was a legendary performance by a legendary player.

This is the team that beat you in the national championship game. That you have had circled all year long that for some people, nothing that you do this year. I'm not one of those people, but for some people was going to matter if you lose to them. And she had one of the best games of her career forty one, seven and twelve with an impossible degree of difficulty on those shots, just absolutely impossible degree of difficulty.

And so when you saw what she did now last year against South Carolina in the national semifinal, she had and maybe even a more impressive uh shooting performance the where she no no, actually the no, it wasn't a more impressive shooting performance in that game. She acs has struggled from three, but she had forty one in that game as well, but not as many assists. You could argue South Carolina was better I don't know last year

than LSU. This year. Probably was, but I didn't Given the opponent, given the stakes, and given the attention, it was the most impressive game of her career. And you can say it wasn't the biggest game of her career because she played for a national championship last year, and I understand that argument, but the revenge factor and last year in the National championship, it was kind of a house money game. They weren't expected to be there. Caitlin

didn't have these type of expectations. LSU was considered the better team this year. You're the favorite, you are expected to be there, You're the one all of those things. You gotta win that game or a lot of people are gonna find ways to be like, oh, how good is Caitlin Clark really? And she responded with arguably the greatest performance of her career. And those shots were just impossible. Man.

They're off balanced on the move, off the dribble with some of them with good defense where you saw Angel and Haley both do the Michael Jordan shrug, like what the hell do you want me to do? Like? What do you want me to do in this spot? And so I know there's gonna be a discussion on is she the greatest female basketball player ever? Here's my issue with that discussion. When it comes to talking about the

greatest NBA players ever. I feel like I am able to accurately and intelligently discuss players that I never watched live because I've the ability to go back and watch almost anything from the eighties on, and so maybe I can't fairly evaluate Wilton Russell. But I can fairly evaluate you know more about half of Kareem's career, all of Magic, all of Byrd, all of Michael, all of that. I Cheryl Miller is probably the leading contender historically for the

greatest female player ever. All I can do is watch clips and reader Wikipedia like I can't. I can't go back and watch her the way I could watch men's pro basketball of the same era. So and obviously the greatest players at Tennessee in the nineties and a long list of Yukon women's Huskies over the last twenty years, from Tarazi to Brianna Stewart, all have a credible case. So I don't know. If Caitlyn Clark's the greatest female basketball player ever, my money would be on Juju getting there.

I do know this, Caitlyn Clark is revolutionary in the attention she has brought to the sport, the eyeballs she has brought to the sport, and the way she has risen to the occasion every time the spotlight's been on her.

Speaker 4

And people like three pointers.

Speaker 2

Well yes, and she plays a She has a lot of stylistic similarities to Steph All of these men's players who have come up trying to emulate Steph, she has succeeded more than any of them. Like Trey Young takes a lot of the same shots Steph does, but you'll look at a shooting percentages, you look at his efficiency, it's not there. Her passing, plus her off the bounce, off balance, rain shooting, she is the closest to step

off ball. Oh that's a great point. What she does when she doesn't have the ball right, the constant movement, all of it, the relocating. So I do think last night was a transcendent moment in women's sports history, and it brings me to what I wonder is going to happen with Caitlin Clark and the Stars and the WNBA. Because I sent Demand a text yesterday that seems seems make believe what I sent him, But I'm gonna read it to you directly from USA today, which is right

now if you're listening. Give it a guess what Caitlin Clark as the number one pick of next year's WNBA draft will make. So just you know, if you're just come up with a number in your head. And this is not a conversation about that. The WNBA players should make as much as NBA players. That is a facile conversation that nobody actually thinks is true, and people who are on the other side of the argument prop it up as a straw man as if that is what

you're arguing against. But when I tell you how much Caitlin Clark's going to make from the Indiana Fever next year, when she's the number one pick, I promise you whatever number you're guessing, you're far too high. So the number one pick of last year's WNBA draft, and I'm gonna so it was a Leah Boston. I'm gonna read you her exact salary, so again this will go up by

a tick. Aliah Boston got a three year, two hundred and thirty thousand dollars contract that is not per season, that is total the number one pick of last year's WNBA draft. Her salaries are as follows, seventy four grand, seventy six grand, eighty three grand, and then a team option for ninety four thousand dollars. So that's what Caitlin Clark is gonna make from the Indiana Fever next year. So there are a lot of elements to that and

Echino to it. And how profitable is the league, should the players get a larger share of the revenue pie as they do in the NBA, all of it. I

don't actually care to have that conversation right now. The conversation I do care to have is this, if the NBA and the WNBA care about ensuring that they continue the momentum from the women's college game and don't have their stars going overseas to play as so many have, most famously obviously Britney Griner, who then got locked up for a year plus while playing in Russia, but so many of the great play overseas. They have to find a way to make this make sense because people say, well,

Caitlyn's gonna make so much money off endorsements. She's gonna make. However much she's gonna make off endorsements is going to exist, whether the whether she makes seventy five grand or seven hundred fifty grand in the WNBA. But the individual's player max for the the WNBA is a quarter of a million bucks, and Caitlin Clerk averaging eighty grand a year for the first three years of her career. That's not

a sustainable business model. And there somebody is gonna see that and create a competing all star league that is going to pay the actual stars that get developed in college basketball real money, and then the WNBA is cooked that if the WNBA has a chance to use this, right, I exactly right what ice Cube talked about, or somebody like the America loves stars and we now have a

bunch of female college stars. And I'm not saying you got they have to all make millions of dollars, but eighty grand a year for Caitlin Clark ain't gonna cut it, guys, just not. And it also will create situations where if your team is paying you eighty and Nike's paying you a million, who do you work for? You don't work

for your team, you work for Nike. There are there there will be if your if your team is paying you eighty and you're offered fifty to give a speech, team's paying you eighty for the year and you're offered fifty grand to give a speech that conflicts with something your team needs to do, well, sorry, guys, like they're real things that happen here. And so that that is something that the NBA and the WNBA need to figure out,

because you can't squander this moment. And we have seen in men's sports, when the NBA was not financially what it is now, the ABA takes advantage and gets stars. When the NFL was not financially what it is now, the USFL Steve Young, Reggie Whites, Doug Fluteie warn moon

stars you can't have the league's talent pool diluted. So I really really hope that on the professional level they take advantage of the fact that you are going to have over the next few years names coming into your league, Caitlin, Angel, Page, Juju all coming into your league that people will want to see. All Right, With all that said, I think USC is gonna win the whole thing. I'm sorry us.

South Carolina is gonna win the whole thing. They were also USC oddly University of South Carolina, but South Carolina's the best team. I also really like doing Staley, but that I if Caitlin can pull this off, it'll be remarkable. But I I think South Carolina is too good, and Gabe is reminding us that is a fake USC. Well, they're votes University of Southern California, University of South Carolina. You guys hash that out in court. All right, demanse uh, let's go to Angel Rees.

Speaker 4

Yeah.

Speaker 3

So after the game, Angel Rees had had this to say, enterpressor for those watching on YouTube, I'm gonna show up, yeah, a little small videos.

Speaker 5

I just try to stand strong. Like I've been through so much. I've seen so much. I've been attacked so many times, death threats, I've been sexualized, I've been threat and I've been so many things and I've stitched strong every single time. And I just try to stand strong for my teammates because I don't want them to see

me down and like not be there for them. So I just want to always just know like I'm still a human, Like all this has happened since I won the National championship, and I said the other day, I haven't happy since then, and it sucks, and but I still wouldn't change.

Speaker 2

Okay, So that's heartbreaking. And listen, there's a lot that goes into that. A lot of the Angel Rees hate from a year ago was steeped in racism. There's obviously Kim Maulki, who I'm not a fan of at all, but she was right in this regard. Some of a lot of this has been misogynistic, there's a lot of factors that have led to that, but that's actually not

the discussion that I want to have here. The discussion I want to have here is a different one, and that is too particularly young people, but really people my age as well, but particularly people age fifteen to twenty five are the ones I am speaking to most specifically here, but I think there are grown ass people my age and older that could use this lesson as well. Everybody, everybody.

You gotta stop reading the comments you have to People are not human beings, are not psychologically equipped to deal with a constant inflow of attacks. I do not know how many instances we have to show we have to have to show you there is real psychological damage done to people, particularly young people, if they are constantly reading,

even if it is anonymous strangers tearing them down. And I am in a unique place to talk about this because I, because of my media career and because of my exact time joining the media and the age I was, and then the like the twenty years since, got a small taste of being a public figure pre social media, and then a large taste during the birth of social media, the ubiquitousness of it, and now a large sample of sense I have essentially logged off not from my own comments,

but from reading any of yours. And I am here to tell you it will absolutely impact and affect your real life relationships, how you view yourself, the way you carry yourself, all of these things because of what you are reading and seeing that is set about you. There is almost no way to become inoculated against it other than avoiding it and what angel reades experience. So when you think about what she said there, death threats, sexualized, all of those things, honest question, how many of those

things do you think happened in person? How many of those things do you think was someone coming up to her on the street and saying that to her. I understand you get heckled in person as an athlete, but athletes are great at dealing with that and sometimes, you know, using that as fuel. I don't think that's what she's talking about. I think she's talking about through her goddamn phone. And I'm and I am here to tell you that there is no way you're not going to age out

of that impacting you. You're not going to mature out of that impacting you. The only way to not allow that to be a sore on your soul is to not read it. And I know that is kind of counterintuitive to what ideally social media is there for. It's so you can interact with people, it's so people can leave comments, it's so I get all of that. But that is not what it is in practicality today, especially if you are a public figure. And I we're not through the other side of this yet, we're still in

the midst of it. But for young people out there that have any type of following, even if the following is just a lot of people at your high school or college follow you on Instagram or TikTok or whatever it is, I am here to tell you that that shit is toxic. Angel Reeths reached the pinnacle, led her team to the national championship, was one of the best

players in her sport. Was on talk shows Sports Illustrated, the swimsuit edition, the regular edition, made money, had got rich by certainly by college standards and maybe by anybody's standards. And she just said that in that timeframe, she hasn't been happy because you can't run from that shit if

you read it. And I'm here to tell you that one of the best decisions I ever made was stopping reading that stuff like this is and it is, And I get sometimes annoyed by people who I actually interact with that then come to me and tell me, oh, man, folks are killing you for X. No, they're fucking not. I mean maybe they are on on your phone, but in real life you better find me walking my dog, or have my phone number or know me personally otherwise

I'm not hearing it. And that does make me a little sad, because it means there are there's good There are people that I probably would like to connect with or you know, a big fans or whatever it is that I'm missing. There them reaching out of their common but I I can't wade through the toxicity to find those without having the toxicity pull me down. And so Angel Reese like I empathize with her and with every

young person that becomes famous, every single one. But I'm here to tell you the only way through is to decide that the dopamine kicks you get from the good comments will not outweigh the being dragged down by the bat And I've seen folks in my field wreck their careers by being so captivated by their online audience and curating their content to that or changing what they will or won't say, or being afraid all of it. It's

too many people. You're not gonna please them all. And the more successful you get, the more people that will be there to try to ruin your day. And so I I really really wish that we did a better job preparing. I used to say you should be able to major in pro athlete when you went to college, Like, hey, people major in things all the time that they're not

gonna end up being and people let them. It's like people majored in broadcast journalism at Syracuse that I think was pretty clear early on You're not gonna be a broadcaster. Nobody said you're not allowed to do it. People major in art history. You know, you can major anything you want, and you should be able to major in pro athlete and the classes would be things like contract law, public speaking, money management, the things you would need if you become

a pro athlete. One of those things should be dealing with celebrity and how to deal with it and keep even keel because we're not helping our folks out on that, and that dealing with celebrity thing is maybe something we could teach in high school to everyone because everyone is a different in today's day and age, almost everyone's some

form of celebrity, just different levels of it. Anybody that dips their toe into the content creation or social media or semi public figure waters is going to be susceptible to this stuff. And it is It makes me sick that Angel Reaves basically just said this last year, which should have been the best year of her life, has

been the worst. But that is that is not like right now, if you go, I'm certain to Angel Reese's social media, what people are doing some people are doing is putting up pictures from her in the swimsuit issue and saying, oh, you're gonna cry about being sexualized and all of a sudden put that on her. Twist it. They're gonna put that on her and somewhere in her brain as a kid is a twenty seven year olds, there's something and there's gonna be like, oh, did I

do that? Am I a fault? Should I not have done that?

Speaker 4

Should I?

Speaker 2

And it's it's just not good for your mental health, y'all, flatly, And it's one of the reasons demands that I especially right when we started, and to a degree now and try to be protect when you're twenty five, You're you're older, but it's still like I try to be I I had to and I still have to kind of walk a fine line of how like big do I want your Twitter following to be? And I understand I really should. I'm not trying to live your life for you. I apologize.

I know that sounds patronizing. I don't mean it too, but you're but you You're in this public figure world because of me, and so I feel, you know what I mean, There is a the there is a real like I just don't think it's good for people, like do you think let me ask you, if we're going to move on, do you think when people because I know you see some of them, or at least when we first started, you would read a lot of the comments. Did you feel it having an impact on you?

Speaker 3

Yeah, I mean I definitely felt like, uh, it added to me question a couple of things, But it was I think that I think that with most of the him, I could just like kind of look at him and and laugh, maybe like I was thinking something else on my head. But there are definitely a couple of comments that I can remember that. It just made me sit there and like kind of think for a second and like maybe you still remember exactly, Yeah, well.

Speaker 2

It did last outside of it because you still remember it. It's still somewhere burrowed in your brain. Because and this is the last point, and I know I'm going along on this, this last point I'll make Human beings are not wired to be under constant attack because in person people aren't. Right, Like, like, pre social media, the amount of times someone was cursed out by somebody in a year for most people would be around zero, Like how

many times? Like and even post social media, ask yourself, how many any awful interactions have I had with another human being this year in person? Don't count spouse, kids, brother, sister, mom, dad, family, separate, how many awful? Like I hope you die? Like has anyone ever said that to you in person? Probably not?

And so we're just psychologically we're not. Maybe we'll go to a place to where work social media Well, there's just so there's just too many, just too many and the and so all right, we can move on now. Apolog I was on the wrong side, but no, the who was on the wrong side of things?

Speaker 3

Nothing I think that I thought a certain way about the angel rease topic as well, and I further understand now And.

Speaker 2

Oh you thought that it was like crocodile tears.

Speaker 3

No, I like it, Like you basically you kind of called me out without not even call me out. But like she said something about her being sexualized, and I was like, she did the whole swimsuit thing and that was the wrong side of it. Like I was just like it was very surface level. Oh she felt sexualized, but she did a shoot. But I get it, I get it.

Speaker 4

I was on the wrong side.

Speaker 2

Well, no, so like that is I think that's where a lot of people's heads went, like what are you talking about? But yeah, that the next level to it is like you can be proud of your body with

a sexualized I don't think maybe I'm wrong. I don't think she means like people being like you're hot, my gas is right people have I wouldn't be shocked if she had been sent like a deep fake picture of herself in a sex scene, you know what I mean, like or you know what I mean, a photoshot picture of her naked or the I mean again, like I'm think about Deman's just think this is I'm a guy, and I'm old, and I again, I've kind of been through the social media wars, so to speak, so I

built up a bit of an armor. But think about the most offensive and it funniest might be one way to put it, but most offensive or most vulgar photoshops of me that I have shown you, you know what I mean, the things that were sent about me with me sometimes Shannon Sharp's in them, Lebron's you know what. Those things, those things that people on the internet create.

Then imagine you're a young woman who they have the you know, the pictures to choose from our your swimsuit pictures, you know what I mean, Like, that's the type of shit she's talking about, and and so yeah, I just it's a real thing that we don't yet have a full grasp on the real impact of it.

Speaker 4

All right.

Speaker 2

By the way, the LSU IOWA rating, I'm being told twelve point two million people. What a number? The National Championship last year did ten million? Twelve point two million? Hold on, let me just check something real quick. Twenty twenty three NBA Finals ratings. I think the NBA Finals last year averaged eleven point.

Speaker 4

Six holy crap.

Speaker 2

Okay, we wait, hold on, Oh yeah, it averaged eleven point six. Last year that lsu Iowa Elle eight game did twelve point two. At least that's what I'm being told. That's a great, great number. All right, take quick break, come back, talk little Lebron, Rashi Rice, my way to fix playoffs across sports? Do all that next? What's right?

Speaker 4

All right?

Speaker 2

Welcome back in What's Right with Nick Wright, Episode to twenty six. All right, let's get back to hoops. Go ahead.

Speaker 3

Yeah, so Lebron broke the record for most thirty point games in a row or actually no, not in euro it's just thirty point games, sorry, and tidy his career his career high in threes. After the game, he said that he doesn't have much time left. And you once said that Lebron wouldn't stick around in the league long enough to be a bad player, So, oh wait, what'd you mean by that? And how far can this version of Lebron take the Lakers?

Speaker 2

All right, So what I mean by Lebron won't ever be a bad player is so he had forty points on seventeen shots and only took six free throws. So that's never been done before in the history of the league, his true shooting percentage was over one hundred percent. He's right now. This season he has his fifth highest career field goal percentage, his highest career three point percentage, and his sixth highest career assists per game. So is he peak Lebron obviously not. Is he better than he was

last year? Yes?

Speaker 4

Is he it? I guess?

Speaker 2

Go ahead.

Speaker 3

I think Lebron is probably working on threes way more than he's ever.

Speaker 4

Worked on him. Yeah.

Speaker 2

Yeah, well that's that would be the smart thing, right as his athleticism is declining and as the game is changing, try to improve in that area. I mean, right now, he's shooting better from three than Kyrie Stepford Clay Like, that's what he is for this season, He's at almost forty two from three.

Speaker 4

Now.

Speaker 2

I understand those guys are taking more threes and tougher threes. I get that, But the number is the number. And so if there was this idea that Lebron was going to be on this slow, you know, decline, but that isn't what's happened. He he has rebounded a bit from last year. And if in year twenty one, he's what

the eighth best player in the league. What's he gonna be at year twenty five if you were to keep playing the twentieth best player like I just I because of his IQ commitment to his body and all around game, We're never gonna see a significant drop off and on the passing Jordan for twenty five point game or for thirty point games. Yes, Lebron's obviously played way, way, way more games, but he's also had way fewer games than

Jordan with high field goal attempts. So like career games with twenty five plus field goal attempts, I think Jordan's got a few hundred more than Lebron. So the I'm gonna try to have a Jordan Lebron thing. But this is this is just another thing where when we look at the record books, you're gonna see Lebron's name at the top of everything, and Jordan's name either right behind Lebron or for a lot of the other records, like all time points, you know, six seventh, eighth on the list.

But as far as how far can he take these Lakers? I so, demons, let's do this healthy Lebron. Okay, let's assume he doesn't suffer an injury. Right, give me the list of players that you would rather have for a playoff series starting right now. Nicole yos Yo Kich is a clear one.

Speaker 4

Are you not.

Speaker 3

With the fully I guess, like you said, fully healthy, fully healthy? Gi honest, I'm assuming yeah, and I almost ty Curry in Lebron, But like I'm not sure.

Speaker 2

I think Steph has shown more signs of aging this year than Lebron. I'll put Luca ahead of him. Lucas playing out of his mind.

Speaker 4

Yeah, that's another one after that.

Speaker 2

I don't know people ready to say Sga and his almost non existent playoff experience, you rather have him than Lebron. I'm not. I think Lebron's still better than Durant, He's better than Booker. I know Booker scored fifty the other night. So the how far can Lebron take the Lakers? The answer is probably until they play the Nuggets. But what I will also say is this, on the flip side of that, I think for the Lakers to have any real chance of a deep playoff run, they've got to

get out of that nine seed. You can't play back to back elimination games just to get the opportunity to play the one seed, you just can't do it. And getting out of that nine seed. They're running out of time. They have thirty three losses, the Pelicans of thirty the Sons of thirty one, the Kings of thirty one. There's only seven games left, so the Lakers probably gotta go six and one the rest of the way to have a realistic shot of catching one of those teams.

Speaker 5

Now.

Speaker 2

I think they don't have the tiebreaker with Sacramento, so they're essentially three losses behind Sacramento. They do have the tiebreaker with Phoenix, so they're two losses behind Phoenix. I if they get up to the eight line, can they make the conference finals against Sure? I don't. I don't think the Lakers have a well enough, well enough rounded roster in today's NBA to go, you know, even with Lebron playing at this level and ad playing at this level to beat Denver or.

Speaker 4

Are you coming over there? I don't know.

Speaker 2

If it's like I hate that idea, I hate that idea. I just don't think three star. First of all, I don't think trays a winning player, But I don't think three stars is the I think the NBA right now is too deep with talent. I think you need a team that makes sense. I think you need a team that you know. Everybody knows has Okac, has Minnesota, to their credit, has Boston. Has those teams everybody is fits a very specific role.

Speaker 3

All right, next, all right, so you pitched a pretty crazy idea on TV yesterday, and that would be the top seeds in the playoffs picking their opponents. So pretend Adam Silver is listening and make your pitch.

Speaker 2

Well, it's the simplest idea ever. First of all, it would be a can't miss television night the night that

you do pick your opponents. Second of all, it would totally eliminate this unique situation we have in the NBA right now, where let's say that going into the final day of the season, the Sacramento Kings with no Malik Monk are locked into the sixth line and in the seven, eight, nine, ten are Pelicans, Suns, Lakers, Warriors, meaning two of those teams are going to be the seven in the eight and the Kings, a battered, bruised Kings team is the

six line. And let's also say going into that final day of the season, Oklahoma City, Denver, and Minnesota are all tied as they essentially are right now, a game

between them for the one seed. You really want a scenario where all three of those teams would rather lose than win, would rather be the three seed than the one seed, because you're getting Sacramento in round one as opposed to potentially having to go with Lebron and ad or Katie and Booker or who like, that's an absurdity where teams are tanked, would potentially try to lose games to game the opponent system. So there's that piece of it,

and then there's in the East. Hey, congratulations Boston, you won sixty five games, you won the conference by thirteen games. Guess what Joel embiids your opponent in round one because Philly was such a disaster without him that they fell all the way to the play in And now you get embied in round one as opposed to the Orlando Magic or the Indiana Pacers. Is that fair or should

it be as simple as this? The one seed picks of all the teams that made the playoffs who they want to play, The two seed picks who's left, and then three and four, you know, three and.

Speaker 3

Four seed at a hint of I don't want to say disrespect, but like, I think that would add a little beef to it, you know, but like healthy.

Speaker 2

One hundred percent. It would add real beef. Right you you wanted us, you wanted us, now you've got us. Of course that would be a thing. And to a point to where I think certain teams would be like to try to avoid it, would like send their guy up there and be like, we're just gonna draw a name out of the hat. But every name in the hat is the Sacramento Kings, just like, ah, we drew

the Kings. Ah damn, Like I guess that's who we're gonna play, and yes, uh and and so of course that should be a thing, just like the And I also think this should be a thing in the NFL. In the NFL, the team that gets the bye as the one seed after the wildcard round should be able to look and say who they want, we want them like we need to. But in the NBA more because people are like, ah, the regular season doesn't matter. We should really incentivize teams going for it in the regular season.

And so I so that to me is an obvious one. All Right. The last thing I need to talk about here is is Rashi Rice. So people are like, Nick, are you gonna tweet about this? Nick? Why aren't you talked about this? Okay, which I guess proves I do see some of the comments because I saw that. So Rashi Rice, the allegations are and it appears to have compelling video that supports it that I think the story is owns a Corvette least the Lamborghini suv and he

and his buddies were racing those two cars. Uh Saturday, like not even late night. It was daylight Saturday, around six pm in Dallas on the highway. There was a wreck, four other cars got involved, and then seemingly the drivers and passengers of the Lamborghini and the Corvette fled on foot. It sure looks like at least one of the people

in the car in the Lamborghini was Rashi Rice. It has been reported the Corvette is leased in his name or he owns it, and the Lamborghini was rented in his name, which then creates a whole bit because the video shows for everyone getting out of the Lamborghini on the passenger side. Now there's a couple explanations for that. One is because of the wreck, the driver's side door didn't open. The other one is even in real time.

The folks in the car were like, Eh, we want to be able to say none of us were driving, even though some of us had to be driving. Let's all get out on that side. Who knows what the rationale behind it is. Rashi Rice in potentially a bunch of trouble kansaity television station reported yesterday that the Lamborghini was rented in his name, which means whatever insurance there is, he's the only one that's covered when he has it. So then you're in like a weird spot where it's

like legally from a getting an actual trouble standard. It's really helpful if I wasn't the driver from not being tied up in lawsuits for the next you know, until I'm on my third NFL contract. I kind of need to be the driver. So the whole thing is a mess. Folks are like, on, Nick, what are you gonna what are you gonna say? I'm going to say what I have always said about this type of thing. For the vast majority of us, the single most dangerous thing we

do is drive. Most of us are not getting in fights. Most of us are not running with the bulls ice, you know what deep sea fishing, you know the what was that show called Deadliest Catch? We're not loggers. We're not for most of us. We are in the most jeopardy when we're behind the wheel of a car, either because of how we're driving or how other people are driving. And being a foolish twenty something year old driving way too fast is about as reckless behavior as one can

engage in. I don't know if he was under the influence or not. Because of the time of day, I'm going to assume not, but regardless, that obviously adds to it. But here is and the reason I and I think I made this point when the Henry Ruggs situation happened,

where obviously he was not the victim. Someone died, but I felt terribly for him, and we talked about it on this show about how sick to my stomach, I felt like, this guy got drunk and was driving one hundred and twenty miles an hour, so anything can happen. The worst possible thing happened, really the worst thing, which is he lived, someone else died, and now he's got

that to live with. Deal with the repercussions. But I felt sick for him because I aink majority of us, while maybe haven't done that exact thing when we were young, we ever race a guy on the street. Maybe any of us ever had too much to drink and still got behind the wheel for if you drink. The answer to that question is probably at some point like we are all, you know, kind of dancing through the rain drops,

particularly in our twenties of potential disaster. And here is the unfairness of the reality of how we as a society have decided to punish these cases. We do not penalize based on action. We penalize based on result. So Rashid Rice, if he did what he is accused of doing, absolutely could have killed somebody, could have incredibly injured people, could have killed himself, all of these things. Because the reporting is now there were no quote significant injuries. What

do I expect will happen? Not much. You could say that is probably like unfair. Whatever it is, we we have collectively as a society decided we do not penalize reckless or drunk or race car driving any like race not actual race card, you know what I mean? Based on the action We penalize based on the impact. You can say that's right or that's wrong, but that's what

it is. And so this would appear to me like Rashi Rice might have gotten incredibly lucky here that the doing making all of the exact same choices, all of them could be as simple as like how it impact the rest of his life. The deciding factor could be did someone I've never met twenty minutes before I got into my car put their seat belt on or not? Oh they did? Well, Now, this is going to end up being a misdemeanor, you know, community service situation versus

I'm looking at prison. This is going to end up being a maybe one game league suspension versus I'm kicked out of the NFL. This is going to be, oh my gosh, what a scary moment versus the thing that you think about every night before you fall asleep and every morning when you wake up. All of your decisions the exact same, and the difference is whether someone you'd never met put on a seatbelt, whether someone you'd never met you know, got on the highway at that exact

moment or two seconds earlier. All of it is just left to chance, and that is a terrifying reality of life. But it also is when it comes to this specific type of incident, how we as a society have decided to punish it. We we don't punish anything related to driving intoxicated or not reckless driving based on decision making. We do it based on impact. And like if Henry Ruggs in his situation, everything was the exact same, but the person whose car he hit, they were totally fine.

He's I don't even know if he spends a night in jail. Instead it's years in jail that person's like, And so it is. That's where we're at on Like you want my opinion on the Rashi Rice thing, that's where it is. I think he.

Speaker 5

It.

Speaker 2

You know, if the videos and stories are true. He made an incredibly reckless decision that put obviously a ton of people who he never met in jeopardy. And I think probably, I don't want to say, gonna get away with it, but like it's probably gonna be pretty minor. That's why I think it's gonna happen. Should that be how we do it? Probably not. But then we have a real weird thing where if we don't do those things based on impact, then what do we want the

penalty for drunk driving to be? Do we want the penalty for drunk driving to be Well, you could have killed someone, So a DUI is mandatory five years. And by the way, I don't even think she was drunk, but just using that it's a weird That's like a whole different thought exercise here of how we want to handle those types of things. Should it be based on impact or based on action? When it comes to things with our cars, we have kind of decided it's based

on impact. And because of that, I think he's gonna I think he's going to be okay. I hope he learns from it. And this is why driving is, like I said, the single scariest and most dangerous thing any of us. Do quick break, comeback play likely maybe what if? And try to answer some of your questions. What's right? Demon's I got some bad news. I think our producers might have got got that twelve point two million number that I said that I was told was the rating

for the women's game. I think they either misread something or fake news or something. I was surprised that rating would be out already, so so I apologize to the audience. If you think the twelve million, I think is in play. It seemed high, but I think it's in play. But we'll see. But for the audience out there, if you texted your friends that it was twelve million, you tried to cash in your bets on the rating. We gave you bad news. We gave you fake news. I apologize

so that that number is not in yet. I do have from a more reliable source. I do have the rating number for the men's game on Easter. The men's games on Easter Tennessee, Perdue did ten point four million. NC State Duke did fifteen million. And Colorado, Iowa was that the hold on Colorado Iowa? Oh? That was the Iowa women's game did seven million. If Colorado, Ohiowa did seven million, then I then I think it's uh.

Speaker 4

Then I think it's yeah.

Speaker 2

I think twelve million might be in play. All right, let's play. Let's quickly do this and then answer some listener questions. Play a game of likely maybe, what if?

Speaker 4

Yes? All right, so we're starting off. Something is not adding up.

Speaker 3

In Cleveland, Calves owner Dan Gilbert said he thinks Donovan Mitchell sign an extension, but Mitchell isn't talking like a player that's about the sign an extension. After a blowout in Denver, he said, it's effing April. We've got to figure it out. What is Donovan Mitchell's future?

Speaker 2

He's likely traded this summer, Maybe he signs that extension or I guess the what if is what if the Calves just hold on to him and then he potentially walks in a year. But I think he is the big ticket guy that gets traded this summer, potentially to Philly. I'm sure he'd love to go to Miami.

Speaker 4

I don't.

Speaker 2

I think the Knicks are happy where they're at. Next.

Speaker 3

Okay, Michael Pennocks junior Wow, did his Pro day running a four four six forty and he has already been connected with half a dozen teams. What will Michael Pennock's future or draft day look like?

Speaker 2

Likely? I think he's gonna be, unfortunately the sixth quarterback off the board. Caleb Drake, Jase J McCarthy, Jayden Daniels, and weirdly bow Nicks I think are gonna go ahead of him. Maybe if Pennix is there at thirteen, which he should be, the Raiders take him, and then the what if is what if the Patriots trade out of three to acquire extra picks and then draft him with at the very top of round two. If the Patriots right out of three for something that wants JJ, I

think that's what if. I think more likely he is the sixth quarterback taken, which still could make him a first round pick in this year's draft.

Speaker 3

All right, next, All right, so Zach and He's draft stock has been skyrocketing, but many still question if his size, his size and limitations will translate to the NBA. But the NBA still has a referee, so he's probably got a chance. What will Edie's career look like?

Speaker 2

I mean, a career backup is likely like a better version of Bobon And that's not a knock like Boban's a great offensive player. I think Edie's a better offensive player. The problem for Boban is he just can't move, so he's just a terrible defender despite being how big he is. I think that's what Edie will be. I think he'll

be a backup center in the NBA. Maybe there is a team that wants to just go super like I saw Kevin O'Connor project that the Thunder could raft him and use chet like as his defensive backstop and just have like this super giant team maybe, And then the what if is unfortunately, what if is Zach Edy's career is, you know, owning the most popular string of car dealerships

in the greater Purdue area. Like that's possible too, Like that he's a collegiate legend that it just doesn't train like a perdue legend forever, but it just doesn't translate to the NBA. Like that's on the board. Uh, And so that you can be a great college player and not a great pro, particularly as the NBA is changing.

Speaker 4

All right, next, I'd get a car from Zach Edy.

Speaker 3

So NC State big man DJ Burns has got the town talking.

Speaker 4

Even Yoga said he likes his.

Speaker 3

Game, of course, and now Schrager is reporting there could be NFL interest due to his size and footwork.

Speaker 4

What is Burn's professional future?

Speaker 2

I think he'll try I think he'll I try out for the end. I think it's likely he tries out for the NFL and maybe gets invited to a camp, uh and then ends up playing professional basketball overseas. That's the likely maybe. Uh. He just says no, I have no interest. In playing football and basketball player and he just goes overseas. What if he's awesome at football six ' eight, can move his feet, put on some weight, and go

kick ass in the NFL, that would be great. I think that's unlikely, but I think it's on the board. All right, let's get to the listener questions. Uh, Dylan Mayle says, uh uh for Demanse's diner shades, are we thinking Gucci, Louis Vutan or Dior? Uh? I just you gotta reference everybody there their name brand, but not get it.

Speaker 4

I get it.

Speaker 3

Yeah, I probably have to go goot. Actually no, I have to go leave Aiton. I think Gucci's got something going on with it right now.

Speaker 4

I'm not sure.

Speaker 2

Oh really, Okay, I'll look into that. Uh, we might have an in at Versace, so the answer might.

Speaker 4

Right Versachi, Yeah, we might have that wasn't.

Speaker 2

He doesn't care. I mean, they'd be a.

Speaker 4

Gift, so do I. Thomas Washington? How much?

Speaker 3

How much did Magic Johnson get paid his first deal? She's oh, he's talking Aboutkayln Clark.

Speaker 4

Magic.

Speaker 3

She's the Magic Johnson, the w NBA. It's her job to build the brand, not the NBA. To subsidize it.

Speaker 2

Okay, that's Thomas Washington. I understand that. But when Magic got drafted, the ABA had already folded. Magic wasn't making the equivalent of seventy grand in today's dollars. First of all, and second of all, you can it is not about the NBA subsidizing it. It is about whether or not the NBA and the WNBA collectively want a risk someone else parachuting in and stealing this moment by acquiring the star power that College Basco's built up for him. It's

not a charity. It's about business, and I think right now the WNBA is in a position and the NBA's partners with it to capitalize on the millions of people that are into these athletes that they got. You know, there were stars absent of the leagues. Go ahead, let's do Tay Jones.

Speaker 3

Ty Jones, the question for Nick what team should should the Spurs look at.

Speaker 4

As the blueprint on how to build around Limby.

Speaker 2

Probably the Spurs on how they built around Duncan. Now, Duncan obviously had Robinson right when he got there. Just don't try to microwave it. Don't do what the pell dial with Anthony Davis and what the Calves did with Lebron which is recognized. Oh my god, he's so good as a rookie. Let's just go all in right now, take the long view. There's a reason the Calves and Pelicans were never able to build contenders around those great players. All right, last one, he's freaking crazy.

Speaker 3

Roan Sherrington says, Demand knows he's indoors right.

Speaker 2

It's his new look. Demand's going for a look. I encouraged it. Demanse was unsure about wearing it today. But the problem was this if that if you didn't stick with it, then people were gonna think that it wasn't a look. It was just that you were covering up a black eye or something you've got in a fight. So he got to stay committed to it. And I also think that's a good point, exactly right. I also

think it's a good look. He's tried out a bunch of different sunglasses that you get in the little spinny thing at Walgreens for acebox, and he's gonna get some nice ones when I see him in a week. Good job everyone, great show. See you guys on Coward Show in about ninety minutes, and on my show at three eastern What's right? Hey, thanks for watching. If you're still here, do me a favor. Hit the subscribe button, then hit the bell so you can be notified when we have

new episodes. After you've done that, one more favor, go to your favorite audio platform of choice and subscribe there as well. Don't forget we're live every Tuesday and Thursday ten thirty am Eastern Ish ten thirty five, ten forty. It sometimes changes, but that's why you hit the bell. You hit the bell so you're notified. You subscribe so we can get to two hundred thousand followers. We're right around one hundred and fifty thousand. We'd love to get

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