12.5.23 - JR SportBrief Hour 4

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See site for details. You're listening to the J.R. Sportbrief on CBS Sports Radio. And I'm coming to you live from Atlanta, Georgia. Super producer and host Dave Sheppard is joining us from New York City. And we're here with you. People listening all over North America.

That means Montreal, Vancouver, San Diego, Honolulu, Anchorage, Miami. Somebody is listening to us on a submarine somewhere. I'm serious. Shout out to all the military folk. Thank you for hanging out in submarines and in the air and on land and on bases. Appreciate y'all. Y'all be doing stuff.

I don't know what y'all doing, but if something pop off, I'm staying in my house. So God bless y'all. Much love to everybody at work, everybody at home, people on the roads, the highways, the byways, whether you're on 20, 85, I-5, I-10, I-90, I-9. Drive safe. Stay away from the idiots on the road. Don't be one of those idiots on the road. You can always listen to the show.

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It's 855-212-4CBS. We've had a busy day. We've had a busy night. More recently, the Los Angeles Lakers just beat the Phoenix Suns, 106 to 103. The Los Angeles Lakers are going to Vegas to take on the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night to decide who is going to represent the Western Conference in this NBA Cup. And on Thursday as well, the Indiana Pacers, they're going to take on the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Milwaukee Bucks beat the New York Knicks tonight 146 to 122. And so the Final Four is set for this inaugural NBA in-season tournament. And I would think the best matchup that we could possibly get would be the Los Angeles Lakers taking on the Bucks in a single elimination game.

Sign me up for it. And so for the Final Four we'll play on Thursday and the championship game, that's going to take place on Saturday. And so a lot of fun so far here in the NBA. A matter of fact, LeBron James, he just spoke to Ali La Force on TNT. Let's take a listen to LeBron. He's like, hey, yeah, I'm trying to win all the gold. Give me a win. Give me a new trophy. Listen to this. Well, LeBron, does taking over in the court ever get old? No. It's money time.

I've been there a lot in my career and I understand the assignment. So I was happy I was able to make a couple of plays, but big shot came from A.R. Up one, tickets up four. That was big time.

No question. 7.4 seconds on the clock. One possession game. What are you reinforcing your team in that timeout? Well, we got to execute one.

And like I said, A.R. got the shot. And then we had to come down here and protect, not give up a three being up four.

K.D. made a heck of a reverse layup. We was able to get the ball in.

Let's execute. Try to make both free throws. A.D. went up one for two. And I actually, I wanted to foul because of the shooting ability by K.D. and Book. But we didn't get an opportunity and K.D.

was a little wide right. There's always a million scenarios at any point in time. You know them all. So my final question to you is, you've won a championship, you've been an MVP, a finals MVP, an Olympic gold medalist. What would an NBA cup adding to that list of trophies mean to you, LeBron? It is what it is. I mean, it's an inauguration. It is what it is at this point in the season. We have an opportunity to compete for something, so why not?

I mean, you've got the greatest competitors in the world fighting for something, so let's fight. We'll see you in Vegas. Alright, perfect.

Thank you. Kevin Durant had 31 points. Austin Reeves had the 3 pointer. That was pretty much the dagger to put a fork in the Phoenix Suns. Devin Booker.

Yes, Chef. When Magic, so you made a great stat comparison with Magic Johnson. When Magic Johnson did what he did, that was in year 7. 7.

This is year 21. He's tripled Magic. That's the kind of stat line this guy's putting up night in and night out. At what point, and I know you're going to hate where I'm going with this, but... Do I? Yeah.

Because at what point do we just say, you know what? Maybe LeBron's peak wasn't quite Shaq's or MJ's, but his career is the greatest there ever was. Just simply on what he's doing in what supposedly is supposed to be the twilight of an NBA player's career, which is year 20 and 21, when it seems like he could be playing for another 5 years. I think without a shadow of a doubt, his career is going to go down, is probably.

And this is what I say, there's a difference between he and Mike. Like, greatness comes in different forms. And when you think about the full breadth of his career, which is not done, it's ridiculous. It might span 25 years of just excellence, which is just mind boggling. He is an anomaly. And the fact is, in a lot of cases, not just LeBron's, you really don't appreciate something while you're living in it.

And I would think that everyone within sound of my voice has lived in it. I mean, even if you're a kid, all you know is LeBron. You don't remember the clippings, you don't remember the games on ESPN when he was in high school. It's just, it's prolonged, consistent excellence. And it looks like it's going to push 25, dare I say, plus years. I mean, you never know when someone could go down, but it's pretty nutty what he's done. And it's just like, at this point, I just want to see what other boxes get checked. You know, I've talked a lot about hoping to see his sons play with him. I think that would be a cherry on top.

But once you do that, I don't know what the hell you want to do after. And we saw his son Bronny sitting in the stands. And yeah, no, LeBron keeps going.

I hope he does win this NBA cup. Just keep checking the boxes, man. 855-212-4CBS. It's 855-212-4CBS. TJ, calling from here in Atlanta. You're on the JR Sportbreeze show. What's up, TJ? Yes, sir.

Well, a few things. First of the in-season tournament, if it's going to be a precursor or a look into the NBA playoffs, and if LeBron wins, do you think they should make the logo of LeBron for the trophy? No, I don't think that matters. I haven't thought about that. No? Okay. And what about the NBA Finals?

What did you say? Oh, so if the in-season tournament is going to be, like, what the NBA Finals is going to be? If it's going to be the Lakers, the Pelicans? Oh, oh, oh, hell no. No, no, no. I mean, could it be? Yeah, but do I think so? No.

I don't think the Pacers are ready for prime time like that, man. No, uh-uh. No. Also, that guy in Canada that says 63% of Americans are stupid, and we think that Canada's some faraway magical land. Did you know that 70% of Canadians live underneath the 49th parallel? Well, thank you. Thank you, TJ.

60% of them live underneath Seattle. Oh, well, thank you. So they're closer than you think, you know? Well, thank you, TJ. I just wanted to throw that out there. Well, thank you, TJ.

I appreciate you. Oh, 855-2124CBS. That's 855-2124CBS. Naveed, he's calling from Toronto. You're on CBS Sports Radio. What's up, Naveed? How are you today? I am excellent. How are you? Speaking of Canadian, here you are. What's up?

Kind of upset that you're not including hockey in your conversation. Oh, go ahead. Hello? Yeah, I'm on the radio. I'm not going anywhere.

Go ahead. Who's your team? Who do you think will make the finals in the NHL? Man, I ain't watching no NHL until we get to the Stanley Cup, man.

I don't know. I think my team up here just needs a defenseman. That's it. The Maple Leafs? The Maple Leafs, yes. When was the last time they actually were good?

I think this is our year. No, I didn't ask you that. I didn't ask you that. I said, when is the last time the Maple Leafs were good?

Before I was born. Well, okay. You're upset. You're joking, right? You don't expect me to talk about hockey here, do you? No, come on.

Hockey is a sport too, like basketball, like football. No, Navid. Navid, how far removed are you from school? From school?

I was born in 73, okay? Okay, so why are you so bad at answering simple questions? I asked you a question too.

Hockey is a sport too. No, no, no. You did it again.

You did it again. Jared, can I ask Navid a question? Go for it, Shep.

Go for it. So Navid, this is my question for you. JR has referenced the Jets on all too many times because of their ineptitude. Now JR knows this. I don't know if most Americans know this though. The Maple Leafs used to be one of the most dominant teams in hockey history. It has been longer since the Maple Leafs have won a Stanley Cup than the Jets have actually won a Super Bowl. Do you really think the Maple Leafs are going to get brought up in the States given how bad they have been the last 57 years? Well, I'm not saying talk about the Maple Leafs. I'm talking about pre-op hockey. Talk about the LA Kings.

There's other teams in the States that play hockey too, right? Navid, listen to this. You ready for this? I'm ready. I'm going to share with you some of the cities that listen to this show.

You ready? Yeah. Here in Atlanta, Georgia, Cleveland, Ohio, Detroit, Michigan, Boston, Massachusetts, Honolulu, San Diego, Las Vegas, Houston, Texas, Miami, Florida. That's just a few of them, okay? Let me make something very clear. This is a national show. If you had to go ahead and rank, okay, the interest of American sports fans, what sports do you think people care about here in the States?

Hockey is going... I didn't ask you that. Oh, sheesh. Hey, Shep, if he calls up, do me a favor? Yes. Don't push him to me to talk to him, okay?

Copy that. No, no, no. You can talk. You can talk to him. Gotcha. I don't want to talk to him.

Give me a couple of months. I don't want to talk to him. So, JR, so you know this, and I'm saying I'm having a transparent conversation with you that typically a host and producer would have off the air, right? So they got some notable names, like Tavares. Everyone knows John Tavares in New York, right? Yeah. William Nylander.

Most people haven't heard of him, but he's their starter this year. There is the pushback that I think a lot of national hosts get, that we don't bring up hockey until it's the Stanley Cup. Correct. Until it's the Eastern Conference or Western Conference finals. Or unless something notable happens, yeah. So my question for you is, JR, as somebody that does branch out in so many sports, you go with what the audience wants to hear. I understand that.

I respect that. There is a big hole right now when it comes to talking hockey in national sports. Do you think you could be that guy that does make it exciting?

Because there's not a market for that right now in the landscape of talk radio, specifically in the States. Make it exciting? Yeah. It doesn't get brought up. You know what I wish you played right now?

That lose customers? No, no, no. Mike Tomlin, we do not care. But JR, you and I both know, when you watch Sid Crosby, when you watch Bedard, when you watch McDavid, even his teammate, Malkin, and Ovechkin. When Ovechkin used to be good, he's still good, but when he used to be at his apex. Those guys are fun to watch.

Even if it's in the regular season, they're just that much better than everybody else. The challenge I would have for people that do this is making hockey relevant to people in the States because I believe the market is there. We do not care. Okay. I can't speak for anybody else.

I can only speak for me. Got it. Okay.

I have interest in hockey when we get closer to the playoffs. Why is that? Why is this? It's not as interesting as it used to be.

Okay. I don't find it. I have lost interest over the years in hockey. I used to love hockey. You want to know when I used to love hockey?

I don't know. Almost 20 to 25 years ago. Which is when the Rangers were really good. Well, it doesn't even have anything to do with the Rangers. It's the Rangers. It's thinking about the Devils. It's looking at Colorado.

It's 25 years ago, 20, 25 years ago, when I really, really dug in and cared. But they're strong. I don't have the same interest. But they're bigger, stronger, faster. They're more skilled than they've ever been before. Why is there a lack of interest in hockey in the States right now? I can't answer that. Maybe it's because there's a growth of another sport that's more easily accessible. And I don't know, soccer and football. Maybe it's because of the growth of digital media that goes along with basketball.

I think those are simple reasons. If you're asking me, I got plenty of crap to do. Okay?

On a day-to-day basis. And as I got older, I had less of an interest in hockey. Okay? A lot of the dudes that I watched, including Wayne Gretzky, started to hang it up. And so I don't have the same interest. And I think, especially as media has grown, there are other sports that are more accessible. It's like asking me, hey, why does America have less of an appetite for baseball? It's a simple answer.

It's a slower game. I think if you take a look at hockey, it's not as accessible here. You know, I ain't waking up in Atlanta, Georgia, and we had hockey here. But I ain't waking up and saying, oh, man, I can't wait to see hockey. Ain't none here. You know what I'm saying?

Yeah. Even back in New York. Where am I watching hockey outside of going to Madison Square Garden? I have seen hockey in MSG. I've seen hockey when it used to exist at the Barclays Center. I've seen hockey in New Jersey.

But most people in the United States of America, they ain't waking up. It's not as relatable of a sport as the others. It's not. I mean, you got hockey out in Phoenix, Arizona, and they trying to figure out where they're going to play.

And so it's very simple. It's where does hockey fall in the pecking order here in the United States of America? It ain't one. It ain't two. It ain't three.

It's four. I got no problem with hockey. Not at all. Right. I get that.

I don't have as big of an interest in it. The question I would have for you is you've been to every single sporting event known to men and women kind. You can't correct me if I'm wrong. You can't tell me that hockey is sold out when people actually watch hockey at these are professional arenas. These games are sold out. And it is the most exciting, most scintillating, most back and forth, most highly contested atmosphere. There isn't all professional sports. People don't realize how exciting these games are when they go in person. I wouldn't say that. I would say I would say some of the European soccer that I've seen overseas is is more whatever the hell you called it scintillating and exciting. There's no doubt that hockey is a better experience seeing it in person. That I would say. But to say that it is sitting at the top of the list of like engagement. Now, I'm not saying that it's just it's what it is.

Hey, look, I'm not going to sit here. I could if I wanted to, I could sit here every single night and I could do a boxing show. But the fact of the matter is, most people wouldn't know what the hell or who the hell I'm talking about. And so I talk about what cast the widest net, which is why I think if most people listen to the show is a little bit different than a lot of things you might hear. I'm not going to sit here and talk to the offensive line coach from X, Y, Z University because who cares?

Who knows him? And so I want to talk about things that that can kind of rope people in. And when it comes down to hockey, there's not a relatable factor. If I'm going to talk about something, I want people to have an opinion. Not everybody's going to feel strongly about everything. People are going to feel one way stronger one way or another.

But to sit here and delve, it's just like most people, especially if you got to touch people and in different locales and different regions. We talk about hockey when a lot of people care about it a little bit more than normal. We talk about golf when there's a reason for people to care on a more consistent basis. People are always engaged with the NFL, whether they love it or they hate it.

People are engaged with the NBA. People touch Major League Baseball a little bit more. And then even it's no different than soccer. Soccer is growing here in the country and we've been able to have some interesting conversations about it, mostly about Messi, the World Cup.

But you know, I'm not going to sit here and go, oh man, this is what the Chicago Fire did against, I don't know, NYCFC. Because who cares? So when it comes down to hockey, yeah, there's a time for us to care. And most of it is surrounding the Stanley Cup playoffs.

It's just the reality of it. 855-212-4CBS. That's 855-212-4CBS. We're going to take a break. I'm going to get some more of your calls.

We've got a lot of people with a lot to say. It's the JR Sportbree Show, CBS Sports Radio. You're listening to the JR Sportbreef on CBS Sports Radio.

You're listening to the JR Sportbreef on CBS Sports Radio. Long time listening, first time caller, love your show. I like how you spit the truth. I love your show. You've got a great show. You're the bomb-diggity man. Thank you so much. Call in now at 855-212-4CBS.

I'm going to get to the phone lines in a second. I need to let you know about the Defensive Player of the Week. It's sponsored by the Navy Federal Credit Union, who proudly serves the armed forces, DOD, veterans, and their families. Their members are the mission.

You can learn more at NavyFederal.org. I'm not calling the defensive player. I'm going to just call a team. How about the 49ers? Smacking the Eagles 42 to 19. Yeah, I mean the Eagles can only live on the line or live life on the wire for that long without getting punched in the face.

And they did. 42 to 19. Eagles only coming up with 19 points. 855-212-4CBS. It's 855-212-4CBS. What do we got here? Mike is calling from Chicago. Your CBS Sports Radio.

Go ahead, Mike. Oh, damn. Sheesh. Hey, Shub, what did he have?

Narcolepsy? What happened to that guy? I mean, I checked on him a few minutes ago.

He was good, so. Oh, man. He needs that mask that Joe Biden sleeps with. I didn't know Joe Biden sleeps.

Was he a robot? I mean, when you're President of the United States, you're not exactly sleeping these days. You don't think Joe Biden goes to bed? I think he has power naps. If he didn't go to sleep, he'd be the other thing.

Right. But, JR, with what's going on in the world right now, I don't think the President is sleeping too much these days. I think he's sleeping, bro. You think he's asleep right now? He is. No. No, he's not. He has to be asleep.

I don't think so. How old is he? 80 what?

He's 80, I believe. Was that Joe Biden? What? That guy we just spoke to. Oh, maybe. I don't know. Biden's got more life than that. Okay.

855-212-4CBS. We got Gary from Florida. What's up, Gary?

Hey, JR. How you doing? Good. You know, not only do I think LeBron is the greatest basketball player ever, I'd say it's possible he's the greatest athlete ever. And I don't know about thousands of years ago or hundreds of years ago what these athletes were like, but in my lifetime, the last 50 or 60 years of watching sports, I can't think of anybody who's been more exciting and dominant over such a long period of time and just shows such consistent excellence on the court and off the court. So that's what I think about LeBron James.

Okay. You know what? Gary, I don't know if I'm prepared to go there yet, but he is certainly making his case. I'm interested to see how many more years that he tacks on and whatever else accomplishments that he has.

He might have another one this upcoming Saturday if the Lakers can win on Thursday against the Pelicans and if he can pick up this NBA cup. We're going to find out sooner than later. Thank you, Gary, for calling from Florida. Dave is calling from Miami.

Your CBS Sports Radio. Go ahead, Dave. Hey, Joe.

What's going on? Real quick about hockey and I want to talk about the Lakers. I'm originally from New York, as you may know.

The only thing I know about the Rangers is if they make it back in the newspaper. Other than that, I could care less. And the Lakers, LeBron is on some other level. I know, you know, I'm just going to add to the last call I said, 50, 60 years ago, who knows what guys did.

But LeBron is just on some other level. Take my call, Joe. Have a good night. No doubt, Dave. Thank you for calling from Miami. Austin is calling from California. You're on CBS Sports Radio. Go ahead, Austin. Hey, what's up? Great show as always.

Thanks for taking my call. Sure. Just a couple things on hockey, which I know isn't a hot topic.

I'll try to keep it brief. Hockey was my favorite sport when I was younger. I'm 38 now. I would say in the 90s and the early 2000s when I played ice hockey and roller hockey, it was amazing. And the reason why it's dipped, I think, are a few reasons. Being from the West Coast, you can play roller hockey pretty much year round. Ice hockey is extremely expensive, so that's why a lot of kids don't get into it. I can't afford for my two children to play ice hockey, even though it was my favorite sport I ever played.

So that's part of it. The other thing, too, is we used to have roller rinks where you could get into hockey if you just had a pair of roller blades. When was that popular? In the 90s and possibly the early 2000s. So the precipitous drop of using roller blades and also the lack of roller rinks and the less accessible areas to play hockey.

I'll give you this example. Two of the rinks that I used to play hockey when I was a kid in Monterey and in Santa Cruz got turned into basketball complexes, which is great. You know, but there's so many reasons why we don't see hockey rising in popularity. It's way too expensive. It's more expensive than golf, quite honestly. And it's sad because if you've never been to a hockey game right next to basketball, it's the most exciting thing you'll see. But it just costs too much. But anyway, that's all I got.

Thank you so much. Well, thank you, Austin, for calling from Cali. Yeah, I mean, the point that I made is, yeah, if you go around regionally, like here in Atlanta, ain't nobody think about no hockey. When I was up in New York, like, come on, I mean, outside of all, I'm going to the garden. And unless you're in the burbs, the suburbs, the city, like it's basketball courts, basketball courts everywhere. People look at that basketball, baseball, football, you'd be hard pressed to find folks outside of the city proper that it will. I mean, yeah, that you've got to go outside the city proper to get people out of into hockey. It's tough. Like you can't just say, hey, I'm gonna go play hockey.

You can't do that. You've got to go find a bunch of people. You've got to find a rink. I can find one person to play basketball myself. Okay.

It's not that tough. Scott, he's calling from Detroit. You're on CBS Sports Radio. How you doing, J.R.? Excellent. How you doing?

I cannot complain if I tried. Good. I was calling and the last caller kind of touched on it. The accessibility thing is a hundred percent of where the lack of interest comes from overall in the general speaking. But I'm I'm from Detroit and grew up in one of the greatest areas of hockey and a couple of a couple of franchise years that were we got to pick and choose puzzle pieces to build a dynasty roster for guys to win their rings. So my interest level is obviously going to be higher than somebody from, say, the south or out on the west. And I think the only thing that kind of caught me in a way where I'm not sure if I agree in this, this may again be regional bias.

And I was very blessed. It wasn't my family, but I had I had outside sponsorship to pay for me to be able to play at a higher level in my younger years. No matter what, football in the United States will always be king at any level. The NBA will be the next thing behind it. MLB I don't even see that falling ahead or jumping ahead of NHL hockey anymore because just and maybe it's yet again, this may be because of the region I'm in. But the bias falls solely on football is king. Our basketball team is the biggest joke in the league right now.

And our the commissioners should push Tom Gores out of Detroit, get them out so we can get somebody that cares about basketball in our city again. And it just saying a lot. Scott, go ahead. It's okay. The only thing that threw me off is the mention of soccer being a sport.

I understand on an accessibility level that that is correct, but I don't think that's the case on a popularity level. Well, Scott, I'm not I'm not thinking about today or tomorrow. I'm thinking about into the future.

And so there is there is no doubt in my mind. Okay, it over the next I don't know. 10, 15, 20, 25 years from now that that soccer, which is a global sport where everybody in every corner of the planet plays, that it's going to surpass hockey here in the States at some point. Is it going to be a bunch of decades from now? Maybe it's going to be sooner.

I have no idea. But I'm almost certain. Yeah, I can agree with that. Thank you for your time. And I love listening to show my my home machine shops making braces for handicapped people on a daily basis and we got you on every night when you're on. So thank you for being there. We all appreciate it, man. And no problem, Scott. You'll be cool.

Okay. Always have a great one. Shout out to my man Scott for calling from the D. It's the JR Sportbrief Show here with you on CBS Sports Radio. We're going to get some more your calls before we have to roll out before I have to shut up.

You're listening to the JR Sportbrief on CBS Sports Radio. Such a fan of yours, man. Thanks for taking my call. And, you know, you don't always get the most sane of callers, but you always handle it with such professionalism.

And I really appreciate your content you put out, man. Call in now at 855-212-4CBS. Hey, Chef, what's my favorite word? I don't know.

It's okay. What is your favorite word? I can't say it.

I get kicked off the radio. Oh, then for that favorite word, you don't say it too often. It's Too Short's favorite word. This is where I would have to know Too Short's. Too Short. Sorry, Too Short.

Got it. Too Short. No, I'm being serious when I say this because I did not know who Bad Bunny was for the longest time. I'm assuming Too Short is a musician. We just played, yeah, we just played his music. Okay, this is your music. It's always been your music.

I have no idea who's behind these, you know, instrumentals. Yeah, and Too Short is a, he's a legend from the Bay. Is he really?

Yes, yay, from the Bay. He's the legend? Too Short? Yeah.

Yeah, Freaky Tails? Like when you bring up like Def Jam or Rick Ross or Run DMC, like those guys, LL Cool J, like I know those guys, Snoop obviously, Chuck D. But I've never heard, I don't know if many people have heard of Too Short, like who are not familiar with the intricacies of music the way you are. Yeah, that's fine. Yeah, but he's a legend. Too Short's a legend. Okay.

That's why we play, blow the whistle, yeah. Gotcha. If you Google Too Short's favorite word, it'll come up. Is Nelly a legend? Nelly? Yeah. He's one of the most successful artists. I guess he's a St. Louis legend, I guess. Gotcha.

If you're asking me personally, I don't know. If you ask me what I would prefer to listen to, I'd probably take Too Short over Nelly. But Nelly had a lot of hits. He got Ashanti pregnant, good for him.

Yeah, man. Nelly was maybe the biggest hip hop artist, I would say 20 years ago. He sold a lot of records. There's no disputing that. A commercial success, without a shadow of a doubt.

I can't take that away from the man. Anyway, what are we doing here? 855-212-4CBS. It's 855-212-4CBS. If you know Too Short's favorite word, do me a favor, do not repeat it here on the airwaves. Let's go to Tim from California. You're on CBS Sports Radio. What's up, Tim? What's up, JR? I was just about to repeat it. Tim, I'm glad you won't. Go ahead.

Hey, I just want to say we all just probably need to pump our brakes on LeBron James as far as what I've been hearing. Are you playing, is that Elmo in the background? What is that? That's my daughter. Yeah, I was like, I hear Elmo.

Listen, I know what Elmo sounds like. It's okay. God bless her.

What you got to say about LeBron? Oh, Tim's too busy. That's a shame. Don't go nowhere, Tim. If we can get you back on, we will, Tim.

Don't go anywhere. If you got to hang up, I understand. I know Elmo when I hear Elmo. I was like, I heard Elmo in the back.

I'm like, what's going on there? Kevin is calling from Annapolis. You're on CBS Sports Radio.

Yeah, home of Bill Belichick. I had worked at the Naval Academy, so this is a big weekend for me, Army, Navy. But anyway, I want to say a little bit about music. I do front stage, backstage. I was with Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons. What a show.

These guys are almost 70. Totally amazing. And I'm going to ask you this. The greatest R&B song of all time, the artist is out here from Reisterstown, Maryland. His name is Mario.

All the artists got together. Have you ever heard of Mario? Mario? Mario, who used to have Braid My Hair? Mario. Let Me Love You.

Let Me Love You was ranked the number one song by all the artists. Yes, with Biz. You don't have to tell me. I know Mario. Oh, all right.

All right. Yeah, with Biz Marquis. Yeah, from like 20 years ago. Yes, I know.

You know, this guy is 36 years old. I think it's a different guy. No, it's not.

Mario's been out. OK, you're right then. OK, you're right.

OK, anyway. Oh, Kevin, slow down. Back to... Oh, hold on.

Slow down. OK, go ahead. He's so excited to tell me about Mario. Yeah, I like Mario. He's good.

Yeah, he's been out for about 20 years now. Yeah, but go ahead. All right, moving on to LeBron James. Do you remember about a year or so ago, Michael Jordan said any place, any time, anywhere. He shot like 35 to 45 jump shots, hit like just about everyone.

He was trying to get good on to YouTube for charity for him to play one on one against LeBron James. Let me tell you something. My dad grew up... All right, Kevin. Good. I have never heard that in my life. Well, that's what I've heard.

That's what I've heard through some of my sources. All right, now. Hold on, Kevin. Why are you coming on the radio making stuff up, Kevin? Come on. Michael Jordan was standing around challenge LeBron James.

Now you know better. Kevin, I'm being nice. Just just go ahead and make your point without all the the extra.

Go ahead. Michael Jordan is the greatest ever and ever will be. And that's what Larry Bird says. Frickin' LeBron couldn't hold Larry Bird's shot strap. Couldn't hold it.

My dad grew up with Nick Saban and all. All right. Thanks, Kevin. Damn.

I felt like that was like the reincarnation of Macho Man Randy Savage without the crazy voice. Listen, I don't think anyone is at least certainly not tonight. Anyone is getting into the Michael Jordan, who's the better, greatest basketball player. It's really simply looking at LeBron James, his entire career and how long he's been excellent.

That's it. And there is no comparison when it comes to that. Not even Michael Jordan.

And we can sit around and play the what if game. If you're asking me which basketball player I want, I'm still choosing Michael Jordan in his prime. And I'm not thinking twice about it. But if you want to talk about the entire career, there is is almost getting to the point of just like what LeBron James is doing is already ridiculous. And what Michael Jordan has done is in Michael Jordan's category. And what LeBron James has done is what he's done.

And they're great in their own regards. 8 5 5 2 1 2 for CBS. Beck is here from Florida. Hey, how's it going, guys? I called about some other things. I know we're against the clock and get some more people on, but you guys threw the curveball with music and I kind of been saving something from a long time with that. So I can save the NHL talk or whatever else for another time. Nellie was in the Big 12, I think halftime game this weekend.

And yeah, definitely. I don't think he's a Hall of Famer. You can blow the whistle on the whole college committee. We won't even get into that right now. But just what music back when you weren't even in months ago, whatever out play a person from your second city or whatever outcast was voted and the billboard or whatever else as a top rap duo or group.

Where is your views on that? And why don't you ever throw in any outcast from being in the ATL when you come back from shows? Because I'm running the gamut here. That's pretty much the ghetto boys. That was the first time I ever called in. That's when I heard the ghetto. I love I love Scarface.

I love Scarface. It's one of my favorite records of all time. And that's why it's that's why it's the intro to the show.

Right. And you've got to obviously with my and the other part about it is that there's a there's a there's a tone to the music music that gets played. Obviously, I'm not going to play every bit of music that I enjoy. It makes absolutely no sense for me to come back from break for the most part and play Stevie Wonder.

You know, it has to fit the tone of the show and the time that I'm on. You understand what I'm saying? No, I know.

And that's how I learned you didn't listen to you. I mean, because you're a New Yorker, which then used to came down to the south. But here I was in South Florida. We had a bunch of New Yorkers, DJ Clue tapes.

I remember again, you're probably my age or a little bit younger. I remember DJ Clue tapes. You had DJ Screw. I know. I know DJ Clue.

Yes, I know him. Yeah, I know. You know, to my crew was before my time, but the whole Miami bass movement. So then again, that never got popular. Everything was East West Coast.

But the South had a movement that never gets respected to this day, too. I mean, Little Kiki, all these freestyle things. You had the New York stuff. But again, I just I know you know this. And but again, put it out to the masses.

Go Google it or whatever else. But we lived through a great generation. You listen to the music. We I touch a little bit of every place, man. You know, I know. That's why I love you guys, because you guys are smart and keep it real. Thank you for all the good work you and Shep and everybody at CBS is doing. God bless everybody out there. Have a good one. You as well, Beck.

Thank you for calling from Florida. You see, now I can make a cue to corrupt. It's over now. It's over. It's over now. It's over.

It's my turn now. It's over. The game is shut down.

The J.R. sport show here on CBS Sports Radio. It's a wrap for tonight. We'll be back tomorrow. 10 p.m. Eastern, 7 Pacific. If you missed a minute of the show, you can go ahead and hit rewind on the free Odyssey app. Of course, every Wednesday night, I bring you a new top six list.

I'll be bringing a new one in about 24 hours from now. We're going to talk some more football. I'm sure we'll get into Roger Goodell. He talked about the globalization of the NFL. We didn't touch it tonight.

We'll get it tomorrow. Thank you so much to super producer and host Dave Shepherd. Thank you to you, wherever the hell you at for listening. I'm done on CBS Sports Radio, but don't move. Amy Lawrence is coming up next.

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