Welcome in What Driving the Gred Episode three forty seven. This episode of What Driving the Grid is brought to you by Boost Mobile. A ton to do today. We are not on TV today and tomorrow because of the Euro Soccer tournament, so we will be This will be the only place that I'll be on the air today and then a little schedule adjustment next week. Instead of Tuesday Pod, we will do a Monday Pod. The reason for that well, I will explain in just a moment.
Demand's a great to see you, you know, the approaching weekend birthday major plans anything, just probably just locate with the friends.
Yeah, nothing, nothing too crazy. Yeah, maybe okay Saturday or something.
Yeah. It's also the late twenties birthdays are they all kind of run together? Twenty five is something and third is something. But twenty six, twenty seven, twenty eight, twenty nine maybe a little something because you feel like that's my last year in their twenties. Yeah. But yeah, so this is if we were to power rank birthdays, twenty seven is pretty bad, like not bad, but it's just it's you know, it doesn't make very very low on
the totem pole. And for your birthdays up to this point, it like as far as excitement level going into it, it might be dead last. Like I'm not trying to rain on your like, just there's not a lot of buzz, not a lot of you know, not a lot of you know, discussion of this coming birthday reminder like the pod or subscribe to the pod, like the YouTube page,
subscribe to the YouTube page. Rate review all that. I did promise a major personal announcement professional announcement that's coming momentarily. But before we get to that, straight the voicemail brought to you by our friends at let me turn this so you guys can see it, our friends at boost Mobile. Nikola jokicch not signing his extension yet. This is to me, I'll just do it very quickly. Actually, a non story
that is pure. It is not about don't worry Daniel, lack of faith in the franchise or anything like that. It is simply he can make more money waiting one year, so it makes sense for him to wait one year. Also, Shaye and Angel Reese named the NBA two K cover athletes.
I've got to say I'm a little confused about the Angel Rey's piece of this, and it has nothing to do with Angel Rees versus the FISA, Collier versus Caitlin Clark versus Asia Wilson, has to do with the the legitimate question of like the physical video game is going to have Shae on the cover. So when they're like
Angel Reese is on the it is she. There is not a w NBA two K game, it is it is layered inside, so like there's you people are going to be able to buy a physical video game with that cop with that cover.
I'm pretty sure that's how I worked in previous there's because I feel like there was a year that, like Kobe, they had like a Kobe version, like a Lebron version of this.
It's just like different covers, I'm pretty sure.
Okay, So I thought it was just like a digital like the news, like the Sports Illustrated cover athlete, when you can't go physically buy a Sports Illustrated anymore like that. It was just an internet image. I didn't know you could get pardon me, the physical media and one of them would have Angel on the cover. Okay, all right, well that's that is more interesting to me and cooler
for her. And she actually has been playing really well as of late, and by the way, smart of two k to be like, you know what, let's just stir the pod a little bit. Let's just do that, and then you know what I mean, be like, hey, why are you mad at us? And also Joe Burrow said after his house got robbed, he is no longer buying the Batmobile, which is a sick headline. Thank you as always to our friends at boost Mobile for straight to
voicemail brought to you by Boost Mobile. All right, demonse, Before we get to the actual show, I promised on Tuesday that I was going to have an announcement off the top of the show today And for some of you, I think you will find this to be incredibly cool. For some of you you will not care at all. And for some folks probably less so. Folks that are listening or watching this right now live on YouTube. But who are going to see this announcement on social media
or if it gets reported in other outlets. I think some people will probably be mad, and I will address that on the back end of this. But next week I am going back to Vegas because for the World Series of Poker Main Event, Final Table, I will be a part of the broadcast on Poker go and so let me talk about what this means for me for a moment. Then let me talk about the responsibility that this is, and then we will get into the sports. For me, this is this will be one of the
five coolest moments of my professional career, full stop. This is a true dream. This is something that I have been trying to set the table for for the better part of ten years. If I'm being totally honest and really put real effort into a strategy to make this a possibility over the last five years. Some people know, some people don't that I about four years ago, played Phil Helm youth heads up in a poker tournament for fifty thousand dollars. It was It was an unbelievable experience.
I almost won. It was great. I actually thought I handled myself quite well. It created a few hilarious, you know, viral clips even if you're not super into poker. But when you remove all that from it, it still was me putting down fifty thousand dollars when I'm a huge underdog, and I think some people thought that that was maybe fool either foolish of me or man Nick must have way more money than I thought. And the answer was neither.
It wasn't that I had more money than you thought, and it wasn't that I thought I was a favorite. It was that that to me was an investment and getting more involved on a real level with the poker world.
And I thought, if I handled myself well, if I continued to develop my relationships with people like Phil and Daniel and the legendary Nick Shulman, and not that those guys aren't legendary, but Nick's just having an unbelievable summer, and Brent Hanks at Poker Go and Jeff Platten, those guys, Ali and Jeanne, that maybe one day I could add not just some types of poker broadcasting to what I do, but maybe be able to call the poker version of
the Super Bowl. Well, I guess I could say the poker version of the World Series, because it is called the World Series of Poker main event, and the fact that I'm going to be able to so last year I went out there and called the final table of the two hundred and fifty K, which was probably not probably it was the biggest buy in and you know,
maybe the hardest tournament of the summer. But the main event is the main event, and it is a poker tournament unlike any other poker tournament that exists in the world. It is still the most prestigious. It is still the white Whale for every poker player who's ever lived, And it is a lifelong dream of mine to be a part of that broadcast. And the fact that I will, and I don't you know, Brent Hanks is going to
obviously be a part of it. Jeff Platt will be a part of it, I would imagine, and I hope desperately that Nick Shulman, who, in addition to being my buddy and in my opinion right now, the single greatest poker player alive, he is going to be a part of it. The voice of poker worldwide, Al Najad is going to be a part of it. And I'm sure others.
If you've been watching the World Series of Poker, I'm sure you are wondering, as Jared Blesnik, who has been absolutely unbelievable on comms for the World Series so far this year, is he going to be a part of it? My answer is I hope so. And now if you're if you are seeing this and you're not seeing it because you're watching What's Right with Nick right on YouTube, or you're not listening to us on iTunes or Spotify.
You're see this because it is embedded in a pokernews dot com article or somebody shared it on Twitter, and your reaction is, You've got to be kidding me. It's the main event, final table, and they're gonna put some hot take sports guy on there, and it's not going to be given the gravity, or this person is not going to take this as seriously as we in the poker community would like. All I can say to you is,
I give you my word. Nobody will take this more seriously than me, and I will as far as treating this event with the gravity and the professionalism that it clearly deserves. I I can promise you I will not let the poker world down. Now will that mean you like the commentary, or that, if I'm being totally honest, I'm good at it, or any of those other things. I guess we'll see. So I cannot promise you that
I'll do great. I know that if I don't, all be heartbroken, because but you know, such as life, sometimes sometimes you know something's not your thing, and so and I I've done a fair amount of poker commentary before, but nothing like this, and it will just for me.
This is.
The There are a few things professionally that are on the list. I've been incredibly lucky and I've been able to do a lot of the list that I would have had twenty years ago. As far as Pie in the Sky, everything works out perfectly. Goals if I were to if you were to ask me ten years ago five that I was like, I had not done and was not tracking to do, but I still, you know,
wanted like to keep available to me. They would have been in no particular order, to be a part of an Olympics, to at least one time be the third man in a booth for an NFL and an NBA game, to at least one time do red Zone that Sunday follow me do the games, which might sound silly to people, but I just think I am with respect to the great Andrews Siliano and the great Scott Hansen, I actually think I'd be the best in the world at that that one. I would not be worried people would be like, oh,
he's not good. I actually think there's no one in the world that'd be better at that than me, but set out aside. And then the fifth and again in no order, would be to broadcast the World Series of Poker Main Event, Final Table. And so it is close to as cool as it gets for me, and I am overwhelmingly excited to do it. So that's the announcement. It will They are long days. That is a lot of the streams are you know, ten, twelve, fourteen hours at times, which is why a lot of people will
be involved. And let me just say one other thing. I mentioned this person already, but I cannot thank Maries Candani and Brent Hanks and Carrie Kats and Jeff Platt and all the people at Poker Go, and I mentioned Ali and Nick obviously enough for trusting me with this and letting me do this. And hopefully this isn't like
a fantasy camp type thing. This is something where people are watching the broadcast and they're like, Nick added something that was good, we enjoyed that, Like there that is again, I'll be I will feel I'll be crestfallen if the poker world watches this and it's like, man, Nick kind of screwed that up. It could happen. I don't think it will, but that's the major announcement. Sorry for the
self you know, focus there. But that's why the show next week will be Monday instead of Tuesday, because Tuesday I'll be in Vegas. And while they did tell me I could do the show from Vegas like I did before, I want to be zeroed locked in on the task
at hand. All right, demons, good to see you. And by the way, for the second straight Vegas trip, your mom and I are both going to Vegas and night, and we are going to be there like she is going to Vegas Saturday and leaving Tuesday night and I am going to Vegas Monday night and leaving Wednesday night. And so we might we might not even cross paths. You might ask, well, you know what, I don't know.
That's just how it happens. I guess. One argument is because you know, Deanna and one of us being here. The other argument is like, I don't know, like maybe she likes Vegas more without me.
Who knows.
All right, let's get all right, let's get to the sports at hand here.
Uh so Aiden is getting settled in in La getting all comfy and all that. Luca sent him a welcome message, you know, welcome to La DeAndre Aiden decided to play with you next year. Lebron James not said anything to him though. Is there something to read into here?
It's not nothing? Yeah, uh so this DeAndre did this interview two days ago, I think one whatever it was the interview that he did, we played a piece of on the TV show yesterday, and we did not play this piece because it was a radio interview in l and I, you know, I hadn't. I didn't know that this was said. So credit to whomever clipped this and
act you know, posted it, because I didn't. I hadn't listened to the full fifteen minute or whatever radio interview it was, and so I had only seen kind of what had made mainstream, so to speak. But I saw
this and I was like, oh, well that's something. So and the reason it's something is because it is either how do I phrase this properly, Lebron's going to be there, Well, it's not that is so that is by no means like, oh, lock it in because of that this, but it certainly added a little more fuel to the idea that Lebron James might not be a Laker next year, that it's that So if famously or I shouldn't. I don't know if it's famous, but at least to me, it is.
Lebron when he announced he was going back to Cleveland and he did it with Lee Jenkins. In an SI article, he listed all the guys he was excited to be playing with with the Caps, and he had not listed number one overall pick from a week prior, Andrew Wiggins. And one way to read that was the article was written before the draft, or that he was you know, he was only thinking about or including the active veterans.
And another way to it was Lebron expected that they would be trading Wiggins as part of getting a veteran win now guy, and that is exactly and so he did not want to include Andrew Wiggins when he did not think he was ever going to be playing with Andrew Wiggins, which is exactly what they did. So here are before I give my opinion on what I think this actually is, let's lay out all of the available options for this, and we can, you know, put a percentage on each of them at the end. Option one
busy guy forgot. Let's like again, like these are not power ranked in order. I'm just saying, if we want to lay out all of the possibilities. Right, Option one, busy guy forgot. I guess Option two is not that Busy didn't, but has some feud with DeAndre eight and we didn't know about and he's furious about this trade. I would say, of all these, that's probably the least likely. I think if there was a DeAndre eight and Lebron beef, we would have known about it. Right Option three, he
did and DeAndre didn't see the text. Deandre's wrong. He because he said Luca texted him and Lebron didn't so at night and he didn't say anyone talked to him on the phone. They missed the text. Got so many texts that you know, when the news broke that he got a text from a number that he didn't have, it was like, yo, congrats man, let's get it and he was like, okay, whatever, and it turns out that's Lebron James. Again, these are not power ranked in order.
I'm just trying to lay out all of the available possibilities. Those first three, by the way, slim to very very slim, but they're on the possibilities all right. Now. The more salacious ones, uh that Lebron does not want to tell DeAndre Ayton excited to play with you when he does
not know if he will be playing with him. And then the last option is Lebron wants to expect to be playing with DeAndre Ayton, but wants to keep maximum pressure on the Lakers to make every move possible to make their team better going into this year, and the only leverage he has over them right now is the specter of, well, maybe I don't think I'm going to
be on this team. That to me, those are the those five possibilities cover you know, ninety nine percent of the call it one hundred percent of what the reason
could be. Here's how I would apply the likelihood of each my first draft pick of that would be Lebron thinks he's going to be on the Lakers, did not reach out to DeAndre because he had a feeling it would be become public that he had not yet reached out to DeAndre, and wants to keep the pressure on Rob Polenka to continue to improve the roster, which, if we're being honest, they have had a underwhelming off season.
On that note, if I may, then I'll get back to the percentage's parts because Brew and I got into this yesterday. Going into this off season, we felt like the Lakers it was an absolute lock and mandatory that they upgrade the center position. They did do that, and they did that in an interesting way where they didn't have to give up assets, where it didn't cost them a lot of money, and the talent upside is quite high.
But it's also a guy who's six years into his career has been unreliable and not that mature and really alienated teammates and coaches.
So I really think Lebron James is like, man, y'all got DeAndre and that's not the center I wanted.
I'm not texting him. I'm not welcome the team.
Oh so you oh so you think, oh I should have included that one. I guess it's good that Lebron is. Lebron is pissed that it was a yeah, oh so I didn't. Actually, so the reason I didn't even think of that, but that's obvious. I definitely should have. I guess that's kind of that, you know in the Oh, yeah, for sure. So here's the reason that I'm I don't put a pin in that real quick, and let me finish this other thought. Then we'll get to that one,
because that's good. I'm glad you mentioned that one. So they did get a center, and we can argue about if it was their best option, if it was the best of bad options, whatever it is. But the rest of the roster not only remained basically unchanged, but got to touch worse because switching out Dorian Finney Smith for Jake Lauravia is at the very least in the short term of downgrade and so there would be real frustration there.
So I would put Lebron expects to be a Laker but wants to keep the screws on the Lakers to continue to make moves as the reason for him not reaching out. I would put that at s sixty five percent. I think that is the biggest percentage here. I would put Lebron didn't reach out because he does not think he's going to be a Laker next year at twenty percent. I think there is a one in five shot right now that Lebron thinks, yeah, I'm not going to be on the team. Now, that's not that's that's not huge,
but it's not nothing. It's you know, more likely than rolling a single die and rolling a six or any number on the die, any particular number on the die, So sixty five percent he's trying to keep the pressure on him. Twenty percent he he doesn't think he's going to be there. I will give Demonse's he you know this is not the player he wanted and therefore he
didn't reach out at five percent. I will certainly massively upgrade Demonse's theory if we found out he did reach out to Jake Laavia, if like he was like, yo, man, let's get it, then then your likelihood is way way higher.
I will put it at busy guy just didn't do it at five percent, and that leaves what oh, that leaves five more percent left, and I will put it at he did reach out DeAndre Ayton didn't have the number saved and did not know it was Lebron who was like, why is this person texting me with a crown at four percent, and I will put there is a long standing maybe base maybe out of loyalty to his buddy Chris Paul DeAndre Ayton beef at one. So that's that's how I handicap this whole thing. It's not
nothing though, that's my takeaway. It's not nothing, and I I am interested in the next time, could you know, because you know what's also not nothing? Demonse if we're doing the not nothing meter. The Lakers who sent out a bunch of press releases about a bunch of offseason moves. The Lakers not sending out a press release about Lebron opting into his player option. That's also not nothing. Now
does that mean it's everything? Of course? No, no, no no. This press releases come from the team, like your official press release is released by the team and sent to all NBA media. The most you want to know, the most famous NBA press release ever. Hold on, I gotta, I gotta. I want to quote it to you exactly. This is an all time one. So uh, pat Riley, who's never my My light just fell? Do I still look? Okay?
I hope? So the so pat Riley un official in Miami Heat letterhead sent out to the league, league comes and everyone covering the league after Danny Ainge took a shot at pat Riley. So this is so here. Let me give you the background. Danny Ainge till Boston is twenty thirteen, Danny Ange to Boston radio station WI that Lebron James had no call to challenge officials for failing to classify fouls assessed Kirk Heinrich and Taj Gibson as flagrant.
He said, quote, I think the referees got the calls right. I don't think it was a hard foul. I think the one involving Lebron against Boozer that was a flagrant. I think the officials got it right. I think that it's almost embarrassing that Lebron would complain about officiating. And so Danny Ainge, who was running the Celtics, comments on the radio about something that was happening between the Heat
and the Bulls. So pat Riley has the Miami Heat Press office type up an official press release that reads, and I quote, Danny Ainge needs to shut the fuck up and manage his own team. He was the biggest whiner going when he was playing. And I know that because I coached against him. End of statement, at all time. At all time, all take the fine, but I've never liked this guy. I coached against him. We now play against him. And I quote, Danny Ainge needs to shut
the fuck up and manage his own team. He was the biggest whiner going when he was playing. And I know that because I coached against him. Oh my goodness, gracious, Danny ains then again, I don't know why we're doing this. Aine then replies, I stand by what I said. That's all. I don't care about pat Riley. He can say whatever he wants. But this is just Danny Ainge talking. This isn't a press release. This is Danny Ainge. And then Aine added, I don't want to mess up his Armani
suits and all that hair goop. It would be way too expensive for me. And so, I mean, that's so sorry about that. I Meany's just such a legend. I mean, he's just such a I remember when that came out and I was like, I didn't even know that was like a loud like in official communications. I guess, you know what a simpler time when I remember being somewhat scandalized.
I'm like, he cursed he's a basketball team president. Little did I know that years later, you know, the people running the world would regularly be like, they don't know what the f that this? That like, Yeah, lots of change in a dozen years, all right, folks. Insane. For the first time ever, full blown all women's boxing megavent going down in New York City, two title fights same night, and if you're like me and you love the action drafting Sports Book is where it's at. Talking Katie Taylor
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All right, demonte A couple extensions in the NBA I found pretty noteworthy. Let's get to both of them. We'll start in Phoenix.
Yeah, so the Suns have locked up Devin Booker with a record two year extension through twenty thirty. Yeah, so they might have fleeced the future Suns, but they have Devin Booker at least, right is there? What's their situation now?
So here's the thing I and this also sorry to you know, as brew once said to me, he's like, Nick, everything isn't about Lebron, and it's like, well, in the NBA, it kind of is the just you know, Devin Booker another player objectively not as good as current Lebron James, who makes more money than Lebron James. Right now, forget the extension and nobody cares. Nobody's like, oh my god, you just can't win. If you're paying Devin Booker fifty
three million, now, they can't win. But nobody blames Devin Booker for that.
But the.
Two year, one hundred and thirty three million is the projected extension him approaching, Devin Booker approaching becoming a million dollar a game player in his age thirty three season. So Devin Booker now is on the books for five years. Let's like if they if his contract was starting right now, let me do this math real quick. One ten one seventy one, one seventy one plus one thirty three, three
h four. He's on the books now for the next five years, five years, three hundred and four million, an average of sixty million a year. The year by year salaries are fifty three, fifty seven, sixty one, sixty four, sixty nine.
Would you say two years for what.
The did? I? I said two for one thirty three two years. I So that's I I think it is. These are So what is this is a little bit of a media note. I suppose the modern sports media, when it comes to transaction reporting, is always going to report the maximum pop possible money that a deal could be, and that is like, let me see if I can even find it. Well, so it this is these deals.
He is getting a percentage of the cap. Essentially with these max deals are you're like, you're guarante if you sign the TRUEMAX, you know you are guaranteed in this year this percentage of the cap and thirty five percent you know. Plus essentially it is an estimate of what the cap will be. And then there also might be a few small ish incentives. So this will be at least one thirty three I guess it could be one
forty five. My point is the the reporting on all these guys deals always report the top end instead of the bottom end because it's not a lot of actual reporting. It's receiving mass text messages from agents, and the agents want the biggest number possible out there, So the somewhere between one thirty three and one five over the next couple of years. I didn't mean to contradict what you had said. I just was looking at it. I was looking at it from spotrack rather than the ESPN article
and the reporting. But regardless, here is the the question that I have for anyone, uh, just kind of a thought exercise. Really, does if the Suns were to want to trade Devin Booker, does this make him more or less attractive to a team? And by that, I mean does the fact that you have him locked up for five more years? Uh? And you know so, they obviously wouldn't be trading him anytime soon, so call it four more years and you don't have to worry about him leaving.
How does that counteract the fact that Devin Booker will be making again the most money any player in the league's allowed to make. And the answer might be no, Devin Booker is an All NBA player. He's worth the max. You pay him the max. Got it? But do we think that if like, is there reason to believe that if Devin Booker is the best player on your team, you're going to be a contending team. Now again, these are actual questions, because the argument might be he literally
was in the finals a few years ago. My counterpoint to that would be, I don't think he the best player on that team. I think Chris Paul was. But regardless, maybe maybe you know that certainly is arguable that he was and there was the best player. So it's Devin Booker's awesome. You just need to build the right stuff around him. Maybe the counterpoint to the counterpoint is in the new era of the second apron NBA, how easy
is that to do? Now again, I would top of my head, what is Devin Booker the thirteenth best player in the NBA? You know, at best ninth, at worst fifteenth, somewhere in there. Those guys already as far as like building around him, you mean previously he's had start around him.
Yeah.
Hit the he and Durant thing not working is a knock on both of them. Pretty significantly, you know what I mean, and how badly it went. I put more of that on the the general dysfunction of the team and the fact that, oh and this is funny in a second, the general dysfunction of the team and the fact that it was just a terribly built roster. So I don't I don't kill him because he individually played well and he has wanted to be there, and he's
kind of done right by them. But bigger picture, de Monsey, I just think the Suns are as absolutely stuck as you can get, and I don't see any realistic way for them to dig themselves out. And I don't know that Devin book Maybe Devin Booker, if they ended up deciding to finally accept defeat in Phoenix and tear it down, maybe you would get a massive haul for him, But I don't think that would be enough to dig themselves out of the hole that mattishbia is built for them,
has doug for them. I'm happy for Booker, and Booker, you know, has been for a guy that was I think he was the eleventh pick of the draft. I know it was the end of the lottery. I'm not sure. I know he wasn't in the single digits for him now ten years into his career, two just be his thirteenth pick of the draft. Thank you be every single year twenty five plus a night on good not great efficiency and to get this type of money is a
hell of an accomplishment. It is. He is a guy that twice in his career has made the All NBA team, once third team and then the one you know. In twenty twenty two, the year coming off the finals, Berth was All NBA First Team, and he's been good in the playoffs. I do think because of the new really unfortunate realities of the CBA, we are in a weird spot where a guy like that getting the MAX doesn't
feel as clean as it once did. Like listen, if he's the thirteenth best player in basketball, he's worth the MAX. Those guys always have been since we've had a MAX. Because the new CBA is so punitive and can make it so hard to you know, keep teams together. It is, it just feels it feels to me. Tell me if you think this unfair demantse that if Devin Booker is ever going to forget win a championship beyond a perennial contender. He's going to need to be the team's say it again.
He needs to not be a max player.
No, I think he's gonna he's just gonna be a max player like that. I think that he needs to be the team's second best guy. Yeah, I think that's like do I yeah, uh, I don't. I think he's awesome. I also think if he's your best player, it's going to be very, very difficult to be a perennial contender.
And I know if you're not. I don't know if there are a ton of Devin Booker fans, but like, not that people dislike him, but if you are a Devin Booker fan, you're probably like, dude, we made the finals and then the next year we had the best record in basketball and got clocked by Luca. Like stuff happens, and that Maybe that's correct. Maybe I'm being a little
too harsh. I just feel like I feel like he is, you know, a fair tick beneath Tatum, and Tatum was able to do it with this unbelievable, you know, very well put together team around him. I don't see how Booker's ever going to be in that position. And if he were he's not quite as good as Tatum, you know what I mean, And so like the So that's not that he couldn't have you know, had if you had put him with if you had flip flopped him in Tatum. I think the Sons are a little better
and I think the Celtics are a little worse. But the Celtics are still contenders with him as their best player. So I guess that's what I'm saying. If he's your best player, you need him an awesome situation, right, and if he's your if he's your second best player, you're great. And I just don't know what Phoenix gonna do. All right, let's go to the other contract.
Yeah, chet has joined SGA and shining, signing a big extension. JADAU is bound to come soon, but teams with three max players in the past have struggled and even now to stay competitive and keep competing and staying together.
Yeah.
Do you think this could be a good thing for OKC or is or is it a bad thing for him?
Well? Listen, I hate the fact that in the new NBA, whenever somebody signs a deal, you're like, oh, second apron clock is ticking, like better keep winning now, because you're gonna have to break it down. I don't like that. That is not to me as much of a concern for Oklahoma City because Chet's contract won't kick in for another year. Jadub Who's gonna get this big extension, his
contract won't kick in for another year. And Shay's on his second contract, but the new one, the third contract that Shay just signed, which is the huge one, that that won't kick in for another couple of years. So listen, will this mean that a year from now they probably have to expect Trey Dort or lose Hartenstein something like that. Yes, should the Thunders still be in good shape? Yes? Did Chet just prove to us, if I'm your third best player, you can be the best team in the league and
win a championship. Absolutely? Would I have paid him right now? No, I would have wanted to see another year because I I think Chet is probably underrated. Not probably, he is definitely underrated if you just look at the box score stuff, because his biggest valued OKAC is on the defensive end. He does provide you know, a guy who's taller than seven feet that can shoot threes as well as he does, and seems to be totally comfortable in that role, doesn't
mind that he is. You know, they expected Chet to be the second best player and Jada to be the third best player. That has totally flipped and I don't see it flipping back. And Chet's been totally fine with it and be selfless. I give him a lot of
credit for that. But the way this can go sideways on OKAC is and you can be like, well, this is the case for every team is if one of those three guys misses a bunch of time with injury and your tied to him, and Chet is definitively a significant injury risk, and you're laughing because you think this is purely my I don't trust the super skinny guys thing.
I mean, but kind of falling back on that little bit.
But yeah, except except he has missed. He's been in the NBA for three years. He's missed half of the time because of two kind of nondescript moments that resulted in catastrophic injury for him. Before he played his first NBA game. He's playing in that summer league, not even summer league, that basically pick up game against Lebron and his foot gets broken and then this year he falls down and breaks his hip like that, that is that's concerning.
So I just I I I don't think it would have been unreasonable for Oklahoma City to say to Chet, we love you, man, and we appreciate everything you've done, but we need to see another healthy season like you're thus far. It has been rookie year out with injury, Year two fully healthy the whole way. Year three missed fifty games with injury.
It would have made a lot more sense for them to be hastier with extending Jado of over chat, that doesn't that does make sense given.
Well listen and I'm and I'm sure this is just a Jadob's gonna get extended momentarily, you know what I mean? Like that, that to me is a no doubter, and I understand people that probably I think there are some people in the league maybe that believe Chet's upside still is higher than Jadob's because of his height, because of you know, the idea behind him, because he was a top two pick of the draft and could have gone number one. But I I would I would have waited.
I don't think it's a disaster. I don't think like, oh, my god, what are they thinking? But I personally would have waited. That's how I would have done it. They decided not to happy for Chet. He's a champion, you know the I'm gonna say one other thing about the Chet thing, which is not necessarily like I don't know if it's smart analysis, but it is just kind of how I look at it. If we look at the three drafts his draft, in the draft before him, in the draft after him, where do we think he is
going to stack up amongst those players? So the draft after him, there's Wimby, who I would expect not a Wimby already is better than Chet, and I like that to me is pretty clear, and Wimby has best player in the league upside. I I don't know where you stand on this, demonsee. If you were to ask me who is going to be the better player over the next decade, I would take Amen Thompson over Chet Rockets Thompson. Is that do you agree or disagree?
I mean, I like what I've seen from Thompson.
This is I mean, I I think he has needs a shot, which, by the way, is why you might be like no, and his he's you know, his biggest value right now is defense, and some would argue Chet's a better defender right now just because of the size. But I personally would have Am and Thompson over Brandon Miller's put up numbers. But we haven't been able to see Brandon Miller on you know, a competitive team yet, so you would have to probably slot Chat ahead of him.
But to me, they're similar. I think Powlo's clearly better than Chet, so I would put Pollo who was the number one pick, and j dub who's on the same team, also better than Chet. So there's four and then the draft before who are the guys I'm looking at it? Cade I feel is better than Chet, and not I feel I know is better than Chet. And the other two guys in the discussion are Shingoon and Mobiley. I personally think both those guys are better than Chet. So
that's seven guys. So here's the only reason I bring it up. When we get back to the max contract thing like if of your little mini miniature and I'll put I'll slot Chat ahead again of Scottie Barnes of Dyson Daniels. I think that one's probably pretty obvious of Brandon Miller. If you're the eighth best guy of your draft in the two draft surrounding you getting paid the max. Like,
it could get tricky, that's all. That's the That's the only point I would make there, Not that it will it just it could get tricky on you, all right. This is a message that applies to ninety nine percent of you listening right now, because that's how many of you can be covered by fast and reliable service on the boost Mobile network with ninety nine percent nationwide coverage. And if you don't think you deserve a deal, listen up.
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for thirty five dollars. Device setup fee may apply, requires credit qualification, ID verification and activation on sixty dollars plans, Taxes extra five G speeds not available in all areas. All right, demons, let's uh jump you know we'll stay where we're at. Uh. Let's go to the free post free agency stuff quickly.
All right.
So the smoke is clearing from all these NBA offseason moves. The Rockets are building around Katie. The Bucks pulled off some moves to keep you Honess happy or unhappy, depending on who you ask, And now the Nuggets just got deeper. Who's whose off seasons did you like the most? And who's you like the least?
Like?
The least is the Pelicans because they've traded away next year's pick. I just hate it so much. Here are the teams who I really do like what the did this offseason. I like what the Knicks we're able to do with limited flexibility. And I like Mike Brown as a coach, so I like what they did. I like the magic adding Desmond Baye and saying screw it, we're gonna go for it. So I like what they did.
I thought that he basically manifesting Norman Powell on the team without giving up anything of significant value was a pat Riley master stroke. So I like what they did. I love the Hawks offseason, from the player acquisition to most notably getting that extra pick from New Orleans. I think the Hawks really positioned themselves quite well. I love what Denver did. Love it, especially now that Valanchounas is coming over and they guaranteed a second year. I guess
so now he's gonna come over. So I really like what Denver did, and I od they love what Houston did in adding Durant, and I thought not over paying for him at all and keeping the full flexibility. The Milwaukee thing we've talked about a bit, and he is interesting. But Jannis was on a stream with one of my new friends, I show speed. They could just call him speedy. They just call him speed. I know what.
They called.
What do they not call him speedy? Am I corny for that? You can laugh at me.
I don't know.
Oh, okay, that's fine. I don't know.
I mean, I'm honestly like a shame that I know like what they're calling him. But yeah, it's great, dude, I really I think.
He's spent a lot of time with him. Yeah, him and Kai. They spent a little time with Kai as well. And hold on, there's I don't want to leave this other kid out uh, and I want to get his name right because I kept getting it wrong. Uh. And so I spent time with him Kai and ty Lil uh Hello, and they were all they were all super
dope Kai Kai in particular. But regardless, Yannis is doing a like a stream with speed, like as we speak in Greece, and the producers have said, I need to listen to this, to this sid where he said he'll probably stay in Milwaukee. They said, I need to listen to it and judge it from there. So let's do it. So you've seen in Milwaukee, Uh, probably probably we'll see see probably a lot more woke. Yeah, mm hmmm. I
don't think Yannis was ready for that question. I'll be honest to Speed for being like, let's just get let you know, let me just throw it at you. And that was like real, that's a real something I'm bad at. If you're like interviewing someone just quick to the point questions, not over talking the way a lot of people would do. That is give him a lot of time to know it's coming in your long wind set up, be like, well, y' honest, there's been a lot of speculation, you know about your future.
Milwaukee made some moves this offseason. They you know, waved and stretched Damian Lowe. They brought in Miles Turner. Do you think you've done enough to compete for a championship? And will you be a Milwaukee Buck?
Nick? Sure?
That gives him all the time to credit to Speed for its being like so you say in Milwaukee.
He doesn't. He's also not in the media like that.
I mean, he's obviously correct like that supports he exactly, He's just shooting.
Which I think probably worked in his favor. Before we get to the Joe Burrow thing, the producers tell me, uh Anna Sabolenka just lost, so American Amanda on a Samova, pardon me, will play in the Wimbledon finals. And I saw that earlier and then I laughed because I have a buddy. I don't want to say who it is because I don't know. I don't want to put his business out there. But someone you guys would know, who
texted me yesterday. So I need some advice. I parlayed Sabolenka with three four, with three of the four remaining semi finalists to win at all. So if I cash, this is what he wrote, If I cash out all of my bets the cat. The pay on the cash out for all of the bets is forty eight hundred bucks. He's like, but if Sabolenka wins and Joker wins, I win eleven thousand, and Center wins, I win six, and
Alcarez wins, I win ten thousand. So he's texting me to ask me if he should cash out, cash out and guarantee five grand basically, which is a hedge against Sablenka losing. But if Sablenka wins, he was almost guaranteed, you know, six till eleven thousand, and I text back, you know what I'm gonna say, Let that ride. And he writes back, but if Sablenka loses, I lose all the bets and I'm up right now, I can lock in being up a lot. And I wrote back, cashing
out is for cowards. And Sabolenka lost a few, you know an hour ago. Well listen, I mean he wins something, you lose them. You don't cash out bets. They don't offer you the cash out because it's what's smart for you. You don't just I stand by the advice. I feel badly about it, though, I'm gonna I'm about to send him the yikes emoji. Hold on, I mean, I don't know if he's gonna be in the mood for it, but I'm gonna text him the yikes. There we go. He then wrote in reply to me, saying, let it ride.
This is what my heart says. But Sablenka was in deep bleep the last two matches. Lol, we don't listen to me. What do you want from me? All right, let's do Joe Burrow real quick and then move on.
Uh So we saw Spags called Burrow the second best quarterback in the NFL on season two of the Quarterback Season two off Quarterback.
That was back in September, and then obviously.
There's been a quarterback since then that has beaten Malmes on the biggest stage possible.
Mind you burrowed and you made the playoffs last year.
Has Burrow lost his.
Crowd as being the most the biggest threat to Malmes?
I do think that right that, right now, the second best quarterback in football is Josh Allen, And I think that you'll like this take Demante. I think I said on the show the other day that even if this wouldn't be my personal rankings. If because what you hear all the time is because Randy Moss and out a tweet that was, like, the top four is Mahomes, Josh, Lamar,
and Joe who's number five? And that seems to be everybody's top four those four guys, And what I said on the show was, if we are going to be fair, I think that it has to be at this point either like a locked in top three that Burrow is not a part of, or a locked in top five that Burrow and Hurts are a part of. Because that Patrick, Josh Lamar, they if they're healthy, they and even if they're both Josh and Patrick are always healthy, and Lamar has been held the last couple of years. Their teams
are in the playoffs. Every year they've won at least one in Josh's case and multiple in Patrick and Lamar's case league MVPs. They're the best three quarterbacks in football.
If we are going to put Joe Burrow in that tier based on the fact that he has these unbelievable numbers and he once beat Patrick in the playoffs, then the counter to that is, well, then the other guy who beat Patrick in the playoffs, who's active who doesn't have these unbelievable numbers but has this unstoppable play and that whose team he's always available and his team wins. You've get like that's the flip side to the Joe Burrow coin where Joe lax and team success, Jalen lacks
an individual you know, raw passing numbers. So I think the top three quarterbacks is what should be locked at this point. And Patrick won, Josh two, Lamar three, and then we can argue after. But if you are saying that the top four, it's just not fair to say Joe belongs in that group with those other guys, but Jalen doesn't when he's made the playoffs twice in his career, And so I disagree with Spags at this moment. Now, I think here's what I would question about Spags in
that moment from quarterback. Did he say the same thing to Josh Allen after the conference championship game? Is that kind of his go to line with Like did he walk off fields like, hey man, aside from our guy, you're the best I am? I am a little curious about that. But also like Josh stock rose based on this year because he won a league MVP people thought the Bills weren't gonna be great, you know, and the
I believed in the Bills, but other people didn't. They made it, they beat Lamar, they won a conference championship game, or they sorry, they got to a conference championship.
So this next year, it'll be very easy to power rank these quarterback Right now, I think it's a little difficult given how the past few years have gone. After next year, I feel like it'll be a lot more clear, Like will Jalen Hurts repeat what happens with Patrick Mahomes Joe Burrow if you don't make the playoffs again, like you're definitely not.
There was Josh Allen going to be sure?
Yeah, I mean there are there are scenarios where it becomes easier. There's also scenarios where it becomes way messier, you know what I mean, Like the the that Jaden has a monster individual year numbers like you did last year, but the defense isn't as good. Jalen has a great I'm just painting a weird scenario. They open up the offense and Jalen Hurts actually puts up crazy good numbers, but they lose their first playoff game. You know what?
I mean the Burrow. Burrow puts up the exact year he had last year, the most like it's a carbon copy year. The offense is one of the best in football. He's unbelievable. He has all these great numbers. The team wins nine games to the defense is terrible, like the there are things that could make it complicated. All right, let's do some listener questions.
Oh uh, Curtis asks who will have the better stat line tonight, Bronnie James or Cooper Flag.
Uh. I think the Cooper Flags the way way way better. Bet Like, listen, Cooper, I know that Brownie's in year two. Cooper Flag's better player than Bronnie. I think that's the undeniable by any stretch. Bronnie also coming off a rough summer league game. He was good in the first one, tough in the second one. Uh. Now there's a chance that for Flag, you know, a little first summer league game, jitters, But I think he'll be good. I think he'll be really good.
All right.
Next the Collins uh Collins eleven ass Nick's any tips for book sales to improve your poker game?
So the let me look up book books or sites. I think you wrote all right, So for it depends on how nerdy you want to get with it. Uh now, full disclosure, I'm a part you know, in my owners too strong investor in this company. But Octopi Poker to me is the best poker site as far as if you want to do like GTO stuff and training and
stuff like that. If you're as far as books, I think that Modernoker Theory by Michael Assavado is a really good book if you're trying to again do the GTO stuff, if you're just trying to you know, not worried about GTO but just avoid you know, cataclysmic mistakes or learn the basics. I think Daniel Negranu's YouTube page that has a bunch of basically like tutorials on how to play this game or how to play these spots at a
you know, easy to access level. It's the poker version demanse of what the videos I had you watch on our way to go golfing? Oh my gosh, we never talked about this. Demonte golfed, Yeah, Demonte golfed it the Royal Hawaiian Golf Club, one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to. And this is a major announcement for the listeners. Demanse new found respect for golf.
Definitely new found respect. It's it's tough. I mean, dude, I don't know what you call these, like your cuticles or something like that. These things were bleeding on my finger after we were done.
That's why people sometimes wear gloves.
He didn't wear gloves, I mean. And being able to play there at for the first time I also thought.
Was super cool.
I mean, it was really cool. Yeah, it's amazing, I mean, Demanse and I just so, I'm a bad golfer. Demante literally had never played ever in his life. And the driving range was closed, so we couldn't warm up, couldn't practice, no lessons, So I just booked the last possible allowable tea time, four thirty in the afternoon. That way, no one would be behind us and we could just hack around out there. Demanse hit one really good shot, I hit three. Yeah, I hit three really good shots, and
then everything else was just a cataclysm. But it was so much fun. And obviously do it next time. It was great, all right, great.
Go ahead, no go ahead, Daniel The Daniel E question on your is it possible? Lebron didn't welcome Aiden to La because he wants to make sure everyone knows that it's Luca's team now kind of.
I mean, that's the friendliest way to look at it. Maybe, I mean maybe the I didn't I did not think of that. Maybe I should have included that in the actual possibilities. I didn't think of that. But that's that's maybe the friendly, the kindest way to look at it, all right, Like rate, subscribe, review, no TV show today
or tomorrow. Check out the Poker Go live streams of the World Series of Poker Main Event which is going on all weekend, and then I will be on the call Tuesday and Wednesday of the main event Final Table. Next podcast will be Monday, not Tuesday, because I'll be traveling, all right, what's right? Great job to Monday, Great job volume, DraftKings, Blue Duck and our friends of Boostmobile and everybody else. Talk to you guys later.
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