If you missed it live, don't worry, we say the best parts. This is the Drive Podcast. Here we go. Welcome in on a Thursday Drive. I'm Will Dalton, also known as the WD.
You're listening. to news, talk, sports for the triad. And if you needed any other Reminder of how great sports is. All you had to do. was take a look.
Just take a look at what was happening in Madison Square Garden last night. It's all you needed. And if that didn't sell you, there's no hope for you. None. There just isn't.
So let's get into it. We'll get to the canes a little bit later on. Game five of that series tonight, Alex Zetlo, Charlotte Observer. He's had boots on the ground. Covering Carolina Panthers minicamp.
He's going to join us in hour number two. Xavier Legette spoke earlier today and addressed some things that. we've all been talking about for a little while now since last year, and your chance to win some Darius Rucker tickets later in the show. Both hours, going to have multiple opportunities for you. But getting to the Knicks and Spurs.
Man. That OGN and OB play? That's that right there. was the difference between a series feeling like it's wrapped up If you didn't already feel that way, which after the Spurs won game three, a lot of you probably didn't unless you're a Knicks homer. That's the difference between a series feeling wrapped up And being back even, going back to San Antonio, where it's anybody's series to take.
There's just certain plays that stick with you. There just is. And that's probably... The first time since the LeBron block on Igodala. In the Warriors Cavs 2016 finals, where the Cavs completed a 3-1 comeback, only team to ever do it.
That's probably the first time we've gotten a play of that magnitude. The OG and Anobi tip in. Jalen Brunson's three-point deep three, well short. And just boop. It was a game of volleyball.
And OG and Anobi got up there and tipped it in. And that was it. We're going to see that play for decades to come. We're gonna. Jalen Brunson.
He's the best closer. On this Knicks team. But I don't think he's the best overall player. I think OGN and Obi is the best overall. player on this team.
I do, just in all facets of the game. Defensively, off like 33 points last night. It was a career playoff high. For OG, OG Wan Kenobi, I've seen that meme floating around today, and man, that made me happy. I like that.
I haven't heard that. I like that. It's terrific. I love it. Also seeing the memes of This is when the comeback began and it was Wu Tang Clan performing at half time.
Probably right. Probably right. But I do think OG Ananobi is the best overall. player on this Knicks team. Jalen being the best closer, OG's the best player, period.
And You know, they So, this was the greatest comeback in finals history, 29 point down.
However, We'll get to so we'll get to a little more Nick's Stuff. In a little bit. We'll talk a little bit more about the shot, the moment. But last night is about the Spurs vomiting all over themselves. As great as that comeback was, I get and that's not to take away from the Knicks at all.
Not at all. I mean, everybody was there last night in the garden, the whole gang. Taylor Swift even decided to be a Knicks groupie last night. Her and her crew, whoever they were. Yeah, I don't know who those other people were, but those shirts were hilarious.
Stevie Nicks. Yeah. Nickelback. That was good. I like the nickel back in a little bit better.
Yeah. Timothy Chalamay was in the streets. In the streets. with or in the in the subway station with Nick fans, just throwing it down. Kylie Jenner's up there filming like Timothy Shalloway, he's the man of the people.
He's he he's not too big. He's gonna get in there with the Knicks fans. It's gonna do it. Imon Schumper was wearing his Nick jersey last night. And he was hanging out in the crew saying Nixon five.
Like, how badass is that? Like where you're a member, like it's almost like a multiverse of some kind. Like you're a former Knick and you're rocking your game-worn jersey and you're just hanging out with the Knick fans all for one, one for all, even though that was a Cleveland Cavalier motto. Whatever. It still works.
All that said. The Spurs vomited all over themselves. Cue the Tyrese Halliburton. Chout meme. Cue that up.
Spurs, what are we doing? You were up 27 at the half. In this and then just started taking stupid shots. Too many threes. Like there was one possession down the stretch of the second half.
Where Wimby pulled up a three, missed it. Got the ball back. I don't remember if he got his own rebound because it just came back to him or it went to somebody else and then they kicked it back to him. And I think that was it. Kicked it to him and he pulled it again.
He missed both of them. And that was in the midst of the Knicks kind of creeping up. I think that was the fourth quarter, I think. Just stuff like that. Wimby missed 10 of his last 12 shots.
So That was not very good. And it's a pattern. It's a pattern for the Spurs. They've blown five double-digit leads in these playoffs. That's a record.
Most ever. Nobody's ever done that many. Five. Blown. Double digit leads.
Here was Mitch Johnson. The head coach of the San Antonio Spurs on the loss. And You know. The mindset The state of things going in to game five in San Antonio. Again, we have two days of We put everything we have into that game.
That's the only game that matters. And by no means am I not acknowledging the Knicks and what they've done and give them credit for playing good basketball, but we feel like we've decided the outcome of all four games. And we need to be better in the next game. They do get two days' rest.
So that's good. I think Wimby needs it. You could just see something was off with him. You can see how frustrated he was just. Pound in the You know the the cushion of the goal like several times just in frustration.
They need that.
Now Like I said, we've watched it all series long with the Spurs. Every game against the Knicks. They just do dumb stuff. It's like Like last night. I don't want to say it felt like they were.
Playing not to lose. It's one of those moments where it's like you're playing not to lose, not to win, or. You just let up the gas. It's like you feel like you've got it almost. And to be fair, DeAaron Fox had a bad night last night, too.
That was very uncharacteristic of him. He's been nursing an injury from the last series.
So. Take that into account, but it just, I don't know. They took the foot off the gas. And I don't know if this is just the youth. of the Spurs coming through where They just have nothing to call back on in terms of being on this type of stage, especially in that building, in that type of environment.
None of these guys have ever experienced that before, ever. But Charles Barclay, who's not one to mince words. Hee he He did not go light on the Spurs last night after the game inside the NBA. Here's how it sounded. We saw the dumbest basketball team in the history of civilization.
Wow. We saw, they had a 25-point lead, took eight straight threes. Like, they thought to get, like, that was some of the most mismanaged, stupid basketball. Hey, when you bought a 25-point lead, the other team has to help you. The San Antonio Spurs help If New York Knicks win this game by doing some of the stupid ass stuff I've ever seen on the basketball court.
They weren't good. Wide and good. And 336-777-1600 is the number to chime in on this game, your reaction to last night, or you can chime in on our YouTube comments. X, we stream there as well. Like for example Jay Davis writes in, Spurs.
More so, Wimby got caught up in the Western Conference finals thinking that was the real finals. There was definitely some of that. There was some of that emotion. And then he also points out Harrison Barnes has been there before, who's on the Spurs. That's true.
Shout out to Harrison Barnes, Carolina legend. He's a champion with the Warriors. But he didn't play last night, and he's not one of the Spurs' main guys. Like, the main core of this team, they're young, they're youths. They're pups.
They ain't been here before. And they emptied the bucket in those Western Conference finals, to your point. And they celebrated like it as well after they won that.
Now, To play devil's advocate here. I love seeing all the reaction. The last night To that moment, like... I saw one clip where Somebody was filming on a flight. And everybody had the game on.
Shot goes up by Brunson, misses. OG, the whole plane goes nuts. Saw another one at the JFK terminal at the airport. One of the big screens was on it. On the game, and just the whole place goes nuts.
You saw the celebration afterwards. Just be careful. B it it I feel the series is wrapped up. But it ain't over. I mean, the Knicks know it's not over.
You heard what Jalen Brunson had to say. He's like. Ain't nothing to celebrate yet. I'm paraphrasing. That's what he said: giving the Kobe energy.
Job's not done. But Nick fans Relax a little bit. A little, like done, don't get too caught. A little. A lot.
Because Nick fans have. Wemby got eggs last night. He did, and that's ridiculous. That is ridiculous. Like you can take it, which we knew again, New York, they were going to go crazy.
And not always in a good way to that point, but. I mean, I get it also. They haven't been here in decades. This generation really hasn't seen anything like this. In the garden.
You weren't able to completely celebrate. And watch the game like you would have in game three with the barriers and everything, and then you lost the game.
So I get it. But it almost looked like they won, like they won the whole thing last night. It's like. Just it's a good thing for Knicks fans that the Knicks They're OO. They're locked in.
They ain't worried about nothing. Nothing. 336, 777, 1600, the number to call. Is the series over? Is it wrapped up?
Or do you see a path for the Spurs? I mean, they still have Victor Wimbanyama, but. That's a young core man, and even Victor. He's going to be great. He's going to get his.
I mean, Spike Lee said it after the game last night. He's going to get his rings. But you got to go through some bumps in the road. LeBron got swept by a. Far superior Spurs team, oddly enough, in his first finals at 22, three years old, whatever it was.
Like we've seen this happen to some superstars before.
So These are going to be lessons that Wemby and this group, this team is going to be able to call back on. later down the road. We have an opportunity. For you to win tickets today, Darius Rucker. I dropped my pen.
So much, Morgan. Every day I feel like I dropped my pen numerous times. I don't know if you guys can hear it. Through the mic, but I Anywho, that's g that's just I don't know. Darius Ruckler, that's what matters, not my pen.
Songs of the Summer Tour Gonna be coming to Greensboro.
So you don't even have to travel. You don't have to get out. A lot of these shows go to Charlotte Rollock. No, this is right here in the triad, Greensboro, White Oak Amphitheater. Going to have a couple of special guests.
George Bridge, Austin Williams? And we have two pair of tickets. Two.
So, if you'd like to go see Darius Rucker, this is June 18th, so it's about a week out. All you have to do, not right now, not yet. 336-777-1600. That's the number you're going to call when you hear this. All right, me.
Like a wagon wheel run, deep mind. I'm in a way. Maybe hate my mind. That's what you're going to hear later this hour. And you call in when you hear that.
I don't know when it's coming. Only Morgan does. He's going to surprise me with it. But you don't be surprised. Save the number.
Keep the phone on the dial to get a chance to win some various Rucker tickets. Imagine that's going to be a popular item. Very quickly. We buried the lead. World Cup.
World Cup is officially underway. We'll do it live. We'll do it live! It's so it all got started three o'clock. This afternoon Mexico?
South Africa, they're playing in Mexico City. And This is exciting. North America. Our turf, our soil. It's all happening, man.
This is very exciting. But. At about the tenth minute in. Mexico, they struck first and On Fox. This is how it sounded.
Gross. played against each other in the Managing Six World Cup. Chitano was scored out there. And the Mexicans keep yelling. Big goal.
This is going to be so much fun. You listen to the atmosphere. This isn't even USA yet, but I mean, it's. It's Mexico playing in Mexico City, so that's about as good as it gets, too. Julian Kenones.
Gotta get used to some of these names. With that big goal. And it's still one to zip, or excuse me, one nil. Where are my manners? And right now they're at about The 48, just under 49th minute mark.
And this is Group A. USA they don't play until tomorrow against Paraguay. Going to play out in Los Angeles. And we're going to have Will Pelagic on tomorrow to break down the World Cup. The USA's chances in the World Cup.
A lot of people are optimistic about the USA, not necessarily to win the whole thing. But there's a little more excitement around this team than I think there has been in World Cup past. And One thing that they have going for 'em Is USA, they don't have to travel. Everything's out west for them.
So they don't have to go to. Houston. I think there's matches being played in Houston. They don't have to go to the East Coast at all. It's all out west in Los Angeles for them.
So they got that leg up. And I think they're favored in their group. Uh to get out of it, but Like I said, we'll keep you posted on all the World Cup action throughout the day. Will Pelagic is going to join us tomorrow to break down things in a little bit more detail. That drive home live.
Sports talk that doesn't care about your feelings. This is The Drive, the Triad's longest-running live sports talk show. Back at it on the drive, right here on WSJS. Alex Zetlo of the Charlotte Observer. Has had boots on the ground at Panthers minicamp?
And he's gonna join us.
So now we're number two. Xavier Legette spoke to the media earlier, and he addressed. You know, the way things were for him and his performance last year.
So, we're going to dive into that a little bit later on. But right now The main event tonight? Man Raleigh? Carolina Hurricanes, Vegas Golden Knights, fire it up! Yeah.
Yeah, nobody has the edge in this series. Nobody. And It's why it's been one of the most exciting Stanley Cup finals that we've seen in a long time. We talked to David Glenn about this yesterday of the NC Sports Network, and it just. This is great hockey.
It's high scoring.
Now. Taylor Hall He spoke to the media earlier today and he said he didn't think There were going to be nine goals scored again tonight. He thinks things might get a little bit tighter. Down the stretch of this series, but it's an eight o'clock puck drop, puck drop. Tonight and You know.
I'm leaning. Mm. I'm lean in Vegas. I think Vegas might get this one. Not sure why I feel that way.
I'm not I'm still undecided. I'm gonna make a prediction by the end of the show. I'm still going back and forth on this. I don't know.
Something tells me Vegas might sneak one in on the road here, but we'll see how it goes. One thing that has been very impressive to watch, though, for the Hurricanes. Their power play's been much better. Their power play has been much better in these Stanley Cup finals. Those of you that watch it closely, you know.
Kanes have not had a very good power play in these playoffs. They just haven't. And In this series They've been able to kind of make some things happen along the way here. In fact, Andrei Svetchnikov, he actually met with the media yesterday and he spoke on the power ply. It's always uh huge, you know, when uh you're kind of scoring the power play goals, especially in a playoff.
I think uh that's uh what the we needed it throughout these seven years, you know, whatever we've been playing, uh kind of we're uh always struggling on a power play in a playoff a little bit, but uh You know, hopefully it's gonna be they this way, uh just looking for the shot, you know, for the any rebounce and uh try to put the puck on the net. Heck of a performance by Brandon Bussey. Uh in net couple of nights ago. And that win and You know?
Sounds like he's going to be in net again tonight. Greg Washinski. Put out a story that he's expected. To be in net for game five. Freddie Anderson did skate earlier in the day yesterday.
So it sounds like he's going to dress out, unlike game four, where they wanted to give him a complete day off and not just, you know, Not play day off, like where he still dresses up. No, it was like if he Rod Brindamore said, if they're going to give him a day off, they're going to give him a day off, and that's why he didn't dress at all. Um But it sounds like he'll be out there again, or he's going to be dressed tonight. But it sounds like Brandon Bussy is probably. gonna play tonight.
And I think that's the right move. Like it it's kind of like what we talked about earlier in the week before The decision, what we knew, the official decision who was going to play. And that's like. This isn't about loyalty. Like, we know Rod is a loyal guy.
It's one of his many great qualities that he has. But at the end of the day... This is about what's going to help you win now. And what was the right decision yesterday or last week may not be the right decision today? And I think going to Brandon Bussey for game four was the right call, clearly.
And I think sticking with that is the right call now. I do.
So We'll see how it all shakes out. Hurricanes, Golden Knights tonight in Raleigh. You know what? The heck with it. I don't need more time to make a prediction.
I don't need it. Home home ice. Carolina, they go up 3-2 tonight. That's what's gonna happen here. Yeah!
Yeah. Let's not overcomplicate this. Let's not do that. By the way.
So we were talking about that shot. Last night, OGN Anobi. The tip in Again, we're going to be remembering that shot. We're going to be replaying that shot. For a long time.
Nick fans are going to be playing that thing for decades, assuming they close this out. Get it done. And I always like to go and find the radio call. Mike Breen does an incredible job. Dang.
Bang! Even though that wasn't like a bang play because he only does that for three-pointers, but you get my point. Mike Breen does very good work, and it's pretty cool that he's getting to call his. You know, he's the play-by-play guy for the Knicks. Anyway, and it's kind of cool that he's getting the call this moment in the finals.
There was a little bit of controversy. A little. Uh about him talking about how excited he was and how he was going to be pulling for the Knicks. Leading into the finals. when they won the Eastern Conference finals and There were some people that had an issue with that.
But a lot I think the majority of people Recognized One, what a professional he is. Two, as soon as the mics turn on in the finals, he's going to be straight down the middle. And he has been? Because, again, he's a professional, but he's also been calling the Knicks for a long time. And You know?
With that, it's like, give the guy a break. It's like, yeah, he's called a lot of bad basketball.
So, him saying he was pulling for the Knicks going into the finals, I don't think it was that big of a deal. I think the context to that. matters a lot. But This shot's gonna go down in lore. Here was the ESPN New York Radio call for that moment.
5.7 left. No timeouts remaining. Ananobi has handed the ball. Finds Brunson at mid-court. Launches a straight on three.
Missed it short. Tipped by Ananobi. He put it in. Ananobi put it in. The Knicks take the lead with 1.2 to go.
Incredible. Tyler Murray on the call. Monica McNutt. A V S P N What's on the color? Commentary.
Apparently, she had to apologize, not had to, but she. I don't know.
She said something about Taylor Swift on the broadcast, and so she apologized for that today. I think she said that. Tay why is Taylor here? She's not a real Nick fan. Get out of here, girl, or something like that.
Like. Who cares? I don't you know what I can't stand? This need that Media people feel to apologize for something they said that really wasn't even that big of a deal. For what?
Own it! You said it! And it wasn't even atrocious. And yeah, Taylor Swift might not be a Knicks fan, but also I get mad at the need to shove Taylor Swift out our our our our eyes the whole time. I mean camera was on her for half the game and just let her enjoy the game.
We can coexist. Just don't be forcing her on us all the time. Yeah, the actual quote: Is that Taylor Swift down there? She's not a Knicks fan. Get out of here, girl.
And she apologized for that today, courtesy of PMZ. I mean, listen, I I'm the type of person. I can tune things out. I can turn things off or just not worry about it. Like I Does it get a little annoying to Taylor Swift?
Every camera angle, every big moment, they gotta show it. Yes, it's a little annoying, but at the end of the day, it doesn't ruin my day. It's not that big of a deal. I'm also a. Talk host, and I got to find interesting, polarizing things to say and talk about.
So, yeah, we might jazz it up a little bit on this topic, but. I don't understand why some media mem or just or just Famous people, sometimes in general, like they say something and then there's a reaction to it. And because of that reaction, either they or their PR person. tells them they should apologize. For what?
You said how you felt. Get over it.
So I think Like assuming you didn't say anything like really, really bad. You might have said something. You just ruffled some feathers. You said how you felt. K?
Next. Who cares? That's the way I feel about it. 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 on the drive, right here on WSJS. Going to be joined by Alex Zetlow in hour number two of the Charlotte Observer. Your opportunity to win some Darius Rucker tickets this hour and next hour. We're going to have a couple of opportunities for you. Morgan's compiled a list of things you didn't know.
you need to know that we'll get to in just a second. But one thing you should know You probably didn't know this either, so it fits the theme here. We are going to be carrying UNC baseball. Holy cow, Mexico scored again. They lead to no.
How about it? Sixty-seven minutes and chains in. Mexico makes it too nil, and there's my ADHD brain getting distracted. But I saw that pop across my screen. But back to what really matters here.
The fact that you can listen to Tar Heel Baseball. Right here on WSJS. The entire College World Series. We're going to be carrying that for you. We'll get to the matchups.
Here in just a little bit, at least the ones that we're going to see tomorrow as the College World Series officially gets underway in Omaha. But Right now let's do Things a World Cup themed. Things you didn't know you need to know. Things you want to know, you should know, but you don't know. Right, what?
Oh my. The game within the game. What do you mean by that? Let me give you an example. Time for stuff you didn't know, you needed to know.
Really? Let it rip. During the 2010 World Cup. The English football team adopted a snail. They named it Gary, and it was their unofficial mascot.
What year was this? 2010. Do you do we think this was like a playoff of SpongeBob? Gary the snail? It could have been, but Gary's a very common English name.
Yeah, I mean, there's also a snail in SpongeBob named Gary, so.
Okay, we'll go with the second. We'll go with the SpongeBob here. R.J. Thompson holds the record for most goals scored by a single player in an international match. Thirteen goals for Australia against American Samoa.
Jeez. That's a kicking, man. The original World Cup trophy The Jules Rimmit World Cup Trophy was awarded from 1930 to 1970. It was notoriously stolen two times. once before the 66 tournament.
And Brazil won it in its last appearance in 1970, which was stolen. That trophy was stolen in 83. It was never discovered or found again. It's believed to have been melted.
So, just to be clear, is this the same trophy each time, or two different trophies? That got stolen. I believe they gave out a trophy to every country.
Okay.
So, like, if you won last year, you'd get to keep your trophy, and I'd get a new trophy.
Okay.
Like the Lombardy. All right. I just want to make sure that was the case. I wasn't sure about that. In July 26th, 1930, during the USA-Argentina semifinal match.
US trainer Jack Cole. Came on the tree of player. But he dropped his medical bag and broke a container of chloroform. Oh no. The fumes knocked him out.
And he had to be carried off instead of the player he came to hell. Jeez. So. That's like worst possible scenario. You're down, you're hurt.
And then the medic passes. And the medic is in trouble. Like, what do you do in that scenario? Like,. Why did he have chloroform was the other question?
These are great questions. This is an educational program. We need to get to the bottom of this. Brazil is the only country to play in all 23 World Cups. Shout out to Brazil.
Love that. Consistency. You you you you or so I flatter myself you try to yeah that that's the good word there Since odds were first listed in 1966, Eventual champion the longest odd. that won the World Cup was Italy in 1982. At plus eighteen hundred.
Wow. So I would say the t The three facts of those That are that are gonna stick with me. Is one the snail. Forget the SpongeBob stuff. Let's forget it.
S really? You adopted a snail? I wonder how big it was. Like, I wonder how big of a snail. Maybe we get some intel on this.
I remember. When I was a kid, like every once in a while we would see a snail crawling on the wall. At my parents' house. I don't know if this is the. I don't know if there's different types of snails or this.
There definitely is. There's, yeah. Um. I can't believe that the World Cup trophy got stolen not once but twice. And then it maybe got melted, and it sounds like it probably did.
And then a medic. Goes down for the count as it's about to treat somebody. Like, that's just. That's three good ones that'll stick with me on that.
So uh I'll figure it out. This is kind of awkward. The snail one did not actually happen. My website with facts. Did you get duped?
I got duped. Was this AI? Did Chat GPT do this? This is a website full of like a hundred facts. And I was like, okay, let's look for some soccer ones.
And it's been right all the other times. Gary Leinker is one of their famous strikers, not a snail. You fraud. I got duped. Morgan the fraud.
Ah man, that's terrific. Things you didn't know, you need to know that were actually false. That's been today's edition.
So disappointed. That bad so. Fraud. See, look, you can't even think straight over there. Unbelievable.
You know what else is unbelievable? Two teams.
So the first game tomorrow from Omaha. West Virginia, the number 16 seed. Taking on Troy. First pitch, two o'clock on ESPN. And this is exciting.
Both of these teams are at the College World Series for the first time in program. Especially got to say that with Pat McAfee. I'm sure he's going to be there for the West Virginia game. Um, Program history. Both of them.
Neither have been to Omaha. This is very exciting. That'll be the first game tomorrow. And I mean, this has really been a season of breakthrough. For the West Virginia baseball program.
We were talking about this. With Darren Vought earlier in the week. And the Mountaineers. This was the first time since 2019 that they had hosted an NCAA regional. advanced to their first super regional since 2024.
So It is pretty ironic, too. that that super regional was held in Chapel Hill in 2024. In Carolina, they're the second game on the ledger here. In this bracket.
So this is the first half of the bracket, then the other half plays on Saturday. Looking at these two games specifically. Number five, Carolina. They're a seven o'clock first pitch tomorrow. Again, you can listen to that game right here on WSJS.
And they're taking on an old missed team. They're pesky. They're pesky. And this is a team that took out number four, Auburn. last week or or this past weekend in the super regional over there at Athens.
So Old miss. That's no slouch, but. From the Carolina perspective, I certainly like their odds to come out of this side of the bracket as opposed to the other side when you look. And there's literally four SEC teams over there. Four of 'em.
Just gross. You got Alabama, Oklahoma, Georgia, and Texas. That's a gauntlet, man. Gonna make for great baseball. Those games are on Saturday on the other side, but West Virginia Troy, two first-timers at Omaha, two o'clock.
On ESPN, and then right here on WSJS, UNC Olemis at seven.
So an hour after we get off. Clock out. Turn it up. Let's ruin some narratives. What you want?
Welcome to The Drive, the triad's longest-running live sports talk show. Back at it on the drive, right here on WSJS. I flatter myself a betting man. I try to make some of the greens, some of the dough. A try.
And sometimes we do and sometimes we don't. We dipped into the negative for the first time this week since doing our summer record as I now punch the mic. That's good. Um We've been trying to bounce back. trying to do it.
But it's a journey.
So it's all about. Let's see how our bets did last night in Dalton's dollars. Stack it up, stack to stack, gotta stack it up. Get the money. Get the money on the time not.
It's time to cash in. Welcome to Dalton's Dollars. Show me the money. Breaking down the board and building the bankroll. Placed five on the card last night.
Placed five. Three NBA final bets, two baseball bets. Went with cat. Carl Anthony Towns. Wanted him to have 32 and a half points, rebounds, assists combined.
Yeah, that fell well short. That fell well short.
However, OG and Anobi. We took him to go 15 or more points. Had 33. Strolling divided! Yeah, cat just didn't quite get going in the way.
that I thought he would offensively. Just didn't. Had 13 points. 10 rebounds, though. Did have that to assist.
So Those were some props that I had for last night's action. Also took the Knicks spread. Two and a half, they won by a point.
So Came up just a little shy. Just a little shy on that one. And Took a couple of baseball bets as well. Kyle Schwarbert, I want it, had him going. One or more hits last night for the Phillies.
He had two. Trophy Divider! Not bad. Not bad at all for Kyle Schwarber. We've taken him a number of times in our bets with some props and So far, it's been a pretty good go of it.
Phillies beating the Blue Jays last night, 7-4. Also,. Took Shohei Otani. I threw this one in last minute because. I've had some pretty good success with Otani going over on his strikeouts.
Last night, Dodgers taking on the Pirates. It was a 9-8 win for the Pirates. Very exciting game. And Otani had six Ks. I needed him to go over seven and a half.
So, went two and three last night. Not Not great, but not terrible. Could have been worse.
So now we sit at two games under 500 at 29 and 31. That's what we got.
So taking a look at the Stanley Cup. Hurricanes, Golden Knights in action tonight. Game five of the series, all knotted up, two games a piece. I've gone over five and a half. Each of these games It's hit every time.
Now it's six and a half. It's gone up. I think I'm gonna go under.
Something smells fishy here. And it ain't my dinner. Show me the money! I'd love to grill up some salmon. I'd love to do that.
But that ain't the spishy ice smell here. Feels right. Feels right to go under on that one. Just does. It also feels right.
To take the Kanes at minus one and a half goals to cover this spread as favorites. Show me the Plus 170 odds, I get them. Plus 170 gonna do that so Just two bets tonight. Not gonna go crazy or anything like that. Going to go the under six and a half goals between Vegas and Carolina.
And I'm going to take Carolina. to cover one and a half point favorites at plus 170 odds. Gonna do that. Like them to go up 3-2. tonight.
That's been Dalton's Dollars. Let's get to the Carolina Panthers. Because So run at me Where go? Mama in a way to feel hey, mama out of me. 336-777-1600 is the number to call.
If you want in on Darius Rucker tickets, he's going to be coming to Greensboro next weekend. Get in on that quick. Phone lines are already starting to get lit. Just like Wu-Tang Clan was at halftime last night. Let Morgan Coursen taking your calls over there.
I was about to say One of the things that Panther fans are Very much Anticipating that there's a few things. There's obviously the way the defense is going to look after what they did in free agency. There's one of the things that we talked about last week, being one of the most anticipated things. Jonathan Brooks, him coming back, and what that's going to look like with him and Chuba in the backfield. I think it's going to be, I think that's one of the best kept secrets on this Panthers team, is how that's going to look.
Those two complementing each other in the backfield. And the third. is how this receiving room Beyond T-Mac and Jalen Coker is going to shape out. Looking at Xavier Legette specifically. Not a good year for him in year number two.
We know that. In the media, The fan base certainly knows that. They've been very noisy about that. But Xavier Legette. knows that as well So he met with the media.
Earlier today. And You know, he was asked. Joe Person of the Athletic was asking him. You know. what his individual goal was.
going into year three and Here's what Excel had to say. My main thing, man, is just to have a better year than my first two years. I can't have another year like I did last year. I can't do that. Talk to me a little bit about that.
Like what troubled you about last year? Receiving your Lord Just doing the little things, the little things that I gotta clean up. Or is the mishaps that was happening last year? I can't let that happen again.
So he knows it. He's very aware of this. And you know, we've had Dow Loggins. App State head football coach on this show before and Plenty of times, and he has a personal relationship, a very close relationship with Xavier Legette from his time at South Carolina when. XL was there.
Dowell Hoggins was the offensive coordinator. And he You know, he he had Some conversations with Xavier Leggette back when he was a Gamecock. you know, when he came in and things weren't quite going his way and XL put in the work. He did. back when he was in college.
And He showed up and he showed out ultimately. And then he became. A 32nd pick in the 2024 draft, last pick of the first round. When the Panthers moved into the first round, they didn't have a first-round pick that year, but they traded in. And You know, he came out and...
Rookie season, you saw the flashes, but sophomore year didn't quite go the way XL wanted to. He saw his targets decrease. He was passed in the depth chart by Teteroa Macmillan, Jalen Coker, and it just didn't go well. There were penalties that there were drops. And there were things like that.
And now, not only does XL need a bounce back. From that alone. But like you've added to the depth chart now. You got Mechie, John Mechie, coming in, who already has a connection with Bryce Young from Alabama. And now you draft Chris Brazzle.
In the third round out of Tennessee, that a lot of people are very high on. going to be very interesting to watch that. part of the receiving room play out. But some of the other things that come out of Xavier Legettes. Availability is He lost seven and nine pounds.
He says over the offseason, lost a little bit of weight. And he also said he Quote bulletproofed his hamstrings and He really worked on those because he said something about his hamstrings was. very limiting to him in his first couple of years, so He's put in some work. He's put in the work. And he knows, as you just heard there, he cannot have another year like he just had in year two, or else.
He may not be on this team anymore. Like we just said, they've added they've added to that room He's gotta bounce back. Xavier Legette meeting with the media earlier today. We must talk. Go ahead, talk.
Turning your ride home into appointment listening. Welcome to the drive. Back at it on the drive, right here on WSJS, where we're being joined now by Alex Zetlow of the Charlotte Observer. Alex, how are we doing, man? Dude, I am so good.
There's... A few clouds in the sky, but I'm feeling, I'm so happy. And then you also just did a promo for me right before the commercial. Yeah. Katie Perry last Friday night.
Like you, it's a Thursday, but it's feeling like a Friday, you know what I'm saying?
So, I feel great. The vibes are good, man. The World Cup's going on underway. Love that. Love it.
Um, so you've had boots on the ground, Panthers mini camp, all that good stuff. What in your mind has been the most interesting or maybe plural, what are some of the more interesting stories right now for the Carolina Panthers? There are a lot of storylines going on right now. I. can just list off a couple, you can kind of shape the conversation where you want it to go.
First up. Jonathan Brooks is back and he's fast. He's agile. He's he looks healthy Um and he looks talented. Not only as a runner, but as a receiver.
And that's something that the Panthers could really use out of the backfield. And then with Jonathan Brooks in the mix. It's going to be interesting to see how this running back room shapes up in training camp, and then obviously in the preseason, and so on.
So, that's something to look at. Another place I immediately look is this wide receiver room. Yeah. Um Remember last year. All people wanted to talk about was this training camp math of: okay, how many receivers are the Panthers going to keep on their 53-man roster?
Are they really going to keep seven again? Wait a second, Bryson Tremaine is one of the seven. Hunter Renfro is gone. Like that, all that drama from last summer. is going to be Replicated this summer because there's another pretty intense wide receiver.
competition brewing. And I can talk about that for a long time. And then We can go whichever, which way you want to go. Bryce Young has looked really good, really agile, pretty concise, or precise, accurate. Um Kenny Pickett has came along a little bit later in mandatory minicamp, though he wasn't quite as decisive as Bryce.
But again, it's not really a QB1 competition, but that was something I was looking at, just how the second quarterback operates in Dave Canalis' system. And then you can just look at the rookies. Monroe Freeling was getting a lot of work with the twos, which I think a lot of fans were a bit surprised by because you go up and you get a left tackle. Icky Kwanu's not playing, but yet he's still kind of playing behind Rasheed Walker. We can talk about that.
And then there's a whole bunch of defensive stuff we can get to too. Where does where does your brain go to?
So we can kind of dive deep there. Yeah, so I I'll tell you right off the top here, you know, Xavier Legette, we heard from him earlier and You know, the main thing to come out of that was he understands it's not just us, it's not just fans, you know, saying, Yeah, last year didn't go so great. He knows it. He knows it probably better than anybody. And it sounds like he's been putting in the work.
And he knows like he's With the stacked receiving room that you just pointed out again this year, maybe even more so than last year in terms of talent. He's got to have a great year three. What do you think? an XL breakout year would do for this team. Oh, goodness.
That would be that would completely open up the Dave Canaus playbook. But I guess we got to define what a breakout season for Xavier Liguette would be.
So, okay, so T-Mac is going to play the X. He's going to be the guy that this passing offense runs through, Tedorea McMillan. I don't really see him kind of dipping too much below. His season last year, his offensive rookie of the year, season last year. Probably 900 to 1,200 yards, receiving yards again, assuming he stays healthy.
probably seven touchdowns again, maybe even more, because you know he really struggled to get that first score, as Panthers fans remember.
Okay, so that's wide receiver one taken care of. Then you got Jalen Coker kind of playing in that slot position, either spelling out at probably spelling out at the F spot. And He Had a great end of year last year and at minicamp, man, he's looked even better.
Now, part of that is because T-Mac has mostly been out at minicamp dealing with foot soreness and the Panthers being really cautious with him. And so he's kind of gotten all the wide receiver one routes and all the wide receiver one looks.
So that's part of the reason. But also, man, he looks strong, he looks fast, he looks healthy. And he just doesn't drop anything.
So, those are your top two guys. This is where Xavier Legette comes in. Can he be the Z receiver that has this linear speed that can take off the top of defenses? Or is that going to be Chris Brazzle? The Pan the guy the Panthers drafted in the third round this past year.
If Xavier can be that prototypical Z receiver That gives this. Offense, an element of a deep threat.
Now we're cooking. Because that's really what the Panthers needed. I've written about several times this summer that Bryce Young is an underrated deep passer. His his his um how you say advanced metrics on Um, on passes with air yards, air yards over 15 yards, over 20 yards, are insane. Yeah, they rival Nat Stafford.
Who had the MVP, who was an MVP quarterback last year, and Sean McVay just like said, Matt, just do whatever you want. Like, Bryce is that good in the deep passing game, according to advanced metrics. He just needs a target for him.
So if Xavier can be that target, sky's the limit.
So let's take a look at Chris Brazzle because, you know, I was watching Panthers Blueprint and. Brandt tell us like he He said that after they took him in the third round, he started to get text messages of like NFL executives are like. Man, we wanted that guy. And you kind of listen to the way a lot of people, people around the NFL, talked about Chris Braslow that night when they took him. It's like, they might have a little something here.
What have been some of your takeaways watching him out there? He is as fast as advertised. He is He his ability to Catch the ball and stay on his feet and finish out a route quickly is as effective as advertised. I will say he and Corey Thornton. Who is this defensive back who really emerged late last year before suffering a season-ending injury.
And he actually won the starting nickel corner spot over Shaw Smith Wade last year. before getting injured. He and Corey Thornton, Chris Braslow and Corey Thornton, have had really good battles in minicamp so far. And I will say Corey has kind of won. If you're talking about one-on-one, I mean.
I can only say that for so much. You know, I'm not in offensive coordinator Brad Idzik's head. I don't know what the play calls are, blah, blah, blah. But When they are matched up in a deep And like and and Chris Brazzle is running a deep route. Corey tends to get the better of him so far, but Okay.
Skills are there. The measurables are there. Like everything that made Dave Canals fall in love with him as a draft prospect is real. And you might be saying, Alex, like, of course, that's real. Of course, like, what you see in the NFL scouting combine is what shows up on, you know.
You know, rookie minicamp and minicamp. That's not always what happens. Cause some guys are either like they train so hard for the NFL scouting combine that they pretty much become a track athlete and they don't really hone their skills as like a full football player. Or I mean, they, you know, they get out of shape for a little bit in the. Like minimal time between getting drafted and Ricky Minicam, whatever the case may be, Chris Brazzle has not fallen victim to that.
He is. Exactly who the Panthers drafted athletically. And from what I could tell, he's been picking up the playbook pretty well, too. Alex Zettlow with us here of the Charlotte Observer on WSJS.
So, Jonathan Brooks. Chuba Hubbard. They seem to almost have like a little bit of a brotherly bond that I don't know if Rico Dowdle had with Chuba last year. How well do you think their games could potentially complement each other coming out of the backfield this year? It's a great question because this was a question that I've posed a couple of times too.
It's like, okay, I'm so, I guess it's a good thing for the Panthers that Jonathan Brooks is healthy and. can be a really great option for this offense too. But then again, didn't we spend the first three or four weeks of last season being like, is this actually a good problem to have with Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle in this backfield begging for more carries? Is this actually a good thing? Um, and like, are we setting ourselves up for another sort of situation?
This year? Like, are the Panthers basically just kind of going through the same thing? To your point, though, I think the skill sets are a tiny bit different between Jonathan Brooks and Rico Dowdle. Jonathan, like I mentioned, is a little bit better of a receiver out the backfield. At least that's what he did at Texas, and that's what he's shown in minicamp and all these other things.
Um Chuba also is just it's just You can't Discard Chuba as a leader of this team. Like every single person. Who walks through this locker room knows who the leader of the emotional leader, the leading voice of this locker room is, and it's Shuba Hubbard. And I understand what you might be thinking: wait, wait, wait, Alex, like Shuba wasn't even a captain last year, Bryce Young was the captain.
Well, that's because Dave Canalis runs a system where you only have one captain on offense, one captain on defense, one captain on special teams. That defensive captain was. It was Derek Brown. That special teams captain was JJ Jansen, and that offensive captain was Bryce Young. It's because the players voted for the quarterback.
Understandably so, you kind of want that to happen. But if you ask anyone in this locker room, Chuba Hubbard is the guy. He's the glue. He's the guy who's been here through so much thick and thin. He was here before Dave Canalis showed up.
He was here before Frank Reich showed up. Like, he.
Okay.
I think it says something really special about Chuba Hubbard for him to still be considered this, and how you say, valued this highly by this team.
So I'm kind of, I know what I just spat out was just two compliments of two separate guys, Jonathan Brooks and Chuba Hubbard. The question is: How are they going to work together on game days? That's something that this coaching staff has to figure out. But the good news is that they're both beloved by this locker room and they're both quite talented. Last thing for you here on the way out: Alex Etlo of the Charlotte Observer joining us on WSS.
We did learn from Dave Canalis that Icky Aquanu is going to be back sometime this year. It's the first time, I mean, because Dan Morgan was not budging at all in terms of a status, a timeline, other than he's doing good. He's making progress. Like, that's all we got. But Dave said he's going to be back sometime this year.
And so I'm curious. With The addition of Rasheed Walker this year, who I think is going to be pretty good. And then you draft Monroe Freeling, who can play both sides that they feel pretty positive about he might threaten for starting time this year. Where do you think Icky's going to fit in when he does get back? I think that when he does get back, he's This offensive staff, this coaching staff, is going to try to find a way to get him starting snaps.
And here's why. They picked up his fifth year auction last year. They need to figure out if he is worth The left tackle market. The, the, the, because. And I don't, maybe you can look this up while I'm rambling on, but I don't know off the top of my head the average per year left tackle, what a left tackle makes average per year, but it's a lot of money.
And if they're going to invest in Icky, oh, and there's a reason why left tackles get a lot of money because. Once you find a really good one, you don't let 'em go. because they're hard to come by and they More or less solidify that you're going to have a pretty good passing game for the foreseeable future.
So I think they are really interested in holding on to one players they drafted, two players they drafted, particularly in the first round. And three players that they've already picked up that fifth-year option on.
So I think, Dave, by that logic, is going to want to play Icky the moment he gets back. They have a good succession plan in Monroe Freeling at left tackle. They have a good succession plan at right tackle because Taylor Moten is 32 years old. And he, while he's blessed to play every season of Panthers football, he has. You know, every year he's going to get questions about retirement, and retirement is going to be weighing more and more on his mind.
So, um, I think they have a good plan there. Rashid Walker is only here for one year. He was kind of getting paid the same amount that Yash Nyman was getting paid last year, kind of as a reserve swing tackle type money.
So, um, I I think they are really viewing Icky and Monroe as like the next future. Logically, that would make sense, at least. tackles for this Carolina Panthers team.
So, to answer your question, I think that the moment that Icky's healthy, he's going to be playing in the game.
So it looks like the average salary for left tackle is about $28 million in that range.
So there you go. And to put some perspective on it, that's a ton of money because The quarterback position, the average salary. Is about $50 million per year, $55 million per year. Oh, and guess what? They're probably going to have to pay that to Bryce Young in 2027 or 2027, 2028, whatever the case may be.
If he does Have a solid year this year, and guess what? The Panthers are banking on that, they need that to happen. Alex Zetlo, the Charlotte Observer, read his stuff there. You going to be locked into the World Cup? You know, I am, man.
Hey, I might not be able to know what's going on. I might not know all the games and stuff like this, but hey, this is. This is a big deal. Hey, go USA, baby. Love it, man.
Love it. Alexett Low, keep up the good work, and we'll talk to you again sometime soon. Appreciate you, Will. This is fun.
