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Now, on with the show. Oh my god, you guys are my favorites. This is the Rich Eisen Show. The one and only. Rich Eisen.
I know what I'm talking about. That's the headline. The Rich Eisen Show. With guest host, Brian Weber. I mean, honestly, he's brilliant.
Brian Weber. I've got a long resume. Google me. It saves time. From the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles.
And now, sitting in for Rich. It's Ryan Weber. Welcome to the program. Always an honor to keep the chair warm for Mr. Eisen and the crew.
It is the day after for American soccer. We've got all the fallout from what went down last night in Seattle. A convincing and comprehensive Win by Belgium dismantling United States, knocking us. And yes, I'll go with that. Framing today.
USA, USA, USA as a proud American, although. I had my doubts heading into last night's matchup as to who would prevail. And the better team won. It's just that simple, as the U.S. was outplayed in every major aspect of the match.
Because of the magnitude of that game, we're going to add a bonus third guest. I know. You right now are saying, wait a minute, fill in guy. I've had a deal with you, not once, not twice, many times over the months. You always.
Force me to endure the sound of your voice for the entire first hour. But because the World Cup only rolls around every four years, we're going to take you in a new direction. And this is a worthwhile endeavor because in 20 minutes after I finish. Giving you my takeaways of what happened last night in the Emerald City. We'll get expert analysis from Danny Higginbottom.
Former Premier League and MLS defender. You've heard him call World Cup games in this tournament for Fox. Second hour, we'll get to the NBA. In 40 minutes, I'll address what Brad Stevens said yesterday, trying to explain. Why he made the decision to trade Jalen Brown did not come up with a great justification for how little he got in return.
We will back that up in the second hour when we're joined by Dan Devont, who covers the Association for Yahoo Sports, and because college football. Is second only to the NFL in popularity. That's just a fact. Take that for data. The Big Twelve Kicking off their media days plural in Texas with live coverage on ESPN 2.
That to me is a signal I can start talking college football, and I'm going to follow that into an in-depth conversation in the third hour of the program with Stuart Mandel, who follows things on campus for the athletic. The phone number is iconic 844-204-Rich. But because of the bonus guest and all we have to cover today, I want to be fully transparent with you. Unlike FIFA, if you want to chime in, the best way to get involved is to hit me up on the X platform, B.W. Weber, Weber with Two B's.
Because this is vacation season and it's a tradition unlike any other for me to have the opportunity to fill in for Rich, Brian Weber, with you on this Tuesday edition of the Rich Eisen Show. You've heard me talk a lot of soccer. If, in fact, you've stayed with me every step of the way, and perhaps that's optimistic from where I'm sitting. My outlook prior to the start of the World Cup was pretty simple. Based on the overall talent level of Team USA, The experience for the players coming back from The World Cup squad four years ago that competed in Qatar, and with the massive advantage of playing on home soil.
They had to reach at least the quarterfinals, in my view, for this to be called a success.
Now, Here's the problem. not only in Sports Talk Radio, but in life these days. We forget the two things can be equally true. Just because I don't think it was entirely successful. for the national team to fall short of reaching the quarters as they did in two thousand two when Landon Donovan was the star and Bruce Arena was the head coach.
It doesn't mean it was a failure.
So I'm going to do my best to have context. And offer Some clarity because I tried to stay away from social media last night until about midway through the first half, just to organize my own thoughts. And when I logged on, no surprise, you United States sucks. We don't belong in the sport. What are we doing?
Why can't you pick up the soccer ball and throw it like a football? I'm going to try to avoid the obvious and mundane. And before I give you. The particulars that stood out to me let us hear from American head coach Mauricio Pochitino last night after his team's World Cup run came to an end against Belgium. From the beginning we didn't connect with the game.
We never were on the game. Even when we score and we scored the f the goal, 1-1, we considered the next action. It was really tough from the beginning to congratulate Beth June. They were better than us. I think it was our day.
That is not to find excuses or not to find argument because we didn't show what normally we that team can show and that that is that is a reality. Mauricio telling it like it is, undeniably Belgium was a better team, a more complete team, a more experienced team. And I didn't want to get bogged down in the weeds heading into the match yesterday because The World Cup is a different dynamic. But if you care about the history between our nations prior to last night, and perhaps it was for shadowing of what occurred. Go back to the friendly in Atlanta.
Yes, that's meaningless, but it does give you a sense of how teams match up and our biggest names played. And we'll get to quote-unquote Captain America, Christian Pulissic, momentarily. United States got blown out in that friendly in Georgia in the spring 5-2, part of a remarkable run by Belgium that people weren't talking enough about, I think, obviously in retrospect. They came into last night's match having been unbeaten in 17 straight, reflecting a team that has been together in international competition for a long time. Go back eight years ago in the World Cup.
They made it all the way to the semis and finished in third place.
So Belgium is good. Full stop.
Now the United States Could have played better, in my estimation, had they handled the early action better. It seemed like they got overwhelmed by the magnitude of the moment because if you watched, and I'm going to presume you did, and we'll wait for the ratings, and one quick aside about ratings. And I'm going to self-report. I use it too much as a crutch because at least it's an indication of popularity and mass appeal. But now the ratings are so differently measured than they were even five years ago.
When you hear, oh my goodness, it's the biggest event since 20 years ago. It's apples to oranges. They're now counting sports bars the way they didn't in the past and streaming devices, et cetera. Having said that, When the ratings are announced, Last night's game, I think, will be the highest rated. Sporting event played on a Monday night ever, bigger than any Monday night football game, because of all of the hype, because of all the reasons to believe the United States would finally break through.
And it was clear within 10 minutes after that first offensive breakdown leading to the first goal, the U.S. was outclassed.
Now, it wasn't over. And you got to admire what Malik Tillman can do with a free kick, not once, but twice in this tournament, shining in that specialty.
So you figure: okay, level at one. As we say on the pitch, I got to empty the bucket with socket terminology because I'm not talking about it anymore after today. I'm Brian Weber. Trying my best to sound like a British announcer, not even close. Hop aboard on the X platform.
It is B.W. Weber, Weber with two B's. In 15 minutes, we'll bring in somebody who really knows what he's talking about. It is Danny Higginbottom, who spent 18 years in the Premier League and the MLS as a stellar defender.
So Things are tied at 1-1. Momentum is back on the side of the United States. Feels like the stadium is gonna come unmoored in Seattle. And just that quickly, before you could even settle down on your couch again. Just a couple minutes later.
Belgium has the response to one. Everything changes and you feel like, okay. The United States is in a decent position. Only to be down by a single goal because Just to be as candid as it can be, that thing could have been 3-1 or 4-1 as the final score was. You know what happened to Matt Freeze?
Even Harvard men can lose their minds. I do not know why he came out. Of the area that far. I think he had a brain freeze, and I'm not trying to go with the lame. Obvious pun there, but a clear miscalculation.
And the United States just had too Menti. Mental misuse against a team that they had a very small margin for error against, even with the gift. Presented by FIFA because we can't offer any excuses or alibis when. And I was being careful with how I was phrasing it. I kept saying our leading scorer, not our best player, because I wanted to be deferential to Christian Pulissic.
But let's change that. Our best player, undeniably, is Falauren Balogun. And he had that great opportunity. Latent regulation, Belgian Goaltenders stoned him. part of the overall flow of that match.
Every time it felt like the U. S. had a glimmer of hope, Belgium was equal to the challenge. You gotta believe, as we're all going to be amateur psychologists now, that Belgium had the added motivation of FIFA's. Justifiable decision because the red card was ludicrous, but horrendous process at arriving at that decision to put Balogan back on the field.
Because remember, Belgium had the disadvantage of training all week until Sunday when FIFA went FIFA. And again, I just want to make sure I'm clear in stating I agree with the outcome. Because the red card should never have been levied.
However, because Because everything FIFA does is so murky. And integrity challenged, I'll be kind. You can say corrupt, that's fair. How many lawsuits and how many federal indictments has FIFA faced over the years?
However you want to categorize it, FIFA's slow playing. And handling of that decision with intervention from the White House was just flat out wrong. But it did give the United States the lift of having our best player out there, and it didn't matter at all. And you gotta believe, as you saw with the celebration from the Belgian side, that they used that decision feeling like everything had been Turned against them and they got screwed as one more catalyst on their way to that 4-1 beatdown. I'll get to Detailed thoughts about Pulisic coming up when we're joined by Danny Higginbottom.
But if you follow the sport, and I'm not saying he's Freddy Gadu, he's a much more skilled player. The issue with Polistic, unfortunately, has been injuries in high-level situations and. not making his presence felt When he's been needed the most. And perhaps you give him a little bit of an asterisk last night because he got banged up again. Still.
If you are being framed as the face of American soccer. And you are considered to be the most skilled player we have ever produced. You gotta show up in the World Cup. And by that, I mean, you gotta score at least a single goal. And he didn't come up with the nickname Captain America, and he's not the one who amped up the expectations.
But when you have a country relying on you, and when you get the benefit. Of all of that hype. You gotta show up. Because that's what stars do in any sport.
So. We'll wind down my thoughts. I got a lot more to get to. We're going to hit on soccer once an hour, but we're not going to overwhelm you with. Too much fluff that you don't care about.
If you got a thought, Other than what you're doing on Twitter, and I'll respond to some of those coming up. BW Weber, Weber with Two B's. The phone number hasn't changed. 844-204-RICH. Straight ahead.
We'll maintain our momentum on the pitch. How did a former pro soccer player view how things came together as Belgium applied that beatdown on Team USA last night? Looking forward to getting analysis from Danny Higginbottom. You've heard him on Fox Sports calling World Cup games. You catch him on the MLS coverage on Apple TV, and he played 18 years of the highest levels across the world, the Premier League.
And MLS here in the States. Just getting warmed up on a very busy Tuesday, always a blast to sit in for Rich. My name is Brian Weber. This is The Rich Eisen Show. O'Reilly Auto Parts can help take the guesswork out of your vehicles, check engine, ABS, or maintenance light with O'Reilly Veriscan.
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Weber back with you. It is always a delight to fill in for Mr. Eisen, the Rich Eisen Show, here on ESPM Radio. Hope you're enjoying what you've heard so far on your local ESPM radio affiliate, the great ESPM Radio app, SiriusXM Channel 80, or tune in. Coming up in 30 minutes, we'll make the move to the NBA.
Brad Stevens met with the media yesterday in Boston trying to explain his reasoning for trading Jalen Brown. We'll hear from the president of the Celtics then. But first, Let's continue focusing on the beautiful game. It is an absolute delight to say hello to Danny Higginbottom. You've heard him on Fox Sports calling World Cup games.
I enjoy him all the time with the MLS coverage on Apple TV. Former defender, played 18 pro seasons in the Premier League and MLS. Danny, Brian Weber, with you. Thanks so much for taking the time. How are you?
I am very well. Thank you, Brian. How are you? It is my pleasure. I am doing well, although, like many Americans, I am crestfallen.
However, I can't. Can't say I'm surprised because I follow soccer more than most mainstream talk show hosts do.
So I had a good sense of how good Belgium is, and even casual fans could just look at the rankings and see they've been entrenched in the FIFA top 10 rankings for a long time. What were your expectations coming in? And what were your biggest takeaways from how things played out last night in Seattle? I think obviously the expectations going into the game, you wanted the US to give a good account of themselves because it had been a good World Cup. But I think what had happened is you play a certain amount of games and they dominated those games.
And all of a sudden, it's a different level when you go and play against a team like Belgium. And Yeah. You have to be fair and say that Belgium didn't necessarily start with their best players. They had a really good game plan, which, in my opinion, was to match the energy of the US. and then bring the likes of Doku, the likes of Lukaku, the likes of De Bruno.
If De Bruyne was needed, he wasn't needed in the end of in the end of the game. And also they lost a big player in Onana as well early on in the game.
So that should have given the US sort of the opportunity to try and take advantage of that, but they weren't able to. And the goals that they conceded were really poor goals, the manner in which they conceded the goals, so they didn't help themselves. And when you're playing against a team like Belgium, the last thing you want to do is sort of give it give them a head start and give them easy goals.
So the frustration was there, but I think with Belgium, I think they understood that They they allowed the US to have the ball, they allowed the US to dominate possession because the more that the US dominate the ball, the more open they become. Because everybody's spoken about the performances in the World Cup from the US, you know, how they've been very good on the ball, they've been efficient, they've put chances away and they've played really well going forward, but nobody's really spoken that much about how good the US have been off the ball in terms of their pressing. That was non-existent last night, and that was a major, major problem for the US. They got dominated in the midfield area and all the areas where Belgium needed to be sort of the aggressor, they were. And I think what you saw yesterday was okay, it was a poor performance from the US, but what I think you also saw was the gap between the US and a nation like Belgium when it comes to football.
And there is still a gap there. And I think the frustration probably comes from the fact that the US didn't play well. But you can also flip that over and say, well, Belgium didn't allow the US to play well. And it was a good performance from Belgium, just a really poor performance from the US. And you need your big players to turn up in big games.
And I personally don't think that the big plays for the U.S. turned up yesterday when it was needed. And that'll get me to Captain America momentarily. It's the Rich Eisen Show. We're talking World Cup with Danny Higginbotten.
You've enjoyed him on the Fox sports coverage of the World Cup. You can see him all season long with MLS broadcasts on Apple TV. Danny, no, and I was being a little bit tug-in-cheek when I said Captain America. Nobody thinks that Christian Pulissic came up with that nickname. Nobody thinks that he said, I need to be the face of American soccer.
However, you know, when you're a star, there's a burden of expectations.
So, how would you sum up his performance in this tournament overall with the context that's important of the injuries? Yes. And I think that's what you have to do first and foremost. He wasn't able to get any rhythm because of the injuries that he had, which obviously made him miss a game and then he went off injured yesterday as well. But when you're looking at big players from the big nations and it doesn't matter who that is, They stepped in the big games.
And that's what's needed. And in order for the US to go through yesterday, that's exactly what they needed. They needed their big players to step up. And for the US, unfortunately, they didn't. And I'm not putting them in the same bracket, but you look at the previous night, England go to Mexico and the expectations there that Mexico can sort of Be England because of the circumstances, because of the altitude, and what have you.
all of a sudden at the end of the game we're talking about Harry Kane and we're talking about Jude Bellingham. Two players that stepped up, and that's what you need to do when you have these. When you have these elite players, And when you look at a player like Pulisich, that's that's the category that he's been put in. He's been put in this this category of being A wonderful player, an excellent talent, probably the US's biggest talent. And I think it's fair to say that.
But in those big moments, the big players need to turn up. And that's what separates the good from the great. And we can talk about all the different performances throughout the years from players from specific nations where you look back at that specific game and it's like, yes, I remember that player. He grabbed the game by the scruff of its neck, and took the team where it needed to go. And that hasn't been That hasn't been sort of prevalent for for politicians I don't think in this tournament.
And he cut a frustrated figure really early on, I thought, yesterday in the game. And there was really no bright spots from him where you're thinking, right, okay, this is the guy that can maybe get us back into this game. This is the guy that can get us off to a good start.
So that'd be frustrating for him. There's no question about it. He's a talented player. But in the big moments, the big players need to turn up. And obviously, you take into account the injuries that he's had and things like that.
But he didn't step up yesterday. And players like him, when you're playing against a team that are better than you, you need your top, top players to be right at the top of their game. And if you don't and if you if that doesn't happen, then the likelihood is you're not going to get a favorable result. Fox Sports Soccer Analyst, you also see him on Apple T V. Danny Higginbottom is our guest.
It's the Rich Eisen Show on ESPN Radio. Danny, with your international perspective coupled with spending many years as a player and now a fine broadcaster in the American sports scene, what was your reaction on Sunday to FIFA's decision to suspend Balgan's red card, allowing him to play last night? Yes, I think obviously, that caused a sense of frustration, obviously, I'm sure, to a number of people, because he gets his red card, then it's sort of suspended and he's allowed to play. I think I look at it I try not to, if possible, get into that side of things. For me, it's like yesterday when people asked me about it.
I looked at it because you had a number of players and you had a number of people saying that, okay, Balagoon can play, but within within the keeping of the game, in the spirit of the game, he shouldn't play. I couldn't disagree more with that. He was available to play, so you play him. What happened happened, and obviously it does taint the way that people will look at the World Cup. And you've seen on social media the amount of people saying that this isn't right.
He got sent off, so he should have to serve the ban. I'm one of these people that's like, listen, we don't make the decisions. I don't make the decisions. It was at the point where he was found available to play.
So for me, it would have been a mistake if he didn't play. He was right to play. Obviously, you know, it didn't change the result or anything that happened. Belgium went through. Obviously, Belgium were frustrated, and I can understand their frustrations because all of a sudden you've got a player that's.
Originally suspended.
Now he comes out of it and is able to play.
Now, what you have to be mindful of in the rest of this tournament. is that if that happens for another nation, Where there's a red card, those teams are now going to complain. Those teams are now going to say, well, that shouldn't have been a red card.
So basically, you sort of create this. This, also, I'm trying to get that. And that'll alter things moving forward, as you said. Exactly. Exactly.
So that's where you have to be very, very mindful of now, because you've set a precedent. And that means that all of the teams can sort of follow that.
So for example, England had a play cent off against Mexico in Kwanzaa, and now you can imagine that England are going to appeal that. And they're going to want to know why that appeal or whatever it is isn't successful if the US is not successful.
Now, the red card at the town. I d And this is where you have to look at the referee in this tournament. The referee Majority of the time has, I think, has been excellent. We've gone back probably a decade or so where. People have realized that it's a contact sport.
People referees have allowed the game to flow on what would have been given as fouls. in the last year or so have not been.
So in keeping with the World Cup, I think if this was a tournament a year ago, I think it's a red card for Balagan. But I think with the way that the tournament has been refereed and some of the challenges that we've seen being let go, That wasn't a red card.
So that's sort of the precedent that was set from that perspective as well.
Now you allow him to play.
Well, that, as they say, would open up a can of worms now for all of the nations to say, well, hang on a second, we don't think that this was a red card.
So it it creates a little bit of a problem now for the rest of the tournament.
So it would be interesting to see how that sort of plays out as well. Yeah. I'm Brian Weber sitting in for Rich Isen. We are sifting through the fallout of the United States losing to Belgium last night in the World Cup. Excellent analysis being provided by Danny Higginbottom.
You caught him on Fox Sports calling World Cup games. You see him all season long on the MLS on Apple TV. Danny, would you characterize what the United States achieved in this World Cup as a success? Oof. No, I think they got where they were supposed to where they was where they were supposed to get to before the tournament when people asked me people asked me my opinion.
I said yes, the round of sixteen.
So they haven't sort of Whatever people may say, and obviously this is purely my opinion, they've not exceeded expectations. They haven't. They have probably got to the point where I thought they were going to get to. If they'd have got through the game yesterday, then you start to get to the point where you're exceeding expectations. But the US, like from from my perspective, having lived over here six years now, I believe that the game is growing magnificently and it's great to see that.
And I've seen that year upon year. But I do believe when I look at the US men's national team, There should be There should be greater progression. Because there are some There are some wonderful players. I just believe that when you look at and the only comparison that I have is the country that I came from, in England, football is the be all and end all. Football is not the be all and end all over here, and I understand that fully.
But I still think there are ways to go yet which can enable the growth of sport in this country. And I think it starts at a younger age.
Now you can we can talk for the next two hours about my opinion on where I think it does go wrong to a certain extent. because if you look at England and if you look at the majority of you look at a lot of the countries that are successful within world football, whether it be European nations, whether it be South American nations, whether it be African nations, Football is the cheapest sport to play. Great point. That's not the case in the United States, as anybody who's dealt with youth soccer knows. Yes, and I got into over the last year or so 'cause I coach my I coach my youngest son's team.
Now I know for a fact If I was brought up in America. I wouldn't have been able to play football. My parents didn't have the ability to be able to pay that money. And when I first moved over in my son, started playing for the local team and I would speak to some of my friends and tell them the prices of it. They'd laugh at me and I was like, what?
They were like, that's nothing that you're paying.
So for me that has to be, like I say, I'm not the decision maker. This is me from the outside looking in, coming from another country and experienced other countries in Europe where football is the be all and end all and where the absolute best players will always prosper. It's because it's affordable. And I think what you see over here they are bringing through some outstanding players. But I also think there are players that miss out because of the amount of money that it costs to be able to play football at a young age.
Whereas you look in the other nations, the nations that are successful with football, what it costs them to play football. is so, so much cheaper.
So nobody misses out.
So what you find is You hope it doesn't happen, but somewhere along the way you're going to be missing out. in my opinion, on some unbelievable talent. Because Of what it costs to play the game.
Now, people will disagree with me, and that's absolutely fine. This is my opinion based on having grown up in a country. which football is the be all and end all, but it is the cheapest sport to play.
Well said. I really appreciate that perspective. Danny, I love broadcasting as much as I love sports, so I'm a very lucky guy to have this as a job. And I say that because I really appreciate what you bring to every broadcast, whether it's on Fox or MOS and Apple TV. I appreciate you taking the time, and thanks so much for joining us today on the Rich Eisen Show.
You're welcome, Brian. Thank you very much. Take care. My pleasure. Excellent analysis provided by someone who has played the beautiful game at the highest level, Dan Higginbotten.
Talking about his Roots in the UK. played in the premiership and came here to the states. To wrap up his career in Major League Soccer, and that's a whole separate conversation. And let me be transparent. I'm not going to lecture anybody about youth sports 'cause I don't have kids.
Now, it's a whole separate argument about living a very self-involved life, but perhaps it makes me more compelling on the radio. But I have friends, believe it or not. I know the bit that has some truth to it, is I have no life. And everybody I know with kids who play soccer, their biggest gripe to me is, and I'll give you a local example here in Southern California. I'm Brian Weber, Infor Rich.
You can be a part of the show 844204-Rich. Hey, what are you doing this weekend?
Well, I got to pack up the car and drive my kid to Fresno, 150 miles away, for a soccer tournament. Oh, and oh, by the way, there's the entry fee and the hotel. And we got him a trainer on the side because he's got to be the next Pulisic.
So that's a whole different economic component to this. But. I think we know. What the obstacle traditionally has been for the United States to take the next step and be a consistent quarterfinalist, or dare I say, even compete for a World Cup title? And I will not bury you with the nugget that in 1930 the United States made it to the semis in the World Cup.
That is immaterial this conversation. It's not our national priority. But here's my pushback. We have more than 300 million people. in our country.
We can walk. And chew gum at the same time. We can do a lot of things at a very high level. And my frustration, and here's now where I. Show up in the hot tub time machine because if I'm talking soccer, I got to mention I saw Pele in 1977.
Yes, I'm going to beat that into the ground, but it's been nearly 40%. Fifty years since then. And I can understand the frustration.
Now I'm just speaking for a casual fan. Why are we, quote unquote, not better? I get it. And the answer is In most of the world, soccer is tantamount to religion. It is part of the DNA of the culture.
I was lucky enough. Last time I took a vacation in 1998, I'm not kidding. Because your best ability is availability. I was lucky enough to be in Italy during the World Cup when they won it, and that is a lifetime ago because they haven't even qualified in recent World Cups, to be a part of that scene. And to sense what that victory meant to that nation gave me a far better.
Understanding of what soccer is around the world. It's not ever going to be that here, I don't think. But incremental progress is a reasonable expectation. As we wind down with the soccer analysis here, and we'll get back to it in just over 20 minutes to start with the first touch of hour number two. I think Danny also framed things in a proper perspective.
Anybody who thought Palistic was going to be, and this is outrageously unfair. Harry Kane. Look, there's only one Messi, and Messi's a god, but you see Mbappe, or you even see Holland of Norway, Erling, and I hate to be this. Basic, but the guy looks like Thor out there with the Wavy hair, and he's just knocking dudes over, and he's nailing shots from. Thirty feet out.
Belisick never had that frame, obviously, as he grows into his body. And also, I don't know if he has that mindset. The talent is there. But you are what you consistently do. Injuries aside, he has yet to deliver.
When the whole world has been watching, and his nation has been counting on him in World Cup play. All right, if you don't love soccer, I appreciate you hanging in there. We'll get to the NBA straight ahead. Always looking for your interaction on the X platform. It is BW Weber, Weber with two B's.
As mentioned yesterday, Celtic president Brad Stevens went before the microphones explaining why he made the decision to trade Jalen Brown. How should Celtics fans feel about his rationale? All that more coming up as we roll on in this jam-packed first hour of the program. I'm Brian and for Rich. This is The Rich Eisen Show.
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So grab a bag of Lays and jump on the bandwagon. We're undefeated. Lays, the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026. The Rich Heisen Show, the podcast. Weber back with you.
Tuesday, installment of The Rich Eyes and Show, 844-204-RICH, 844-204-7424. The number of the call. You can have at it on social media. B.W. Weber, Weber with two B's is the handle on the X platform.
We are cruising through the first hour, meaning in less than 15 minutes as we ease into hour number two of the program back to. The takeaways and analysis of that lopsided result last night in Seattle as Belgium dictated the terms against the United States. Not a major surprise. My question would be, and I'll throw it out to you on the X platform: were you disappointed in the lack of mental composure displayed by the United States after they had shown so much poise throughout the tournament? Too many unforced errors.
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So, get down to your local Hyundai dealer and get away with the deal you'll love during the Hyundai Getaway Sales event. Visit HyundaiUSA.com for details. Had the content gods not smiled upon us, With all of the World Cup to discuss. By now you would be even more tired of the sound of my voice, because I love the NBA more the NFL. Shh.
And I always use this platform during this week whenever I'm lucky enough to fill in for Rich or a couple other shows that I dabble in. To be as comprehensive as I can when it comes to the NBA.
Now, in fairness, this league that I love has killed free agency, and now. And I went to business school a million years ago. And I don't even like math. If I'm doing your taxes, we're both going to jail. The problem with the NBA, this new collective bargaining agreement, is all about trying to make salary slots work and cash flow and net present value and things that even a nerd like me Just does not want to talk about.
That's the setup for, and we'll expand upon this momentarily: what Brad Stevens had to say yesterday when he met with the meeting in Boston, explaining. His decision to trade Jalen Brown. That is a hard thing to trade a guy. That you, first of all, care so much about, but secondly, have so much respect and admiration for. to a team that just beat you in the playoffs.
and that you're going to literally play six times before the playoffs next year with our two preseason games. But I do think that ultimately When you do a deal, you have to be thinking about you first and the optionality it creates for you. If I was being honest. If that exact deal came from a team out west and you were comparing the two, then you'd probably take the team out west. But that's not.
the way it was working. Oh my goodness, I'm having a flashback, cold sweat to sitting in a finance class. Wasting money, lighting buckets of money on fire to go to graduate school 20 years ago. Optionality, and look, I know I over enunciate anyway just to hide my New York accent, but I gotta say that word slowly because it does not roll off my tongue. Optionality.
And Brad Stevens is a brilliant guy. Let's just put that in plain English. Flexibility. Why? Because this new CBA, relatively new CBA, has put handcuffs on the owners by their own design because they could not control themselves not to overspend.
That's why, and I'm going to lay off the baseball for now, because I realize I get too wrapped up in the lockout's coming, the lockout's coming, you better enjoy baseball while it's here, and that I think In some ways, can overwhelm all the great things going on on the diamond right now. The Dodgers first team to 60 wins. Remember, when they went back-to-back World Series winners the last two years, they did not have 100 wins in the regular season. They're on pace to get to 105 this year, but Baseball was looking to put a cap in that sport because the owners Don't want the Dodgers to be able to spend whatever it takes to, in their perception, which I completely disagree with, buy championships. If you could buy a title, the Mets would have many of them.
And they've been sitting on nothing since 1986.
So. What was Stevens talking about with optionality? Given how the CBA works, if you have two Super Max players. You have no shot. It just is not.
work in terms of having The maneuverability now, as I try to be a biz school professor, having the flexibility, having the depth around those superstars, because then you get into that dreaded second apron and they're. Are moves you just can't make because of the restrictions that kick in.
So the minute the previous ownership decided to pay both Tatum and Brown, we knew. that the clock was ticking, ultimately one of them would have to go.
Now The reason Brown had to go now is Is because Stevens shopped him so very publicly in the Giannis weepstakes. And you can't argue with that because Giannis is an upgrade, even though he's been dealing with injuries, but he is a better and more well-rounded player than Jalen Brown, taking nothing away from Jalen. I'm a big fan of his skill set. And if you care about regular season MVP balloting, he came in sixth this year because he carried the Celtics in what was supposed to be a lost season without Jason Tatum. I think what Brown did indirectly hurt him.
Because Stevens can take a step back and say, well, Tatum. Can play the brown role. And if we're making a decision between these players, we're going to go with Tatum because He's a better hang. For lack of a better description, there's less maintenance, there's less friction internally because we've heard the reports for years that Brown perceived himself as the man and didn't like Either the lack of respect within the organization or how he was perceived, plus maybe he rubbed people the wrong way by having to express every opinion, whereas Tatum is a little bit more chill. What Stevens did not say, because he couldn't, was after the Giannis trade.
Didn't happen, and Giannis went to Miami. Nobody was going to give the Celtics anything of value for. Brown because he was a distressed asset. And I keep going back to the line that Sean Serrania, ESPN senior NBA insider, threw out last week on SportsCenter. The best the Celtics could do.
Was get 40 cents on the dollar. And they started by asking for five number one picks. They wanted the full Mikael Bridges, and they settled for two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and Paul George, who's 117 years old and makes a lot of money. This is not an opinion. This is factual.
The Clippers got more in return for Kawhi Leonard than the Celtics got for Jalen Brown, which makes no sense because Jalen Brown is younger and more impactful and more reliable. Guy shows up every night, but. Once it was clear the divorce was coming between Brown and the Celtics, there was no way Stevens could get maximum value back. I'm surprised, as he mentioned, the trade occurred in the division, but I don't think he had other choices, as he fully suggested. Letting us all know that a team from the Western Conference had called, he would have made the deal in that direction.
For Brown, He's in a very good situation now with the biggest if of them all. If Joel and B can stay healthy, but let's just put that aside. Brown plus Maxi plus Edgecombe and maybe LeBron. And we'll talk about this coming up next hour, 1:20 Eastern Time, when we focus on the NBA with Dan Devine of Yahoo Sports. No LeBron for the Sixers does not prevent them from making a run to the NBA Finals.
Putting LeBron in the mix.
Now I put them right next to the Knicks in terms of the pecking order in the East, but even without the King, Sixers have moved way up in the hierarchy. Remember, they haven't won anything since 1983. One hour down, two more hours coming up. We'll get back to the NBA, as mentioned, and more thoughts about what went wrong for the U.S. men's national team last night in Seattle.
My name is Brian Weber. It's always fun to spend time with you whenever I'm lucky enough to guest host right here on The Rich Eisen Show. The Ridge Eisen Show Podcast. Mm-hmm.
