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 Wednesday, right here. On WSJS news talk sports for the triad.
It is the drive. I'm Will Dalton, also known as the WD. Rocking with ya. Reacting. to the NBA draft.
It's always a lot of fun. to see players that You've watched closely, and especially around here because it's the hoop state, it's always fun to watch players a la Caleb Wilson, Cam Boozer, and guys like that. Transition to the next level. Watch those dreams come true. It's always a cool thing.
And There's a couple of guys that We got to watch closely around here. That have not got picked up yet. More on them. a little bit later on. Going to have Brian Geisinger of 24-7 Sports, our hoop nerd, around these parts.
He's going to help us break things down in a little more detail. Maybe tell us how Dusty May's coaching will translate to the NBA game. But right now, let's focus on the lottery. Let's focus on the top four guys because Everything played out pretty much how the mock said they were. DeBonsa, Peterson, Boozer, Wilson.
I thought potentially, I went out on a limb and I thought maybe Utah would go for Boozer and then Peterson, Memphis. No, it went. Boozer Memphis. Peterson to Utah. And I will say this.
I will say this. Darren Peterson. might actually be one of the winners from this draft. 'Cause when you look at it. I mean, Utah's actually got a lot of talent.
They have a lot of good players. What did we talk about? Last year, last season. One of the things that was very frustrating About the Utah Jazz with Markinan and Ace Bailey and guys like that. It's like.
Oh, they've got talent. They're ahead double digits in fourth quarters of games, and then what do they do? They sit all their best guys. Hmm. And then they get fined $500,000 from the NBA, league office, because it's like, hey, you're doing a little too much here, Utah.
So they've got talent. Don't let the tanking fool you. They got guys, and now you add. A Darren Peterson to that mix. Because for all the talk about Darren Peterson and the unavailability in in the college year.
Only wanting to work out for the Wizards. Like, he is a special talent that has a ton of potential. We'll see if that availability stuff comes back to. Rira Tugly Head at the next level, but you still go for a guy like Darren Peterson. And when you add him to the list, you add him to the mix in Utah.
Like they're playing for something. That's a team with a lot of good players on it. They actually might be pretty pesky this year. They might be. That's something I was thinking about last night.
And we'll take your phone calls at 336-777-1600. What was the most shocking part of last night for you? Did anything happen that you didn't see coming? Were you surprised by anything? Like I'll pose it to our producer, Morgan, who's a Michigan fan.
He's still mourning the loss of Dusty Mae, who was in attendance last night. Which spot of one of your Michigan guys. Adimara, Yax. Who was it that you liked to fit the best? Morris Johnson Jr.
Yeah, I was upset about that one. To Dallas. Yes, Charlotte fans, you're sad. I was so upset. You're upset.
You wanted him for yourself. And a lot of people going into this thought that Yaks and Adai Mara were so much better. Than Moraz Johnson, because you saw the st the stat sheet every night and you saw Yaks and Adaimara at the top of the sheet. But what you don't see is all the intangibles. That Morris Johnson brings along with him.
Mm-hmm. He brings an amazing mindset. Not saying the other two don't, but. There's one play in particular that I remember seeing multiple times throughout the season where he would sprint LeBron James style down the full length of the court and just knock the ball out of the layup. Yep.
Like, that's not on the statue. That just goes down as a block. It doesn't go down as a full chase of. Tag. Like, that's essentially what he was doing, full court tag.
And he did that a lot. He never gives up on plays. I think that's the best fit. And then OKC saw that they lost to Wemby. Because of Wemby, And they just got themselves a Spanish version of Wembe.
I don't hate that. And the axe to the Golden State's perfect, too. I love that fit. I love that fit so much. You get to learn to be a better shooter from Steph.
Mm-hmm. And Jimmy. And you learn under one of the greatest coaches of this era, Steve Kerr. Might be a tantalizing spot for LeBron to end up. All three couldn't have imagined better places, just not the places we thought they'd end up at.
This is true. This is true. I'll be honest.
So I was sitting, I was at a sports bar in High Point last night hanging out. And When I watched Marez Johnson. Not go to the Hornets. Go to Dallas. I went.
Duh! Like like verbally in the bar. I was like, duh! I was like, I wanted him. I wanted him, but we'll get to the Hornets a little later on because they did.
They did alright. They did some good stuff. But Moving it along to some of the other lottery guys, you know what's interesting. For all the talk about Caleb Wilson. being maybe the most underrated player in this draft.
It's been awfully quiet about Camboozer 2. Because all the conversation's been, A.J. DeMont says pretty much your consensus number one. Darren Peterson, you know, are any of those issues from college going to translate in the pro game? We've talked a lot about Caleb Wilson being the most.
underrated and having a lot of Potential, maybe the most potential of anybody, but we haven't talked a lot about Cam Boozer and This is a guy that, for all the chips on the shoulder that Caleb Wilson might have, Cam Boozer, he's got a chip on his shoulder, too. In fact, Last night, he was drafted by Memphis at number three. And He sat down. With Kendrick Perkins, And Heen. He thinks he should have been considered for number one.
Listen. I'm not going to say I don't understand why people say that. You know, those two guys are amazing employers, everyone knows that. But I mean, for me, not being in that conversation, I don't really understand it. And I think, you know, many years down the line, people are going to look back and say that I should have been.
Camboozer, he's got a bit of a chip on his shoulder too. Don't get that twisted. Very interested to see how his game is going to translate at the pro level. Because, I mean, you could argue he was an even more well-rounded player than Cooper Flag. Statistically, that was true.
Statistically it was true now not the most athletic. Not as athletic as Cooper, certainly. The dude works hard. The dude's a baller. The dude's a winner.
Memphis needs somebody like that after the John Moran experience. Wouldn't you say? I'd agree. Jaw has more of a super superstar ability than than Boozer does at the moment. But Jaw also comes with Well, jar.
Yeah. I don't know a better way of putting it. No, that is. He's a better person. That is the way to put it.
And. I don't know if you're ever going to be able to ril rile him back down to being just a. Just a guy who can play a ball. I think at this point, if you keep Jaw, you're also accepting. He might not play 40.
30 or 40 games in a season. He misses a lot of games. From sitting or penalties, because he's doing. dumb things on social media. I think they're gonna move him.
I do. I think Memphis is going to be starting from scratch. And I think Cam Boozer is going to be at the center. Of all of that. But lastly, Caleb Wilson.
As we thought. A Chicago Bull And there's a lot of MBA just Typical NBA fans that are getting exposed. to Caleb Wilson's antics for the first time. And what I mean by that is his just In unbelievable level of confidence in his ability. But the difference between Caleb and somebody else maybe He puts in the work and keeps the the notes to back it up.
Like he said he was going to come in and change things at Carolina. And even though things didn't end the way. He or the team wanted them to. He absolutely did that. He put himself in position to be the number four overall pick, and he was.
incredible while doing it. Was better than the other three lottery picks when they went up head to head. Boozer Devonshire and Peterson. And then Listening to him last night, these are the antics I'm talking about that's got some people talking. Listen to Caleb Wilson.
Talking about Obviously the goat, the other goat, Or the goat that's gone from Carolina to Chicago.
Now Caleb Wilson's going from Carolina to Chicago, and here he was on those parallels. I'm writing my own story, man, honestly. I want to be better than Mike, honestly. I know it's a lot to go, but I'm writing my own story, for sure. I mean, I feel like it's a great pipeline from UNC.
So it bores and you know I'm just ready to keep it going. And again. There's a lot of reaction. Even Morgan's laughing. Even Morgan.
What is he supposed to say in that situation? Like, ultimately, what are you supposed to like? Like, some of these questions that they ask, and yes, I get the media has to ask these questions. Because of the ties, and same with Boozer. Like, why do you think you weren't included in the top three conversation or for the number one pick?
They have to ask those questions, but I feel bad for these guys having to answer them because you can't say. What they want to say. They have to say, like, the answer's already written itself before the question's been asked.
Well, You can't just say, oh, yeah, I'm 100% better than Michael Jordan. Or, no, I'm not going to live up to Michael Jordan.
Well, the way the question was posed... He could have ended the answer after saying, I'm writing my own story, but I get the parallel there. But the Caleb Wilson answer is what he did. I want to be better than, and by the way, that's not the only time he said that last night. He said that a couple of times on a couple of different platforms.
He said it with Kendrick Perkins last night. He said that. He's like, I want to be the GOAT. And listen, again, if it were and we have a special up close, look at this because we're in this area, we've covered Caleb up close and we know what he's all about. And he backs up his play with his work ethic, with he backs this stuff up.
Now, will he be the goat? Probably not, but... You better believe he's gonna do everything in his power. to put himself in that position. And Caleb's just a special He's kind of an exception to the rule in that way, that when he says stuff like that, he goes out there and he backs it up.
So. People are getting introduced to Caleb Wilson and some of his flavor for the first time on social media. 336-777-1600. What was your reaction to the NBA draft? We're going to get to winners and losers from the draft last night.
We're going to. Zero win on the Charlotte Hornets. Piece of things as well. Again, Brian Geisinger going to join the program. We got the Madhouse Minute, talk some racing in hour number two.
But right now, very quickly, We gotta talk about this. Austin Reeves He has inked A four-year Extension With the Lakers. And Or it's a max contract worth $185 million. It's going to keep him in LA. It includes a player option for the 20.
930 season and Ultimately, the question we're asking is: what does this mean for LeBron? What does this mean for Lebrun's future? Because that Has been an ongoing question ever since the Lakers got swept by the thunder. What is LeBron going to do? I think we all agree he's not going to retire.
I think we can all agree on that. But Cleveland seemed like a pretty Not Accessible option once the talks about signing James Harden to a multi-year deal started. And then we got the reports from Brian Windhorse last week that LeBron and the Lakers were beginning to go back and forth. Golden State, though, said that they were willing to match Pretty much what the Lakers might throw at him. And So ultimately, I believe this move set because They di the thing is, they didn't have to sign Austin Reeves to this type of deal.
They didn't have to give him a max contract, but that's exactly what they've done. I think that's done. I don't think it's going back to the Lakers. Yeah. Well, first, he hasn't actually signed it yet.
I don't know if you knew this. It's just been announced they've offered that, and he's intending on signing up.
So it's essentially done. But. I don't know if this is a good look for the Lakers. It's a great player. But he's an amazing player.
So, you want to build around that with Luca? No. Yeah. You're giving him a number one salary for a number three guy. And that's right when they're doing that.
The issue is that. How are you gonna build around Luca? When 90% of your money is going to Luca, who deserves it, and Austin Reeves, who couldn't show up in the playoffs when you needed him the most. Yeah, so now they got to. Yeah.
I agree 100%. And here's the thing, and Jay Davis writes in our YouTube chat here, you can too at the drive with Will Dalton. Bron Deal is going to be next. Yeah, but not with the Lakers. Not with the Lakers.
It's not. Because what I think is. I don't believe LeBron is going to sign for what they're going to offer him. And the Warriors will be able to, at minimum, give him what that is that the Lakers give him or offer him. And probably more.
So I And everybody who's saying it's Miami. Stop saying that. They have $18 million left. They don't have money for LeBron. Yeah, somebody said: what were the details of this?
Something about they think Giannis, this deal could lure LeBron back to Miami for like a certain amount of money. Not for $10 million. Listen, he's going to Golden State. That's what's that. And I love it.
I love it. LeBron and Steph are already tight. They're already tight from. I mean, they were already tight before this, but they've always wanted to play together. And they look amazing when they play on Team USA.
Because they complement each other. Like, LeBron's a pass. I mean, yes, he's a score. He can score, but he's always been a pass first guy. He's always been a make others better type of guy.
And Steph is Steph. You pair those guys up. I don't care about the age. I don't care. And now Yaks?
Get Yaks up in there to learn from Steph and LeBron? Forget it! LeBron's probably packing his bags. He doesn't have, he doesn't even have to pack his bags. You know why?
It's just a plane ride up the San Francisco to the bay. He doesn't even have to move. Yeah. Forget it. Enjoy that, Lakers.
Enjoy it. LeBron's heading to Golden State. That's what's about to happen. All right, let's go. Oh, I'm so excited.
And three, two, one, go. The triads ride home just got louder. Welcome to the drive. All my friends know the riders. All my um All my people that grew up in like the The late 2000s.
In that range. It wasn't a late Night. Like where you woke up at 3 a.m. or 2 a.m. with the T V on, unless you woke up and you heard this and George Lopez was on.
That's that that right there 2 a.m. You wake up with the cold sweats. You just can't sleep. And you hear that darn theme song, George Lopez is coming on a nice little marathon. Love it.
Love that era of sitcoms. Those are my favorites. These bets have not been my favorite tier lately. It's not been good, okay? A bit I've been trying to work my way out of a rut.
And last night didn't help. Let's dive into it right here in Dalton's Dollars. Stack it up, stack it, stack, gotta stack it up. Get the money, get the money on the zone. It's time to cash in.
Welcome to Dalton's Dollars. Oh, Show me the money.
So we placed Three bets last night, and we had one pending from the night before because Cubs met postponed. Uh that has been going on This afternoon, shout out to Jay Davis on our YouTube comments, his cubs. Um And I already know how this was going earlier. Checking in on. Cubs, Mets.
Now it's a doubleheader. It's gone final 10-3. Cubs got the win over the Mets. And my bet was over eight and a half total.
So that hit. Show me the money! Yeah. That did. But then The three additional from last night didn't go so well.
A's spread against the Giants. Took them as one and a half point dogs. That did not land. That didn't go so well. That game in San Francisco.
Didn't miss by much, but missed by enough. Giants winning that one three. to one, then We took the brave spread against the Padres in San Diego. Took the Braves to cover, one and a half point favorites. They lost by a run.
That didn't hit. And then. We took Over two and a half. Goals. Croatia.
Panama. Last night. Mm. 1-0 Croatia beats Panama. Just couldn't get there.
So One in three. One and three is what we did.
So We're now sitting at 40 and 43, three games under 500.
So let's take another stab at it. We gotta work. We gotta grind. We gotta. Gotta dig in.
That's what you never give up. You never give up. It's what Valvano told us. And I'm gonna take his advice. That's what I'm gonna do.
And I'm also gonna punch my microphone in defiance. Let's take another World Cup bet. Brazil, Scotland, I'm going to take over two and a half goals. Show me to flood it!
So Brazil They beat uh Haiti In their last outing, 3-0. And then today the dynamic changes because Neymar is back. He's back. He's... You know, he's a vet.
He's not the same lightning fast. stud that used to Turned defenders into memes a decade ago, but he's still got some juice. He's still got the juice and Him returning, I expect the offense to pick up even more.
So, Brazil, Scotland, over two and a half. Pirates, mariners, later today. I'm gonna take the pirates money line. Show me the fighter! That's what I'm gonna do.
Looking at the details of this, Brian Woo. Ryan Wu has struggled on the road this season. He's posted a 5.93 ERA. 44 innings away from home. For Seattle.
Pittsburgh. has mashed right-handed pitching at PNC Park this year. They got Braxton Ashcraft on the mound for them tonight.
So I like Pittsburgh. In this situation, they can get them at minus 111 odds.
So That's what we're going to do. Then I'm gonna take I hate to do this. God, I hate to do this. Tariq Skubles on the mound tonight for the Tigers against the Yankees. Let's look at some of the details of this.
So the Yankees are one and a half point dogs. They are. I just I can't bet. I can't do it. I can't bet against the Yankees.
I can't do it. Even with Tariq Skubel on the mound, I can't do this.
So, all I'm going to do is take the under. in this game. Under seven runs, plus 103 odds. Don't be divided! That's what we're going to do.
Tariq Skubel on the mound. Probably not a lot of runs going to be scored in this game. On the other side, it's Ryan Weathers for the Yankees. He's got a 4.13 ERA, so I got a feeling this one's going to be close. But that's our three bets for tonight.
Brazil, Scotland. Over two and a half goals. Pirates money line against the Mariners. Yankees Tigers under Seven runs. It's been Dalton's dollars.
Let's have a look. Holy voice crack, Batman. Let's have a look. At the Charlotte Hornets. How did they They did not move up.
I didn't think they would. I thought they were going to be able to sit tight at 14, and then they had the 18 pick too. And I thought they were going to be able to get what they wanted, which Was it going to be Some size. And that's exactly what they did. Hannes Steinbach out of Washington, but he's a Germany guy.
He's got pro experience. He's got to come in as a 6'11 big man. Had a nice year at Washington. And he averaged 18.5 points, 11.8 rebounds as a freshman. He's got a high motor, and he's regarded as the best rebounder in this draft.
Believe it or not. And that includes Adi Mara, apparently. Bill Simmons did a big draft extravaganza last night. reacting to such things. Here he was.
Talking about How much he likes Hannes? But he is a mother rebounder. Holy, I really, he was one of the guys I probably spent the most time on because. He's definitely an NBA player, and he's definitely a rotation guy, and he might be a little flawed. But has A couple above-average skills, Kyle.
Like, seems like pretty high IQ. played You know, with adults overseas when he was like 15, 16, 17, just got the kicked out of him. And he is an awesome rebounder. Yeah. He's got that experience.
Also? As mentioned there uh as as we know. Hannes and Christian Anderson. Who was the number 18 pick? They played together in Germany.
They're both German. They played together in Germany on the youth national team. Uh Christian Anderson, a guard out of Texas Tech. And This guy can shoot it. He can shoot the rock.
41% from three. Last year And What's crazy about this A lot of scouts considered him one of the best perimeter shooters available. Here. And this is already a team that, hmm, what was their claim to fame when they got hot this year? Shooting.
Offense. Lamello Ball and Con Knipple finishing 1-2 for the best three-point shooters in the league. Brandon Miller can light it up as we know. And now you give him Christian Anderson? I don't hate that.
I don't hate it. And neither does the GM, Jeff Peterson, here he was talking about Christian Anderson. Again, you go back and watch some of his games, even some of his stuff with the national team. He's very good with the ball in his hands. Again, he.
Is savvy and pick and roll. He can make the right reads. He can, you know, whether it's a scene pass, pocket pass, he can find corners, he can throw lobs. It's exciting just FaceTimed with him and he and Han has played on the national team together so they have a good connection as well.
So again, just excited to have his IQ and playmaking with us. Very excited. Very excited. Jay Davis brings up a good point here. Going back to the Austin Reeves deal and 336-777-1600.
That's the number to call if you have reaction. To what the Hornets did in the draft last night. If you have a reaction to what happened at the top of the draft and the lottery. Want to hear from you. It looks like we've got a call coming in now, but getting to Jay Davis' comment here about Austin Reeves.
Steady averaged 39 points, 9.5 assists, 5 rebounds without LeBron and Luca this past year. It was only four games, but those are monster numbers, and they are. Then he also says he's a 49ers fan for context here. That this contract for Reeves reminds him of Brock Purdy getting his contract, which I actually love that analogy. 'Cause it is a guy who worked his butt off and deserved it.
based on numbers like that. I don't know if that gets you necessarily a max deal, but he does deserve to be paid. But then when the playoffs come around. Mmm, Austin Reeves was kind of a nut.
Now he was hurt, but then when he got back, he was a no-show.
So I when the chips hit the table, if you're wanting to win championships. I don't know if he's a guy that needs to be paid in this way. Garbage Mike, once in on the Charlotte Hornets. Garbage Mike, welcome to the program. What's going on, WD?
I'm just chilling, just talking into this mic right here. What do you got? You you know, I think first of all, before I get into my take about the hornets, I think we need to rename your um gambling segment from Dalton's Dollars to uh Dalton's Dimes. It's been been a little bit rough lately, huh? Yeah.
Yeah, it's been rough. It's not been a great go of it, Mike. It's not. It's it's been it's been a rough one. Another Hornets draft main night.
not really inspiring. I guess my question is, how do you say Welcome to Greensboro in Germany. Oh, you know what? Thank you so much for the call, Mike. I appreciate that.
Uh this is the part where I'm gonna pull up chat GPT and see what I call her Chatty G. See what she spits out here. Welcome to Greensboro. In German. Let's see here.
Shout out to the Greensboro Swarm, the G-League champion Greensboro Swarm. All right. I'm just gonna So I'm going to hold my computer. up to the microphone and just see what c see what happens here. Yeah, that's terrible radio.
That that did not land the way I thought it would. Yeah. I understand why. You could view the draft for the Hornets and find it not inspiring because you probably saw a lot of my. What are you laughing at, Morgan?
I thought that was going to go so much better than what it did. You can't win them all, okay? You got to take swings. You gotta take swings. That's it.
That's what you gotta do. Welcome to Greensboro. That's the best I got for you. Um No, I get it. You see all these mock drafts with Adimara.
I don't know if I don't think anybody had Yaksa Lindenburg going to the Hornets. He was going to go a lot higher than that. But Merez Johnson. A lot of Kareem Lopez, but but really the the majority had Either Marez Johnson or Addie Mara going there.
So I get, if you don't see that splashy name, End up going at 14, I can understand. Why it might not be all that inspiring to you. And I'll be honest, when I first saw it, I wasn't overly inspired, but the more I started doing some digging, Um On these guys, specifically Hannah Steinbach, I was like, okay, this is exactly what they wanted. This is exactly what they wanted. A big man center that they could add with Musa Diabate.
This guy can rebound it? I don't hate it. I really don't.
Now let's go to Jew and Winston. Jew, what do you have? Yeah, I just I I don't like how everybody coming off on Austin Reeves after his playoffs last year.
Well, I mean, you just sports talk for people who yell at the TV and mean it. You're on the drive, the triad's only live sports talk show. Back at it on the drive, right here on WSJS, where it's almost. Almost time for Wimbledon. Wimbledon gets underway next week, and to celebrate that.
Morgan has put together a list. of things you didn't know. You needed to know Wimbledon Edition. Let's get to it. Things you want to know, you should know, but you don't know.
What? 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?
So, Wimbledon used to keep their grass. Because they're grass courts. Two inches long. Until 1949. When an English tennis player was bitten by a snake during play.
Oh my god. Do we know what kind of snake it was? It was alive. Yeah. No, I I didn't get that far into my investigation.
Venomous Venomous snake, perhaps? No idea. Hopefully not. But they now keep it at eight millimeters. It's optimum grass for the present day at Wimbledon.
And along with grass height, they also measure Courtwear, surface hardness and ball rebound. To ensure consistent playing conditions across the different courts. That's insane. I, you know, I so I love to play tennis. I've never played on grass.
I've always wanted to play on grass. I don't know where there is the nearest grass court, but. Snakes, you say. Charlotte or Raleigh, I would assume. Hmm.
I have to look that up. Wimbledon actually keeps its tennis balls at a consistent 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Using specialized climate-controlled storage rooms and heated courtside containers.
so that there is consistent ball bounce. throughout the tournament. It is true, like... When the tennis ball gets cold, like it doesn't, it doesn't have as much pop to it. But they have to be so precise with this.
It's insane what they do. Sticking with the ball here. The International Tennis Federation in 1972. decided that with color T V it was really hard to see the ball.
So they made the tennis balls that neon yellow we have today. although Wimbledon, to keep with tradition, did not adapt these yellowed balls. Until 1986, 14 years later. And what color was the ball at first? Do we know?
I believe it was white.
Okay. Strawberries and cream have been a long tradition at Wimbledon, believed to date back to the early days of the tournament during the Victorian era, which, for those who don't know, the Victorian era is 1837 to 1901. And it is still hugely popular today. Fans consume 61,000. 700 pounds of strawberries throughout the tournament and 7,000 liters of cream across the two weeks.
But freshness is also taken very seriously with these strawberries, harvested every morning from a specific farm in Kent. and transported two Wimbledon each day for that day only. That sounds delicious. Like because around this time of year... Strawberries and cream, that sounds like a very refreshing dessert, a little refreshing snack.
I gotta get out to Wimbledon and try some of this stuff. I'm getting jealous now. An epic contest in 2010 between the American John Ischner and France's Nicole Manhattan. spread over three days And the scores of each round were six to four. Three to six.
Six to seven. Seven to six. And then 70 to 68. 70 to 68. In a match that lasted 11 hours and 5 minutes.
It's a world record. And due to rule changes. It will never be beaten. See That is the thing about tennis. Especially on the men's side where it's best of five sats.
I mean, these things are marathons. Like, they can go on all after. Like, I've seen matches begin in the morning, and like, then you turn it back on in the afternoon, it's still going on. But that like takes it to a whole nother level Last but not least, Wimbledon is one of the oldest sports and sporting events in the world. First held in eighteen seventy seven.
Tickets costed just one English shingling. Or 10 US cents. At that time. And until 1922, the winner of Wimbledon from the year before. did not have to play until the title match.
Oh, so they just got to. Chill out until the championship. Yeah. Man. What a world.
What a world. And at that time it was only the men's. Tournament.
So the women's in doubles were not in Wimbledon yet. I see. That has been A Wimbledon themed. Things you didn't know you need to know. It is true.
All of those things doesn't tell you but one thing. They have things Very precise, very pristine. It's got to be, it's all in the detail when it comes to. Wimbledon. Kind of like the Masters a little bit.
But maybe to an even more extreme, like Yeah, and the players, you probably know this, but like that, you have to wear white. All white. I did not know that. Yeah, like, so if you watch the Wimbledon matches, you'll notice they're always wearing their outfits, their schemes. It's all white.
The outfit, the socks, the shoe. White. Mm. But it's very pristine. It's a very Free.
Um It's one of the best sporting events there is. I would like to personally get out to Wimbledon one of these days. as a tennis fan and witness all of that and eat strawberries and cream. That's what I'd like to do. Let's go, baby!
What, kinda like this? Let's go! Let's go! Now, back to the drive. Back at it on the drive, right here on WSJS, the Madhouse Minute coming up.
Next hour, Brian Geisinger of 24-7 Sports is going to help us break down. The NBA draft from all angles. But For a minute. Let's take a look at some of the winners and losers. of the draft last night.
Starting with The winners? Uh I believe The Thunder. was a winner last night in picking up Adi Mara. Because what did they need? Morgan, you and I were literally having this conversation earlier.
What did they need? They needed somebody who could play defense and go up against. And it wasn't shit. One shed holmgren. But Adimara.
He might be able to counter Wimby. I mean, let let's give it a minute. He's a he'll he'll be a rookie. But That is a body that could potentially go up against him at some point. And if it goes the right way.
Maybe you trade Chet and get more draft picks. Perhaps? Maybe. Imagine Chet and Adimore on the floor together. That would be horrible.
You think? To play to play against the game. Yeah, no, that'd be great. That'd be terrific. I didn't think about that.
The Thunder might be locked for 10 years for titles if that happens. Yeah. The Golden State Warriors were was another winner. Yeah, but you're probably loving this. I am loving this.
Because it's all Michigan. Because I know what's coming next, too. Yeah. The Golden State Warriors. Jax Lindeborg.
He gives them that toughness. And he's somebody that can learn to score even better. Like, he was so good for the Wolverines last year. And I think he, alongside Steph, Possibly LeBron? I think he's going to be in a very like, what do we know the Golden State, San Francisco, Bay Area for?
Smart people. Like that that that's where all the tech people come from Well, the Golden State Warriors kind of embody a little bit of that as a franchise. Steve Kerr is the coach. Jaksa Lundeborg is in a great situation. He is.
He really is. Good job for the Warriors to go in out and get him. A lot of people are criticizing this pick. saying they should have taken the Daimara. But I love this for them.
They don't really need a big man. They needed somebody who could take them to the next era. And I think Yaks can do that for them. Dallas Mavericks. Here it is.
The Dallas Mavericks, Marez Johnson. I was so upset. That he went there as opposed to Charlotte, although I do like. Which Charlotte got with Haynes Steinbach and Christian Anderson. 14 and 18th pegs.
Dallas, between getting Dusty May as a coach. And getting Marez Johnson. The next day Like that's that's a win And now Dusty gets to work with Cooper Flag and all these cats. Like. I don't know if Kyrie's going to stick around or not, but that's irrelevant.
The Dallas Mavericks are a winner. They are. And if you have Kyrie, a healthy Kyrie. A healthy Cooper flag. A Moraz Johnson who can play on both sides of the floor And a head coach that can figure out a plan for all three of them.
Mm-hmm. lethal situation for the rest of the league. I think the Chicago Bulls were a winner. I do. I think they were.
Bill Simmons He broke it down pretty good. Reacting to Caleb Wilson being taken at number four by Chicago. And Some of the reasons he points out right here is why the Bulls are a winner. I love Wilson. I just think I'm completely all 100% in.
I'm all in. And he's the first legit bull star since Derek Rose. This kid has it. They'll probably build the team around him. He'll be playing up and down, and everybody's going to love him.
That's with respect to Kobe White, by the way. With respect to Kobe White. Caleb Wilson makes the Chicago Bulls a winner. Last night. And Carolina fans, they already know all the reasons why.
His work ethic, the chip on the shoulder, his explosiveness, but. The fact that he has so much untapped potential, it's in it. It's insane. The Bulls, they got a winner last night. And I mentioned it at the top.
I think Darren Peterson was a winner last night. Actually, going to a. A team that could really be pretty good in the Utah Jazz now that they won't be tanking anymore. I like that.
Now to the losers. Morgan Do you think your Clippers were a loser last night? How do you think they did? I'm genuinely asking. I'm not sure.
I don't know too much about our pick. Keaton Wagler. Not too much about him. I know we needed a bigger guard, like physically larger guard to go up against. are other ones, but I I I mean, where we are with our pick was really bad spot.
It's kinda like where the NFL you talk about the seven to twelve range. where you're you're not like kind of you're not bad enough to get an amazing player and you're not good and you weren't good enough to get a player that would fit your team well enough. And that's kind of like where we were at. Yeah, we needed someone to help out with shooting. But he he's not like an immediately day one playmaker, so I would rate it a a nice B minus.
The main losers I had from last night, and I say this respectfully, It's Henry Vessar. It's Isaiah Evans. It was almost co-appe. From Deciding for deciding to leave college, to leave millions of dollars on the table, for Vessar an opportunity to play for a Michael Malone. And I get it.
He didn't want to go to classes anymore. But guess what? You just gave up millions of dollars because now you're gonna go in the second round, probably one of the first few picks of the second round. As opposed to making $4 million and having better draft stock for a year from now? Or you probably could have been in the first round.
Same for Isaiah Evans. I think those were the losers from last night mainly. The Triad's longest running live sports talk show. The drive. Because somebody has to call this stuff out.
Back at it on the drive, right here on WSJS where. We've been talking NBA draft pretty much all day. It's been... An incredible draft. One of the better ones we've seen in a long time and I I can't think of anybody else I'd rather have come in.
Break down some of the guys at the top of the lottery, break down what the Hornets did, and maybe break down some of the sleepers that were taken last night. Then Brian Geisinger of 24-7 Sports, BG, how we doing? I'm good, man. Happy, happy draft season. Thanks for having me back on.
Absolutely, man.
So, Let's actually start right here because you tweeted something that was funny yesterday. Cam Boozer and Cedric Howard united finally. Cedric Howard was supposed to come to Duke. He goes pro instead, and now they're together in Memphis. And I feel like between the AJ DeBonsa.
Darren Peterson, Caleb Wilson conversation. I feel like we haven't talked as much about Cam Boozer. How do you like his fit in Memphis? I love his fit in Memphis. I would have loved his fit anywhere.
I think he is like a truly foundational prospect and someone that's going to. Immediately lift up a team and be a guy who can be a huge piece of. of a perennial winner in the NBA. I would have liked his fit in a lot of places. And at the same point in time, despite the fact that he has these sort of like foundational elements, he is so malleable.
He is someone that like lifts all boats with him, a rising tide with his passing, his decision making, his feel for the game. Um, so yeah, I think maybe there. Look, there, I think the draft season is long and there's lots of buzz, and I think there was. Seemingly noise that he might go, maybe he could go number one to DC or he could go number two to the jazz where his dad Carlos, you know, well documented, he works in the front office there. But ultimately, Memphis was the likely destination, and I think it's a great fit.
I think there are pieces in-house there that make a lot of sense next to him. Cow, you know, said Coward, another 6'8 hybrid forward that can really shoot. It had a great rookie season. Zach Eady, who gives, you know, Memphis can play high-low with those two guys. They can dominate on the glass, they can post up, they can pass.
And a guy like Cam Spencer, which people may remember from UConn's title team. In 2024, this who's turning himself into a really nice. You know, movement shooting prospect in the NBA, his ability to set screens as a guard and flare out and really shoot off the move. And ultimately, like Memphis is going to continue to add around these guys, too. But I think there's a nice young core with Boozer now as the headliner in place there.
Brian Geisinger with us here on WSJS of 24-7 Sports.
So, of all of the lottery picks, you know, you had Caleb to Chicago, Cam to Memphis, Darren Peterson to Utah, DeBonsa to Washington. Which fit of all those four lottery guys, which fit do you like the most? I mean, some of I think if I had to say, you said were Peterson in Utah one of the options for this one? Yeah. So I think there is a fair amount of, there's some overlap, I think, with Peterson and Keontae George, the young player out of Baylor, who's turned into a really good young offensive player.
in Utah, but The Jazz are coached by this guy named Will Hardy, who was an assistant with the Celtics. He's been in Utah for a few years out there. It's been kind of this like weird purgatory place where, like, the Jazz have been, they've punched above their weight until. Ownership in the front office have just forced them to sort of like tank for a few years in a row now. But Will Hardy is one of the best young coaches in the world.
He's an excellent offensive mind. I think a guy like Peterson, with his, His shooting craft, his ability to blow by people, his size, his athleticism, assuming. He's healthy, and I recognize that, like, he's not without some red flags. It was a weird season for him and Lawrence with the Jayhawks, but. I just think a guy like Peterson that can play on and off the ball is going to get it to play next to guys like Lowry Markinen, a tall shooter who's just going to make things easier for him.
With Jaron Jackson Jr., another tall shooter who can help space the floor with a big guy like Kyle Philip Housey that can pass and run dribbled handoff with a guy like Keontae George that can take some defensive attention away from him.
So I like kind of the fits of all of the guys. And I think even Caleb Wilson in Chicago, it's exciting to see like how they're going to build it up around him. There's just a fair amount of infrastructure already in place in Utah, in Salt Lake City, with, again, I think one of the best offensive coaches in the states and Will Hardy. And for snap, a guy like Peterson with his talent and shooting ability into that setup has the chance to be really fun. Brian Geisinger of 24-7 Sports with us here on WSJS, breaking down all things NBA draft, looking at the Charlotte Hornets specifically and what they did.
I think a lot of Hornet fans were hoping that maybe they'd get Adimara or Marez Johnson, who were no longer on the board. But Hannes Steinbach, the more I read about him out of Germany, technically out of Washington, but he's a German player. He's played some Pro Ball at six foot eleven. He kind of fits what I think the Hornets were wanting in the first round, which is a little more size. But you're the X's and O's, guys.
When you look at Hannes Steinbach, how good of a pick was that at 14 for Charlotte? Yeah, I think it was a rock-solid pick. I To me, he was in this category of players that, depending on how the board broke. He was going to be a good pick for them at 14. Along with basically like Steinbach in the Michigan guys, you know, Mares Johnson Jr.
Jackson Lendenborg, Adai Mara. And there was a period of time where I thought Johnson would fall to 14, but then he had such a good combine. He measured well. He apparently. Uh, you know, knocked all of his interviews out of the park.
And I think. As people are trying to pull lessons away from the NBA playoffs, like as the pre-draft process is happening, and you're just seeing you're looking for versatile front court defenders, length rebounding, especially as people are trying to like. position themselves to take on Victor Wembanyama in the Western Conference. It would add even more value to a guy like Johnson. But Seinback was sort of in that next tier, right below those guys.
And again, a very draftable player for the Hornets. Look, if you followed Charlotte, watched them last season play, you know that on both sides of the court. Um They were like an elite rebounding team. That was sort of like the secret sauce for them, beyond just like the talented young shooters they have on the roster. Steinbach is probably the best two-way rebounder in the class and someone who.
I would say if you haven't watched him play, you know, not to go full nerd, but pull him up on YouTube and watch the way he tracks the ball. Watch the way he can high point the ball. Watch the way he can snag out of area contested rebounds. He's got like. You know, like uh I don't even know fly catchers on his hands.
The way he's able to just sort of like bat the ball to himself, then grab it in traffic and just sort of like stay above the fray. He showed some flashes in terms of his shooting, his passing. Like he's got some skill playing for Washington that wasn't like the best. Um, you know, setting, I think, to sort of like fully showcase his skills. I watched him play last summer.
With Germany at the FIBA U-9 Team World Cup, they lost to USA in the title game that had Maz Johnson playing center for it, too. And they were the two best big guys in that tournament. And they turn into two of the top fives, or fours, I guess, if you want to. I think Steinbach is ultimately going to play the four, though I think he has the ability to play some of his minutes at the five because he measured. Like, just well enough at the combine to be sort of like on the smaller end of some centers in the NBA.
But if he can shoot it, his rebounding, the passing, his ability to catch and go and drive in a straight line, like, I think there are ways to use this guy as a screener and a passer and an elbow hub to help Lamella Ball, Brandon Miller, Khan Knipple.
So I don't think he's going to be like a day one starter like Khan was last year. He's got some guys ahead of him, but I think he has the chance to be a contributor on the glass and someone that can really, you know, be eventually become a starter for the Hornets. Who do you view as maybe.
Some of the sleepers or one of the sleepers from last night because we had Josh Graham in here the other day and we were talking about Abuka Corey, you know, and now he's in Detroit. That's a name right there. Maybe, maybe that's the one, but who do you think was the best sleeper from last night? I'm wondering if Josh saw me write that or heard me sit like that. I've been singing to Corey's praises since basically last summer.
And then obviously, like, he just really gathered steam at Stanford. Incredible freshman season. I think you could make a case he was the third on like a per-possession basis. He was the third best player in the ACC this past season behind Boozer and Wilson. He was really, really good.
The delta between him. And the next best player on that roster was massive. And he basically, of all the draftable players, he was tops in terms of. Like unassisted points created. He's an automatic paint touch.
Some of the best handles, the best first step. In the class. And someone that I like, I think he was sort of being mocked more in the low to mid-20s and then. After the combine, he measured pretty well there for a smaller guard, and he started to gather even more steam.
So I'm not gonna lie, I thought the Christian Anderson pick. Was decent, maybe a little bit of a reach. I would have preferred a Corey or LeBaron file and among the sort of like smaller guards that went in that range. Same with Bennett Sturtz. I really liked Alan Graves, who went 19 to Toronto.
So for Anderson to sort of go between a Corey and Graves is a little bit of a tough pill to swallow. But I also thought the New York I picked 25 with them getting Sergio DeLera, who plays for Valencia and the ACB. Like that guy was playing in playoff games literally this week in Spain. He's a 20-year-old 6'5, 6'6 guard, super creative. Has some, like, you know, Genobly level bits of craft to his game.
And I think, I thought for a team like New York to snag him late in the draft, and a guy that a name that probably not too many people have heard of, um, even though he's been on the international scene for a couple of years now, I thought was a good bit of business.
So, I, um, those were probably some of my like later picks that I that I liked and thought have some.
some like real like offensive engine upside potentially down the line. Brian Geisinger of 24-7 Sports with us here on WSJS. A few more things for you on the way out, and we appreciate the time. Looking at Dusty May.
Now taking the job over in Dallas, going to be joining up and getting the coach Cooper flag, one of his guys, Marez Johnson now. And he was really a smart guy, won a title. I mean, you could just see, like, I remember when he came to Greensboro a couple years ago when they played Wake Forest. You could just tell, you know, how smart of a coach he was that really seems to fit the NBA game. How do you like his fit as an NBA coach and how quickly do you expect it to mesh in Dallas?
Yeah, I like the fit a lot. He is one of the handful of the guys in college that I think. Were inevitable that they would make the leap to the NBA at some point. I think maybe John Shire. I mean, I think John Shire is going to try to win some titles at Duke before he gets there.
But I think Shire, it's in the. Cards for him at some point, too, if he wants it. And Dusty May, like one, he's had incredible success just the last couple of seasons at FAU and then at Michigan. His work building Michigan's roster last season was a masterclass. Honestly, he had put together a really good roster on paper for Michigan for this upcoming season before he jumped to the Mavericks opportunity.
In last year, this will be like a little bit of nerdery, but I subscribed to a service called Coaching You, which is just like. It's basically like these 60-minute hour-long sort of like films that are from coaching clinics where coaches are going through. Offensive sets or strategy, or I've listened to dozens of these videos: Jerry Stackhouse, Will Hardy, who I mentioned a little bit ago. And I listened to the Dusty May one, which I think was filmed after his freshman, after his first year at Michigan. I just think a really smart, adaptable guy.
I think his philosophy. On offense of sort of like developing like putting guys in the right spots to develop this sort of like impressive five-out read-react offense, I think is a natural fit for the NBA. And he's going to come into some talent: Cooper Flag, Derek Lively, Kyrie Irving, Mares Johnson Jr., like, there's some.
Some stars, you know, on the roster, potential stars on the roster or established stars in the case of someone like Kyrie, that I think there's a chance for him to have a lot of success soon. Maybe not great news for the Hornets as well, because they do own the Dallas 2027 first-round picks.
So, for their sake, hopefully, not too much year one success for Dusty May. But no, I think he's going to do great things with the Mavs. Last thing for you here, and it's Brian Geisinger of 24/7 Sports with us on WSJS.
So, Austin Reeves, we've been having this discussion today. Austin Reeves, he gets this four-year deal with the Lakers. It's a max contract. Do you think the Lakers overpaid for him? Do you think he's worth what they're giving him considering I mean, yeah, he had some nice regular season numbers, but when he did eventually play in the postseason, it wasn't terrific.
Do you think the Lakers overpaid for him? No, I mean, I think they got, look, ultimately, you're paying for a guy who's sort of smack dab in the middle of his prime. is a ready-made number two guy next to Luca. And you have to retain this guy. He's someone that they got on like a below market deal when they extended him in 2022.
So to me, this sort of just feels. Um, like things are sort of like coming out in the wash, evening out a little bit in the end, but. I think ultimately there's a chance he could have gotten this type of offer from maybe someone like Brooklyn would have tried to lure him away. I guess you could argue like what are you negoti what team are you negotiating against? But Austin Reeves is like one of the best guards, one of the best creators.
He's an excellent shooter. You can stagger him with Luca, you can play him next to Luca. And if you're a team with the Lakers and you're worried about making sure that there's peace and harmony, and Luca is sort of like. Feeling like you're doing him right and putting the pieces around him to compete, and you're thinking about his next contract, too. Um, this was an important thing for them to do.
And ultimately, like, I don't worry about Reeves in the postseason. Like, he got he wasn't healthy last season and he, you know, forced his way back to try to play. This guy's a big, big, big time player who can create his own shot and play without the ball.
So, um, much work to be done for the Lakers, but I think this is a fair signing and a good one for a guy that's in the prime of his career, too. Brian Geisinger, 24-7 Sports. Check his stuff out. B guys underscore bird on X. BG, we appreciate the time as always, and we'll do it again here sometime soon.
Yeah, take care, guys. Have a good one. There he goes. Brian Guysinger. Yeah.
I agree. Yeah. I don't think This max contract for Austin Reeves is as much about Maybe they overpaid him. I think it's more about, hey, this is how we want to build our team, and this is more of a project. I actually like what he said there about.
The priority for Luca, this is clearly the guy they want next to him. That is more of a priority as opposed to. Keeping LeBron, keeping him and Rich Paul happy. I think they're making a statement here on what. is most important to them.
Which is why I think LeBron's going to Golden State. Yeah, if I had to pick right now. between securing a long term shooter Or one near LeBron deal?
Well, I have Luca entering his prime, if not already nearing his prime, or he's in it. I'm taking. No offense to LeBron. I'm taking Austin Reeves every time. Jay Davis writes in, Hmm, W.
D., what did B. G. just say about Reeves? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I get you have to lock 'em up.
And there was gonna be other teams that were gonna offer him this.
So I get you had to offer him something nice. But I don't know if 185 is Well, I would have offered him. Yeah, I mean, I'm not. I'm not saying he's not worth like... Good money.
I don't know if I would have paid him all that. I would have paid him $150. I would have been okay paying him $150, and that frees up a little bit more room. For everybody else to get some other dogs on this team because you can't just do it with Luca in Austin. No, see, that's my whole thing.
Austin Reeves can't be a number two on a title team. He can be a nice player. But he's not going to be a number two on a title team, I don't believe. That's all. And if he is, who are you going to put around him?
You don't have any money for anybody else. Yeah, we'll see what Rob Palenka and the gang do. We'll see. But this means LeBron's going to golden stake. That's what it means.
