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We just keep pushing. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. How the hell does somebody take a look at Tyrese Halliburton and say that guy's overrated? Earlier on the show, NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero, Panthers general manager Dan Morgan. Coming up, Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal.
Plus, latest news and more. And now, it's Rich Eisen. Hour number three of the Rich Eisen Show is on the air. Shaquille O'Neal is going to join us right in the middle of this hour. It's going to be a lot of fun.
I wouldn't miss it, because it's always fun when he joins this program. 844204 Rich. Number to dial. Those who aren't on hold, stay on hold your phone calls.
We'll clear the decks. Here on the Roku Sports Channel, Infinity Sports Network, Sirius XM Channel 375. We just had a nice chat with Taylor Lewan, who took full responsibility for his first pitch in St. Louis yesterday before the Cardinals and the Royals renewed acquaintances. We also chatted with Tom Pelissero in hour number one.
In hour number two, Dan Morgan of the Carolina Panthers. We had What's More Likely Friday. If you missed any of it, there's our YouTube channel. YouTube.com slash Rich Eisen Show.
There's also our podcast. Just how big of a win was it for the Indiana Pacers in Game 1? It was so big.
How big was it? We didn't even talk about Aaron Rodgers signing with the Steelers. I mean, I could have bet you dollars to donuts, to use the phrase. I don't know what that means, by the way.
I don't have to look at it. I would have really sworn throughout this entire process of Rodgers clearly no longer being in the mind's eye of the Jets, to that being confirmed with a flight all the way from the West Coast to the East Coast just to have a meeting of the Aaron's that did not go well. To a free agency period that lasted all the way to Thursday with one by one possible destinations for Aaron Rodgers. Either dwindling away or becoming apparent was never existing in the first place. Or of no interest to Rodgers.
One by one eliminated. All the way whittled down to the Pittsburgh Steelers and the conversation then surrounding. When Rodgers was going to show up for a proud franchise that sat around waiting. I could have sworn to you that would have led our show every single time. But that's just how big of a shot Tyrese Halliburton made and a big comeback that the Pacers mounted on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night. But we've arrived at the moment.
It's here. Rodgers is in fact signed pending a physical, which is no small matter one would think for a 41 year old, but one that I would think is zero concern. He's coming. He's going to be a Pittsburgh Steeler.
And to that I say, awesome. Listen, this is an all time great first ballot Hall of Famer showing up in one of the most crucial positions for one of the most popular franchises around. And is a very unstealer like maneuver going to a hope that the 41 year old Rodgers could be more like the 36, 37, 38 year old Rodgers. We saw the 39 year old Rodgers lose a season due to a torn Achilles. The 40 year old Rodgers a season to forget.
Despite having some talented players around him, but an organization that couldn't shoot straight, ready, fire, aim. Let's threaten the head coach after a week four loss reportedly. Let's fire the coach after a week five loss. Let's fire the general manager in the middle of all of it.
Let's move pieces around and let's get in the middle of all of it. Rodgers favorite player in Davante Adams. Give that to him. That won't work out. Is that a Jets issue or is that a Rodgers issue? And are the Steelers the team to actually be the one to sort out that answer?
That's part of the question of 2025. Is this Rodgers last rodeo? What are the Steelers plan to do once this season is over? Are they in the quarterback market in next year's draft? Will this year's season point towards that? Because 2025 does not go well.
Could it be possible? Rodgers is the quarterback of the first non playoff team for? Mike Tomlin in quite some time. Is he the first quarterback sub 500 record for Mike Tomlin? Or is he the guy who is, in fact, the quarterback that needs to take the Steelers where the Steelers fans want to take, want him to take them? And he is, in fact, that guy. He is the most talented quarterback they've had since Big Ben.
I think we can say that. He is a guy who is going to share a bust room with Big Ben one day. He is a guy that has, one would think, lots to prove. And he is a guy, I will say this, that everyone will say, well, he's bringing his bags with him and he's bringing his baggage with him. And he's bringing all of his tinfoil hat conspiracy theories that he says on podcasts with him. And that is just a major ass headache. And the Steelers are going to go and collapse underneath that weight.
I never take that cheese or bait. You talk to his teammates. Talk to his teammates. I don't think that's going to be an issue at all. The issue is his age. The issue is Arthur Smith's offense and how much they can mesh because Arthur Smith doesn't seem to be a guy who suffers any fools. I'm not calling Rogers a fool. What I'm saying is he's kind of set in his ways a little bit, but I'm sure these guys are going to respect one another and at least go on in and come up with the solutions that need to be had. But the whole business of what he's saying on McAfee show and when he does it, I didn't hear that was an issue with the Jets at all. There were tons of other issues.
So, so many question marks. I get it. Absolutely the play the Steelers had to make, which was see if he's interested. And because they certainly weren't going to give Justin Fields the gig, they sent him to the Jets.
Unbelievable. The Jets and the Steelers have swapped quarterbacks. And then the Giants, who I'm sure were kicking the tires on Rogers in the same way they were kicking the tires on Stafford, trying to get some veteran Super Bowl winning experience into their building while they were bridging to whatever quarterback they were going to take in the draft. And this went so far back with Rogers potentially being on the Giants radar screen. This is when the Giants were supposedly interested in Chidor Sanders. That's how long ago it was. So.
Yeah. The fact that Rogers has the questions about him, the Steelers weren't going to go in the Justin Fields direction to the point where they were going to be ready to start him or pay him what the Jets were going to pay him. They lost him.
The Russ thing was over. Were they going to go ahead and get Stafford? I'm sure they tried to kick a tire on him. Didn't work out. Did they go and look at Sam Bradford?
I mean, Sam Darnold. They tried all that. Didn't happen.
Didn't work. Rogers was the move. And he clearly must have indicated to them, I'm interested. Hang on.
I'll be there. Because they didn't twitch in any other direction other than what they wanted to do in the draft. And sure, run the risk that he could pivot. And nothing leaked. There were no reports. As you know, the Steelers were tight. As you know, Tomlin's groups don't really leak unless one particular person might Facebook live a conversation. And I'm sure Rogers greatly appreciates that. And I think Rogers and Tomlin are going to be just fine. They're going to get along famously well.
Remember that shot of those two smiling at each other when they were playing each other? I am not buying into any of that stuff. The concern is, how good is he? And how good is this roster? And the pressure, for the lack of a better phrase, of Cam Hayward getting longer in the tooth and J.J. Watt having another year that he wants to... TJ.
TJ Watt, you know, having another year where he's getting older. I mean, and this is it. Yeah, those guys. And he wants a new deal. So to put their eggs in this guy's basket, I think, was the move. Certainly, if there are going to wait to next year's draft that didn't like anybody in this year's draft, clearly up until Will Howard was, in their mind, valuable at the value they could get him.
I don't have any issues with the result or the plan. It was dicey. It isn't very Steelers like to wait around for someone. Even Cam Hayward, as you know, we kind of jabbed him for saying, you know, to Rogers, we're the Pittsburgh Steelers. Either you want to play for us or not.
Got through all of that. Now comes the getting ready for the season. Hopefully he is healthy. My God, that would suck if what happened to the Jets happens to the Steelers. And all I know is get your popcorn ready because the league definitely knew that Rogers was coming or at least rolled the dice, had a great sense that he was coming because they put him in the home of the Jets week one.
Aaron Glenn, if Aaron Glenn was in fact told him, come on out, come out to the coast, leave your coast, come this coast, we'll have a chat, only to basically tell him something they could have FaceTimed. My God, is that a zero chill week one matchup? And then DK Metcalf renews acquaintances with his former team. And then Rogers is back in the AFC East again at New England before his trip to Ireland. The Steelers going to Ireland, the Rudy's going to Ireland for Aaron Rogers to dip his toe one last time into a full rondelle with the NFC North, his last one of his career. And then there's a bye week before he gets his first division game home against Cleveland, then at Joe Burrow, the Sunday nighter, they put it in front of the whole country week eight versus the Packers. Indianapolis visiting out here to take on Jim Harbaugh's Chargers, another game against Joe Burrow in division. Oh, baby, the spot where he once upon a time said he owned the franchise. He's going to bring his belt, his championship belt to Chicago, home against Buffalo. Come on, man. At Baltimore, his first game in division against the reigning champs of the division in Lamar Jackson, MVP versus MVP, a Monday nighter against Miami.
A visit to Detroit and Cleveland finishing up with Baltimore. Tell me which one you're not interested in and you're a liar if you say you're not. I'm just not sure where the winds are coming. I got it, but that's that's neither here nor there. No, I disagree.
No, no, no, no, no, no. What I'm saying right now. What I'm saying right now is, of course, it's about wins or losses.
But right now, we don't know the answer to it. It's going to be a front row seat for an incredible matchup one after another, after another, after another. The Steelers season has officially become.
One of the most interesting campaigns of the season, almost the most fascinating one of the NFL season. The towel waving fans, one of the most popular fan bases in the NFL. Diehards everywhere, Ireland and Chicago. And he's going back to Detroit.
He is not popular in those places. And for good reason, because he kicked everyone in the teeth for so long. His maybe last trip in the NFL, what he's going to say when he's in front of a microphone. And then, of course, the Tomlin factor with the Steelers in the front office and what they do in the future and how that plays out here. Man. It's on and cracking. 844-204-rich number to Don will take your phone calls.
And then after that, Shaquille O'Neal will join us and I got a top five list of the top five folks I want to see coach the Knicks next. And that's coming up on The Rich Eisen Show. And can enjoy savings when you choose the best rate for you. Give it a try after this episode at progressive dot com Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates not available in all states or situations.
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Safety is all about making the right decisions on the road and when selecting a vehicle. Learn more at HyundaiUSA.com. Call 562-314-4603 for details. This episode is brought to you by Navy Federal Credit Union. Navy Federal can help you find and finance the right vehicle with ease. And this summer, you're in the driver's seat with savings. You could get a $250 bonus when you buy your next car through Navy Federal's Car Buying Service powered by True Car and financed with Navy Federal.
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Navy Federal is insured by NCUA. Hey everybody, we're still here. Isn't that great news? Yes. Yeah.
Very much so. I appreciate it. And we're back. We're back, everybody. We can go home now. Line three.
The location went away. We've got to work on this stuff. We'll get to your phone calls in a second.
You're on the program. Okay. There we go.
Thank you. I'll pop back in. Let's take Chris in Portland's phone call. What's up, Chris? What's up?
You guys just made my day. Okay. Where are you? Where are you? I am on my lunch break at home. Atta boy.
What's going on, Chris? What are you making? I list me out every day. Awesome. Can't help it.
It makes my day. All right. So you're making your lunch? Is that what you're doing, Chris? Yeah.
No, I get an hour for lunch, so I go home and cook. What's going on? Oh. All right.
So, how's some of this? Give me one second. No, take your time, Chris. This is my problem. I walked into a room with a TV in it, and I fell bad. What'd you say?
I walked into a room with a TV. Oh, okay. So what's on your mind, Chris? Okay, so. Oh, boy. Oh, no. That wasn't me. The Bluetooth sitch. No, he's gone.
He accidentally tapped, I think. We have been on this show for 10 plus years. We're going to have our 11th. We're in our 11th season now. Our 11-year anniversary coming up in October. Is that the worst phone call we've ever had?
Worst I've heard. Well, I mean, we picked up. We picked up.
We could see where he was. It seems like he's immediately calling back. Right. No, it's fine. Okay.
We're pretty bad. There's a lot of commotion going on in the background. There's some commotion. You know, he's saying he was eating his lunch. We were thinking. And then it took a while to finally get into it. Then he finally got into it and then hung up. Or got cut off. Dropped a son of a biscuit on us. Son of a biscuit.
I need callers. We don't know what type of home situation he walked into. You know what I mean? All right. He's back.
Okay. Well, so he's back. We're going to we're going to get to him in a second.
He's got a lot of redemption, sort of like Taylor Lawong. Shaquille O'Neal joining us shortly. For the radio audience that just rejoined us, the TV segment, we we went to Chris in Portland, Oregon. It took a while to finally get into what he was about to say.
And then the phone cut out. So there's a big redemptive effort here because is Chris there? Is Chris there?
Yes, he is. All right. You've got to finish strong here because at this point in time, it is the worst phone call we've ever had in a ten plus year history of the show. No pressure. I beg to differ, but I've been watching for a while.
Attaboy. What's going on, Chris? Okay. So, you know, I have a problem with the NBA right now. Okay. Well, it's not okay. But what's your problem?
Okay, what's your issue? So our MVP is the free throw like Maverick or whatever they call him, you know what I mean? That's what Doris Burke said. It actually breaks my heart. I literally turned the game off in the third quarter.
I could not watch. Because when I hear an announcer say Shay was bumped and that's a foul, that blows my mind. Well, you don't think he's fouled ever?
I thought it was supposed to be the playoffs. But he's also going to the basket, Chris. It's not like, I mean, I'm sure there are times where the whistles- Well, Western Conference Finals was not going to the basket. Not nearly as much as he needs to, but- Honestly, I do believe that it starts to play something on people's psyches when someone's getting fouls called and you're not getting fouls called. And then you just start shooting because you're not going to get the foul called when you go to the hole. So you're not watching game two, is what you're saying?
I don't know. I got to tell you, Chris- It's like I missed a great game. You did. Well, you missed a great finish. Also, I was getting so mad at it that I could not- Well, I think you're going to have to, hopefully you'll get past it. But call us back then.
I need Arias Consulting to talk me through this because I am so out of it. I think it's worse, the three-point shooting, the nonstop three-point shooting is worse. The nonstop, instead of taking a mid-range or going to the basket, I'm going to drive to the basket.
Full disclosure, full disclosure, I am a Celtics fan. Okay, so- So I'm already angry about that. I get it, but to me that's just as unwatchable. If you want to talk about unwatchable, that's almost as unwatchable. Let's drive it- It is, it is. And kick it out to- You have someone who can dominate everyone and just chooses not to, that's unwatchable.
Thanks for the call, Chris. Call back after game two and see if you feel differently. I think the other thing too is there wasn't that much excitement in the game. There were a lot of turnovers, there wasn't a lot of high-flying, exciting plays. Right.
And then all of a sudden the last eight minutes was kind of Banco's. Okay. Which is kind of the Pacers' M.O. in the playoffs right now. So if you can do something else and then maybe check in at the start of the fourth quarter, if that's a way to go about it. Listen, we have seen so many players in the history of the NBA get the whistles, right, that you think haven't earned them yet. Or it's like the officials are going to call a foul, they're looking for the contact. You get that sense, right? Yeah. And that I think SGA has shown a knack, you know, a free throw merchant, which is what Doris Burke called him.
Yeah, not really fair. Well, I mean, that's infused with the thought or I don't know if this is what she, I don't think she intended it, but it's just like he's showing up in the building and saying, I'm going to, you know, expect the contact, I'm going to act like the contact is hitting me when it's not. And then I'm all about getting in the free throw line. That's all. That's my only talent.
I don't think she meant that. But he is absolutely looking for contact every time and he's and he's creating it. And sometimes the whistles are infuriating. I get it. But it's far worse than watching somebody drive. And instead of taking the mid range jumper or going to the line, they're just going to find somebody spotting up for the forty fifth three attempt in an eye.
But that's a better shot. That's just analytics. No, I know that three points are more, you know, three points more than two points. And if you keep getting three instead of two, you should get more points and thus be difficult, more difficult to beat because you have more points. And the point of winning a basketball game is you have more points than the other. I get that. A fifteen foot jumper is easier to make than a twenty six foot jumper. And sometimes it's prettier to watch.
Mike, that's my whole thing when you say it's analytics. But like if you're taking thirty threes and you're making 20 percent of them, I know common sense tells me if you take mid range jumpers and you'd hit those, you'd be better off. The other thing that's a little unfair, too, there have been other examples of, quote unquote, free throw merchants in the playoffs worse than what SGA is doing. Like Dwayne Wade in six, like Shaq, they've got to do way more free throws than him. So he's kind of unfairly getting labeled. But Shaq was not a free throw merchant.
Nobody's attempted more because they were fouling him because he had trouble making. And by the way, the whole merchant. That's a new stupid thing that's been out for like the past two. It's a new term. Oh, he's a freak. Well, the point is the score points.
That's that's the object of the game. Speaking of Shaq, he's about to join us. When you're on the go and it's time to refresh your energy, grab an ice cold Celsius where zero sugar, seven essential vitamins and proven ingredients meet peer refreshment. Unlike traditional energy drinks, each sip of Celsius is a perfect balance of flavor and function.
So whether you're hitting the gym, the office or your next adventure, grab a Celsius at your local retailer or visit Celsius dot com to learn more. This episode is brought to you by Amazon Prime. From streaming to shopping, Prime helps you get more out of your passions. So whether you're a fan of true crime or prefer a nail biting novel from time to time with services like Prime Video, Amazon Music and fast free delivery, Prime makes it easy to get more out of whatever you're into or getting into.
Visit Amazon dot com slash prime to learn more. Good to see you, Shaquille O'Neal. How are you, sir? Before we get started. Yes.
If I take this home, will I get arrested? The Vince Lombardi trophy? Is this the real one? That's the real one. That's a real Vince Lombardi trophy.
I don't know if that's the one that's going to be given to the Rams and the Patriots this weekend, but that is a real. You want to you want to lift it? Well, if I lift it, I want to take it home. Well, then I think we're then I think we're at a crossroads here.
Actually, we're not at a crossroads. Let me tell you why. OK, sure. I'm not a lawyer, but I watch a lot of law shows. I got about 50 witnesses to see me hit my head on your set. So if you just give me this, I'll let bygone be bygone. So it's a liability issue for me that turns into an even worse liability issue.
I don't want to have to call it the Shaq Eisen Show. I know. I know that.
I know that. Just give me this and I'll put it next to mine. I'm beautiful. I'm doing the math in my head as to how much you'd be suing me for personal liability as to how much this trophy costs, which I've been told is around twenty two thousand dollars. I'll be suing you for twenty three dollars. You want to lift it? No, I don't want to touch it. OK, you sure you don't want to touch that? Bad luck.
Bad luck for you? No, to touch the trophy. I like that. My father's always. Are you serious?
He always used to because, you know, like when you're a kid, you get the trophy from a local local trophy shop. Sure. But if you listen to me, guys, you get this. You want to touch it? Don't touch it. It's bad luck. You got to earn it. Right.
So that's why that's why, like, you know, like in the NBA, when you win the Eastern Conference, the Western Conference, they give you those little trophies. I never touched it. Never. I never touched it and I never celebrated.
I remember Phil did that, too. Right. Like when you guys won the Western Conference finals of one of the many times you did. Yeah, I never touched it. I never looked at it.
I never celebrated. This is beautiful. It's a beautiful it's a beautiful trophy. Do you do you get a replica?
Because, you know, NFL players can get like a mini replica of this. I got four replicas of the Larry O'Brien trophy and I gave them to my father because growing up, he used to always take my trophies and let me celebrate it one or two days. And then he put them away. So finally I got enough courage to ask him why he did that.
And he said he never wanted me to be satisfied. So after he passed away, I went and retrieved all my trophies from Little League, high school, college. Put it in a room in my house and I dedicated them. So now, like, if you go, you get to see, like, all my trophies. But I wouldn't win it. I'd celebrate it one or two days. And, you know, me and him would have dinner and he would say, thank you very much. And he'd put it there. And I'd come back like the next week. Hey, Dad, let's go to dinner. Like, where's the trophy?
I don't know. Go get another one. And then you did. And then you would.
Then you would. One of the many Shaquille O'Neal appearances in the soon to be 11 year history of this show, all available on our YouTube channel, youtube.com slash Rich Eisen Show. Of course, I met Shaq as I've met many people in my life through Susie. You know what I mean? Susie covered the Shaq Kobe years while I was sitting with Stuart Scott on the Sports Center set back in the day. Yesterday, you said, I forget what city you were like. Well, Susie doesn't know anyone there.
I'm like, she knows she knows a lot of people in the streets. That's for sure. And the thing I was very pleased about is when, you know, Susie and I got engaged and she was wearing her engagement ring around Shaq approved, apparently. Yeah, he did. He took a good gander at it.
He's looking out for Susan. Of course. I mean, this rich guy's not bad.
Exactly. Very good. Actually, let's bring in the actual genuine article, the Hall of Famer and one of the best on television with soon to be ESPN from Turner Sports. Shaquille O'Neal. Good to see you, Shaq. How are you, sir? I just had a moment. How did I call in? And I'm watching myself.
Maybe, maybe I'm not here. I didn't mean to freak you out, but by the way, and for those who might be careful, I have opened the Shaq pack before you could get freaked out. What it is is a it's an icy hot.
What? Yeah, it is where it talks when you apply. What should I try it out? Should I try? Yes, that's called genius marketing. Go ahead. Okay, here we go.
So when you apply it, there's a speaker on top of your head here. Hold on a minute. I got to turn it on first. Here we go. Hold on. Hold on more. We're cold.
We're hot. We're ready. Okay. Hold on.
Okay. How many takes did it take for you to record all these, Shaq? One take.
One take, Shaq. I'm that good. What happens when I rub the head, though?
Looking for a bicep. I don't think we I don't think we tested that part in the factory. It worked. It worked.
Hold on. That's amazing. Okay, there it goes.
This is awesome, man. Thank you. Congratulations on that.
You got your pack. How's life? I can't complain. I was courtside at a weird game one.
Very weird. You know, I thought that OKC, they came out with great energy. They were playing well. At least Shay was anyway. And then towards the end, they had a big lead and Indiana kept fighting and kept fighting.
I just kept saying to myself, if Indiana could just cut into this lead and possibly have a chance to win it. And then Trey Halliburton came down, he hit that shot and they were able to steal game one. Where does Halliburton rank for you, Shaquille O'Neal, in terms of all time clutch performers? Well, I don't want to I don't want to put him in that category yet, you know, as a fan, because that's all we are now fans. He's a joy to watch. He plays the right way, makes the right pass.
Very unselfish. He knows when to take over for his team. And listen, when you have the ability and you know, when you have the trust of your teammates to take that last shot and you hit them, you know, it just makes everything feel good. Nobody, including our good friend Charles Barkley, is giving Indiana a chance and they pulled off the impossible last night. So game two is going to be very interesting.
Of course, now the pressure switches to Oklahoma cities. But if they, if Indiana can get that game two, you know, I think they've won both games in the last couple of series. If they can get that game two, now we have the finals. Well, I mean, you'd have to say Indiana would finally be considered a favorite once it's all said and done, right? I mean, if they take game two, wouldn't you, Shaq?
I mean, I mean, if they do take game two, I'm sure all the critics will switch up their critiques of Indiana. I mean, I actually picked OKC, too, because Jay Gilders-Alexander is one of the best players I've seen in a while. And his counterpart, Jay Dove, who didn't have a great game last night, by the way. But, you know, when Shane gives you 30 and then Jay Dove gives you a high 25, nobody can really beat this team. You know, that deal is very unbelievable when they both play well. Last night, Jay Dove struggled a little bit.
I think he won six for 19 when he had 19 points. So I know he's going to be looking to come back and have a strong game. I know Shane's going to have a strong game. And I know the plays is going to be more loud. That's one of the loudest arenas I heard in a while. Is that right? Yeah, it was very loud.
It was very energetic and very loud. I was like, OK, now I see why these young guys play like the way they play. Well, I mean, just returning to Halliburton for a second, like you're not ready to anoint. I understand there's recency bias in our world, in our media conversation, daily talk conversation world on shows like this one. But I mean, what he did to eliminate Milwaukee, getting his own missed free throw rebound, shooting three to end the series on a three-point shot with 1.4 seconds left, going up two games to none by winning the first two games in Cleveland by hitting the game winner with 1.1 to go after they're down seven. We all saw what happened in Madison Square Garden in the Eastern Conference Finals. You were in the building for that Shaq. And then last night, I mean, it's I mean, why not anoint him in terms of one of the best clutch performances we've seen, at least in a single playoffs? That's not really my job.
If anybody wants to do that, they certainly have freedom to do that. But I can say he's not afraid of the moment and I respect him for not being afraid of the moment. A guy like me who wasn't a real good free throw shooter, I didn't always want that moment, but I've always played with guys that did want that moment. Penny Hardaway was like that. We all know Kobe was like that. D. Wade was like that. LeBron was like that. Steve Nash was like that.
So that kind of took the onus off me because I wasn't a real good free throw shooter at the end to not even think about that moment. So the fact that he wants that moment, he steps up every time, you know, the outcome is usually favorable for him and his team. I got to respect that, but I'm not ready to be like, OK, he's he's the next Reggie Miller or, you know, he's, you know, Mamba mentality.
I'm not ready to do it. However, he loves the moment. He steps up, he enjoys it.
I'm happy for him. And he's definitely one of my favorite players, a joy to watch. Well, how does that permeate a team to win a championship then Shaq and the fact that he can meet the moment the rest of the team knows that he doesn't shy away and can actually perform in it? How does that actually lead to four NBA Finals wins? That gives you your teammates much more confidence. It makes them want to play hard.
And if your leader believes anything is possible, then the others will definitely believe. You know, I said last night to the great Isaiah Thomas. It reminds me of his piston team because they enjoy being the underdog. We all know when Isaiah had to play the Lakers, nobody thought they would win when they had to play Boston. Nobody thought they would win in Indiana this whole postseason. You know, nobody thought they would be the teams that they beat. And I think they enjoy being the underdog and they just play. And no matter what happens, they have great resolve. They never panic. Up 10, down 20. They just keep chipping away, keep chipping away.
And then if it's a possibility for them to win the game, especially at the end, just give it to Tyrese Halliburton and he exactly knows what to do with it. What's the biggest comeback win you've ever had in your career that even surprised you that you were able to pull it off, Shaq? I don't know about the biggest, but I know my favorite was that Portland series game seven because, you know, I think that was my MVP year. I was having a great year. And it was kind of thoughts in the game, especially being down 15, 20, like, oh, not again. Here we go.
The goal has gotten so close and either gotten swept or, you know, just hasn't been good enough. And then Phil did a wonderful thing. He called the time out and he said, all right, guys, I'll let you get this game over with and then we'll have our exit means and then we'll talk about next year.
Maybe we can get it done next year. And then all the guys had looks on their faces. You know, the the elders of the team were the one that kind of picked us up.
You know, Rick made a couple of comments, Brian Shaw, Big Shot Bob. And then when I saw my guys was ready to go, I was like, all right, let's just let's just chip away. And then we just kept chipping away and we clamped down. And next thing I know, we were tired and then up one. And I remember kept I kept telling Cola, hey, I know you're doing your thing, but, you know, whatever you come, if you want to drop it off from there. And then that last play right before he crossed a pigeon up, we kind of made eye contact and I threw my hand up in it. He crossed Pippen up at the top of the key. Matter of fact, I'm not going to talk about the clip. Here it is right here.
I wish we had the ability to just press a button. Are you aware it was the 25th anniversary of that alley-oop two years, two days ago? No, I didn't know that 25 years, 25th anniversary of the Kobe to Shaq alley-oop to complete that comeback was 25 years ago, two days ago. That means that means two things.
One, I'm old as dirt and two, you're old as hell. Wait, hold on a second. That means I need this. Wait a minute. Hold on.
Yeah, exactly. Hold on a minute. All aboard the relief train.
All aboard the relief train. Yeah, I need it. I need the Icy Hot. All right. Let's let's talk about your relationship with Icy Hot from now until June 30th. You can win this bad boy, the Shaq pack by entering a contest through the Icy Hot website. Is that it?
Yes, whatever you have written down, that's what it is. I'm not the promo man here, Rich. I'll do it for you.
I'll hear Ernie for you right now. We have the same haircut. We got the same, not the same Emmys, but the same haircut. OK, it's a limited edition Shaq pack. You can you can go to the Icy Hot website right now.
You got until June 30th to win one of these. This is now going to be in our studio. That is for damn sure.
And Power Moves, available on Netflix, which is available right now on Roku. What's about this show, Shaquille O'Neal? What do you have here? You know, I remember it was a time in my professional career where Reebok was never number one, never number three, but a respectable number two. So, you know, as the years go by, Adidas purchases Reebok and, you know, takes over all the contracts and kind of stops movement and, you know, halts project of, you know, Reebok's basketball just kind of eliminated us. So my partner, Jamie Salter, Corey Salter and Nick Woodhouse, I asked them a million times, hey, we got to purchase Reebok, got to purchase Reebok. So they purchased Reebok. And then I asked them to make me president of Reebok basketball.
For me, it's a challenge. I said to myself, OK, I didn't build Reebok by myself. It was another gentleman by the name of Allen Iverson that took it to the next level.
Want to make him vice president. And we want to try to get this thing back on. So it's just about, you know, me trying to, you know, rebuild the brand that's been gone for a long time. My two hardest challenges were reintroducing a brand that kids never really heard of. You know, like I said, when I was coming up, there's only three or four, maybe four or five respective brands. Now there's so many brands. I got to go to these basketball tournaments and be like, y'all like Reeboks?
And a kid would say, what's Reeboks? So now I know I have my work cut out. My second biggest challenge was I remember going in and looking at all of the designs and saying, hey, where's the high tops? We don't wear high tops anymore.
I don't want to hear that. We're making some high tops. And then Sharif took me to a tournament with about 35 basketball courts.
I did not see one pair of high tops. So I had to change my mentality a little bit. But I think where I had the advantage is that when you're on a championship team and a championship franchise, you know how to utilize your teammates. For example, if I was going to start a show, the Shaquille O'Neal show, I would talk to all your people over there because your people over there, they do a great job. They made you look good for many years.
And I would definitely get advice from little guys. So, you know, I think my biggest attribute as a leader, as a president of Reebok basketball, is my ability to listen to my teammates. I mean, it's a fun show that just is now available for streaming exclusively on Netflix.
It started posting on June 4th. Watch Power Moves on Netflix is available right here on Roku as well. And before I let you go, obviously you're part of a brand show and inside the NBA. So much talk about moving it to ESPN and concerns that it's not the same.
It won't be the same show there. Do you have similar concerns, Shaquille O'Neal, right now? I don't have concerns because I know one guy that you're never going to change.
And I know another guy that's really close to him. So, you know, the other two guys, listen, Ernie is a consummate professional. He can adapt to any situation. Ernie is the guy that really keeps us out of trouble.
And Kenny is a professional. But, you know, Chuck is right there on the line and I'm right below Chuck. So Chuck's not changing. I'm not changing.
I actually saw something yesterday where it said ESPN is going to give us the same same no look that they give Pat McAfee. So listen, we're just going to go have fun, do what we do, talk about the game that we love and just try to make people laugh. Yeah. And I'll just say this, though, Shaquille, you know, very rarely do I say you and I have something in common. And I really haven't spoken about this on my show because I am in love with the Roku Channel people. And I'm trying to be as respectful as possible, not talking about this on this program. But this show is moving to Disney in September as well.
And we've been given the same assurances as I'm sure Pat has. And I would be stunned if in any way, shape or form they try to change you or your show. There's a reason why you are got you guys are who you are. And I would be surprised, you know, that you are who you are in an institution, a total institution.
And I'm so glad that you guys are staying put together. There's the four the four horsemen live on, you know, for sure. And other than that, where else would we see you go to the bathroom live on television? Shaq, you know what I mean? It was a number two. No. OK, do you remember that?
Do you remember that song when he was little? Of course. When you think it's when you think it's in your head and it's running down your leg.
Diarrhea. Shaquille O'Neal confirms it, everybody. Very good. You're the best man.
Susie wanted me to say hello. She always says, Shaq, you know that. And one last time.
There we go. Oh, it's Shaq, I'm stuck in this bottle. And you're there to introduce me to your team. Who are those guys? OK, well, that's Chris Brockman over to the left.
That's Chris Brockman. Good to see you, right there. What's up, Steve? How are you, Steve?
I will go by Steve from now on. Jason Feller is right to his left right there. There's Jay Felley. What's up, Tommy?
How are you doing, Tommy? There you go. And T.J. Jefferson is right here. There he goes.
The diesel. Jamal, what's up? There you go. And I'm Dick Gison, everybody.
There you go. Shaquille O'Neal, everybody. Good to see you, Shaq. Much love. Thank you.
That Shaquille O'Neal at Shaq. The greatest. I was born three six seventy two.
OK, I think it's on the Wednesday. I've got a top five before we get out of Dodge here. Whoa. Top five people.
I want to see Coach the Knicks. Let's go. One, two, three, four, five. Rich's top five.
All right. Top five people. You want to see Coach the Knicks presented by Hyundai. Here we go.
Number five. He is. He's been an assistant for a very long time.
And Nick fans recall him from back in his at least Houston days. If the Knicks are going to go with somebody who's never been an H.C. in the NBA before with assistant experience. I want Sam Cassell.
Oh, I want to see what's up with him. I'm going with Sam Cassell. Number five on my list if they're going to go in this direction. I would be stunned if they go with somebody with no, if you will, NBA head coaching experience before or even collegiate head coaching experience as well. But maybe it's time for Sam. He's come close. And I think maybe he and Brunson would vibe because that's the way I'm looking through that lens.
Number four. I don't think they're going to go in this direction. I don't think he's going to leave. Honestly, I think if there's going to be any NBA head coach, he did. He leaves UConn for it'll be Boston if that ever opens.
But Dan, Danny Hurley, just just to see the insanity, just to see the absolute postgame midgame insanity in Madison Square Garden. Just let's go. It's a good one.
All right. That's number four. Number three on this list. I'm going to throw a dart and say I don't think there's any chance he would ever leave his current position. But if Steve Kerr wants to coach the New York Knicks, I am all the way in.
I don't think he'd ever leave where he currently is. He had his choice a long time ago and went the other way. I know that. I know that.
Kick attire. I don't know. Just see. I love this guy, man. And I just bring it. Does he want to move to New York and coach the Knicks and work for the crazy James Dolan?
I doubt it. He's in a great spot. He's got Curry. He's got it all.
But I'm just throwing a dart. This is my list, right? I want to see coach the Knicks.
Number two. I know James. James Edward, the third of the athletic through massive cold water on this, because he's basically the same version, he said, of a type of, you know, bull headed pig headed. I'm playing my starters type coaches, Thibodeau.
And usually when you change coaches, you go in a different direction. But Michael Malone is from the area. He's got a ring. He knows how to, you know, what's going down.
He suffers no fools. I, I kind of dig him. Somebody is going to hire this guy and it might as well be the Knicks.
But again, I understand if they didn't like Thibodeau's style, that might grate. Number one. I want to see the suits back on the sideline. Yeah, buddy. And I want to complete the whole Nova Knicks and bring the pope to.
Okay. Jay Wright. And again, I understand, like, you know, hey, if there's anybody in that building that kind of bristles at Jalen's dad on the bench, maybe these guys are like, we're all grown men. I don't need my college coach here anymore.
Unless they love the guy and he loves coaching. Go with Jay Wright. That's my top five list here on the Rich Eisen Show. You can hit one more. One more.
I did not know. Let's do it. Let's do it. Let's do it.
Let's do it. He would be great with the media. He would be great because he is a New York Nick through and through Stephen A. Smith.
Oh, God. Stephen A. Smith. You know, he's already he's already molded Spice Adams into a winner. Plus, Stephen A. is going to start competing against the Stephen A. What are you doing? Joining into our mosh pit at twelve to three Eastern. So I'm trying to get him out of the mix. What's he got at twelve now? He's Sirius XM on Mad Dog Radio. So that's my top five list. Grainger for the ones who get it done.
