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I'm living my best life. Yeah, yeah. This is the Rich Eisen Show. Here's the other surprising part. With guest host, Brian Weber.
Yeah, big twos to film. Eisen's a legend. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. The Rich Eisen Show. Do you know who I am?
I'm a guy on television. I have my own show. And now. Sitting in for Ridge, here's Brian Weber. Welcome to the program.
It's always outstanding to keep the chair warm for Mr. Eisen and the fellas. Brian Weber with you. Hope you're having a great Tuesday. I am saying Tuesday to remind myself.
It is Tuesday because all of these days run together during a long holiday two week. Hopefully for you break from work or... If they're making you show up, stick it to the man. You now have authorization from a filler nose. We're going to have a good time together for the next three hours.
If you follow me on the X platform, I mentioned the blueprint. I have four, maybe four and a half hours of scintillating content mapped out. We're going to cram it into this three-hour radio extravaganza, but the goal is to be interactive. You can pick up the phone, 844-204-7424. Even if we don't take a call today, and this is your first time tolerating/slash.
Enduring slash perhaps enjoying my approach. I will give out the phone number frequently so you have it. Top of mind, when Rich returns from vacation on Monday, your best option to express an opinion is the X platform. That is BW Weber, Weberwood 2Bs. The goal is to give you plenty of runway.
In fact, yesterday, we only had one guest. Probably too much of me, but things happen in life. Today, we'll double that. We'll go to two guests, but none until midway through hour number two of the show.
So. If you got something to say, join me. We're going to jump right in talking NFL. I do read your thoughts on the X platform, and some of you are of the mindset I'm talking too much MBA. I appreciate your thoughts, but let me just give you a quick overview as to my approach.
If you've not heard me before, and I don't want to be delusional to think you're hanging on every word from a fill-in host. I could talk NBA off the top. Were you aware that today is the 15th anniversary of LeBron's decision taking his talents to South Beach? That gives me license to make a nice radio pivot. That was then, this is now.
Where is LeBron going? But... I do. Take your thoughts under advisement and I know who I'm filling in for. Rich Eisen is the face of NFL network.
their first employee. In fact, when he joined that network in 2003 here in Southern California, I joined Tennis Channel. right around the same time. Who do you think made the better business decision? And note, I'm not talking Wimbledon today.
I don't try to be self-indulgent, but if you were with me on July 4th and the vast majority of you hopefully had something better to do, or yesterday, the NBA still warranted, I'd say, about a 60-40 split between hoops and football. Today, we're going 80% football, okay?
So it's wall-to-wall football.
Now, I'm going to use Aaron Rodgers as my catalyst to expand the focus. We're not doing 20 minutes on the Epstein list. That's a different radio show you're looking for. When we get to the NBA in the next hour of the show, we'll bring in my pal, Kurt Heelen, lead NBA writer for NBCSports.com with the NBA on NBC returning this fall. Queue up.
Round Ball Rock, somewhere Jon Tesch is rehearsing right now. Final hour in addition to the college football going to hit on in twenty minutes because you may not be aware of the fact, Big Twelve Media Days are underway. There are coaches spouting cliches at a podium somewhere in Frisco, Texas. We'll take you round the nation. We'll get you lined up for how the season could play out on the field.
With a reminder, we have a monumental matchup. Week one, not week zero, which is a thing in college football. Texas is coming to Ohio State. We'll hit on the big schools and the big themes when we say hello to Pete Futak of collegefootballnews.com. In fact, part of me wants to start with college football because I've been monitoring.
The quotes that have been coming out of Big 12 media days, and while the Big 12 does not warrant national conversation in depth, they are plucky. They are scrappy, I'll give em credit. As someone still processing my grief of the murder of the Pac-12, and yes, it was a murder, not a death, a homicide occurred on the west coast. Big 12 survived in part because they have a creative CEO/slash commissioner. Commissioner's now data term when you consider the billions of dollars of revenue flowing through college boards.
Brett Yormack. came to the podium today. And said something that makes too much sense for it to work in college football. Quote, we continue to believe in the 511 model, and that's five automatic bids because it's going to 16. at the end of this year.
When we get to the conclusion of this season.
Next year, the playoff expansion will be a 16-team model, although the particulars have to be worked out. We want to earn it on the field. We do not need a professional model because we are not the NFL. Thank you. A voice of sanity.
Problem is, he's running the wrong conference. Because the Big 12 and ACC are just going along for the ride. This sport is owned and controlled by a cartel comprised at the top of the sport by the Big Ten and the SEC. Our only hope for not having. Eight automatic qualifiers next year in a field of 16 teams, four going to the Big Ten and four going to the SEC.
Is the collective power of the SEC head coaches who push back on the Big Tens model? This is a Big Ten-driven initiative, and we'll get there coming up. In 15 minutes. Aaron Rodgers, you might have heard, has gone to Pittsburgh. This is not breaking news.
The reason why, and let me give attribution because there's too much stealing going on in the business. I'm Brian Weber, InforRich. 844-204-7424. The number to call all football for the first 45 minutes of the program. Just a little NBA to wrap things up with Mike Brown's hiring becoming official yesterday by the Knicks.
What are realistic expectations for that team in the battered Eastern Conference that's on the way? Mike Florio, good friend of the program. Had the snarky headline on his website this morning here on the West Coast regarding Aaron Rodgers' fascination with Jeffrey Epstein and that client list that, according to the Department of Justice, does not exist. Here's my motivation to talk Aaron today. As I went to the grocery store, and yes, I'm just like you.
You know, when you're a guest host, you would think you have a concierge. Not the case.
So as I was putting my items on the belt, and a quick aside. Every time I go to the grocery store. They're trying to hustle me to the self-checkout. And it's not that I'm lazy. I want people to have jobs because AI is coming for all of us.
The moment a robot can spout cliches and overrenunciate the way that I do, I am dead man walking.
So I always say to the guy, yes, I can go over there. I'm trying to keep you employed. As I do, I still go to the bank. And look, I'm older than my enthusiastic delivery might suggest. And if you hit me up, on the X platform.
Here's the challenge. I have a picture of me. Circa 1977. And then my avatar is a shot when I was an NFL sideline reporter for Fox in 2002.
So I'm not hiding, I'm leaning into looking okay for my age. You can Google me to find out my current battered condition. But as somebody who survived and navigated a tough Challenging occupation. I just want people to work. And yes, I still go to the bank, I get paper checks.
Anything else, I get the milk delivered. Every time I'm in. the bank. I'm getting hustled to an ATM and apparently I'm not as persuasive a communicator as I thought because nobody is listening to Uncle Brian saying, I want you to have a job. At the checkout counter the other day, On the cover of Us Weekly, yes, magazines are still a thing, Aaron Rodgers was staring back at me.
With this. BOLL TABLOID Headline The most mysterious man in sports. Tut I will not spend time On the celebrity romances. I don't care if he's married or not. Page six of the New York Post, TMZ, keep doing the research.
They can't find a marriage certificate.
Now, maybe it was a commitment ceremony. I don't care. None of that is relevant to our conversation. And the reason I'm not going to give you more details is I'm cheap. I didn't Purchased that magazine.
I had about thirty seconds waiting to hand my credit card to. The lovely person who was ringing me up. And the highlights that I could pull in my fleeting moments of not wanting to purchase the magazine really centered on his continued. Friction with his family. And again, none of that is important when it comes to a sports conversation.
Also, I'm going to tread lightly. I mentioned yesterday. But I understand the audience is always changing, especially when there's a fill-in hack like me in the chair. For the host of this program, Rich Eisen. Who had the innovative idea to merge sports and entertainment and does it better than anybody each day on this show?
Will be competing in the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship coming up on Friday in beautiful South Lake Tahoe, Nevada, amongst the field, Aaron Rodgers.
So I'm not presuming that Aaron is hanging on every word, although I mentioned Epstein twice, so that might have got a spidey sense going. But. Celebrities have people. I don't need Team Aaron rolling up on Rich, and then I'm not invited back on Labor Day.
So I'm making it abundantly clear: this is not a conversation about his personal life. I don't care who he's canoodling with or what's going on with the family. I am interested in his evolution. As a person, or how he chooses to express himself, because again, if you care at all about my background. And the things I prioritized over the years, the primary reason I'm here is that I work with Rich at NFL Network.
When we launched, they launched, but I was part of it. I'll do the We, the morning show that now continues under a different name and they keep changing the format. We did it at 3 o'clock in the morning here in Southern California, 2012 into 2013. I think about that Aaron Rodgers, not as a player. Because, like the rest of us, other than Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers reminds us that as we get older, Things fall apart.
He is much more of an old school, prototypical quarterback who has not aged well because they take a beating in the pocket, and he has not been as fanatical as Brady was, myopically focused on extending his career. I tolerated about half of the Aaron Rodgers Netflix docuser, and it's pretty clear, even as he was committed to doing everything he could to accelerate the timeline, coming back from his Achilles injury, he is not living and dying with the Inner monologue, am I going to have a carb today? And that's what Mae Brady won't have won. But as we've seen the decline in play of Rodgers, undeniably his last few years in Green Bay, he fell off that cliff. That so many talking heads were projecting as the demise for Brady that didn't happen until the second half of his last year with the Buccaneers, and that playoff loss to the Cowboys, of all people.
If you're losing to the Cowboys at home, you know you've hit rock bottom. But. That's not. Or shattering news that Rogers has slowed down now that he's pushed into his early 40s. What I am interested in.
Is the evolution of his persona. Because I think back to those days, and again, this is 12 years ago, but he's had such a long public life. Aaron Rodgers was a charismatic guy, and he still can be, but he never said anything that was semi-controversial. Dare I say wacky? And I don't have to break down the three hours he spent with Joe Rogan because there was no football involved there, but you might have seen the headlines that.
Emanated from that strange conversation with his now well-documented fascination on conspiracies. I'm just wondering what happened to this guy.
Now, my theory is this. And I'll go autobiographical. I'm Brian Weber. And for Rich, you can pick up the phone, 844-204-7424, talking college football now in less than 10 minutes. As we'll use the start of Big 12 Media Days to give me license to go all in on a sport that I love more than the NFL.
And I am very excited, at least by the rhetoric coming out of the Big 12 Conference. They're going to push back hard on Big 1. What I think is, again, this is hyperbole, it would be a sports crime to allow the Big Ten to have their proposal come into focus and give that conference and the SEC half of the field with automatic bids. Let's tell it like it is. They're going to get that number.
Without having to have automatic qualifiers because they're the big 10 in the SEC and they have the majority of the best teams and all the money.
So they don't need to. Put it into the bylaws. Let's actually have games that matter on the field, but. I went to a school that did not prioritize football, although we've had our peaks. You might have heard of John Elway?
Andrew Luck Jim Harbaugh. I'm looking forward to Harbaugh against Pete Carroll. Going head to head against Weiss in the division. What's your deal? My college roommate now.
Let me be as vague as possible. Is a co-owner Of a professional hockey team in the NHL and a minority owner, small owner of an NFL team. He's done just fine. Speaking of bad decisions, Tennis Channel versus NFL Network 2003. Yeah, I'm going all in.
With Arena Sabalenka, who's playing well at Wimbledon. My roommate, I knew he was destined for big things. This is not based on jealousy. And I'm going to make a point here. I give this dude major props.
He's the same guy. I Googled the net worth because I didn't believe it in the Wall Street Journal. It's factual. We're talking billions. And if I say billions, I'm a broadcaster.
I have to say billions with a B. He is still down to earth. We haven't gotten together in 20 years. But if I emailed him, not based on this topic, the guy gets back to me in 90 seconds because he's a robot. And I think because he cannot allow any disorder in his life, but he's not changed at all.
Let's now contrast that with other people who get the money and the fame and the adulation and then they have no one in their life to tell them no. And they have no one to say, you're wrong, or this is just weird. And I'm not talking about vaccines or anything like that. I am just curious, and maybe we'll find out down the road. As to what went on with Aaron Rodgers.
And his decision Either to articulate these views that he's always had or He's developed, and that's okay. We have a First Amendment for a reason. But if we're just talking about the football perspective, I'm not saying the two are connected. As he has gotten a little more odd from my perspective. Obviously, his game has fallen apart because he's a shadow of himself physically.
Now to be fair, if you still cared about the Jets down the stretch, as they were a massive disappointment, And very interesting, on his way out the door, he smeared their run game. May I pose the question: who was the offensive coordinator of the Jets while he was there? Nathaniel Hackett. Why was he there? because he was friends with Aaron.
Because that guy should never have gotten another coaching job. After the debacle of his one-year run as head coach of the Broncos. But if you actually watched the Jets play at length over the last. Five to seven games of the regular season. Aaron did look better.
I'll give him that. And remember, the Achilles injury is really tough to come back from. We got word from the Pacers making what we presume to be true official. Tyrese Halliburton will miss the entire upcoming season after going down in game seven of the NBA Finals. And you factor in Rogers' age.
Again, I will acknowledge he did the work to come back. Was ready for week one, maybe should have been a little bit more deliberate with his approach, but he wanted to be on the field. And finally, looked like a semblance of Aaron Rodgers at the end of the year.
So what does all of this mean for Pittsburgh? I don't care. He's going to continue to go on the McAfee show. He can say whatever he wants. That seems like a very anti-Steeler approach.
But remember, Mike Tomlin has handled how many knuckleheads? Would you like to list that Tomlin has placated on a Big Word Tuesday? Think about all of the weird stuff that has been either demonstrated or said by Steeler wide receivers over the years, going back to Antonio Brown and then George Pickens talking his way out the door.
So Tomlin knows how to handle quirky personalities. But if we're just looking at things, and we'll get back to this in the next hour of the program, from a. pure football perspective, Steelers won nine games last year. How much better are they this year? And I realize that on paper, picking up Jalen Ramsey looks like a significant addition.
But speaking of smearing people on the way out the door, you might have seen the report from a paper in South Florida. Among the reasons why Ramsey was expendable, primarily he's making too much money for his productivity at this stage of his career. He was habitually either late or not showing up for meetings.
Now, you can do that if you're still a shutdown quarter. When your play declines, suddenly people leak it to the media. Ramsey. Plus Janu Smith. Plus Darius Lay.
DK Metcalf is an upgrade. In no way can I undermine that. I just wonder, and we'll all find out together, when Rodgers sees his old team week one, it's the Jets and the Steelers. Very funny how that matchup just crystallized out of nowhere. If Rodgers is an upgrade over Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, maybe Pittsburgh wins a playoff game.
Maybe. But I'm not certain that's the case. And it's just going to be fascinating to see how this plays out because Rogers made it pretty clear, although he left the door open slightly, saying it's probably his last year. I think he has some dignity. If he's embarrassing himself.
He's going to go away. And I'll throw it out to you. What are your. Reasonable expectations for the Steelers in a division that includes a Baltimore team that is comprehensive on both sides of the football. Yes, Lamar Jackson finally has to produce in the postseason, but he's got talent around him, and the Bengals will be better because statistically their defense cannot be any worse, even if they don't pay Trey Hendrickson, because that's what Cincinnati does.
I'm not convinced. Rogers is a significant upgrade over the Collective output of Fields and Wilson, but that's why we love this sport because everything's going to be demonstrated on the field coming up. when we get to September. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich, eight four four two oh four seven four two four two four two four two four two four two four. I'll check the X account coming up.
That's BW Weber. Weber with two B's. Straight ahead, we make the move to college football. More thoughts on what's being said today? At Big 12 Media Days with direct shots being taken at the Big Ten, and I'm here for it.
And we'll try to nail down what playoff expansion will look like, the pros and cons that come with it. That is on the docket. I'm Brian Weber, Infor Rich.
So you know we love talking movies around here. You know we love talking comedy around here. We also love talking about classics around here.
So You know what I'm all about. That said, all of that said. You know how I must have felt when I was sitting in the movie theater like I was the other day watching the previews and up came a preview. for the naked gun. with Liam Neeson as Frank Greben, junior.
That Preview had me at hello. I loved police squad back in the day. I loved the naked gun back in the day. And here comes the naked gun once again with yes, Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin Jr. Come on now, son of the celebrated police squad, Lieutenant Frank Drebin from the original movie, Paul Walter Hauser's in this movie, also Pamela Anderson.
Guess who also makes an appearance? WWE superstar. Cody Rhodes and the producer of the movie is Seth McFarlane, the creator of The Family Guy. Come on now. This is going to be so much fun.
I'm excited to see The Naked Gun in theaters on August 1st.
So. What do you do on August 1st? Of course, you're going to a theater near you and you're seeing the naked gun. I might even be there. This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance.
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Restrictions apply. We supersize the monologue, not by design, but I got rolling there a bit, so we'll keep this. Concise and then coming up. In 15 minutes after we handle the college football, just a smidge, just a scintilla and a big word Tuesday of NBA in advance of our NBA analysis that will be provided in the next hour of the program when we check in with Kurt Heelen of NBCSports.com. We'll use the official word that came out of Madison Square Garden yesterday that Mike Brown has been hired as head coach of the Knicks.
I was on the air when he was offered the job, and I didn't mean to be too glib, and I threw out the observation: well, he's been offered the job. What's he going to say? No? And if you think about Mike's body of work. And who he's worked for, the wacky ownership group in Sacramento, where he should never have been fired.
Think about how long that team had been dormant and he helped transform them, won his second Coach of the Year award. He worked for Doc Jerry Buss at the end of his life, and things were a little odd around the Lakers at that time. Plus, you never want to be the guy who follows the guy. I know you have to take the Laker job if it's offered to you, but who with a rational thought says yes, sign me up to succeed Phil Jackson and Mike Brown work for Dan Gilbert. Not once, but twice.
He's prepared for the lunacy that comes with James Dolan. That's coming up in 15 minutes. I have more thoughts on what's going on at Big 12 Media Day. And I'm not taking shots at the conference. I had a long professional relationship with the University of Arizona.
That has ended because my family's no longer based in Tucson. And I appreciate. Just the survival of this conference because they could have gone down. They should have had a death blow when they got the news that Texas and Oklahoma were leaving, but they hired the right guy. And if you know anything about Brett your Mark's background, Primarily in marketing, worked for Jay-Z before he got into the college space.
He is someone who thinks creatively. He's a deal maker, so Big 12 is coming up with interesting revenue streams. And at this point, they're just trying to make sure they and the ACC still have a voice. Because we know in any question in life, simply follow the money. Who's got more money than the Big Ten in the SEC?
I think you know the answer to that.
So it used to be The SEC would get things going with their media days, a concept I mocked years ago. Who needs media days? But obviously, college football has become this behemoth that all the conferences do. And To get Attention and it's working. I'm talking about the Big 12.
I'm mentioning them specifically several times. They jumped in front of the other conferences. Might feel a little early to be talking college football, but Labor Day also is coming early this year if you haven't looked at the calendar.
So the time is right, and that makes me feel like I have authorization to talk more college football than I even normally do because I love the college game more than I love the NFL. I mentioned off the top the quote from your mark saying, We do not want we, speaking on behalf of his conference, college football, to To be a knockoff of the NFL. And he went on to say: quote, he's doubling down. on his opposition to the Big Ten's multiple automatic qualifying model. But here's where we get to the ultimate college football situation.
He also said, as he met with reporters after his address, He doesn't necessarily, quote unquote, necessarily know If the Big Ten And the SEC have quote unquote exclusive power over the future of playoff expansion.
Well, how can you not know that? Because the sport is fundamentally broken. And isn't it wild for all the years that we clamored for a playoff? And I'm not going to say I was anti-playoff in any way, but it's just. Very humorous to me.
When the SEC finally didn't get their way and Alabama didn't get in, and we're not having that conversation today. You can just go back and look at the objective facts once you had that surprising outcome in that wild ACC championship game with Clemson wrapping up the automatic bid. SMU deserved their slot. I realize they got pummeled by Penn State. We're not talking about results.
We're talking about process. But the athletic director of Florida saying at the SEC spring meeting that he didn't think a selection committee works in football. We use a selection committee in every sport in college sports. But his point was: no, no, no. We only have 12 data points.
We need more objective metrics. You know what that sounds like? The BCS, we've seen this movie before and everybody went nuts because quote unquote the computers were running the sport. College football cannot get out of its own way. And we've not even gotten to this season.
And the majority of the attention, understandably so, because not everyone, and I'm presuming a degree of sophistication, lives and dies with the sport every Saturday.
Some people parachute in for the playoffs, which I've expanded, and give them more opportunities to consume the product. But. It's all about where we're going in this sport. I thought four was a nice number because we retained some of the organic debate and I did have strong opinions about who the fifth best team was that didn't get into the field of four. When we expanded to 12, I didn't care that much about: well, is it a sports injustice that Alabama didn't get in?
And you can see where I'm going. When inevitably we go to 16 next year, I'm not going to give a darn who the 17th best team is that felt like they got jobbed by the committee. But It's a done deal. Because no sport, especially a sport now, based on a settlement of a court case that is directly paying the players to revenue sharing, and without getting into all of the details, the rough number for the major universities you're familiar with is about $20 million per school. They have the money.
But they have to move things around on a spreadsheet. I talked about it yesterday. I have friends in athletic departments who are job scared, and I have empathy for that. We're going to see sports that the majority of you have no interest in, like college tennis and water polo, maybe even volleyball, although that's become much more mainstream. If not, get eliminated, lose their scholarships.
So major chaos is coming. But does anybody ever consider you the fan?
Now, some are you going to tell me, hey, More is always more. Give me a 32-team playoff, and then I'll just let you know where it's going. We're going to have a super league. You pick it 48 teams or 64. It'll be a direct carbon copy, if you even remember what that was.
A mimeograph, if you will. It'll be a direct replica of The NFL. And instead of the AFC and the NFC, we're going to have the SEC and the Big Ten. That's where it's going. But before we get there.
I would just like to have a semi-intelligent conversation about the process because these schools cannot just play each other as much as they would like. Look, the SEC will not move off their stubborn position that they're only going to play eight conference games because remember, it just means more in the Southeastern Conference.
So. I don't know what the answers are. I'm trying to have a rational dialogue with you, and we can make it a conversation at 844-204-7424, or hit me up on the X platform. That is BW Weber, Weber with Two B's. For a sport that is as compelling and interesting and filled with passion on the field, even with all the compromises and trade offs that have occurred.
And I'm not being totally focused on where I'm Currently situated. That's the old Zen line. Be where your feet are. Look, I have a Pac-12. Bias.
I'm still in the process of managing that grief. The conference should never have been killed, but we're not going back in time. It's always onward and upward. It just strikes me as... This board is making things up as they go along, and at some point.
Fans, I think, get hurt in the process because we've already lost the traditional rivalries to an extent, and centuries of regional matchups have been tossed away. Tell me, in what world it makes sense, since we're talking Big 12 football, to have a conference that stretches from Salt Lake City to Morgantown, West Virginia. and we pretend and I know many of these young people are student athletes, but we pretend that academics is part of the process.
Well, how are these young people going to go to class when they take a five day road trip In basketball or softball or baseball, and I understand online realities. I'm not that cheap. I have the internet.
Now it's still a dial-up modem, but it works just fine. To me, it's just going to be more and more interesting as the money continues to go up because we know the one thing propping up traditional media. Live sports and college football generates significant ratings, so they're always going to have a seat at the table. But What's the best outcome? Because if we go to 16 teams, and I should back it up, beep, beep, beep, when we go to 16 teams, as soon as next year.
Isn't it just patently unfair to say this is the Big Tens model? That half of the field will be automatically carved out because the Big Ten and the SEC run the sport? And I like the pushback from the SEC coaches because they feel like They could get more teams in with The five plus 11 playoff format, because once you have the ability to check those boxes, I think human nature is gonna say if it actually still prevails in the selection committee, and they're not just. Totally placating the Big Ten, the SEC.
Well, you know, we already have four teams from the SEC. Maybe we should give some consideration to somebody else. But This is a rudderless ship. And I'm not saying it's the Titanic. In fact, it's the opposite.
It continues to be buoyed by massive money, billions and billions, but I don't know where the leadership is. And clearly, at least for today, the powers that be in the Big 12 tend to agree with yours truly. I'm Brian Weber and for Rich, 844-204-7424. Hit me up on XBW Weber. Weber with 2Bs in 20 minutes.
Back to the NFL. If you're Jonesing for professional football, I have very good news for you. The rookies for the Los Angeles Chargers report on Saturday in advance of the Hall of Fame game on July 31st.
So we'll. Put the AFC West. Into focus coming up, just a little bit of the NBA. As I mentioned, Mike Brown, now officially the new head coach of the New York Knicks. Is this the year?
I can't believe I'm going to say these words as a former Knick fan. Is this the year the Knickerbockers win their first championship since 1973? Dave DeBusher ain't walking through that door. This episode is brought to you by Navy Federal Credit Union. Navy Federal can help you find and finance the right vehicle with ease.
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Last-minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich and the guys. I do appreciate you spending part of your Tuesday with us. 844-204-7424 is the phone number. Conversation never stops on social media.
That is BWEber. Whoever would two bees. Less than 15 minutes as we ease into the second hour of the show. We're going to hit the NFL hard again. Training camps are coming up.
In fact, while rookies are not important, we know that. Hey, rookie, get out of here. I'm not endorsing hazing, but if we're just going by the facts. The first-year players for the Los Angeles Chargers report on Saturday that everybody follows.
So I realize it's been challenging. We have a nationwide football addiction, but we've made it through the fallow period, and the NFL is back. I'll use the Chargers as the device to talk AFC West. NBA coming up. Presently, quick footnote to the college football conversation with more college football slated for the final hour of the show when we're joined by Pete Futak of collegefootball news.com.
I read the quote from The Commissioner of the Big Twelve, Brett Yormark. Quote, we do not need a professional model because we are not the NFL. We went on to say we must protect what makes college football special. I will give credit to friend of the program, Stuart Mandel of the Athletic, for pointing out that. Big 10 commissioner, Tony Petiti, used the phrase, quote, the professional model, talking about his preferred format with the automatic qualifiers going to, and the vast majority, they would carve out a couple for the Big 12 and the SEC, but half of the field of 16 already being.
Handed to. The Big 12 and the SEC.
So, reading between the lines, that is a direct shot at the mighty Big 10. NBA is still making minor moves.
Now, I am not breaking down players signed to two-way contracts. Only reason why I went heavy yesterday to start the program was we did have a deal. of consequence. A three-way trade. I'm not going to go through all the specifics again, but for example, when we're joined by Kurt Heelen of NBCSports.com coming up in the next hour.
There is a school of thought. That the Clippers are a power forward away from competing for a title. I don't buy it, but I'll pose the question. What is the pickup of John Collins, who came over in that three-way trade yesterday? That's at Norman Powell to Miami.
The heat finally doing something, anything. What does that mean in a Western Conference that is as deep and talented as I can remember? I can't think of a more profitable. Profound distinction between East and West for 25 years. You got to go back to that Laker dynasty to start the new century with finals victories over the Pacers and the Sixers and the Nets.
But That creates hope for those of you. Who are listening in the Eastern Conference other than Indiana? And again, I'm not kicking. the Pacers while they were down. It was just so challenging to watch Tyrese Halle Burton go down with the torn Achilles.
I give that team credit. People forget because the Thunder won convincingly as they pulled away in the fourth quarter. Andy still had a lead at halftime. It's a tie game with four minutes to go in the third quarter, but it's going to be a gap year for the Pacers. Same story for the Celtics because of another Achilles tear to their best player, Jason Tatum.
For all of you, tell me that Jalen Brown should be the face of the franchise. He'll have the opportunity this year. And. New ownership. Is taking over in Boston, and they have blown up the team because they don't want to get in that dreaded second apron.
Not only with all the money you waste with luxury tax, you are completely restricted on deals that can be made.
So, say goodbye to Drew Holiday and Chris Sops Porzingis and even a nice glue guy like Luke Cornette, which creates a chance for the New York Knicks.
So, it became official yesterday. Mike Brown is the new head coach. I'm not just zigging when the world is zagging. And I mentioned this as I was in for Rich throughout the postseason because we talked about the Knicks as they eked their way past the Pistons. If you go back and watch those games, the replays on NBA TV, you can make a strong case Detroit should have won that series.
And I'm not sleeping on the Pistons in any way. If we're going through the top of the East next season, it's a Cleveland team that won 64 games last year. Got bogged down with injuries and this unbelievable run by the Pacers. But here's the opportunity for Donovan Mitchell to prove he is a superstar. He's got plenty of help with great players like Garland and the rest of the supporting cast.
Then it's the Knicks. I think the pistons are right there. Because I'm very optimistic about their future with young stars like Kate Cunningham. And think about how quickly they've transformed the franchise after a win total that was in the teens two years ago.
So if you're a Nick fan, do you feel like Mike Brown is an upgrade over Tom Thibodeau? My issue with Thibodeau comes down to this. You are what you consistently do, and he runs his starters into the ground. Did it in Minnesota? Did in Chicago, did it for the first half of the Eastern Conference finals against Indiana until I think he got bullied by the New York tabloid media into changing his rotation, and it worked.
Putting Josh Hart on the bench to give him instant energy as a reserve. Mike Brown is an effective coach. And the Knicks have a core group of seven players coming back.
So I'm not saying it's time for the parade. But Mike Brown is more than just a guy. This is not Kevin Lockery from the early 80s. He is a respected coach who has worked for Steve Kerr and Greg Popovich, has dealt with superstars like LeBron. I cannot believe I'm saying this.
I'm bullish on the Knicks. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich coming up NFL Talk to start the second hour of the show here on The Rich Eisen Show. Jim Rome takes on sports. Why? Because you're not playing me.
With rapid fire takes and a lot to get to, and I'm not sure you're gonna like all of it. Honestly, I don't even care if you like all of it or not. I have a job to do. Scorching debates. On any given week, you have lots to beef about.
Take advantage of, but get up in here. He's the Spitfire of Sports Smack. Which is not my fault. We will get to all of that. The Jim Rome Show podcast.
Get up in here. And we'll beef later on with your beef. Follow and listen on your favorite platform. You've been warned. Yeah.
