And now, it really is my honor to talk about arguing sports so you don't have to argue at home. You're on the drive. Back at it, right here on a Wednesday Drive. You're listening to WSJS News Talk Sports for the Triad. I'm Will Dalton.
Also known as the WD. Rocking with you here on a Wednesday. Appreciate David Glenn of the NC Sports Network for coming on and kind of breaking down all the NCAA tournament expansion stuff to us. But now we transition to some NFL. As in our YouTube comments here.
Brandon L. says Panthers will have a new quarterback within the next two years. 336-777-1600. Do you think the Panthers will have a new quarterback in the next quarter? couple of years.
And if they did have a new quarterback, it's probably going to be in one year or after this season because Bryce Young officially today got his fifth year option. It was always going to happen anyway, but they just wanted to wait till he was in the building to do it. Dan Morgan told us that a couple of weeks back. Uh before the draft. And You know, he officially Has everything he needs to either make this thing happen or not.
in terms of getting himself extended. Um When you just look at the receivers, you look at the receiving room that he's got. T-Mac is a one, Jalen Coker as a two. Like, he's set up pretty good there. And That third wide receiver, that's going to be a very interesting thing to watch.
But I think he's going to have a good option there, whoever it is, whether it ends up being Xavier Leggett, John Mechie, his guy from Alabama that they picked up in free agency, or Chris Brazzle. The receiver out of Tennessee that they drafted. They're going to have a good option there, I believe, is the third one.
So that's looking pretty good. Then you look at what he's got in the backfield. Shuba Hubbard is back that they've financially committed to. And we know what he's capable of, and whatever. Lack of production that he might have had early on in the first half of the year last year.
It's because he wasn't 100% yet. you know, battling some physical injuries there. But he started to get it back going and getting 100%. as he told us he was by the end of the year. But then you got Jonathan Brooks, who's been waiting in the wings for a year, tearing his ACL prior to that, two years ago.
So there was no Rico Dowdle pickup this year in 336-777-1600 is number to call as it looks like we got some calls coming in. There didn't need to be a Rico Dowdle signing this year. And that's nice to see the confidence that they still have in Jonathan Brooks because there's probably a portion of the fan base that does not have. That confidence in Jonathan Brooks, probably giving him the injury-prone label already, even though he's only been. in the NFL now for a few years, but you wouldn't know that because So he was hurt.
I think it was also an ACL that he hurt coming out of Texas. And even as being injured, he was regarded as one of the backs to come out of that draft. But Only got, I think. Three years under his belt, or three games under his belt, I believe, before he got hurt with the Panthers. Sat out all last year.
Now he's officially good to go. In fact, he met with the media yesterday, said he's been cleared, says he feels close to 100%. He's still going through the program, though, with the Panthers there. But here was Jonathan Brooks. Talking about the confidence that he felt the Panthers had.
in the running back room going into this year. I think it's the confidence as a room in general. I mean, you got Chuba, who's a great back. You got A.J. Dillon, who obviously is a good back.
Myself and Trevor and then Trell and Trey, I feel like we have a good room and they have confidence in us. That doesn't just speak volume to the confidence they have in me. I think as a room in general, they're confident in what we can do. And that just is a test of how we work in the offseason and how we work during the season. Listen.
Jonathan Brooks He's in good hands working with Chuba Hubbard. And As we just mentioned, they're Is a little bit of that injury-prone label already being thrown around towards Jonathan Brooks? But Chuba kind of picked him up going into the offseason and told him, hey, The time's now. The time is now. And that's an as a player, that's a good feeling for your veteran guy in the room to have that level of faith in you.
And here, Jonathan Brooks was on Chuba having that belief in him. You know, with our relationship, it meant a lot. And knowing that he still has faith in me, just because we're close enough to where you can have that conversation with your brother. And just going to the offseason, it still just sticks in my head because I know not only do I want to be good for myself, but I want to be good for the team. And with Chua being a leader on this team and telling me that, I'm just ready to work alongside him because I know what he can do and I'm ready to see what we can do together.
So he's got the weapons. He's also going to have pretty good protection. Even with Icky being hurt, it left tackle. They picked up Rasheed Walker, the best tackle in free agency. They got Robert Hunt, of course.
They picked up Monroe Freeling. In the draft, which was a really nice pickup.
So. I do think he's going to have some pretty, pretty solid protection there, but.
Now that the fifth year option's been picked up. Like, this is it. Like, Bryce has everything he needs to either show. the Panthers that he is the guy Or he isn't. 336-7757-1600 is the number to call as Scott in Archdale has done.
Scott, what you got for me? How are you doing, Mr. Wood Dog? You doing okay this afternoon? I'm terrific, Scott.
Hope you're feeling the same way. Yes, sir. I just wanted to say, man, I think everybody needs to get off Bryce a little bit. I mean, he showed what he had last year. I mean, he got us to the playoffs.
I mean, we're not going to get another Cam Newton.
Okay. Era of football is over.
So I think Bryce is. good for what he is. I mean, he's a Baker Mayfield style quarterback. Going to win you games as long as he can stay upright. Did you like the Panthers' draft pick, them taking Moreau freeway?
I did. You liked it? I did. Yeah, they're going to keep him upright. Just figure out where they're going to place everybody.
I think we had a good draft. Scott Narchdale, thank you so much for the call.
So, Scott, like you got fans like that who feel pretty optimistic about Bryce. I tend to lean that way. But you got some that There's a faction of this fan base where it's like you just can't even take them seriously because it's like, screw Bryce Young, you know, he stinks, blah, blah, blah. You can't even take them seriously because there's no nuance whatsoever. But there are some that have some genuine questions about Bryce because there are some times where he turns the ball over.
He does lead them back in the fourth quarter. Like he's got the 12 fourth quarter comebacks and he's led the Panthers to so many of the wins that they've gotten over the last two years. But the flip side is, he's put them in those situations some of those times.
So it is fair. to be nuanced with that discussion. Which a good place to be. Let's branch out though. to the rest of the NFL.
I thought this would be a good Time to do one of our no rule No rules, top five lists where we rank.
Something. It doesn't have to be sports related. Like we ranked Michael Jackson songs last week. He ranked NASCAR paint schemes one time. I did, what did I do?
Breakfast? Breakfast foods? Bojangles. Bojangles. Yeah.
But today Now that it's post-NFL draft, we rank the top five NFL teams. Here we go. The No Rules Top Five. And this is show business. Mixed with a little monkey business.
Rank it. Huh? What? What? Run it.
You want to go through your list first? Yeah, I'll run through mine here. At number five, I picked the Ravens. Thought they had a pretty good free agency period. Lamar showed up, which was a big deal.
New organization heads, so I like that. At four, I have the Seattle Seahawks. They slid down. I didn't like any of their free agent. Pickups.
They lost a lot of key pieces. I still think they're going to be a legitimate title contender, but I wouldn't say they're a favorite. You've got to have the Buffalo Bills on there somewhere. I feel like this is the year they make it to the AFC Championship. Not the Super Bowl, but they're a title contender here.
The best team in the AFC at number two, the Denver Broncos. They're going to have a healthy Bo Nicks back. It was informed today that he is back in the facility and he's looking good.
So I love Denver and their pickups at wide receiver with Jalen Waddell is going to make that offense lethal. Look out for the Broncos. And of course, your Los Angeles Rams. I mean, I don't think drafting Ty Simpson is really that big of a deal on the offense. Sure, you could have picked up a backup receiver or another tackle or a guard, but let's be real here.
The Rams are the Rams as long as Sean McVay is cooking up something.
So in review. Ravens at five, Seahawks, Bills at three, Denver Broncos at two, and on top, the NFL. The Rams. That's a good s that's a good quality list. It is.
And I think Can't go wrong with that five. I mean the Ravens I would feel a lot better about how that Max Crosby deal stood. I would have felt a lot better about them. Let's go through my top five. Let's do that.
So coming in at number five The Kansas City Chiefs. They're back in there. They're back in there right on the fringe. I Am not one of these people that, you know, they missed the playoffs for a year and all of that. And now it's just like, yep, they got it, they're back at the back of the line now.
Nah, I'm not going to put them up near the top, obviously. But they are number five on my list. Patrick Mahomes gonna be back healthy. The revival of Patrick Mahomes. They added Kenneth Walker, a Super Bowl MVP.
Hello? Monsor Delaney. The defensive back out of LSU. Dog. Love that pick.
Love it. Eric B. Enemy. Is back at the OC running the offense, so things probably gonna run a little smoother. And you got the return of Travis Kelsey.
Which, even though his production seemed to be down last year, when it was. He's still a security blanket for Patrick Mahomes. He makes him feel comfortable out there.
So yeah, I got Chiefs at number five. That's what I got. At number four. This is where I put the Seattle Seahawks. They have lost some pieces, which is why they slide down, and a lot of people have them sliding down a little bit.
You gotta replace Kenneth Walker. And they Are trying to do that with the Notre Dame backup, Jadarian price. I mean, he's a quality running back. He's not going to, I don't think he's going to be a Kenneth Walker replacement exactly, but he can be a quality back. They added some secondary help on day two of the draft, which is some of what they lost.
So I don't expect them, and they got to change coordinators too. Clint Kubiak. The O C. He's now in Vegas, running the Fernando Mendoza Show. And Detroit's a prime example of when you lose coordinators, things don't quite hit the same.
So, I think they're still going to be up near the top, just not quite with the same juice that we left them off with when they won the Super Bowl. At three, I have the Buffalo Bills. A lot of people are I'm not going to say out on the Buffalo Bills, but like out on them in terms of Super Bowl type stuff, Super Bowl conversations. Because they've come up short. And then, most recently, without Patrick Mahomes, who's been Josh Allen's kryptonite.
There was none of that, and they still managed to come up well short in the playoffs.
However. I like the DJ Moore signing. The more I let it marinate a little bit. Because he's reuniting with Joe Brady, who they were together in Carolina, we all know. Skylar Bell.
a promising weapon that they just drafted for Josh Allen. Not gonna be like Elite top-tier T-Mac type receiver, necessarily, but could end up being another quality weapon for Josh Allen. They got Bradley Chubb. They picked him up. TJ Parker, the edge out of Clemson, who claims he wants to bring, quote, nasty to the defense.
His words, not mine. Bills at three. Two is where I put the Denver Broncos. You gotta do it. You can argue.
Patriots fan Morgan that If Bo Nix plays... There's a good chance that they go to the Super Bowl and not the Patriots. Maybe. If Bo Nix is playing in that game and he's not hurt, he's winning the Super Bowl.
So there you have it. He's a Patriots fan. And you add Jalen Waddle for him? Yeah. That's big.
That's why I got the Broncos at two. And number one. The LA Rams. The LA Rams because Like you said, the Ty Simpson pick has nothing to do with anything, like other than years down the road. That's almost like its own separate storyline.
Now, they could have added a weapon for him or an offensive lineman to additionally boost this thing up. But they didn't, and that's fine. But the Rams. I like their chances to win the Super Bowl this year, get Stafford another one before he retires. They're number one.
They're a wagon. Yes. That's been the No Rules Top 5. By the way. Shout out to YMCA.
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So, and this is whether you're a beginner or whether you're a seasoned athlete. Or you're just trying to get back going into it again, they're going to help you build some long, lasting, healthy habits. It's not just a workout, it's a lifestyle transformation, and that's absolutely true. YMCA, nwnc.org. That is the place to go.
to find out more. Make some noise, make some noise, let's If you've ever yelled at a riff, this show's for you. You're on the drive. Back at it on the drive right here on WSJS. I'm Will Dalton.
The WD they call me too. Rocking with you here on a Wednesday. David Glenn of the NC Sports Network going to join us next hour. I can't think of a better time for him to with NCAA tournament expansion happening yesterday later on in the day. And because of this topic right here.
Carolina After Missing out on Henry Vessar last week because he committed to the. NBA draft, gonna stay there, not come back to college. They had to figure out a big man. They had to figure something out. And That likely meant that they were going to have to go the international route because You know, a lot of the top guys out of the portal, by this point, were already taken.
Already taken. Thanks a lot, Michigan. For taking the Cincinnati big man. You're going to benefit greatly from that. Can't wait.
Yeah, Morgan's going to enjoy that. But because of that, A Carolina who's looking for somebody like that of the caliber out of the portal and a little bit out of luck. But Yesterday The tar heels Uh we're able to get a commitment from Sion Qaeda. An international seven footer Uh currently playing or most recently playing with F C Barcelona. in the Euro League, which I mean, that's the second best professional league outside of the U.S.
in the world.
So that's some pretty good experience. And believe it or not, this is actually somebody who Hubert Davis recruited. At one point Um This guy I mean this guy has a 7-4 wingspan. Students massive. I mean, we see, again, Michigan, we see how important size is to win a chip.
to succeed at the highest level in college basketball. Come on, Malawatch, anybody? Last year at Duke, size is a big deal. It just is. You got to have these seven-footers who are fluid, who can move, and in some cases, who can shoot.
So This guy, according to reports, according to write-ups, he's a projected lottery pick, believe it or not. In 2027.
Now, next year's draft, not as strong as this one. But I mean, this year's class is especially. I mean, this might be one of the best class. This might be the best class since 03. Potentially, like in the LeBron D.
Wade draft, if we're being honest about it, might be.
So, but lottery pick is a lottery pick at the end of the day. In terms of You know, your college abilities. Lottery picks aren't always lottery picks at the NBA level. You know, it might be development has to take place at that point, but you get what I'm saying. He is raw.
Um He does have the size and athleticism, again, to the point of being a future lottery pick, or at least projected as one. He does have the size, athleticism to play at the next level. That's actually per one college coach that was involved with his recruitment. Jeff Goodman reported that. Apparently, he's bouncy.
Apparently this guy's really bouncy. Hey, a seven footer who's bouncy. Who's gonna say no to that? You know, who's gonna say no? Not Carolina, clearly.
So. This guy has been recruited at the college level for the better part of a year. Duke's been involved at one point. UConn was involved in his recruitment at one point. Again, Hubert Davis tried to recruit him as well.
And Michael Malone. Got the commitment. He got that.
So Is he going to be a replacement for Henry Vassar? The immediate answer is no. Because Vessor was Seasoned at the college level, more polished. And, you know, this guy again, he's very raw.
Now, he does have an upside. that where he could maybe eventually be. that like later down the road of the year, maybe he develops into that replacement that they need. for the talent that they lose out on with Vassar not coming back. But it's gonna be a little bit of a project, I think.
I think it is. But the next question I have, now that it looks like he's going to be your starting center. Who's the dude on this team? You know what I mean? Like, who's the who's gonna be the dude?
Like the standout guy that's going to elevate this team from, I think, as constructed right now, pretty good team. But what takes them to great? And I honestly, I. I don't know the answer. I think as of right now, Terrence Brown could be the dude.
Now whether or not that's good enough, I don't know yet. Not sure because He did average. About 20 points per game, his last two years at Utah. And there are those that will point out: well, that's at Utah. You know, Utah was not very good.
And somebody has to score the points, and it was him.
So The ACC coming to Carolina, that's a different animal. Maybe it will translate. But I don't know. I'm not sure who that dude is just yet. I'll say as of now, just to give you an answer, not to cop out, I'll say Terrence Brown, but we'll see what happens.
Um We still have to wait and see the Juke Harris situation. It seems like it's between Tennessee and Michigan, most likely. I'll refer to the Michigan fan Morgan over here. What are you hearing? I'm hearing it's Mich sorry, Tennessee.
I'm hearing it's Tennessee. Yeah, you said what you wanted th wanted it. It's gonna go to Michigan, but no, it's it's gonna be Tennessee, I think. I Michigan just can't offer or won't offer what Tennessee is willing to offer and put it sounds like Juke wants control as well. Of like the team, and it wants to be run through him.
And Michigan, I don't think has they want to run through Cadeau. That's fair. That's man, Cado and And Juke like teaming up though, that would be something. Much watch basketball. It would.
It certainly would. Um And I mean, I think Carolina had some money to throw at him without Vesar taking up that $4 million. I don't know what they're going to be giving this guy from overseas, Kaida. But I I just don't See Juke Harris coming to Carolina at this point. I also think it's going to be Tennessee.
Everything seems to point to that.
So. We'll see. But that's the latest on the Carolina situation. They pick up an international big man. Sion Qaeda.
From FC Barcelona. We'll get David Glenn's thoughts on that when he joins us next hour. Yeah. All takes, no breaks, and no chance you're bored. You're clocked out email off.
Back to the Triad's longest-running live sports talk show: The Drive. Back at it on the drive, right here on WSJS, where We know our place. We know our place in the triad. And what I mean by that is, we know that you love racing. You love racing, you love golf, you love college basketball.
The Panthers, obviously. Unless you don't, unless you're like Morgan and you're a Patriots fan. You're one of those people. But we know you love racing. People love it around here and they enjoy it when we talk about it.
So that's why we designed this segment. We also design it because Morgan's really good at talking racing. He knows the ins and outs of it.
So we do that right now. In In the Fast Lane. Oh. Where speed meets the mic. Wow, what a move!
Shit, stop. This is the fast lane on WSJS. Put on your seatbelt, check your mirrors, let's begin. Your fast track to racing talk.
So, what's going on in the world of racing? You wanted to talk some Talladega today. Yeah, we had a first-time winner on Sunday, Carson Hosavar. Driver of the number 77 Spire Chevy. did a phenomenal job.
Pushing his way through the field when a lot of people couldn't. There's a clip of him going around right now from his in-car camera. Yeah. And he was in the back of the pack. And he just caught up to the pack going full throttle and just pushing people out of the way and Then going through the big one and just getting to the front.
Did a really good job. He was in the Intimidator scheme with the Chili's on the side.
So on the side of the car, I wish I would have pulled that picture, but it's the black car and it has the gray little trimming on the bottom. And it uh It was a spectacular car, but he won and to celebrate his victory. He sat on the window frame. put his hands out the window and was driving with his knees and his feet, no hands on the wheel. And Jove.
Two-thirds of a mile like this, just waving at the fans. Because he said, when you celebrate, you wave at the fans from in the car. But they can't see you and know that you can hear them. But he and he wanted the fans to be a part of it. and the fans loved it.
They were tossing him some beverages. Oh, yeah.
So he went up against the wall. Yes, and then he parked the car up on the wall. I did a burnout on the wall, sitting out of the car. I did see those. It was pretty cool.
And you were telling me that. The former NASCAR CEO would not have loved that very much. Yeah, so he caught a break. The CEO of NASCAR, Jim France, at the age, I think, 83, stepped down this week, and Steve O'Donnell stepped in, a 33-year-old guy. And he in the press conference after the race, Josovar was talking about it, and he was like, Yeah, sorry, Steve.
And he's like, No, I'm all for it. And he's like, Alright, we'll keep doing it then. Because Steve O'Donnell wants the drivers to have personality. There's an issue. I love Chase Elliott.
Great driver, great face for the sport, no personality. Just, okay, well, our car kind of stunk today. No personality. Host of our is a fan of the sport. And he is a great ambassador for the sports, and the fans love him.
He won that race, and the die cast maker for NASCAR Lionel. their website crashed. Oh, is Lionel the diecast maker? Yeah, the trained people also make all the diecasts. Yeah, so they make all NASCAR diecasts.
Yeah, their website crashed from the amount of people trying to pre-order his race-use diecast. Has it always been the trained people? Not always, but more recently, like Since before COVID, I think the train people have had it. Oh, that's so cool. Yeah, it's been a spectacular loving emotion for Josevar.
But this car has caused a lot of controversy as well. You've mentioned the fuel saving issues. Uh-huh. The NASCAR people decided to flip the stages.
So do 90 laps, 45, and 45. Yeah that did nothing. They still fuel save.
So m my analogy for it is this. Imagine you have a plant that's dying here, right? A plant in your house.
Alright? And instead of watering it some more, instead of watering it and giving it some more nutrients, getting some nice potting soil or moving into the sunlight, you just paint the dying leaves green and say it's good enough. That's kinda what NASCAR is doing with this car. They're not addressing the problem, they're just manufacturing good racing. Do you think the new NASCAR CEO is going to get in on this and like change anything around with this?
I think he will eventually. The problem is you have to keep the OAMs, which is Chevy, Ford, and Toyota, happy. Yeah. Without them NASCAR doesn't happen.
So, without the manufacturers, it doesn't happen.
So, we don't know what they're saying. That's kind of like an under-the-table conversation, doesn't it, released to the public? But I'd like to think that it's heading in the right direction where he wants the sport to be like the 90s and 2000s. And he's mentioned the older racing style is what flourished. More horsepower in the cars, less down force, which is something that.
Hamlin said on his podcast, he said, We've got to get the spoiler, which is the little piece of plastic or glass on the back of the car that keeps the air pushing down on the car. It keeps it gripped to the ground. He said, Just take it off because the cars can move better. A lot of the drivers were complaining there was no three-wide action because once you pulled out of the line, you dropped to the back. You couldn't maintain your speed.
So, yeah, that could be a problem. Especially at a track that requires speed. It takes two full laps to get up to speed at Talladega. Yeah, that's a See, I'll tell you, the only thing I knew about this winter... Um is that he was a big Sabrina Carpenter fan.
That's the only thing I knew about him. Yeah, he likes Sabrina Carpenter a good bit. In fact, he was wearing a Sabrina Carpenter shirt. He was, yes. I want that shirt.
We have go ahead.
Now I just need to find the shirt. Let's make it happen. There's some other racing news in a different aspect. You know, I want to cover all aspects of racing here. The Indianapolis 500 is not for another month.
April 24th. It pulls over 300,000 people in the audience. In one day. Mm. They have started their open practice.
Okay. It's more like testing for the drivers. Just get comfortable with the track because it is their longest of the season and it's their biggest race. It's their Daytona 500.
So they're gonna, they do a month of practice and that has started. And this weekend is the 150 second running. of the Kentucky Derby. Say, I'm glad you mentioned that because I'm gonna introduce you to horse or rock band. Do you know what this is?
I do not.
So it used to be where Josh Graham would like to pull these obscure names. It could either be one of the horses. Or it could also be some obscure rock band. And the names sound like they could They could be Either one, like April wine. You probably would think that was like a horse, wouldn't you?
That's a horse right there. No, that's a band. April Wine. 100%.
So now it's my time. It's my time to put this together. I used to be the one that actually used to get it pretty good. Yeek. You see?
Josh didn't like it when I would guess them all correct, or most of them correct, because he was like, well, that makes for bad radio. I'm like, yeah, hey. I got him right though. You couldn't outfox me, which I actually think that makes for good radio. And now I'm gonna prepare this and see how you do in Horser Rock Band.
We'll do that. A little later in the week. And that's been In the fast lane. Shout out to uh Josh Scott.
somebody who, uh You should do some media. For App State. Not sure if he still does or not, but he's a fan of the show. I know he listens. He said, just heard your producer's NASCAR plant analogy.
That and his entire NASCAR spiel absolutely spot on. Thank you. Thank you very much.
So you're getting compliments already. Again, I told you, people love the NASCAR, they love this segment. It's good. In fact. You know what?
People love racing so much around here that we want to get you out to some racing. That's what we want to do. We have Tickets for Bowman Gray. We do. And These tickets are not just for this weekend.
They're not for any specific weekend. They're from now. to August 22nd. Just not on July 4th. That's a rain makeup weekend.
So, not that. Not July 4th, but all the rest of them.
So 336-777-1600 is the number to call. You got the twin-25 lap race coming up May 2nd. The Great Clips Crash Fest. What is that? That is so much fun.
That is the demo derby skid races. There's so much fun at that one.
So get tickets for it. 336-777-1600. That's the number to call. Let's talk about the Lakers real quick. Let's talk about LeBron James.
Because you know I'm never going to miss an opportunity to do that. Tonight The Lakers will have an opportunity to gentlemen sweep. The Houston Rockets? I already thought there was a good chance they were gonna do that. But they're probably going to do it especially because Kevin Durant has been rolled out again.
Again, KD's not going to play. having trouble with some injuries.
So 10 o'clock tonight. That's going down on ESPN in LA. And The thing that makes this interesting The Lakers have a bit of a conundrum, in my opinion.
So there was a point this year where it seemed It felt And it smelled like LeBron and the Lakers were going to part ways at the end of the year. His contract's going to be up. You know, he's getting to the last. year or two of his career, Some might even think he might retire after this year. I don't, but some do.
And If it weren't for LeBron. Because again, there's no Luka Doncich, there's no Austin Reeves. If there were no LeBron. In this first series against the Houston Rockets. Or where would the Lakers be?
Now with no Kevin Durant. Maybe the Lakers don't get swept, but I'm not ruling it out. Not ruling it out. And Because of that, LeBron has yet again shown His value. He's not just, you know, 41-year-old LeBron who still looks great.
No, actually, he's 41-year-old LeBron that looks great and plays meaningful, high-quality basketball. He's not one of the greatest players in the world anymore, but boy, he is high caliber. At his age. And Again, without him, I think the Lakers might get swept in this series.
So now the Lakers have a decision. They have to, LeBron and the Lakers have decisions to make after this is all said and done. And that is Is LeBron coming back next year? Is he coming back to the Lakers? Because there was a time where the Lakers Sounded like they didn't want him anymore, didn't think they needed him anymore.
You sure about that? You sure about that? Because we look at Luka Doncic's I mean, Luka, obviously, on the grand scale of things, is regarded as a better basketball player, you know, in terms of best player in the world conversation now. But if you look at his injury history, he's not the most reliable. That matters.
It might be in the Lakers' best interest to get LeBron back on this roster next year. and keep LeBron and Luca and Austin Reeves in that group together. On the flip side, It might be in LeBron's best interest to come back potentially. Because when you look around at the possible teams that he could go to if LeBron decides, you know what? I'm gonna go somewhere else.
finish up my career somewheres else other than LA.
Well, Golden State looks like they might blow it up, potentially. Like to me the only the only way Golden State makes sense as if they keep Steph. Draymond. Porzingis, a healthy Jimmy Butler together. I don't know if Steve Kerr coming back or not is going to be the make or break on that one or not.
But LeBron ain't going to a rebuild, that's for sure. When you look at the Cleveland situation, they haven't exactly looked great in these playoffs in the first round.
So Maybe he decides not to go there. Maybe he decides, you know what, I think that Luka Doncic guy might be the best opportunity I have to maximize these last year or two of my career. Maybe. Might be in both parties' best interest if he comes back to the Lakers. But lastly, there's been a lot of talk, there always is about LeBron, the MJ GOAT conversation.
And I thought Michael Wilbon, Uh on ESPN earlier Told a very interesting story because the bottom line is LeBron and MJ play two completely different games. That's like trying to compare Josh Allen and Tom Brady. They do two completely different things. Like, obviously, one's more accomplished. That would be MJ in this conversation.
But I'm sorry, Michael, and I'm not, I'm actually not sorry. Michael Jordan ain't doing this at 41 years old. He didn't do this at 41 years old. But here was Mike apparently MJ Doesn't care so much about the GOAT conversation. For one, we heard him, because obviously he's the face of NASCAR now.
We heard him on a CBS morning interview. And when talking about the goat conversation, he was like. Two different eras, two different players. But Michael Wilbon From years ago. Back when LeBron was in Cleveland the first time, apparently MJ told him this.
LeBron's seven years like it took Michael. And There were tough Criticisms made of LeBron James. Remember, he took the jersey off when he's walking out of Boston that final time when he lost to the Celtics. And I remember having a conversation with Michael who said, Hey, Take it easy. When you talk about this tomorrow, Take it easy on this kid, and here's why.
And Michael had a list of reasons of things that he really liked about LeBron James. He didn't have to do that, but he understood what was going to go on publicly because he'd been on the other end of that early in his career. And it's been going on for LeBron's entire career. The comparisons. Naturally.
people bashing him about different things. Ridiculous things.
Some valid, some not. Yes, Morgan. We had a few callers for those Bowman Gray tickets. I just want to give a shout out. If you wanted a pair and didn't get through, WSJS.com you have a chance to win on springtime winnings.
That's right. Get in on that. We'll give you the full list of our Uh Collection of things you can win on springtime at winning here a little later on. But that's on the list. That's on the list.
Real talky, but not real listening. Will Dalton has local takes, big opinions, and the Triad's best sports talk. This is the drive. I'm just looking at these results from my picks last night. Just horrific.
Just terrible. But you know what? We're not deterred. We're not. Gotta stay in the fight.
Because there's been weeks where we went You know, almost undefeated on this show. But here lately, it's been a little bit of a struggle. Just a bit. Morgan, you l you had a funny look there. I mean, listen, I'm not telling you to make these picks out there in the audience.
You can if you'd like to. You might not want to when you hear the results here lately. If anything, this is more for your entertainment to watch me do this. That's the enjoyment you can get. I'm not telling you to do this necessarily.
Let's just get into it. Stack it up, stack it, stack, gotta stack it up. Get the money, get the money on the zombies. It's time to cash in. Welcome to Dalton's Dollars.
Go big and bugger! Show me the money. Breaking down the board and building the bankroll. Oh, we win.
Okay. Aw, geez, man. We went over six last night. Celtics, 11.5 point favorites. They got worked by Philly.
Joellen Biad had 33. Shout out to him. Glad he ended up coming back to the game. I thought he was hurt again. last night that would have stunk Uh hawks.
Had them covering six and a half points. Yeah. Nope. 126 to 97. They lost that one.
CJ McCollum, 19 and a half over. He had six points. Two. Yeah. Cheese.
Some of this is just right place, right time. You know what I mean? It's like you watch, I won't bet it next time. Just goes off. That's the way this goes.
It is gambling after all. Blazers. Had them covering at 11.5. Nope. Got worked by the Spurs.
That series is over. Giants money line against the Phillies. Nope. Sabers money line against the Bruins. Nope.
Mm That's it. That's it. And then Jay Davis here in the comments, because now you want to tune in. Just tuned in, WD must be talking about that Boston pick last night. Yeah, I am.
What of it? What's it to you? I'm gonna make some more right now. In defiance. Cause I'm resilient.
Oh me. Detroit, Orlando. Orlando is really getting on my nerves because every time I take him. They they They lay an egg. And then, when I just stay away, they look great.
They look like they might win the chip.
So Detroit, Orlando tonight. Orlando with a 3-1 series lead. It's only right that the Pistons cover 10.5-point favorites, right? Trophy dividing! It's only right.
Raptors. Calves. That series is all tied up. I'm not gonna touch that game. I will take.
Donovan Mitchell to go over 26 and a half points, though. Shove! Uh Rockets Lakers. I think I'll just go Lakers four and a half. Stroll be divided!
That's what I'm gonna do. In terms of the baseball tonight, Let's leave that alone. We'll stick to the NBA. He says you're making Josh Graham look really good at betting. Yeah, that's kinda hard.
Right now I am. It's a rough patch, okay? But we're resilient. We work fast. We worked through it.
We don't give up. Never give up on your dreams. That drive home vibe. Sports talk that doesn't care about your feelings. This is The Drive, the Triad's longest-running live sports talk show.
Nibbling on Sponge Cake Watching the Sunday back at it on a Wednesday drive right here. On WSJS, where I didn't plan for DG to come on because of tournament expansion. It was just a happy coincidence. But, DG, how are we doing? Doing great, Will.
Always good to be with you, my friend. The feeling is mutual.
So let's get into that NCAA tournament expansion that literally dropped right as we were going into our last segment yesterday. Going to 76. A lot of people don't like this. In fact, I would say the majority of people that I've seen do not like this. I've seen very few that go, oh, this is great.
I've seen people like, does it. I just pose the question to you. How big of a deal, like we know this wasn't necessary. But how big of a deal is this really? I'm not one to lose sleep over things like this, but that's a very subjective question, right?
I agree with those who say that. The NCAA tournament was fantastic at 68 teams, and there was no competitive reason to expand. And during our time knowing each other, I've always said. If it ever became a situation Where, because of the changing world we're living in, right? Revenue sharing from universities to athletes, name image likeness has only been around for five years, immediately eligible transfers.
If because of these changing forces of the universe, so to speak, Made a whole bunch of delicious bubble qualified teams every single year that it just hurt your heart to leave them out with those resumes that Would be a competitive reason to expand the NCAA tournament. That is not the case. And in the general public, Will, I mean, this is not an official Gallup poll or anything, but in the general public, 80 to 90% of people, including college basketball fans, are against this expansion. This is in part about money. Always follow the money.
And it's about Coaches wanting expansion, so more of them has to have tournament trips on their resume. It's many conference commissioners wanting expansion, and certainly the NCAA that remember. That organization. Gets more than 90% of its annual revenue from a single three-week event. Imagine being in business, and 90 plus percent is either direct NCAA tournament money from your TV partners or indirect.
NCAA tournament money with sponsorships and royalties and stuff like that.
So 90 plus percent. Like, that's your sacred cow, that's your cash cow. And if it can make you more money. Unless there's enough votes against it, they're going to go down that path, and that's what they're going to do starting next season. David Glynn with us here on WSJS of the NC Sports Network.
So I'm glad you hit the money piece of that. Because The NCAA might present this as, oh, well, we're trying to help more teams have access. We're trying to help mid-majors have more access. When it's really about the money, but I will and I'll pose the question to you because I don't think this helps mid-majors very much personally, but do you think it's going to help mid-majors at all? It depends on how they structure it.
It's not like conferences that are in the mid-part of Division I or lower part of Division I. It's not like they're going to split up so that they have more automatic bids, right? I mean, the NCAA at the D1 men's basketball level consists of 31 conferences. And the bottom two-thirds of those leagues basically get one bid per year.
So we're adding, we're not adding auto bids necessarily. We are adding at-large bids. And where are most of those at-large bids going to go to mediocre Power Five programs?
So I wouldn't say that the mid-majors have no chance to benefit. Um You know, we might even see Will. Conferences get creative. And Maybe they say, hey, at the end of the year. Maybe they talked the NCAA into somehow rewarding the best regular season champions.
In addition to the conference tournament champions, which by rule, A league could actually give their automatic bid to the regular season champion. Nobody does that. You're allowed to do that. Why don't they do it? Because then they can't hype.
the postseason conference tournament as The one with the bid on the line, right? Is there some path forward that allows just the elite mid-major? That might go undefeated in conference play, but then lose in the conference tournament and be left on the bubble.
Well, that team. be more likely to get get in now, yes.
So, yeah, on the margins, the mid-majors will benefit. But the majority of these new teams are going to go to the power five. And I think most people understand that. You know, one of the things that we Loved so much about the tournament being what it was at 68 was the bubble conversation and always looking to see. You know, certain like Carolina a couple years ago, for example.
That's not a team you usually see on the bubble, but they were in that situation. There was, and there's probably a fun piece for college basketball fans to look and see: are they still on the bubble? Are they in? Are they out? Like that piece of things.
And Matt Laura, Matt Norlander of CBS Sports was talking about this yesterday. That's one of the things that really bothered him about this: he feels. The competitive fabric of college basketball might get hurt a little bit. The product may be a little more watered down. Where do you stand on that?
Well, there's still going to be bubble conversation. Yeah, it's just going to watch. Bubble conversation. It's just going to involve even more watered-down resumes than what we already have.
So there'll be the drama, there'll be the talking points, they'll be. You know, the brand name that's still on the bubble, even in this new system, right? They were talking about getting even larger with the NCAA tournament.
So 68 to 76 is at least a smaller than some had hoped for expansion of the NCAA tournament. But one thing that's worth watching to me is that I do believe that at the around the same time that this is happening. I believe the caliber of college basketball is getting better. Why is that happening?
Well, revenue sharing. has convinced a whole lot of European guys. Who used to basically do apprenticeships for professional European basketball clubs and just. You know, a small percentage came to the United States, but most of them just went straight basketball. And that's how the system is set up in Europe.
There's no university mixing with pro basketball over there.
Well, more and more, because of revenue sharing and name image like this, more and more players and some really good players are coming to the United States now. In addition, guys like Armando Baycott from a couple years ago at UNC were making more money in college than they could make as undrafted free agents in pro basketball. Heck, right now, Henry Vessar probably could have made more money staying in Carolina than he will make as a draft pick in the NBA because those numbers in the NBA are slotted. You know, within a certain margin, what you're going to make as an NBA rookie. as a draft pick.
Well, you can negotiate for more than that in today's college landscape.
So, the combination of good players staying longer. A new faucet of talent coming in because of the new framework. Maybe we'll get to the point where there are more deserving bubble teams. And then this would be a competitive reason to expand. Again, we're not there yet.
Last year's bubble reminded us of that. But maybe these forces of the universe will make it a little bit more palatable once we see what next year's bubble looks like. David Glenn of the NC Sports Network with us here on WSJS. Speaking of that Henry Vessar guy. Yesterday, Carolina.
Um picked up What they probably hope is going to be his replacement in international big man Sayan Qaeda from FC Barcelona. How do you feel about this pickup? Like, how much of a replacement? Is this going to be for Henry Vessar, or is it going to be a little bit more of a developmental type piece for Carolina?
Well, it's hard to say. Heck, it's hard to say his name because we're not even sure how to pronounce it, right? I believe it's Sion Keita.
Okay. That's just an educated guess from trying to use my multi-language chills and watching some European interviews. That's all it is, is an educated guess. We'll, of course, ask him his name when he arrives at Chapel Hill and he can pronounce it himself, as we had to do with Henry Vesar, as it turned out last year. Um It's hard to answer that question because both of these things are true and they sound contradictory.
Here they are. Kata, UNC's freshman big man. is projected to be a first round draft pick. After only one or an NBA, after only a year, perhaps in Chapel Hill.
However, at the same time, we all know that the NBA drafts on potential. More than college productivity. Both are important, but they will go the potential route. And this young man is truly 18 years old.
Well, I mean, remember, Virginia had a freshman last year from Belgium who was 23. That's a, you're a more, you're a more evolved guy personally, emotionally, physically at 23 than you are at 18, no matter how talented you are.
So Keita Is already ready to rebound in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He is already at seven feet tall, ready to block shots in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He's doing that in Spain right now in an under-22 league. Where he is a very good defender and rebounder, and an okay, solid offensive player.
Well Spain's under-22 league is a little bit like college basketball.
So it would be very unwise to expect that Kata is going to replace Henry Vesar's double-double style offensive production. Again, can he rebound? Can he defend? Could he start? Yeah.
To all those things. I think Carolina's building a team. Of course, they could add more people, but they're building a team where they may not ask their centers to score a lot. They might ask their many college teams, do they ask their centers to be more defenders, rebounders, set screens, etc. You know, dunk alley oops.
There's nothing wrong with that approach automatically. But Carolina has been spoiled by offensively creative big men for decades.
So, if they don't add another true big guy, it'll Michael Malone's maiden voyage in Chapel Hill will be a little bit different. But you can't argue NBA caliber talent the Tar Heels added with Cyan Kedah. Um but but no, do not ask him to be like, you know. What was Vessar? Second team all ACC because of his dominance at both ends of the floor and a guy who as a guy who, in his case, Vessar was in his fourth year of college basketball and an older, more physically and mentally mature guy.
Last thing for you here, very quickly on the way out. Is it time for a reset for your Phillies? It's a time for top. How did you feel about that? I love Topper.
He's been a great manager. He led the Phillies to the World Series just a couple of years ago and all kinds of success otherwise. He's such a good guy that he says, even though he got fired, he's happy to stay in the organization in a different role if they'll have him. Like, it's just hard to not like Rob Thompson.
So, Don Mattingly is going to be the interim coach. Um I don't know, man. I'm not a big fan. Of the locker room needed a new voice. I understand why they did what they did.
But there's a weird story where when Cora got fired by the Red Sox, Dave Dombrowski tried to hire us. Yeah. And Cora said, I'm not ready to jump right back into managing yet.
So you wonder how in what order all those dominoes fell, right? We'll see. The Phillies have a lot of talent and they're one of the worst records in major leagues right now. That was not a short answer, so I apologize. But yeah, it hurts my heart a little bit.
And I wouldn't have done it, but I understand why the Phillies did it. David Glenn, NC Sports Network, joining us as he always does. We appreciate the time, as always, and we'll talk to you next week. Thank you, my friend. Keep up the good work.
