Transcript of More To Lose In Game 7: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Victor Wembanyama? | Hour 1 New

This is the Dan Le Batard Show with the Stugatz Podcast.

This episode of the Dan Le Batard Show is presented by DraftKings. DraftKings, the crown is yours.

Yeah, season finale of Euphoria this weekend. Trista, you ever seen Euphoria?

I saw the first season.

I've never seen it. So last night you had Game 6, Spurs and Thunder. Before we get to that, tonight Tonight is Game 5. It'll be the final game of the Eastern Conference Final in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. I mean, come on, I dare you to disagree. I mean, Canadiens, it's dead team walking. Canadiens-Hurricanes tonight, Game 5 in Carolina. Watch party, right, Roy?

Yes, The Hockey Show is hosting a watch-along for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final. You can watch it on the Dan Lobato Show YouTube page, or you can watch it on our YouTube page at The Hockey Show. The hockey show DLS.

They're gonna crush them tonight, right?

Oh no, the series is over.

Yeah, well yeah, the series is over, but are they also gonna crush them? I think they're gonna crush them. Yeah, yeah, I think, uh, it feels like 5-1.

Yeah, I think the Hurricanes are gonna end up covering tonight.

Man, like, it's so disappointing. The Canadiens got out to such a great start. They killed them in Game 1, but it feels like it has to be because Carolina had all the time off, right, Dave? Like, what other explanation can you draw from the way that Granted, look, games 2 and 3 went to overtime, but still, like, the Canadiens, they couldn't get a shot on goal, you know, in those games that they only lost by a goal in overtime. Like, the only Canadiens win, you have to chalk it up, right, Dave, to they had so much time off Carolina and they were just like rusty, right?

Yeah, Football America regular Nick Kostos was talking with him and he assured me and everybody else that the Habs were gonna win that series and I said au contraire. You know, the Bleu Blanc et Rouge are overmatched here. Year, just straight up, let alone with the Canes rested up. Their, their very aggressive style of play was going to overwhelm the Habs. I, I remain bummed out for Buffalo fans, especially given that this is the tepid performance we get from their vanquishers. I mean, you know, that— so, so this dream season that Buffalo almost had once again, not football but this time hockey, that they almost finally get over and the team that beat them is getting whipped in the next round. It's sad and also sad for the NHL. I think it sort of invalidates on some level. I don't want to overstate it. Roy, how say you about this? But I don't think it's a great look for the credibility of the sport to have another Presidents' Cup champ, the Colorado Avalanche, the best team in the league, to have that team get swept out. Listen, Cale Makar, might be the best player in hockey, is one of the top 3 players at minimum and all of that.

But still bad look for the league, right, to have Vegas, who hires John Tortorella on the eve of the playoffs, wind up in the final.

Yeah, I mean, it's been 13 years since a Presidents Trophy winner won the Stanley Cup. That was the 2013 Blackhawks. But what did John Tortorella do with 6 games left in the regular season that changed the Vegas Golden Knights around?

Like, it feels random.

Vibes.

I don't know that he did anything. Just feels random. So again, tonight, watch along, right?

Yep.

All right.

Along tonight. Oh, by the way, the Canadiens, the first two series that they had in the playoffs, won 7 games. They played 7 overtime games. So obviously they are tired.

You think they're a little tired? All right. So speaking of tired, that was the possible angle going into last night's Game 6, right, where Victor Wemba Nyama who has never played this many games. I know he didn't play 82 regular season games, but still, an 82-game regular season, and last night was like close to game 100 overall then for the San Antonio Spurs. Uh, super physical day off, super physical day off, and he shows up, uh, you know, in his best monk outfit. I mean, he was training with the monks, right?

Terminator music when I saw him walking.

I heard, oh yeah, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't. He does come off as Like, he's different from most players today where he really comes off as super serious and business-like, and this is serious business. I don't care about the other stuff that's going on. I don't care about social media. I don't care about Twitch. I just, like, I'm not talking to the media after Game 5 because I have to get ready for Game 6.

Oh, stop it.

Well, that's the excuse he's gonna give, whether it's true or not.

We cannot be like, hey, I just was already locked in on Game 6, so I couldn't talk to the media. That is that is giving cover to a guy that we just already like. If that was somebody else, we would not be saying that.

If it was Anthony Edwards—

But my boy, I think he skipped it. He missed the mark last night. He should have skipped last night's postgame interview.

Facts.

Just because, like, yeah, this is what I'm on.

Well, but okay, so that's interesting that you said that because— and this is my fault, I don't have the clip— but in the postgame interview, she asked him 2 questions And he bounced. Like, after the second question, he gave his answer, he said, "Thank you," and he ran off. Like, so he's going to give the whole spiel that he's locked in and he doesn't want to do this and this is serious business right now. Whether it's true or not, he just comes off as different than most of these guys. And last night you saw, he showed up. I mean, Juju thinks it was like the Terminator music. He's out there, you know, in his best monk outfit.

Just a quick correction on that. He clarified after the game to a French reporter that this was actually for Eid al-Fitr, which is the Muslim holiday.

Oh, his outfit.

That's what his outfit was for. I apologize if I didn't pronounce that correctly, but that's actually what this was for, is for that time period, that holiday.

Dan doesn't pronounce Oregon correctly, so.

So, Wemba Nyama, is he tired? You know, he had the huge Game 1, Games 2 and 3, especially Game 3, bit of a drop-off, has the huge bounce back in Game 4, then Game 5, worst game of the postseason. And, alright, well, if he's tired, this series is over. You know, like, Game 6, if he is actually fatigued, they have no chance. And he was pretty great again last night. You saw it from— he's the kind of player where you could— you can kind of see at the start of the game, you know, at the start of Game 5, it's like, oh, he's got nothing. And then at the start last night, 3-pointer, 3-pointer, 3-pointer, uh, floater. Like, he had what, 13 points, I think, in the first quarter. It's like, oh yeah, he has it tonight.

Yeah, he's the kind of guy that needs to see the ball go through the rim early and often to be like, all right, I'm in a groove here. Like, sometimes shooters need that. All right, I saw one go in, I saw two go in, I got a free throw, I saw those go in. When he starts missing early, it's like, all right, he's trying to chase. He's playing the game from behind and trying to chase. All right, I need a 3 here. I need to get my guys going. And I mean, he played sub-30 minutes, like 28 minutes last night. Obviously had a game—

was a blowout. I mean, it was a blowout.

I mean, when you have a 20-0 run to start the third quarter, like, yeah, nobody expected that. I'm sure that people that went to take a shower midway through the game came back and were like, wait, it was a 7-point game, was an 8-point game, it's 25 now, what happened here?

Right, you mentioned he was tired. Yes, I think he was tired. The whole Spurs organization is tired of Chet Holmgren, bro. I ain't never seen somebody get punked like they punking my boy Devin Vassell. In your face, push it in! What's wrong with you? And on the other end, Carter Bryant, welcome to the show. You gonna flop and you want some fouls, SGA? Well, take these two. Call them, ref. You did. Salute.

I'll tell you, I I think over the last 2 games, and granted the, you know, the Spurs lost, they got blown out in Game 5, Spurs have kind of punked the Thunder the last couple games, and I'm surprised that the Thunder are allowing them to get away with it. You know, late— these are the champs, alright? And late in Game 5, you had Plumlee go out there and forearm shiver to the back of Jared McCain. Biyombo with the huge foul too. Alright, it was at the end of the game, but You kind of let him, you know, like, alright.

When he called for it.

Right.

Let's be honest.

Okay, and then last night— The Enforcer! Juju brings up Carter Bryant— Nikola Jokic, one ball! Is a rookie! Carter Bryant's a rookie! And he's allowed to take shots at the back-to-back league MVP?

With no retaliation by the way from the Oklahoma City Thunder.

And the Thunder don't do anything about it? That's a little bit sh— and look, you know, Dave, you could shake your head, and I come from this place as well where that shit doesn't fly in hockey. Like, that would ne— if you did that to the star player on a hockey team on the champs and it was a rookie who did it, they would wrap their stick around your neck. That's what would hap— that's what would happen.

Oh yeah.

And it's like, they got punked. They got punked last— how do you allow a rookie to commit what was reviewed for a flagrant foul on the league MVP? That was shocking. What—

well, you, you know, Shaq notwithstanding, because of his largesse, got banged around real good at the start of this millennium. But for the most part, yeah, there— I, I can't recall. I guess Isaiah Thomas as an old man, I remember watching him get knocked around by the Lakers and, and otherwise in the late '80s and trying to send a message. But yeah, you, like you say, this is NHL kind of stuff. This is a different sport we're looking at here. But what really strikes me is something again that I talk about. Old people have to lionize the past, and, and I understand it. You want to swoon about the '60s Celtics and the, the '80s rivalry with the Lakers and Celtics and all of that. But I think people need to understand that the, the standard is much higher and much tougher for today's player. They go harder. All this load management and all of that is off-putting, but I do think every trip up and down the floor, they're going harder. Than guys were going several generations ago. They were sparing, they were holding something back, whereas today's guys are, are balls to the wall every trip up and down the floor, believe it or not.

And also, 7-game series, you have to do that 4 times to win the title. That just wasn't true back in the late '60s and '70s. So the standard is higher, but it's all yielded this big question for me that I, I turned to Tristan and Juju and everybody else with. What, what gives with the variance from game to game? This is all very fun to talk about as a soap opera, what goes on with SGA and Wemby and his legacy and the rough stuff and all of that stuff. But since game 1, every one has been a blowout. It's kind of unsatisfying to actually sit there and watch the 2.5-hour game, right?

Yeah. And I think what it is, if you look at just how the league has evolved, you're talking about a team like the Spurs shooting 41 threes. In a night and the Thunder shooting 40. Now, you know, you get 5 more threes, you get a 37% from 3 for, for the Spurs. That's an okay night. Pretty good night. Sometimes it's 50%, though. And then you have the Thunder shooting 25% from 3. When you have that many threes being taken, one hot night, I think, versus one super cold night. And I think when you have it, you have it. And then things start to compound, right? Because if you're stepping into threes and you're up 15, You just have a little different swagger about you, have a little lean with it, rock with it. When your butt starts to pucker and you're down 10, 15, 20 and your shot's not falling, I feel like that's just something that can compound a lot more. What you think, Juju?

Exactly. And I think what you said earlier, Carter Bryan is a rookie. Y'all allowing a rookie to take shots at the MVP. Y'all allowing Devin Vassell to push Chet tell him about himself, walk off, and dare him to do anything. This is why I've lost belief in the Thunder moving forward. I don't— if Thunder win, good luck with these Knicks, because these Knicks is going to do the same thing to you. Jose Alvarado, he going to punk Chet. He going to get in the game just to punk you. And I feel like this is the— what's wrong with them, specifically the Thunder.

The NBA playoffs are here, and DraftKings Sportsbook, an official sports betting partner of the NBA, brings excitement to every game all postseason long. When the lights are brightest, the best players in the world show you exactly who they are. Playoff stars turn it up round by round, and DraftKings turns it up with them from the first round through the finals. Bet player props, bet live, and stay in the action the entire time. New DraftKings customers bet just $5 and you'll get $100 in bonus bets instantly. Download the DraftKings Sportsbook app and use code DAN so you're ready for the moment. That's code DAN. Turn $5 into $100 in bonus bets instantly in partnership with DraftKings. The crown is Yours.

Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or 1-800-MY-RESET. New York, call 877-8-HOPE-N-WIRE. Text HOPE-N-WIRE. Connecticut, call 888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino in Kansas, wager tax pass-through may apply in Illinois. 21 and over in most states. Void in Ontario. Restrictions apply. Bonus bets expire 7 days after issuance. For additional terms and responsible gaming resources, see sportsbook.draftkings.com/promos. Limited time offer.

Dan Lebatard.

To us residents.

Oh wow. It's in there.

It's better.

You think I haven't been practicing?

Stugatz. I didn't realize we had a substitute complicated legacy championship. Brought to you by Headquarter Toyota.

441 Powerline Road. Second down and 9.

This is the Dan Lebatard Show with the Stugatz.

Juju put it on the poll. When you start hitting threes, do you start to have a swagger with it? And also, Juju put it on the poll, when you're missing threes, does your butt start to pucker?

Hmm.

You also have to put in, do you have a little lean with it? Rock with it? Yeah, that's also an important point. But I want to challenge the Oklahoma City Thunder and the vets there. Alex Caruso, Luke Dort, guys that have been around.

I can't believe they allowed Carter—

that they allowed that with no retaliation whatsoever. And I get that there is a spotlight for the next couple of plays on some sort of retaliation. But you got to go in the locker room, you got to go at halftime, and they got blown out in the third quarter, by the way. So I don't know what they said at halftime, but you got to go into halftime and be like, did you see this MFer?

He pushed this guy right here, this guy who's a two-time MVP.

You're—

somebody's gonna do that to him? Who do we have that we could just go kill somebody over there, right? Like, that's the point. Chet's got to step up. Caruso, Dort, Anybody with a pulse in Oklahoma City, wake up, they're taking your shit.

Also, you made a good point, Juju. Shai gave you an AP and not the kind that comes with the Swatch watch. This is an expensive one. I think though what that means is that Lou Dort has emotionally been cooked. He sees Kayson Wallace doing his thing. He sees Alex Caruso doing his thing. He's like, I'm supposed to be the man with the back muscles on top of my back muscles. That's the enforcer. But you offensively, my guy, don't have it. And so I think he's starting to see his pecking order go down and down and down.

Sure, but you know what'll change that? Throwing an elbow at Bryant's face.

Maybe he's feeling some kind of way against Shea.

Maybe, how about, how about you're part of this team still before they ship you out next season. You're still part of this team. You're still trying to go win an NBA championship. Take it on yourself. You haven't hit a 3-ball in a month? Perfect. Go take somebody out on a hard box out and make sure people feel what you got going on. The frustration that you got? Go give it to somebody in the check-in.

Ayo.

I think it really shows how far removed we are from the NBA we used to be accustomed to when— what I mean by that is we're all into this series. It's got great storylines. It's got drama. But the games are shit. You know, like the NBA that we used to watch before you had this massive variance and how fast the game was played and all of the 3-point shooting, which certainly helps blowouts. This series going into a 7th game, we'd be, we'd be saying that this is not a good series. You had one good game, amazing game, Game 1, but the other 5 games here have been terrible. But we are so far removed from an NBA playoff that has buzzer beaters and a bunch of lead changes in the 4th quarter that just, just a tight game in the final few minutes that now just going to Game 7, right, Dave? Just going to Game 7, this must be a classic series. And I guess if you want to call it a classic series because it's, it's the real coming out party of Wemba Nyama and it's the 2-time league MVP and the defending champion with the Thunder.

And it is the 2 best teams in the league and it is going 7 games. So people are going to call it a classic series, but in reality, it hasn't been great.

I can— I mean, I completely agree. Obviously, as long as you aren't looking at the actual event, This is fascinating stuff. I mean, we're looking at— we're, we're, we're at an inflection point in the league. I mean, if the Spurs win this, it, it's going to be a long night of Wemby ruling over, um, the NBA for at least, uh, you would assume for the next half decade or so. Or OKC gets a shot at going back-to-back. Either way, great stuff. But you know, the NFL doesn't really care very much when On Monday morning, the discussion is about the big-time game, the primetime game, is, boy, the officiating was terrible. But at some point, there's diminishing returns, and the buzz around this, what the ascendance of, of Wembley and OKC and all that, that the, that the number one topic is, boy, SGA really flops a lot. That, that is the takeaway from these first 6 games, right? Is there any credible argument against that? That's what people are primarily talking about.

For sure, that's what they're going to talk about, 1000%. But I think the takeaway from last night's game is Jalen Williams, why are you back at this juncture?

They're trying.

You could take a game, take a beat, see how this one goes, rest that hammy, because I think that that was the ingredient put into the sauce last night.

I mean, certainly they look back at it now and it's like, all right, we should have, we should have waited an extra couple days, right?

Because Jared McCain was playing at a high clip. You got Wiggins over there. You have other options to fill in on what he does. So I think that was the mistake. But can you imagine right quick, not to switch it back, if UD was on the team? I know, man. And you saw Carter Bryant go at Jimmy Butler like this.

So rookie.

So rookie.

Also, back to your point about like just Jaylen Williams almost spoiling the sauce or the way that the gumbo was comprised. Remember when OG Anunoby was hurt? And they were playing the Pacers, and it was like, is OG gonna play? Is he not gonna play? And then he went out on that bum-ass hamstring, and then they went down like 20 instantly because OG wasn't right. That's what I think of when I think of Jaylen Williams. Yo, if you don't have it 100%, that hammy needs to be wrapped up in heat and not in the uniform.

Who is— okay, so we got Game 7 tomorrow night, which, I mean, please, can it be a close game? I think Game 7 tomorrow night is so enormous for Wembenyama because while this has been a coming out for him because it's first time ever in the playoffs, first time ever in the playoffs, the number 1 overall pick was supposed to save this Spurs franchise, has them in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals. Like, this has been the coming out. But for Wembenyama, and we're all dubbing him, he's the best player in the league, he's the future of the league. If in your first time ever in the playoffs against the defending champs, also 2-time league MVP, on the road, Game 7 to get to the NBA Finals, if he and the Spurs win that game, that is legendary shit.

Mm-hmm.

Legendary to win a Game 7 on the road at the champs in your first time ever in the playoffs. Legendary stuff.

He has to put up big points though. They can't just win and him have like 0 for 5.

Oh, but we know at this point they can't win if he doesn't score huge. He was huge in Game 1, huge in Game 4, huge in Game 6. They have no chance of winning if he doesn't put up huge numbers. It's not like, oh, he Yeah, he— they have to win and he has to be the reason for winning. That's the only way they win.

I mean, I think if De'Aaron Fox shows up to Game 7 though, that will be just as important because I feel like they got him for these spots. These are the exact spots where we thought De'Aaron Fox was going to shine, and he is yet to make an imprint on the series. Now, the ankle— high ankle is a rough injury to fight through, but him having a good Game 7 would be just as important as Wemby having one.

Not a perfect comp here, but Trista, I disagree with what you just said. How Wemby plays is— I mean, obviously Zazz is right, it's unlikely the Spurs win if Wemby doesn't have a huge game, but if they survive by hook or by crook, Wemby benefits from that, his early legacy and all of that. Um, the best thing that ever happened to Tom Brady was winning that Super Bowl against the Rams, even though he threw for 27 yards or whatever he threw for in that game, because because the pressure was off of him before it was ever established to begin with. Those guys, as you get deeper into your career, you ever going to get over the hump? You ever going to be able to take care of business? Yes, you're a great star, but do you take care of business when the pressure is highest? That would be off of Wemby if he gets to— I'm with Zazz completely, and it really is besides the point if Wemby leads the way or if he's a supporting member. Maybe Fox has a huge game and that's the reason they win it.

Yeah, but no, because listen, like when Harden had that shitty game and he's had many shitty games in clutch moments and he was 2-for-10 in that Detroit— in that Detroit Game 7, people were like, well, yeah, Harden was still bad and yet they still won. So I think there will be some level of narrative building. Yes, the Spurs have gotten over the hump and maybe the pressure doesn't mount on Wemby as much as it has on other stars that haven't gotten it done. But he needs to put the exclamation point on it for it to be a legacy. Game for him.

I think the big question that I have at this point is which player between Wemby and SGA has a bigger moment ahead of them here. Because for SGA, like, you, you look at what last year was and you look at his Finals performance and the way that the Thunder were blowing everyone out, and the fact that in that Finals he shot 44% from the field, 24% from 3. Now he averaged 30 points, but he did get to the line quite a bit, and they were playing a team in a 5 seed that ended up losing Halliburton at the end. They easily could have lost that Finals. Now you're facing a, a legend in himself in Wemby over there. You got home court advantage, and you're back-to-back MVP. Like, this is the moment you need to step up after a dreadful Game 6. Like, dreadful. He was not effective.

I don't think, man, I don't think he loses anything if they lose the game. Really?

I couldn't feel more the opposite. I feel like people are waiting to pounce on SGA because they have this feeling about him which is like this grift of getting to the line and all these things.

But you're gonna think less— people are gonna think less of him if they don't win tomorrow?

I don't think they were an overwhelming favorite to win the championship this season the way they started the season, where you're saying they're gonna win only 2 games better than the Spurs, right? That's where it ends up being. But if you look at the— right, that if anything, that's the point, which is like this might be, you never know, the last grasps of what this is. Does Jalen Williams become the James Harden and he's now gone and you're trying to get to the next evolution? We always say these teams are going to be here forever and Oklahoma is certainly set up in a way they weren't before with all these extra picks. But this is such a fascinating time for his legacy as well. Wemby has something he can go gain, but SGA has something he might potentially put on the pole.

Juju, who has more on the line tomorrow night, Game 7? Shey Gildas Alexander or Victor Wembenyama?

Dan Lebatard.

Kermit the Frog here, live from Meadowlark Media Studios here in Miami.

Stugatz.

The Germans are advancing on France in World War II.

This is the Dan Lebatard Show with the Stugatz.

I just want to say for the record, it is definitely SGA who's got the curse of Sposta hanging on his shoulders as he tries to get up over Wembley. He's got the extra baggage of being the guy who's supposed to lead the way for the team that's supposed to win this series. And they better get it done because, you know, we can talk about Wemby and obviously he takes up most of the oxygen there. But, you know, guys like Castle are only going to get better. And, you know, by next spring, he is going to be a greater factor in the Spurs' success. We can almost assume that if I'm right, that Castle ascends, right? And Wemby gets a little bit better and Fox and all of that. That that's going to be your, your representative from the West. So OKC better do it now because I think the window— not because of anything they've done wrong, but because of the ascent of the Spurs who are about to take over the NBA. This is their last chance to do it.

I feel like I was talking with my brother last night when we were watching the game. We were thinking about how in some ways when you're down to these last couple of games, it's like a March Madness tournament. And then we were thinking, where would Wemby have gone to college? If he wasn't an international player, like, he had been forced to go to college.

Like, what school does he fit?

What school would he have chosen? And the immediate thought was Duke, right? Bright guy.

I think so.

French villain.

Evil.

But I'm— well, sure, if that's the route you want to go.

Just Overlord.

I'm not sure what it would have been because then it's like, would he have been the highfalutin, you know what, I'm going to go to Harvard and make Harvard a tournament team and, you know, be the educated Frenchman. There are so many different options for— do you guys have any thoughts immediately that come to mind on from where Wemby would have gone to college.

Yeah, I like that.

Where—

what school does Wemba Nyama give off?

Because he grew up such a Spurs fan, Tony Parker jersey as a child, I think my boy would have went to somewhere like Wake Forest because Tim Duncan went to Wake Forest, and it's random, he can put them on the map. I think that's the answer.

That's a great one.

What about UCLA? A lot of great big men like Bill Walton have gone to UCLA. Prime Abdul-Jabbar.

I feel, I feel like I could have seen him at Gonzaga.

Really?

Him and Chet?

No way. He feels just because of his look.

Just to take Chet's spot though.

Yeah, I feel like, I feel like he would go to a school like Gonzaga.

We don't think North Carolina, right? Like no way it would have been North Carolina or Kansas.

No.

Like it would have had to be something off the wall. There's no way he would have just like— Duke is the most mainstream, but only because it's like the private school where there's like villains and stuff like that. UCLA because of the history. But specifically like, oh, Bill Walton and Kareem, that's why we're thinking UCLA. Otherwise, there's no way it's a traditional blue blood.

Or maybe the sports gods got it right by sending him to San Antonio. Maybe he goes to Texas. You know, the Spurs, what marks their dynasty or whatever you would call what they did. I mean, think about Duncan from the Bahamas and Manu, um, Spain?

Argentina.

Italy? Argentina, sheesh, and Tony Parker from France, there would be some sort of sense from Wemby like, oh yeah, Texas, Houston, Austin, very international. You may not know that across America, but Houston is among our most international cities. That might be a nice fit for Wemby.

What about BYU?

I was going to say BYU. Yes.

Spending a lot of money.

I could see that.

If Wemby was in the pipeline, you know, Danny Ainge and the rest of the crew from the Utah Jazz, they're going to spend even more than they're spending on—

I could see BYU.

AJ Dabansa.

Yeah, I could see BYU. I like that. That's crazy. Where would— what school would he have gone? Not like what, but like what would you have met? What would he look— what does he look like? Which school does he look like?

Duke. The answer is Duke. You close your eyes, you see him in that white and blue, and you're like, God, I hate him.

I don't know, right?

You got—

UK is our most mercenary college team, right? They just— for one-off guys, I think it would be uninspired, and it would probably— he'd be a Wildcat, right?

Tomorrow's a great night, though. Game 7 tomorrow night, Spurs-Thunder. Also, of course, if you heard me and Mike Ryan yesterday, tomorrow, Triple A! You know about that Triple A? Triple A, that's right. Mask versus Mask. Original El Grande Americano against El Grande Americano. This is a huge pro wrestling weekend. Of course, Clash in Italy is Sunday afternoon. I know you'll be dialed in, Tony. Roman Reigns, Tribal Chief, Tribal Combat against Jacob Fatu.

Wow, incredible.

Where's the Dan Housen guy?

Oh, Dan Housen, he's not on the card, you know, but he'll be in Italy on Sunday, you know, they're there for classic—

He just does that shtick, huh? He just walks around and does that thing?

Yeah, he curses people, that's right. You know about that Dan Housen Dave?

Well, I know on the undercard for you is a trip to see Dave Matthews tonight. My concern is, if you're taking the lady, yes, if you missed earlier, Zaslo is contemplating surprising the missus with tickets to Dave Matthews tonight, front row. As sure to all of us. Do you— are you worried at all that you saying this into a microphone, that it's going out to the public, that this gets back to her and spoils your surprise?

No, it could totally get back to her. But that, that doesn't bother me because then it kind of helps me know if it's a good idea. You know, like, yes, I want it to be a surprise, but like, do I want it to be a surprise? Because if she's not going to like the surprise, I'd like her to know about the surprise. And they don't have to do the surprise, you know. So I'm well aware, you know, some— there's snitches at her school. I know about you snitches. And sometimes they'll tell her things. You know what happens to snitches, right, Roy? You know what happens to snitches?

Yes, I do.

They get hurt. There's snitches at my wife's school, okay? And if one of those snitches winds up telling her, you know, what I'm up to, I'm actually okay with it right now, because, you know, if she doesn't want it, you know, the word will get back to me, and there we go.

Vanderbilt, maybe?

Not bad.

Oh, I'd hate him there too.

Not bad.

Uh, so with all the, uh, OTAs, minicamps, and all of that going on right now, I don't know if you guys saw the Minnesota Vikings and what they have going on right now. The Minnesota Vikings, they have a quarterback competition, right? You got J.J. McCarthy, who's gonna go into his third year as quarterback, and they also have Kyler Murray now. All right, so that's like a real quarterback competition. And Dave, have you, have you heard this yet? Is the quarterbacks a couple— I think it was two days ago The quarterbacks, they both spoke. They, they spoke with the media. Give this a listen here. First, let me, let me explain it to you. Uh, Kyler Murray is first asked about the relationship, what it's like working with, you know, competition, J.J. McCarthy. Kyler Murray first asks— is asked about it, and then J.J. McCarthy, same question, he's also asked, but very different answers.

It's been great. It's been great. Um, obviously I know he's a younger guy. So any, any way I can help him, obviously I feel like, you know, I've played 7 years now going on 8. So I'm considered a veteran, even though I don't see myself as that. Give him any knowledge that he needs. Again, you know, we're both competitors and I know, you know, we both want what's best for the team.

Has he been receptive to hearing criticism?

Of course. Of course. Yeah. He's, no, he's overly receptive, you know, and he's, he's always communicating, asking questions, stuff like that. So it's been good.

JJ, what's your relationship been like with Kyler?

So far?

You know, it's just like two guys in a classroom. You know, he sits on one side, I sit on the other side, and it's the coach's responsibility to teach us and coach us. So is there any awkwardness, like, between you two? Um, awkwardness? You know, it's just like the same feeling, you know, when you're in high school and there's another person on the other side of the room. That's just kind of how it is. So I wouldn't say there's any awkwardness. Dave, what the hell was— like, those are two completely different answers.

Well, one guy knows he is going to be the starting quarterback, so he can afford the grace that Kyler Murray just showed there. J.J. McCarthy is pissed off, and I don't know if it's fair for, for that, but he's been sold that he is the franchise quarterback. I mean, this is, this is year 3 for that guy. Really, you're doubling down on it if you're Kevin O'Connell and you're the Vikings. But if I were J.J. McCarthy, I would be saying to whoever is willing to listen behind those walls like, can you get me out of here? Can you get me to a different— you know, Pittsburgh needs a quarterback. There are a number of teams that need quarterbacks. Why am I still here if you want Kyler Murray? That would be my frame of mind.

Georgetown.

Yeah, Kyler Murray, Kyler Murray is saying the right thing, but he's clearly lying. Like, J.J. McCarthy's version is likely what is actually happening, but Kyler Murray is being a professional and he's trying to make everybody look good and he doesn't want there to be a problem, so he's saying, yeah, of course JJ's very receptive to everything.

But what is JJ even saying? Like, even though you can clearly see they don't talk, that there's beef, is like, why are you saying you're on other sides of the classroom? Just like in high school, that doesn't sound like a rivalry. It doesn't sound like two people going mano a mano. It just sounds like two guys just who happen to be seated in different places in the room.

Dave, I look at this and I'm like, wow, Kevin O'Connell, for as bright and for as well-managed that he's had that team, for the offense, the way that they run it, like all the great amazing things that Kevin O'Connell's done, this, this is a big stain on a, you know, pretty clean resume. No, this is a big thing.

That's right.

I mean, the Super Bowl, uh, the MVP from last— who— that, that's a big stain.

It's part of the same thing. They drafted JJ McCarthy, got rid of Sam Darnold. And they're like, this is the future. But like, that's all part of the bigger conversation of this whole 9 situation is a big stain on his record.

No, there's no, there's no question about it. Kevin O'Connell has, uh, J.J. McCarthy, just as Kyle Shanahan has Trey Lance, these exceptions that prove the rule that they can turn anybody good. Yeah, it's, it— I think it's fascinating that Kevin O'Connell and the Vikings keep him around as sort of a double down or a fail-safe to Kyler Murray, who obviously they wanted, or else it's he wouldn't be on the Vikings right now, and they thought he would be better than J.J. McCarthy. Or again, he wouldn't be on the Vikings right now. But, you know, there's a case to be made that I make all the time, which is that at this point in man's recorded history, or at least in pro football, that the offensive play designer and play caller is more important than the guy at the trigger. You know, who would you rather have if you're a Niners guy? Would you rather have Brock Purdy or Kyle Shanahan? Would you rather have Caleb Williams or Ben Johnson? Would you rather have Jared Goff or Ben Johnson? And I think that Kevin O'Connell, despite this, is going to make Kyler Murray work. I think the Vikings are going to be good.

I just question now, why are you doing that? Is it your ego that you— that you're embarrassed by J.J. McCarthy, so you want to keep him around just so— because like we were talking about with Tua leaving Miami, if he goes and succeeds in Atlanta that, that's a bad look for Miami. And so if J.J. McCarthy were to leave and arrive and be a starting quarterback and thrive in 2026, that would be a bad look for KOC, right?

Yeah.

But then you look at the hubris of the play calling. You'd rather have the play caller than the trigger man, like you said. But then in the Trey Lance situation, looking at Kyle Shanahan, like, do something with this guy.

Like, he stinks.

Like, what's going on here? And then all of a sudden Brock Purdy comes in, Mr. Irrelevant. And then now he, you know, the 49ers are great. Kyle Shanahan's a genius all over again. The same thing that happened with Caleb Williams too. So it's like you need a bit of a push and pull, but it can't be the hubris of the offensive coordinator to be like, yeah, I'm the guy, I can put anybody there and we can win.

And I think JJ McCarthy still keep a good attitude about this and keep the optimism there, because let's not forget Kyler Murray got replaced by Jacoby Brissett last year. He ain't having the most pristine time. Like, there's a competition to be had. And lastly, Imagine if Shadur Sanders said what J.J. said. Oh my God, the world would be on fire.

I, you know, we mentioned earlier how Tua going to Atlanta, is the Dolphin fan worried that he may have some success there? I'm not worried at all. Like, I don't, I don't think that's even remotely a possibility. But I do wonder—

really?

You don't think so? In a bad division with good weapons, you don't think Tua can do something?

I know what I watched last year. That is a washed-up quarterback. Not— it doesn't bother me at all. He's not gonna have any success. But I do wonder, like, I feel like the Viking fan is probably afraid that Kyler Murray is going to have success in Minnesota, not just because Arizona is a shit show, but also it's like Kevin O'Connell. I, I don't think the Dolphin fan is scared about Tua having success. I think the Cardinal fan is probably scared that Kyler Murray's gonna go up to Minnesota and look really good.

Stanford?