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Now, on with the show. At which point did you look at your phone and feel the need to call Puka Nakua a goofy ass? This is the Rich Eisen Show. Don't say nothing about my teammates. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles.
Of course, I had to respond to an old teammate of mine. Earlier on the show. Pro Football Hall of Famer Kurt Warner. Coming up. ESPN Senior NBA writer Brian Wintorst.
Basketball Hall of Famer Dwight Howard. And now, Rich Eisen. That's right. Hour number two of the Rich Rising Show is on the air. We just said farewell to Kurt Warner.
Dwight Howard's going to be on in hour number three. It's All-Star Weekend here in Los Angeles, California, at the home of the Los Angeles Clippers, where the Clippers just asked James Harden to remove himself from his place of business. We'll talk about that this hour. Perfect guy to have turned the page. As you know, the NFL season just came to a conclusion.
It's now time to focus completely on. On basketball, best we can, and who best to help turn the page than one of our favorites. Here in the flesh, the man actually has legs because I've only met him in a Zoom square. Ladies and gentlemen, Brian Winhorse is here. Thanks for having me.
Brian, I got to tell you, we've had a lot of NBA figures here knock on wood over the 10-plus years, now in our 11th year. These guys are as excited for you as Bobon being here.
Okay? And you know, that's the highest praise anybody could give. I love Bobon. He is an absolutely wonderful guy.
So, and thank you for taking the time to come here in Los Angeles here in person. How you doing? I'm good. I mean, um You know, I don't think that LA is presenting itself in as best as it could right now.
Okay. The weather is not that great. We're hanging in there, though. But yes, it's going to be a weekend. I don't know if it'd be a good weekend, but it'll be a weekend.
All right.
So let's talk about some of the news headlines happening right now. Yeah. And then we'll talk about the, I guess, first half of the season, if you will, even though the number of games that that moment has passed a while ago. Yeah, the NFL keeps pushing the NBA back. It's going to be in March pretty soon.
March Madness will be in professional basketball as well.
So the suspensions for the brawl between the Pistons and the Hornets, you think these are fair? What happened? Yeah, I know it would be a hotter take if I came in and was like. They got it wrong. I don't want the hot takes.
I want the wind horse takes. You know, it was interesting the way it worked out. The guys got. As you entered the fray, the more and more suspension you got. Yes.
You know, Jalen During started it. He got the least suspension. Right. Then Diobate, who I actually, he's going to lose some money and he's going to miss some games here. But people are going to know who he is now a little bit because he's been having an unbelievable season.
His nickname is The Moose. I'm going to take this opportunity to educate people about him. His nickname is The Moose. He didn't really embrace it at first, but now he will give when he gets like all he's one of the best offensive rebounders in the league. And when he gets a putback, he will go with the moose with the moose.
And so, yeah, it's, you know, four games. The reality is that all the teams behind him are tanking.
So it's not even going to hurt him that bad. You know, he gets a little bit longer all-star break. And then Miles Bridges, you know, shouldn't go running across the court throwing punches. You know, that's going to get you in trouble.
So if you get more games for the later you join the fray, does that mean Duncan Robinson gets games added to his? To his resume? I mean, rewarded maybe financially? Like, you get money for just saying these knuckleheads and just walking away. Actually, Lamello Ball was on the bench.
Yes. And he came off the bench, and normally that's an automatic suspension. Any Nick fan will remind you of that. Yeah. Yes.
Although I will say, I was on First Take today, and Mad Dog was. This is what he referred to. He was like, Patrick Ewing in 1991. Right, yeah. Yeah, Mad Dog.
He took one step on one toe, like a toenail. But that's not true. I mean, like, if you want to say that he shouldn't have been suspended for just walking on the court, that's a reasonable thing. But he did not take one step.
Okay. He came like. thirty feet on the Phoenix. It was the Suns that have the bigger beef Stadenmeier. That's what happened.
Yes, Stodema.
Well you remember Stademeyer, he pretended he was checking in. He was like, No, I was just running to check in. That's a good one.
So yeah, I actually it's it's you know Detroit. I think it's costing, it's going to cost these guys a lot of money, but I think the Pistons kind of like, I think JB kind of likes it. You know how Joe Missoula, like, I can't remember who was bleeding last year, was like Tatum or somebody was bleeding, and they showed Joe Missoula and he was like licking his lips because like Joe Missoula likes it when people bleed. Yeah. Like J.B.
Bickerstaff, the Pistons coach, I think he loved it. It. I think he loved Isaiah Stewart. I think, you know, he's been ejected eight times now, so maybe we need to cool a little bit. I think he loved Isaiah Stewart running out there and having his teammates back.
Right. And if, you know, he could have gotten away with maybe four games, it would have been better. But I think he secretly thinks it's going to be a good thing for them.
Well, I mean, you know, in all honesty, too, the fact that you're like, it doesn't matter because all the teams behind him are tanking anyway. Yeah. Knicks did lose to the Pacers, right? Zubach is just sitting there. And Walt Frazier just flat out said it during the MSG broadcast.
No. Like, why isn't Zubach playing? They're tanking. It was kind of viewed as like a a bright line that he crossed. I'm like, it's not controversial.
Well, first of all, it's Walt Fraser. He can do whatever he wants to do. He crosses bright lines every day by putting his clothes on. What's his tanking and planking? Like, what would his be?
What would his be. Tanking and clanking, swishing and dishing. My favorite one of all time. was when Xavier McDaniel scored, okay, and he goes excavating. And I'm like, wait a minute.
That's digging. Like, he's not digging anything. Right. Anyway, I don't know what I mean. The general sense, though, is it's just like, what can be done about this?
Is anything being done about this?
So I live in Omaha, Nebraska. Yes, sure. And I'm not from there. I'm from Cleveland, as you may know. Warren Buffett is uh He's a god in Omaha.
And his company, they have this saying: Charlie Munger is right-hand man. Right. came up with it. It says show me the incentive and I'll show you the result. It's a life.
of uh things you can learn through life. And so The incentive for the teams is to get the highest pick possible.
So I'll just take you back to last year. Last year, the first three picks were drawn, and you know. The Cooper flag is, you know, he's going to go. And, and the fourth pick, it's three teams. The teams had the three worst records: Washington, Utah, Charlotte.
They had the highest three odds. None of them got the top three picks, right?
So we're down to the fourth draw. I've watched the act. I'm not talking about when they open the envelope. I'm talking about in the room. Right.
Okay. The owner of the Hornets, the general manager of the Jazz, the general manager of the Wizards. And they're studying their little sheet. And the three balls come up. And I think the first three balls, all three of them, were in.
We're still in it. And it came down to the fourth ball. And you say, well, this is the fourth ball for the fourth pick. We're not talking about. Getting LeBron James here.
But the fourth ball came up, and it was Charlotte.
Okay? Charlotte gets Con Kenippel. Tonka Nipple is having, I think, the greatest shooting season for a rookie in NBA history. They just had their longest winning streak in nine years. Yep.
Or, no, 20 years. And they may make the playoffs for the first time in 10 years. I've got a friend who's a seasoned ticket holder in Charlotte who went to the game the other night, the Brawl game, and he said, This is the best atmospheric game I've been to in 10 years. And I know that it isn't just about Con Kinipple, that they also drafted Brandon Miller and they've been developing some other guys. It's not just that simple.
The Jazz took Ace Bailey. And maybe in three years, Ace Bailey will be an all-star. But Ace Bailey didn't even get invited to the Rising Stars game. And so you say to the jazz: you know, why are you tanking? Why are you hurting the integrity of the game?
Well last year's the difference between being four and five. might be the difference between this year having your best year in 10 years and going into a tank. And it's not if they can't work harder, they can't scout harder, they can't do more push-ups, they can't like, you know, we're gonna come and work as a group in August instead of September, the difference is that is one player. And so, and their pick is top eight protected from a deal they made like years ago. Their only pathway.
The only pathway in Utah, in Salt Lake City, Utah, is to get that highest pick. And so that is the incentive. And I am showing you the results. Yeah, but we're not even at President's Day weekend. I agree.
It doesn't seem it gets earlier and earlier that the plug gets pulled. Am I wrong? Absolutely. And where it's spilled over, is it now for years people would say, oh, they're tanking. But the players who are on the court aren't tanking.
The tanking was done on the injury list. Right. Or saying to Zubach, you're wearing street clothes. That's the injury list. Or whatever.
They say that you have an injury. But what's happening with Utah now, the stakes are so high for Utah, and there's so much tanking going on elsewhere. There's so much competition for tanking that they are now actively. taking their players off the court.
So, like, you know, marketing, Lowry marketing. He's sat for the fourth quarter. He had 20. The other day, he had 27 points in 27 minutes. They sat him on the bench, and then their coach, Will Hardy, stuck his hands in his pocket, literally stuck his hands in his pockets and watched as his team gave up a 17-point lead, didn't even call a timeout.
That's the, he knows the assignment. And by the way, before the season started, he was given a very lucrative contract extension. And you know, when he signed it, he understood. This is what I'm being paid to do. I'm being paid to do what the organization wants me to do.
It's the Don Draper line. That's what the money is for. It's the madman line. And Will is frustrated, but he's doing what he's been assigned to do. Right.
And so, but something interesting happened. Two things I want to say. One, so today is a big tank bowl.
Now, we have games on ESPN tonight, which we have Philly and Knicks. 7:30 Eastern. I've got this for you. Spurs and Warriors at 10. You watch countdown at 7:Eastern.
Very good. And then late game, we've got Victor. You see, Victor had 37 points in the first half last night. Yep, Victor is the late game in Golden State.
However, there's a more. Not a more interesting, but an interesting tank uh game tonight, which is Sacramento versus Utah.
Okay. Two teams that are extremely tanking right now.
So yesterday afternoon, the injury list came out, or their injury report came out, and Lowry Marketing. Who I will point out a month ago missed seven games due to the flu. I hope he's feeling better. I mean, I wasn't there. Maybe he was sick for seven years.
Understood. He was listed as being out due to rest. Oh, for this skin. He needs a little bit more, huh? Right.
So, come on. I mean, I don't know how much you want me to go into this because we're talking about the Jets, but the other day. They held their best guard, Keontae George, out of the game and said it was for rest. And then they played another guard, Isaiah Collier, 48 minutes.
Well, the reason why we're talking about it is not just the jazz, obviously, and we'll talk about some other stuff. Is listen, this is a smart league run by smart people who understand what it is that they're putting on the court and what it is that is happening. Is there anybody in the board of governors, anybody that's like, we must do something? Maybe, because, as I said, the injury report came out and it said marking an outdoor rest. And then one hour later.
He's rested? He was taken off the injury report. He's ready to go. Hey! Did he nap?
Can we find out if he took a nap? We can follow up today. And so that's number one. What was going on with that? Number two, and I don't have an answer, by the way.
I don't know what's going on. Second thing is, it's all-star weekend.
So, Adam Silver, you know, Goodell last week had state of the NFL. Yes, sir.
So now we have an Adam Silver, state of the NBA. Yes, sir.
and he will be asked. And so we will hear what he has to say. When is that today or tomorrow? No, I think it's Friday. Friday or Saturday?
He will be asked, and so We'll see. Maybe maybe he's gonna You know? Put his foot down. We'll see. Brian Winhorst here on the Rich Eisen Show.
Let's talk about Hardin winding up in Cleveland. Why did that happen? The Clippers turned things around. Why? Who ordered the code red and why did it happen?
Can I just say before we get into this, like how fascinating it is that for years the Clippers have had him for seven years, sixth or seventh year, and numerous seasons. They were prepared to win and might have even have won. You know, the one year he tore his ACL in the playoffs, he had two or three of the best playoff games of the decade. They came back and won in Dallas. And if they had been healthy, they definitely might have gone to the finals.
They might have won the whole thing. You're talking about Kawhi, right? Yeah. Okay. He had multiple seasons.
He got derailed with injuries, including one year they made the Western Conference finals and he tore his ACL and he couldn't play. They listed him as questionable with the touring ACL, but that's a different story for a different day. This year, he's never played better for the Clippers. This is his best season. They were on fire, and then all of a sudden, you know, I'm looking at my phone and it pops up that James Harden is going to get traded.
And I'm like, where the hell did that come from?
So last summer, the Clippers entered into a contract with James Harden that was basically a one-year guarantee. For $39 million plus a mutual option for next year. And as the team was playing very well, James was looking ahead. By the way, as soon as they entered into that contract, They were giving themselves some optionality in case James had a bad year to get out, but they. Painted themselves in a bit of a corner there because they know that James Harden, if he's not happily contractually, Will has to be traded.
He has done this. Four times.
Okay? So as soon as they signed that contract, they knew that they put themselves in a bit of a box here.
So the team's playing very well. James has this contract next year for $42 million. I think he'd like to make sure it's guaranteed because if it's not guaranteed, he'd like to go somewhere where he'd get taken care of. And whatever the conversation was, and there's people that are spinning it, but whatever the conversation was, James didn't hear what he wanted to hear. And He asked out.
And no one gets traded more effectively than James Harden when he wants to get traded. And it did work out for him that there was a team that was that could make a deal and do it. Like, you know, he's going to an instantaneous contender. Yes. Who.
Probably will pay him at least next year, maybe even give him two years. But I think the key is they pulled the plug. And I'm a huge, huge, huge believer. It sounds basic, but I'm a huge believer of actions over words. If you use that in your head, so much of the NBA will explain itself.
And the actions that the Clippers had said to me that they didn't believe in this team this year. If they had believed in this team, they would not have traded him. They would have guaranteed his contract or whatever. They would not have traded Zubach.
So, it's their actions, regardless of what they say, their actions to me say they didn't believe in this team and that they weren't going anywhere. And it's just so ironic and kind of melancholy that this is the best Kawhi has ever played for them. He's amazing. He had 40 the other night. His last game he had 40, or two games ago, he had 41.
And this is the time when they pull the plug. But, Garland, I get, I mean, you got somebody a decade younger, right? Right. And with some injury history. Right.
Isn't it possible that the Clippers might have improved at the end of the day? I know trading Zubach is another indication of pulling a plug either. Yeah. I mean, right now they've got a 38-year-old starting center in Brook Lopez and a. 20-year-old, 21-year-old backup.
That isn't a team that's trying to win or trying to win at the highest level. Right. So, no, I think medium-term they may say they would have improved, but you don't know whether Harden's going to, or whether Kawhi is going to be good in three months, much less nine.
So, no, I think their actions to me speak to they didn't believe in this team.
Okay. And the Cavs now are a contender for the conference.
Well, I will say this.
So. Tanking is a very popular topic right now in the league, and it should be because it needs to be highlighted, because it needs to be addressed. Yes. But. Most of the time, we get to the all-star break, and I would say there are really only three or four teams that can win the whole thing.
And sometimes I'm even throwing the four team a bone. Right now, I think there are five teams that can win the East. I can make a case for all five, and I have no idea who's actually going to. Right. And I think Oklahoma City will win the West, but.
It's not, I don't feel super strongly about it. I can make a case for three teams in the West.
So I can make a case. For eight teams, and we may even have an outlier who might be able to stretch to like eight and a half, nine. And so, while this has been a season that has been dominated by injuries, unfortunately, and while we have tanking as a real topic that is coming up now, which is unfortunate, I actually think we have a very, very highly competitive season ahead of us here at a finish, a very highly competitive playoffs. And I am extraordinarily excited about the young players in the league. Cooper Flag is, to me, the most.
I think. Really, to me, I haven't seen a rookie like this since LeBron. Um Victor is an outlier because I've never seen anybody like that ever. On planet Earth. Right.
So, so Wembanyama and Cooper Flag as sort of the sort of the next generation. You know, I love watching Ann Edwards every game. And then, you know. You still have the old guys, LeBron, Durant, and Curry, still around. I actually think the league, from a star standpoint, is in a I don't think from a competitive standpoint, it's in a good place because there's teams tanking, but I think we're okay with the star players.
It's just, you know, there is a bit of a transition period that's going to take place here. Brian Winhorst here on The Rich Eisen Show. A name you didn't mention is Giannis, but that will change when we come back. We're also going to talk about LeBron, his future, and maybe a dark horse for coming out of the mist. Oh, look at you.
Yeah, look at us. Very literary. You know what I mean? I paint word pictures, but actually, I weave tapestries here on the Rich Eisen show.
Okay. Brian Winhorst is here. Dwight Howard's making his way to our studio. We're back with another segment with Brian Winhorst here on ESPN, Disney Plus and the ESPN app, and ESPN Radio. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast.
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Ladies and gentlemen, Brian Winhorst is still here on the Rich Eisen Show. Again, tonight on ESPN, it's the final full slate of games tonight. There's three on Thursday night before the All-Star Break hits. Nicks and Sixers tonight at 7:30, and then the Spurs and Warriors after that. Are you on the show?
Yes, downtown Time at 4 o'clock out here. Yes. And 7 Eastern Time if you're on the East Coast.
So, walk me through Giannis' journey. from summer to now, in terms of his demands, what he wants, what he has said. That's the problem. He really hasn't demanded anything. Here's what I can tell you.
Again, let's focus on actions over words. Yes, sir.
The Bucks were negotiating. A trade for Giannis last week.
Now Whether or not they ever intended to actually follow through on those negotiations. I don't know. I can't speak with that kind of intelligence, but the Bucs were on the phone. taking bids and having a back and forth. This was all some sort of hoax.
No, the Bucs were absolutely doing it. And they didn't like the offers that they got. And I think their offers, you know, the NBA trades are so complex. Yeah. I don't know where to go, like to lose people, have them glaze over.
But long story short, the Bucs can get more. From teams in the summer than they can now. The teams in the summer will literally have more to trade. And the only team that wasn't really the case was Golden State. Golden State's offer now is going to be the same as it will be in the summer.
And therefore, they offered. What I thought was the biggest package. Maybe the Bucks didn't feel that way. Maybe other people would say that what the Heat offered was better, but they certainly offered the most unprotected draft picks, which was four. And they can't offer more in the summer.
The Heat, for example, can offer extra picks in the summer than they can now. And it wasn't good enough. And so the question will be: will it be good enough in the summer? And will Giannis force it? Because, you know, we're going to make this going to be an action over words bonanza here because they can present him before next season.
A four-year contract extension for $270 something million. And he's in his thirties and he's had some injury problems. And I would not blame him for one second if he said, I've won a championship and I'm going to take that 270 and I'm going to be a buck for life. He has not said that. He has said many different things, but he has never said he'll sign the extension.
So I'm frankly not going to worry about what he says. What he posts on social media. If he signs the extension, he'll be a buck. And if he doesn't sign the extension, they'll have to trade him because otherwise he'll be a free agent after next season. It'll be very elementary.
And what'll be interesting now is he's got this injury. He announced when he had the injury, I'll be out four to six weeks. Dr. Tennekumpo has been paid. knows about these things.
He's had this interview four times. And the bucks said No timeline.
So Doc Rivers has come out and said he is going to play when he's ready. But the only pathway forward for the Bucs to improve this team really is to get as high of a draft pick as possible. Right. And when Giannis plays their 500. And when he doesn't play, they're one of the worst teams in the league.
And all the teams around them are tanking.
So if Giannis comes back and plays. you know, 18 games and they go nine and nine. Which this is the way they've played during the season. Right. Their pick will materially get worse.
Now, they could get lucky like if they miss the playoffs. But I think, I think Dallas was like 10th or 11th last year, or whatever they were that hopped up. I mean, they could get lucky and end up with a top pick. But their only way that they're really going to make this team materially better is by that draft pick being as high as possible. And bringing him back, it's going to hurt the pick.
So, you know, I'm anxious to see how that plays out. I'm done with the words. I'm only going to pay attention to the actions. And so I will tell you that the actions, I know I'm beating the horse, but the actions of last week were that the Bucs were negotiating a trade. And we'll see what Giannis' actions and the Bucks' actions are with his availability and then the contract.
What you've said multiple times here: actions, not words. That's what you're paying attention to, and that's how the NBA is best explained. Brian Winhorst here on the Rich Eisen Show. What are the actions telling you about LeBron James and the Lakers?
So the Lakers had an opportunity to offer LeBron a contract extension last year, and they did not. And it's the first time in LeBron's 23-year career he's ever been on the final year of a contract. Obviously, he's left in free agency at times when he's opted out of a contract. He's never, ever been on the last year of a contract. And I understand why the Lakers did that because they are now building around Luka Doncic.
And they probably could maybe do something better with the $52 million. By the way, when I say do something better with the 52 million, it doesn't mean pay LeBron zero. Like maybe they could pay LeBron $5 million. 30 million and use that 20 million elsewhere. But for them to be the best team that they can, they can't.
Pay LeBron $50 million next year. They just can't because they're paying Luca something near that and they're going to pay Austin Reeves something near that. And you just can't have three perimeter-based players who are ball handlers who are not good defenders making that much of your salary cap.
So LeBron James saying I will not take less than what I'm currently making, is that an action?
Well, if he does that, it's going to be hard because, I mean, I do think he's still, you know, he's still an all-star, but I don't know if he's still a $50 million max player. But does he still want to be a Los Angeles Lakers? Right. So there's three things LeBron has to decide. One, are his body and mind in a place where he wants to play next year?
Yes, sir.
Now, the challenge with that's going to be, and I don't know if he knows, but I don't know, you know, the Lakers are going to need to know like in June. Because that's when the offseason starts. And I don't know if he's going to have an answer in June. I don't know where he's going to be with that. He may not know for sure until later.
But he's going to have to decide that. That's going to be first.
So that's the first thing. The second thing is. Will he play how much money is he willing to play for? Is he willing to play for 30 million? Is he willing to play for 15 million?
I mean Dirk Nowitzki. Twice took really big pay cuts to stay with the Mavericks.
Now, it's debatable about whether those actually helped the Mavericks or whether they just saved a bunch of money because they didn't actually get. Functionally better, but that's neither here nor there. It's not unprecedented for a guy at the end of a 20-year career to take a big pay cut to the team. And not just in the NBA either. Look at Aaron Rodgers, right?
Aaron Rodgers, 42 years old. Does he want to keep playing? Sure. He'll play for the Steelers. And he took way less than what his Hall of Fame resume would demand.
Correct.
So if LeBron is. Determined to make the most money, it will probably not be with the Lakers. But pathway two is to stay with the Lakers for less money. That, how much less? lot of variables we don't know yet.
Three, would he go someplace else? If he becomes a free agent, would he go someplace else? And would he go someplace to make the most money? Or would he go someplace where he could take less money, but that he would feel comfortable or feel like he could win? Would probably, there's a good chance it would be his last year.
He certainly has to go into what the strong possibility was to be his last year.
So he has to go to a place where he could be comfortable playing a year. And I think there's a couple of places where that might make sense. Cleveland is one of them. Heat? You want to go down the list?
I'm not sure I put the heat on the list.
Okay, where else? Where else? You know? Golden State, depending on how things go, would be one of them, depending on where their team is. Would Kerr have to be there?
Maybe. I don't, but that's a good question. Sure. Okay. And there's a place or two that I won't say right now, but I'm keeping my eye on.
Is that the finger thing? We're doing the finger thing. I just, you know, frankly, with All-Star Weekend and stuff, I don't need this in my life right now. Let's just say, I don't mean the fingers, but like. No, no, no, no.
I got it. I got it. Let's put it this way. I respect it. I have a team or two that I think he could consider going to.
And I have researched the concept.
Okay. And I will continue to keep my eye on the concept. Keep digging. And Let's just say that You know, it's not without merit. It's just not something I'm going to say.
And I don't mean to be a jerk that way. No, no, no. But I just, I can't. I'm going to try to lay low this weekend. I don't need to be on every show trying to back up what I said.
Okay. But I'm just saying to you, I think he would have some appetizing options in a one-off situation if he was comfortable for playing for a salary that would fit in another team. And what about the Lakers, you know, in the future? I mean, ESPN.com and the app. I'm sorry, I don't recall off the top of my head who wrote the article about the bus family where every laid bare, even the Kardashian family saying, wow, that's a lot of business of ours put out there.
That's how crazy that thing was off the charts. But the Laker thing is, so it's fascinating because it's a family and like great stories in the history of humankind are intertwined with family. The Lakers' decision, the family decision-making was actually very. Yeah. Um Jeannie Buss is the most powerful of the Buss children.
Clearly. And her older brothers at one point tried to squeeze her out. They sure did. And so she part, you need there's six kids. You need four votes.
Okay. Her sister pretty much voted for her the whole time. She has two younger brothers and two older brothers. Her two older brothers tried to force her out. She partnered with the two younger brothers to get the four votes to squeeze them out.
And then a decade later, When it came time to sell, um The older family members had a disadvantage because when they die, they don't get, you know, they each had 11% of the team, which is worth a billion dollars, whatever. Each Time one of they die, they don't get to take that 11% and pass to their heirs. It goes back into the trust.
So the last family member standing gets the whole 66%.
So if you're the youngest kids, You know, you're in your 30s or 40s, you're like. Like, we'll see at your funeral. You know, I mean, they basically don't talk to each other. Like, that's like that, you know. I got that.
I picked that up from the article.
So, Jeannie then flipped it, and the older siblings, who are much older than the younger ones, are like. Yeah, we'd like to have our hundreds of millions now. Right, yeah, yeah. We'll vote with you. And so she just flipped and she did that.
It was just a it's just a Game of Thrones. It's not by the way, that's what I was literally about to bring up that famously Kobe told her to beat Khaleesi. And get on your dragon and Dracaris this whole situation, which, by the way, she did, and you tip the cap. I brought it up just because the LeBron stuff got put out there, and you know, somebody from that family put it out there to create a problem for her.
Well, that's the way I read it. In all honesty, like, how could you not be impressed with. Her acumen, of course. No, no, that's and her friend. Like, she obviously is very much closer to her friends and her co-workers with the Lakers than she is to her family.
Yeah. She took care of them. She took care of herself. Yeah, yeah. And she stayed in the job.
I know. She stayed in the job. She got hundreds of millions, got rid of everybody in her family, and stayed in the job. For sure, this isn't about that. The LeBron stuff that was in it.
I know. I'm sorry. No, no, no. But that's the stuff that clearly was: let's try and stick it. To, you know, Khaleesi here.
Yeah, I mean, I think, I think, here's the thing. When you have LeBron, there's. Downsides. There is there is there is Mm. There's a tax, a LeBron tax that you pay, that he does things that wear you out.
However, The other side of it has so much upside that it's a trade-off that everybody would make. Even today, even today, LeBron's value to the Lakers is immensely more than whatever. Drag he has on the team. And so that's why everybody, that's why the Cavs would crawl over glass to get him back for a third time. Because Is as much scar tissue as there's been with that organization.
He's still worth it. He'd sell it out. He'd sell it out. I don't think it, like, again, it's fascinating because it's great detail, but it's not. out of line with the way humankind operates.
So the interesting thing about the Lakers that I think was not portrayed in that story is that the reason what separates the Lakers from the Memphis Grizzlies is their local T V deal. Certainly, the New York Giants can operate on a little bit higher level from local revenues, but really, the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers operate relatively on a level financial playing field. The money that's coming into them is relatively the same. That's not the case in the NBA. In the NBA, the Lakers make more in a week than the Grizzlies make.
In a year with their T V deal. And that T V deal is under threat. Because of local TV, which is another story for another day. But if that TV deal gets reduced, and by the way, the Knicks last year took a 40% pay cut. And if they're if the Lakers went down by 40%, that would be financially devastating to the Buzz family.
So They cashed out, she consolidated power, and she sold to owners who have proven to be championship owners.
So the fans are in great position. And in all honesty, I see Jeannie Buss as a candidate for Executive of the Year. She's not going to be candidate for Sister of the Year, but she's not doing Sister of the Year. She's doing Executive. Sitting on her iron throne down the street here in El Segundo.
In the few minutes we have left. No doubt. No doubt, Dracaris, the whole thing, in the few minutes we have left here. Is Jason Tatum coming back? Because if he does, the Celtics, who are sitting in second place in the conference, could be the dark horse team.
Chris, how do we judge the NBA? Talk dirty to me, Wendy. What do we do? How do we judge the NBA? What have we learned today?
Actions. Not words. Not words. Everyone says that. When Jason Tatum says, I am not going to come back, or I'm not, he didn't say that.
He said, I'm not sure I'm coming back. Or whatever Joe Mazzulla might say, or whatever his teammates might say, or whatever Brad Stevens might say. Let's put that aside. They're not going to put one ounce of pressure on him.
Now let's focus on the actions. The actions are he's doing five on five with the coaches. And on Monday, they took the entire G League team. Put them on. I don't know if they want to bus or a train.
Great. I made a Boston. Brought them from Portland down to Boston. Visited the R. Bach Center so that they could practice with Jason Tatum.
That's an action. You know, that's him taking a step forward in the process. I have no idea where. He will be at the end of the season. I have no idea where he will be.
He probably doesn't know where he'll be in May. But I will say the actions. Are him returning towards playing. And the perspective that also is needed is you don't need him to play well in March or April. You need him to be a factor in May.
And I think that's on the table. Certainly not a guarantee, but it's on the table. Would he come off the bench, you think? Who cares? Doesn't matter, right?
Like at the end of the day at the end of the day, if he's in the fourth quarter and it's Jason Tatum and it's go time. It's go time. The Eastern Conference is a wide open, unpredictable, you know, who knows what will happen. And that X factor is the biggest X factor in the East, if not the league. They're five and a half out.
They're 34 and 19. They got Vucevich. They got him. I mean, it's what a.
Okay. And then last one for you, since we just went to New England, let's go Seattle for the Super Bowl champs. Are they going to get the Sonics back? What do you think?
So what I suspect is later this year, the NDA will announce that they are Going to form a committee to study expansion, which is going to be an action, an action, which is code for we're going to expand. But they're not going to say it, but they're going to expand. But there's some arena situations that have to be settled first.
So, right now, there's an arena situation in Portland that is bubbling. There's a couple other arena situations I won't get into. But typically, you want to leave. Even though I don't think the NBA will relocate, you want to make sure all of your arena situations are settled before you then expand. Sure.
But then I do think that's where we're headed. But again, it'll be a process. You won't see the Sonics back in 2027. It could be a few years, but I think that's where we are headed. And in terms of actions, not words, words are.
Me texting you, Hey, do you want to come on the show? The action is sending you a car. Thank you very much. You know what I mean? That's when you need to get it.
As somebody who's gone from downtown to the LAX area several thousand times, very impressive speed and execution to get me here.
Well, the 105 freeway is the speed freeway, by the way, from the movie.
So, you know, just look around and see if there's a bus and if Sandra Bullock is driving. The Imperial. The Imperial Freeway is. Yes, indeed, for those scoring at home. Yes, sir.
Yeah, but that's the difference. Words are like, hey, you want to come on the show? Action is like, I've got you. Bring them here. I'm on my own the way back, by the way.
No, you're not. I got a phone ride. There's somebody waiting out there.
Somebody's waiting out there. I'm sure they got the water at the proper temperature. Brian, before you go, we have this thing here where we give out documents to people if they want to give up their fandom. I like documents that are like this big. They're green.
I'm sorry for that. Nice. Yeah, no, no, no. My question is: after hearing you talk about the Clippers, I'm a Clippers fan. I'm ready to just give up, man.
I've been a Clipper fan since 1999, ever since I moved here. And every time we get close to something, We just clipper it up again. Should I just give up? Yes. Is it time just to they did make two trades that are forward-looking last week?
Yes, they did. You know, that they trade. You know, it's not easy to get a multi-time all-star in his 20s under contract, as they did with Darius Garland. His foot is bothering him right now, and they got two potentially very valuable picks. That they now could go into the marketplace with for Zubach.
I would not have traded Zubach, but. They have their future plan. But I would be heartbroken. I'm sorry, TJ. I would be heartbroken if I was a Clipper fan and I saw Kawhi playing this way and knowing that my team is not going anywhere.
All for nothing, right? I don't have that certificate here. I don't know if we actually got the Cowboy one. Yeah, I got the Dallas Cowboy one. Felling has it somewhere.
It's somewhere. All right, so I should give it up, is what you're saying. No, but you can make plans for May and June. Ladies and gentlemen, Brian Winhorst here on the program. Thank you.
Thank you for having me. Thank you for coming here. I appreciate it. Enjoy your all-star weekend. I shall do so, sir.
I will be here in Los Angeles dodging the raindrops.
So, ladies and gentlemen, Brian Winhorst, again, you will catch him on ESPN tonight in advance of Knicks, Sixers, Spurs, and Warriors. Oh, my God. Thank you for doing it. The Rich Heisen Show, the podcast. Back here on the Rich Eisen Show, one big happy family on ESPN, Disney Plus, the ESPN app, ESPN Radio.
I love saying that. I don't know if you can tell.
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We're going to switch over to ESPN 2 for those watching on ESPN for hour number three. Dwight Howard is making his way to our studio. I sent a car for him, too. Oh. I believe I shouldn't just say Manny in El Paso, Texas.
He's watching us because he certainly can't take a flight anywhere. What's up, Manny? What's going on, man? What's going on, man? Manny, what's up, brother?
Although I still got bad bun in the brain talking to my buddies here. Anyways, love the game, love the halftime show. My question is. Is it the best halftime show? I know Mr.
Glazoo will probably say that's going to be you too. I'm going to say it's Prince. Prince is that when he just said. Hey, my name is Benny. This is a look into my culture.
I hope you enjoy it. Hey, let's dance for a bit. Anyways, gentlemen, we are four days away from NASCAR being back at Daytona. But with that, of course, come some heavy hearts. Greg Pippen passed away and was truly loved as a driver, but it was after his racing career that people truly loved him.
When the hurricane hit on the East Coast in 2024, he took his own helicopter to help find and rescue people. This is an example of how people should watch over each other. I'm really excited about the season. The cars have fifty more horsepower in them. Gail Junior and Mark Martin have gone have given the thumbs up on the new point system.
I'm getting goosebumps just talking about it.
So, I leave you with this question, gentlemen. Which racing movie do you prefer? These of Thunder? Ford versus Ferrari. Disney's cars or Christopher Nolan's favorite movie Charlie the Nights.
Okay, very good. I love you. I always consider it non to talk to you guys. TJ, right away, I got a hashtag for you. What's that?
Hashtag DBDT. Don't be Del Tufo. Stick to your colors. Yeah, Manny in El Paso. That's it.
I'm not in the middle. Manny in El Paso, everybody. He's rackham. Deep Dodgers. Go Dodgers.
Don't be Del Tufo. Shay's on his way, I can't. Stick to your team. Shaday's on his way. Fantastic.
Okay. Life is a highway. Cars is very near the top. For kids are very near. No, Cars is a great watch.
I have seen the first. Period. First one I have. I love Ford v. Ferrari.
I'm going to go F1. That's great. He didn't mention F1 either. F1 was great. Rock.
I agree. Days of Thunder. I enjoyed it. But Days of Thunder is just, I haven't seen it in forever. It's been a while.
Dude, Tom Cruise and. Robert Duvall? I get it. Come on. That movie was amazing.
Fifth one, though. Are they doing a sequel to that or a rebuild of some sort? What? Of Days of Thunder. No.
With Tom Cruise. I think that was the next thing after he did a Tomp Gun reboot. Um or sequel What was the fourth one you mentioned? It was Calladega Knights. Come on now.
Obviously, now first and last. It's good. It's good. I mean, I'm really surprised because Manny is a man who knows a lot. I can't believe he didn't say Herbie the Love Bug.
It's not a. I mean, it exactly is. Tell you raced. Is it Talladega Knights is a comedy? It's not really a racing movie.
It's about racers in a comedy, you know what I mean? Sure, for sure. In the same way that Die Hard's a Christmas movie. I love Rich when he goes there. Yeah, I just went there.
I love when Rich does it. White Howard is coming up to talk about NBA and his beatdown on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. Mm-hmm.
