7-2 JR SportBrief Hour 1

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Minimum $10 per order. Additional terms apply. We all belong outside. We're drawn to nature. Whether it's the recorded sounds of the ocean we doze off to, or the succulents that adorn our homes, nature makes all of our lives, well, better. Despite all this, we often go about our busy lives removed from it.

But the outdoors is closer than we realize. With AllTrails, you can discover trails nearby and explore confidently with offline maps and on-trail navigation. Download the free app today and make the most of your summer with AllTrails. The JR Sport Pre-Show here with you on the Infinity Sports Network. I'm coming to you live from Atlanta, Georgia. Much love and many thanks to everybody tuned in and locked in all over North America. This is when the show gets started. 6pm Eastern, 3 Pacific. What's today?

Happy Tuesday! Shout out to our producer Alex. Alex, I love the music. You can turn it up and let it play for about, I don't know, 90 seconds. We rollin'. Okay. No music. There we go!

Yeah, I love my music. Anyway, shout outs to people tuned in and locked in all over North America. The free Odyssey app, the Infinity Sports Network, your local affiliate, Sirius XM Channel 158. Everybody tuned in on a smart speaker.

All you gotta do is ask it to play the Infinity Sports Network. And everybody at home on the road sittin' in traffic makin' that money deliverin'. People makin' moves.

We got a lot to do here over the next four hours. You wanna be a part of the show, it's simple. 855-212-4227.

It's 855-212-4227. Donovan Mitchell signs a deal. Bronny James is introduced in LA.

We got a guest comin' through in about 20 minutes. He just signed a contract with the Detroit Pistons. And Tolu Smith is gonna join us. All my folks out in Mississippi State.

You know about Tolu. He's gonna come through and join us. We also got some football news. Tyreek Hill still lookin' for a new contract.

Tom Brady actually said he wasn't as happy as he could've been while he was playin' football. What a shot. You got a baseball player no longer who has a job. Tim Anderson got cut by the Marlins. Come on, man.

How the hell you let the Marlins cut you? Okay, so we got a lot to get into. And thank you to our producer holdin' it down today in New York. My main man. First time workin' together. A big thank you to Alex Azar. Alex, how you doin', man?

This is the first time workin' together. You good? Yeah, JR. What's up? I'm just hangin', just hangin'.

You know, last show of the week before the holiday. I ain't got no complaints. Alex, we love music here.

We let the music play. You like Jay-Z, right? Yeah, I like Jay-Z.

My favorite's J. Cole, though. Oh, okay. All right, understood. The guy that ducks all the beef, right? Right, yeah.

Yeah, I'm familiar. Well, Alex, thank you for hangin' out and holdin' it down for us on the boards today. We got a lot to get into. Obviously, NBA Free Agency continues on. We got this Donovan Mitchell deal from earlier in the day. A couple hours ago, the Los Angeles Lakers, they were able to go out and introduce Bronny James.

And let me tell you something. Bronny James, and God bless him, this man has been sheltered from the media for the majority of his life with good reason. Why in the hell does LeBron James' kid need a microphone and cameras in his face? He doesn't. Let him live his life. Let him play basketball.

Let him achieve whatever goals and dreams he wants. And obviously, this goal and dream right now is to play in the NBA. And so they had this press conference. And so let's talk about this first. We'll get into Donovan Mitchell. Tolu Smith is here in Atlanta with me. He's gonna join us in about 15 minutes.

But let's talk about this, right? So Tolu just signed a contract with the Detroit Pistons after the draft took place. We all know about Bronny James getting his spot in selection at number 55 overall.

And Bronny James has made it very clear over the past several weeks as he's started to do more media. He is now an NBA player. There's no more hiding. There's no more sheltering.

He is here just like everybody else. And so Bronny James a couple of weeks ago was just like, it wasn't a thought to go out and play with my dad. It wasn't the intent.

I wanted to forge my own path. And so when Bronny James was introduced to the media earlier today, there's one thing that he said that really stood out to me. He talked about the opportunity that he was given. And he had mentioned Rob Palenka and then also J.J. Reddick giving him this opportunity.

Don't take my word. Listen to what Bronny James had to say earlier today. Yeah, everything's just been surreal. Trying to take it all in by the days. Extremely grateful for everything that J.J. and Rob have given to me. Yeah, and I've just been extremely excited to get to work.

Bronny, Jim Hill, KKL Night. What have been some of the preliminary conversations you've had with your father about what's expected in the NBA and what you can expect to hear and see once you start playing? Um, you know, we haven't gone too deep into that stuff yet, especially because we haven't even started Summer League yet. But, you know, just stuff that he's been telling me my whole life, just having that work ethic and coming in and getting to work in and listening to your coaches and being coachable, stuff like that, he's driven into my head my whole life. Wow.

Okay. He talks about the opportunity that he was given. Uh oh, misstep right there. I know LeBron James is digging in his pocket. I know the guy is worth a billion dollars. He getting some of that media training.

But at the same time, I've heard LeBron James is cheap. And so maybe they got the Lakers PR people kind of teaching Bronny a few things to say or not to say. Bronny, don't talk about you've been given this this job and this opportunity.

Don't say that. And I know what Bronny should and can't expect. They're going to be after that man. Bronny James steps onto the court. Bronny James is a target right out of the gate. Bronny James checks into the game.

I don't know. It's LeBron's son. Do you want to test LeBron's son? You want to put an elbow in him?

I don't know. But they're going to be going at this guy offensively, and it's going to be up to Bronny James to actually prove his worth on the basketball court and not just talk about something that he has been given. J.J. Riddick was sitting right next to Bronny James throughout this press conference, and J.J. Riddick caught on very fast to what was happening. And so J.J. Riddick was asked one question, and he wanted to say, hey, wait a minute, wait a minute, slow down. First of all, Bronny.

Well, listen to what J.J. had to say. With Bronny, I just I want to clarify one thing you just said, which is Rob and I did not give Bronny anything. Bronny has earned this, right? Bronny talks about his hard work. Bronny has earned this through hard work. And for us, prioritizing player development, we view Bronny as like case study one because his base level of his career has been very high. We view Bronny as like case study one because his base level of feel, athleticism, point of attack, defender, shooting, passing. There's a lot to like about his game. And as we sort of build out our player development program holistically, he's going to have a great opportunity to become an excellent NBA player. Yeah. When is that going to happen?

Somebody let me know. I mean, it's not like Bronny James doesn't have any potential. It's not like Bronny James was not good.

This is someone who was a McDonald's All-American. Bronny James is someone who was looked upon as one of the top high school prospects in the country. And then Bronny James goes to USC. And unfortunately, he suffers a cardiac event with a cardiac arrest. He comes back place for USC, is running around out there dropping five points a game, really seeing no minutes.

And he still gets drafted at number 55. I think without a shadow of a doubt, I think we all know this and whether or not you agree or not, he got the job. This gig, this opportunity because he is LeBron's son. And okay, yeah, fine.

I don't give a damn. But now he has to go out there and prove it. That's it. And so, yes, he signed a guaranteed contract. And yes, now we all need to wait and see what takes place with Bronny James. But more importantly, when you start thinking about the Lakers, what the hell is going to happen with the team first?

What's going to happen with the roster? LeBron James, I love how everybody's talking about LeBron. LeBron isn't under contract.

Yet. The Los Angeles Lakers are still trying to wait and see exactly who they could bring in. Just bring in DeMar DeRozan and let's call it a day, please.

But when you think about the rest of the roster, come on now. Bronny is going to be at the end of the bench. D'Angelo Russell, I assume at some point they're going to move him if they can get lucky. Austin Reeves is going to play.

Ruhi Hochamore is going to play. Forget about the big guys. Let's just think about the guards. They brought in Gabe Vincent last year who was running around walking wounded.

OK? They just drafted a shooter in the first round at number 17th overall in Dalton Connect. LeBron James, when he comes back, he's going to be running point. And so when I look at the Lakers roster, like Bronny's at the end. And so he has signed himself a guaranteed contract. How he's going to develop, I guess, when they practice and however often they practice, he's going to develop that way. But could you see this man getting solid minutes over, I don't know, Max Christie, a veteran who's been in the finals like Gabe Vincent?

D'Angelo Russell is still there. LeBron James is going to control the basketball. And so Bronny James minutes are going to be scant. But I certainly hope that they do teach this man, hey, bro, you don't talk about what you've been given.

Talk about what you earned. Bronny James also made it clear with his dad in attendance, by the way, that playing alongside his dad was not the dream. Whoa. This is the same Bronny James who for years we had to hear about how, hey, LeBron wanted to play with his boy. And LeBron changed that up. Bronny James also said today, you know, hey, I haven't ran around in my father's pocket. I'm not chasing my dad.

I'm chasing my own dreams right now. And so congratulations to Bronny James. Hey, congratulations as well to Dalton Connect. He was also there for people who wanted to know. And what he said, insignificant unless you're a big fan out in Tennessee. This was the Bronny James show.

This was the Bronny James introduction. The Los Angeles Lakers still got a lot of work, as I mentioned. What free agent are you bringing in? Are you keeping D'Angelo Russell? What is LeBron's next contract going to look like? Is LeBron taking a huge pay cut? Was LeBron James saying, screw this, give me my money for the next two or three years? The Lakers got their work cut out for them.

I'll tell you this much. It doesn't matter if Bronny wants to play with Dad, or if LeBron wants to play with Bronny, or if J.J. Riddick wants to sell everybody on why Bronny is there, or Rob Palenka wants to tell everybody how great of a job he's done. If you thought the Lakers over the past few seasons was just a drama show, prepare yourselves. The Los Angeles Lakers soap opera this upcoming season?

Well, it's going to be a doozy. Why did J.J. Riddick make that decision at the end of the game? LeBron James, I can't wait until we get the quiet tweet from LeBron. The vague tweet, the hourglass, the time is up emoji, I can't wait for that. I can't wait for Bronny James, I don't know, father and son, they get sick of each other every now and then, right? When is that going to happen in their locker room?

When is some guy going to get minutes behind Bronny and throw a fit? This is like a novella. This is like Dragon Ball Z. You've got to run through every plot line and every story before you actually get to the meat of what's going to happen.

And all of this, I've got to be honest, and I know this might change in a day, an hour, a week, two weeks. But the Lakers, even with DeMar DeRozan, I expect them to be good and competitive. I'm not going to look at the Lakers and favor them for a championship. What I'm favoring them for is to be the NBA team with the most attention, whether they deserve it or not.

Buckle up, the Boston Celtics are the champs, but the Los Angeles Lakers, they continue to hold all of the stories. I'll tell you this, let Bronny talk all the time. I guess they'll limit Bronny's access because I guess a lot of the questions will be, hey Bronny, when are you going to play?

How do you feel about playing? We're going to find all this out sooner than later. Prepare yourselves for the soap opera. It's the J.R. Sportbree show here with you on the Infinity Sports Network.

We got a full show for you. And speaking of father and son, Klay Thompson's dad was on the radio, NBA radio earlier today, saying that he wishes Klay Thompson was a Los Angeles Laker. He wishes. Tom Brady wishes.

He actually had some fun when he played football. Tyreek Hill wishing for a new contract. Cameron Payne hoping and wishing he still has a job in the NBA. This man was arrested a few weeks ago. I'll tell you for what? What a dumbass reason to be arrested. Aaron Rodgers, it looks like he's back from his trip. Apparently he went to Egypt.

And then, speaking of Klay Thompson in love, Steph Curry had a whole lot of love to show Klay Thompson now that he's gone and now that he's a member of the Dallas Mavericks. So we got a lot to get into. We have a lot to discuss. If you want to participate in the show, it's easy.

855-212-4227. When we come back on the other side of the break, we're going to have a conversation with someone. Ain't nobody gave him anything. He had to earn it. He just signed a contract with the Detroit Pistons. His name is Toluse Smith coming out of Mississippi State. The big man is going to join us on the other side.

Yeah, this man had the work. We'll get into it. It's the JR Sport Reshow here on the Infinity Sports Network. Temp check. What kind of summer are we having this year? A family road trip summer? A beach bump summer?

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Additional terms and fees apply. We all belong outside. We're drawn to nature. Whether it's the recorded sounds of the ocean we doze off to or the succulents that adorn our homes, nature makes all of our lives, well, better. Despite all this, we often go about our busy lives removed from it. But the outdoors is closer than we realize. With AllTrails, you can discover trails nearby and explore confidently with offline maps and on-trail navigation.

Download the free app today and make the most of your summer with AllTrails. It's the JR Sportbree show here with you on the infinity sports network coast to coast. We know the NBA draft is in the rear view. We've got people getting ready for the Vegas summer league. We've got people signing contracts. We've got people getting ready to sign deals. We're waiting on trades. We've got press conferences. The NBA is just running things all over the damn place.

It's that time of year. So we had to open up the show by talking about what's going on with the Los Angeles Lakers. But right here with me in Atlanta, Georgia, I got a guest joining me right now who signed a contract post draft with the Detroit Pistons.

His name is Tolu Smith, Mississippi State, representing for four years, multiple-time SEC. How you doing, man? You good? I'm great, boss, man. I'm blessed. Well, thank you for taking the time to be here.

Now, for anyone who's not familiar or learned about you, you got people listening in Hawaii, somebody's listening in a submarine somewhere. Fill us in. You come out of Mississippi State. You just signed with the Pistons. You're a big man. You're 6'11", 7 feet tall.

What's the deal? Who are you, bro? Yeah, so my name is Tolu Smith. I'm originally from Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, from the deep south Gulf Coast, rural area. Came up in a great neighborhood, great family.

My mom saw more. My dad's black. Put a lot of good things and still a lot of good things in me and my brother, man, and a lot of determination, a lot of hard work, and it led to this. Listen, Tolu Smith is joining us, signed a contract with the Detroit Pistons last week.

You've had the work for everything that you got. I mean, even through your time in Mississippi State, you had a foot injury, you had your ups, you had your downs. What led you to this opportunity to sign with the Pistons?

Because a lot of guys, obviously, they want to go to Brooklyn, they want to get drafted. You had to get it through the dirt. Yeah, man. If anybody knows me, knows me personally, they know everything was earned, not given. I don't want to say nothing because I had a great family, great childhood, but damn near, I had to work for everything, man. I didn't have a lot of offers coming out of high school. I didn't have a lot of buzz coming out of college. Still not getting a lot of buzz, but like I said, I earned everything. I'd rather be that way.

I'd rather be that underdog, that killer that they don't see that hitting gym, and not just come out ready. So Tolu, Mississippi State, what did you pick up from being there all four years? Because you originally had transferred over from Western Kentucky. What did you get out of those four years? How did you develop as a man and also as a basketball player?

Yeah, man. So as a basketball player, it was a lot. Going from the Conference USA, which is a mid-major, it was still a great conference, to the SEC, it's the big boy league.

I feel like that's the next thing to the NBA at this point. So I had to take it red shirt year. I learned the physicality, the level of development that you need to have to be able to even compete in this league, and just the pace of the ball.

The pace of basketball and SEC is different. As a man, I learned a lot too. I learned about patience. I learned about how to properly take care of my body. I was always in the gym three to four times. That's great to hear.

That's great to talk about, but it can be a tear and wear on your body, and that's exactly what happened, so I had to learn the hard way. But yeah, I learned a lot of things from Mississippi State. Yeah, Piston's Sonny Tolu-Smith is joining us here at the JR Sport Reshow on the Infinity Sports Network. For Pistons fans and people who are going to be checking you out and they're looking at the highlights, who are you, what you do, define your game.

Motor. I'm a dog. I come in, I want to help my team win. I want to do whatever it takes to win. I think the biggest thing about my game is I make my teammates feel confident. I think I help my teammates get better shots, better opportunities. And obviously I can score the ball, but you know, going into the league, it's a lot of guys that can score the ball as well. You got a Cade Cunningham, you got a Marcus Sasser, so you got to find a role, find a niche, and I think that's something that I do. Whether that be rebounding, whether that be screening, rolling, I think I do a little bit of it all. You talked about some of your potential teammates now with the Pistons, a Cade Cunningham.

We know he goes out there and he gets it. From the time that you started playing basketball up until now, how have you had to change, if you had, your approach? Because it seems like the league continues to change. I mean, if we go back years ago, someone at your height, they'd say, hey man, stand down low.

They wouldn't want you doing nothing. Pick and roll, grab the rebound, block the shot. How has your game developed over the years?

Man, it's great because I had a father that was ahead of the pipeline. I think he instilled the ability to bring the ball up, the ability to pass the ball, making driving plays. You know, most big guys, they down to the basket, back to the basket, but I think in terms of my game, I can be versatile. I can stretch the floor a little bit. I can bring the ball down.

I can push the transition if need be. So, like you said, a big man of my height, of my size, a few years ago, a couple years ago would have been a top pick, but now it's what else can you do? What else do you bring to the table?

It's Olu Smith-Pittston signing. He's here with us at the JR Sport Reshow. You mentioned your pops. What influence has he had on this process for you? He's my right-hand man.

I love him to death. He has a lot of wisdom behind him. He knows a lot of intelligence.

He has a lot of intelligence behind him, whether that be basketball or just in life in general. I tend to go to him a lot about things or things I need help with, issues I need help with. He's always there for me, man, so this process has been a lot smoother with him around, and I'm very thankful for him and my mother. Well, Olu, tell us about the process, because we all know about the glitz and glamour. We know about the draft that's now two days. You had to have just been checking your phone or put your phone away. What was that process from signing, man? You had to have been real anxious about this, nah?

Man, absolutely. I had some opportunities I thought I had to get drafted late round, late second round, but that's fine. I mean, I think the day of the draft, I was a little more nervous than anything, but I did some things that makes me feel better.

It's somewhat of comforting. I went to go fish with my pops and my brother. That's some things that we like to do in the South.

We play some spades, things that get your mind off of us. It was a great day. I just think that it was a great day for me and my family. So what happened that day? We know the Pistons have gone through some changes. Trajan Langdon is now running the show now.

Bickerstaff is now the head coach. So what happened? Your agent got a call? The agent called you?

Describe the process for us. Yeah, so I had a workout with the Pistons. I had 11, 12 workouts, and I'd say Detroit was one of the top three workouts I had. Just a great environment.

The facility was top tier. Met some great people along the way in Detroit, and I thought it was a great environment for me. And that day of the draft, I got a call after the draft, and it was like, we got an opportunity for you for Summer League. You have a chance to show out, get some minutes. Just come out here and do what you do.

And then when I heard that, I was like, you can't ask for a better opportunity, man. So that's what we're doing. Hey, congratulations.

Tolu Smith is here with us on the JR Sport Brief Show. So what's next? What does the next week, month, what's lined up for you? Yeah, so we go to Detroit on July 4th. We spend some time out there, do some practices with the team, get to know everybody. Then we go into Vegas. Summer League, about two weeks. We're going to take it all, so that's the plan.

Now you're from down here in the south. What are you looking forward to about spending time? You know, Vegas time is going to snap.

It's going to flash like that. But are you going to spend the summer out in the D? What is the thought process right now? I'm not looking too far ahead.

I think after Vegas, it's back to work. Just try to stay in the best shape as I can. I mean, a pro always is in shape, man. So stay in the gym, stay ready. Anything can happen. So just staying ready. Absolutely.

Tolu Smith is joining us here at the JR Sport Brief Show. Has it kind of settled in that you've moved on? I mean, look, typically people move forward. You out of school now, man.

Mississippi State to the Pistons, nobody goes backwards. Has it settled in this new place, this new level in your life? Oh yeah, for sure. It's not a school anymore, man. You got a lot of time on your hands when you're out in the real world and it's just a matter of what you do with your time. I think that's where a lot of pros fall short. They tend to do things outside of the facility or do things that they're not accustomed to, just because there's a lot of time on their hands, man.

So it's about time management, what you do with your time, how you invest your time, and how you invest your time with people. And Tolu, when you ain't balling out or you're on the court, how are you spending your time? I know you talked about fishing and playing spades.

What else you doing, man? Man, spades is my thing. Spades is my thing, fishing my thing. I'm a big music guy as well. I tend to listen to a lot of varieties of music. I got a dog, his name Maui.

He got me through a lot of hard times as well, so I spend a lot of time with him. Okay, I can dig it. Now, for people listening up in Detroit, maybe on the ticket, I told you they're going to Google you, they're going to find out. What messages do you have for people in the D, man?

Oh yeah. Shout out to Detroit, man. I appreciate you guys for taking the chance on me. I'm coming and I'm ready. I'm ready for the moment.

Is there anything that you're really looking forward to the most? In Detroit? Period. You're a pro now, man. I'm not a pro. I professionally talk for a living.

I don't shoot no basketball. What are you looking forward to the most about the process? I think the biggest thing I'm looking forward to is going against the top competition. I want to sharpen my iron, man. I want to see my game against somebody else as good as me or as better than me.

I want to see how I do against them. I'm excited for those kind of moments. I'm excited for those bright lights. I think I'm ready for those bright lights. I'm ready to be out there in Detroit, man, so I'm excited. This is cool. Listen, this is why the Pistons gave you that contract, doing 15 and almost 10 at the SEC. That ain't nothing shabby.

Everybody ain't walking around and do that. Where can people follow you online in your journey? Yeah, people can follow my Instagram, Tolu Smith or Tolu, and then people can follow my Twitter at ToluSmith1. Yeah, that's pretty much it for me, man. Well, listen, I appreciate the time. Good luck. We're going to catch you back when you're back in the A, okay? Yes, sir.

Well, hopefully most of the time is up in Detroit. Have fun out in Vegas, okay? Thank you. Thank you, man. We're going to talk about a little bit of a message while he was rolling around in his car.

We'll talk about the Cleveland Cavaliers on the other side of the break. If your day sounds like, we need to report ASAP. You deserve Medella. If you've persevered through. You deserve this rich golden lager with a crisp and refreshing taste.

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Beer imported by Crown Lake Port, Chicago, Illinois. It's the J.R. Sportbree show here with you on the Infinity Sports Network. Thank you so much to our guest, Tolu Smith, latest signee from the Detroit Pistons, Mississippi State. Good luck to him as he heads out to Detroit and then to Vegas to show up and show out. And we'll see what happens from there. Much love to Tolu. Great story, good dude. We'll see what takes place. 855-212-4227.

That's 855-212-4227. We've got some news that just came down the pipe a few minutes ago. Thank you to Rich Ackerman. Also as well, it looks like Kyle Anderson is heading to the Golden State Warriors. Yes, the former Minnesota Timberwolves is heading to Golden State on a three-year, $27 million contract.

Now, I've got to be honest here. If I'm a Golden State Warriors fan, at this point, I'm just rolling my eyes at everything. If I'm a fan of the Golden State Warriors, I'm just saying to myself, Kyle Anderson?

I get it. Clay Thompson wasn't going to take that money. That's, Clay Thompson pretty much turned down less than that. But if you're a Warriors fan, you're just, you're feeling the pain. You're feeling the back end of all of the success and the dynasty that you built. Look, I'm not comparing the Chicago Bulls to the Golden State Warriors. I'm not doing that. But what I'm telling you is, success comes with a price.

It costs. And in the NBA, success means that guys have to get paid. Steph Curry got his money in Golden State. Draymond Green got his money in Golden State. I mean, damn it, Clay Thompson got his money in Golden State. But Clay Thompson is the one who got injured back-to-back years.

Clay Thompson is the risky one here. We know that Steph Curry is one of the most, well, let's just, let's be real. Steph Curry is one of the most popular and iconic players in NBA history. I mean, in large part to how the game is played right now with everybody shooting, you can thank Steph Curry for that. Did he help hit the fast-forward button?

I'm sure. But the fact is, Clay Thompson, he was disposable. I'm sorry. I don't want to make the man sound like trash, but if you need to get rid of one guy, it's the guy with the bad knee, the blown-out Achilles.

It's time to move on. And so now he's a member of the Dallas Mavericks. And the replacement is Kyle Anderson, who is a nice role player. He might, you know what, as an all-around player, he might be better than Clay Thompson. But there's no history. Kyle Anderson is basically a replacement. And there is no replacing Clay Thompson, the championships, what he contributed to the Bay.

There's no replacing any of that. Zero. Eight-five-five, two-one-two, forty-two-twenty-seven.

That's eight-five-five, two-one-two, forty-two-twenty-seven. It's a consolation prize. I don't want to take a line from one of our guests from last week, but Caleb, who is a news host here on 92-9 The Game in Atlanta. He basically said that the Atlanta Hawks bringing on Zachary Risache is like getting socks. Like, he socks. You know? And I think about Kyle Anderson, and if you're a fan of the Golden State Warriors and all of a sudden Clay Thompson leaves and Kyle Anderson comes in, it's like getting socks on Christmas. Yeah, you'll use them, but who the hell wants socks?

Nobody. And Golden State Warriors, man, they got their work cut out for them. Let's see what else they can do as the season goes on. I'm not feeling confident unless they can go ahead and find somebody, anybody to eventually take Andrew Wiggins, who I think his confidence is now shot.

Anyway, someone who doesn't have a confidence issue was also one of the bigger stories earlier this morning. It's Donovan Mitchell. Donovan Mitchell came to an agreement with the Cleveland Cavaliers on a three-year, one hundred and fifty million dollar extension. There have been talks and conversations for the past several years from when he moved on from Utah over to Cleveland that, quite frankly, he was on borrowed time. That Donovan Mitchell was not going to stay in Cleveland, that ultimately he was going to join a team like the New York Knicks, former dynamic duo between Brunson and Mitchell.

Didn't happen. Donovan Mitchell didn't get traded to Brooklyn. He did not get traded to the New York Knicks. Donovan Mitchell is staying in Cleveland, playing alongside Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Jared Allen.

Yeah, this is just a whole team of a bunch of guys who seemingly to me do the same damn thing. And now they have a new head coach who's coming in and Kenny Atkinson. And then Donovan Mitchell is sticking around.

It didn't take him long earlier today to go on social media, to go on Instagram. Dropped a couple of profanities here or there, but he pretty much said, hey, listen, folks, I've been telling people that I like it here and I want to stay in Cleveland. And he's like, nobody believe me.

Listen to what he said. The whole year I've been saying the same thing. I'm saying how much I like it.

Every day it's like, oh, he's going to do this, he's going to do that. I don't get it. I don't understand it. I think it's hilarious. It is what it is. I'm glad I got it done, man.

I'm glad I got it done in Cleveland. I don't even focus, you know what I'm saying? Let's get to it.

I see that, uh, Donovan Mitchell is also a fan of the musician Gunna. Okay. All right. Next time, turn the turn the music down. We need to record a video.

Just a little professional advice. Anyway, here's some more advice for Donovan Mitchell. And I don't know if he could do anything about it. This man is like a microwave, no disrespect to Vinny Johnson. Donovan Mitchell goes out there and gets his shots. He gets his buckets. He's one of the most athletic guards in the NBA at six foot three.

He's not the biggest guy, but this man gets his shots. I'm sure Darius Garland takes a look at Donovan Mitchell and says, man, can you pass the ball? I was an all star before you got here, but ultimately like one of these guys still has to go. You know, I saw what Luca Doncic just did with Kyrie Irving. Luca Doncic is like six, seven, six, eight. Darius Garland, he can't be any bigger than his teammate in Donovan Mitchell. He's six foot one, a six one guard, a six three guard.

What are we going to do? Throw them up to the Detroit Pistons and just see how things work out. And then when you think about Evan Mobley, this man is a giant. I've seen him up close in person.

This man is bigger than seven feet. They need him to evolve into one of the best bigs in the NBA. And if they don't, the Cavaliers are on the train to nowhere. I hate to say it. At least they have someone in like Kenny Atkinson. He's been through the good. He's been through the bad.

He's been through the ugly. A matter of fact, he coached Jared Allen with the Brooklyn Nets. Kenny Atkinson was helping to build up a young team with Brooklyn until Kevin Durant and Kyrie came through and basically ripped things down to the studs.

And they basically got rid of Kenny Atkinson. He went to the Golden State Warriors where he was an assistant, got himself a championship, and now he got a job again. And Kenny Atkinson and one of his, well actually from yesterday, he sat down with the Cavaliers website after his press conference and Kenny Atkinson pretty much said Donovan Mitchell is already asking for footage. He wants to prepare. He wants to work together.

Listen to what his new coach said. Well, he's already asked for film on how my Brooklyn teams, hey, I want game four. This guy is like, you know, so you're obviously dealing with someone who's super passionate. He's detailed. He's going to do his homework.

So that's great for me, right? Like that challenge where we're going to be partnering in this thing. Partners.

Last time I heard partners was, it didn't go too good. I feel Kyrie Irving was walking around with a new head coach in Steve Nash who replaced Kenny Atkinson. And Kyrie Irving ran around saying that we're going to be partners, that I can coach and Durant can coach. It's coached by committee. At least Kenny Atkinson was gone by the time Kyrie got into that stuff.

The Cavaliers are going to be good, but if the Cavaliers are going to take the next step, I don't think so. Somebody has to go. It's likely going to be Darius Garla or maybe, I don't know, maybe in another year because the last year of his deal is an option by the way. It's really a two year deal for Donovan Mitchell. Maybe Donovan Mitchell reaches the point and says, well, I want to be the one to go. This man walks onto the court and you know he's going to get you anywhere between 25 and 30 points a night.

Now here's the kicker for Donovan Mitchell. It's when he plays. Donovan Mitchell seems to always go down with a little, a little nick in the knack injury. Something hurts. Is it his wrist? Is it his leg?

Is it his knee? The last time I saw Donovan Mitchell on a basketball court, the Cleveland Cavaliers were on the verge of being eliminated by the Boston Celtics. The Celtics beat them four games to one. Donovan Mitchell was on the sidelines. Donovan Mitchell was just telling Darius Garland what to go out there and do and I'm saying this would all be so much easier. If you were healthy enough to play.

But that's been an issue. And so for a scoring guard who is six foot three, has athleticism out the gym, can dunk on anybody, fly over everybody, can do what the hell he wants. Donovan Mitchell, I don't take him as the type of guard who's going to age nicely. I can expect a whole lot more jump shots going up. Is he a good shooter? Yeah, he's a good shooter. Is he shooting a great percentage?

No, he's not. So Donovan Mitchell, the Cleveland Cavaliers had no choice but to give him this deal. But in the end, I still believe over the next two or three years, Donovan Mitchell or Darius Garland are going to have to go. And we've been through this story, we've been through this song, we've been through this dance with the Boston Celtics. And everybody's celebrating because Brown and Tatum got a championship and now they make more money than anybody on earth. $314 million for Tatum, $304 million for Brown.

That's not going to be in the cards for everybody. The Cleveland Cavaliers are just running on the treadmill. They did what they had to do in bringing back Donovan Mitchell.

But if I were them, I would look to move Garland and try to bring some depth onto the roster. Donovan Mitchell is going to get his points. He's going to get his buckets. Meanwhile, Garland is going to suffer.

Yeah, I'll call it now. Cleveland Cavaliers will win anywhere between 45 and 50 games. They'll go into the postseason. They'll win a round.

And then unless Evan Mobley turns into the next coming of I don't know who, they're going to get eliminated. Sorry. It's tough in the east.

What do you want me to say? You got the Celtics, the Knicks, the Sixers, you got the Orlando Magic. The Cleveland Cavaliers, they just kind of fall in the middle of just being good, but not good enough. Congratulations to Donovan Mitchell.

This man is going to get all of the money for a good team, but not good enough. It's the JR Sport Reshow here with you on the Infinity Sports Network. It's 855-212-4227 if you want to holler at me.

That's 855-212-4227. Time flies when you're having fun. Much love to Toluse Smith, latest signee from the Detroit Pistons, for joining us this hour.

If you missed it last segment, go ahead and hit rewind on the free Odyssey app. We talked about Brawny James. Brawny James said, I was given this opportunity. JJ Reddick said, no, you earned the opportunity. Toluse Smith, who just joined us on the last break, he said he worked for everything that he got right now. In the case of Donovan Mitchell, oh yeah, this man has worked his ass off even when he's been injured to earn his new $150 million contract. We're weeks away from the start of NFL training camp. We need to talk about a man who feels he is owed a new deal himself. I'm going to tell you who it is on the other side of the break. We'll talk about Steph Curry's lovely message to Klay Thompson. Justin Herbert loves his new draft pick. Aaron Rodgers is back in America. We've got a lot to discuss. It's the JR Sport Reshow, the Infinity Sports Network.