Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Rich Eisen Show with guest host, Suzy Schuster from the Rich Eisen Show Studio in Los Angeles. The days of the dream team are never coming back.
This national team is more decorated. The difference is, everybody else has gotten better. Earlier on the show, NFL Network insider, Tom Pelissero. Coming up, senior NBA writer for the ringer, Howard Beck, ESPN reporter, Holly Rowe. CBS Sports NFL analyst, Amy Tres. And now, sitting in for Rich, it's Suzy Schuster. Hey everybody, our number two underway, Suzy Schuster in for my husband, Rich Eisen, giving him a little bit of a break today. He's taking a little time for himself, let's just say.
This is a good way to put it, don't you think Christopher Brockman? I mean, he's doing something that everyone in his age should do. Maybe in full transparency, he's making sure everything's okay inside. All the pipes are clean.
All the pipes are clean. He wants to be blood-fluous as the season starts, if you know what I mean. He's just excited for that propofol nap, TJ.
I'm not joking. I hate anything that has to do with going under. He thinks it's great. He's like, I'm going to take the best nap of my life. I don't like that, man. I hate it. It makes me crazy.
What if you don't wake up? That's exactly right. Can you imagine that Michael Jackson did that all the time? Really?
Yes. That's the whole thing. He liked the propofol. This is the Rich Eisen Show, guys. Breaking down training camps opened up as we go. We have now spent the last 20 minutes talking about Star Wars and about propofol.
Just what Rich was hoping for when he went under today. Hi, everybody. Thrilled to be with you as training camp opens. Howard Beck is going to join us momentarily.
He must be wondering, what the hell is she talking about? But he's known me for so long, so it wouldn't be that much of a surprise. Hi, Mikey. I didn't even mention you back there. Hi, Suze. It's easy to miss him. Suze, we've known each other a long time. You never have to mention me. But I always do.
You can. Exactly. Mike, she always defends you when we pick on you all the time. I remember when he screws up when I'm here just to roll us up.
And I'm like, what the hell are you doing over there, right? Anyway, Holly Rowe will join us ahead as well. And I'm thrilled to have her, Amy Trask from What the Football, coming to preview this season with me. But first, let's go to Howard Beck, please. And I wanted to bring Howard Beck in because not only because I've known him since the dawn of time, but also because, you know, who isn't thinking about talking about the NBA as the training camps open for the NFL?
But I thought it would be fun to have you over. How you doing, Howard? I'm great, Suze. Great to see you.
Good to be back with you. Very, very loosey-goosey show today. Can we talk about Paul George and what's happening with the Sixers? I'm going to roll a soundbite first, then have you react to it.
So let's roll it and we'll hear from Paul George sitting there with Daryl Morey. I'm looking forward to it. I mean, I'm looking forward to it, honestly.
At the end of the day, it's brotherly love, right? So, you know, I'm looking forward to it. I think pressure is good. I think intensity is good. And, you know, that's what you get up for. You know, you want the fans to be fired up. You want them to, you know, put that pressure on you to go out and perform and win games. That's our job. And so I'm looking forward to it, you know.
You know, be as critical and as hard as you can. I think it's going to work out for myself and for the team. And so I'm looking forward to that. You know, I'm not scared or shying away from that at any point, at any stage. That's what you look forward to. So my question for you, Howard Beck, is how does the story end? Mmm. Wow. Cut right to the chase. Well, listen, predictions are cheap and lame, and yet we do them in this industry all the time.
But usually only when someone forces me to. I don't want to predict anything, but I will just say, are the Sixers now a much better contender, stronger contender, better shot to win a championship than they were a few weeks ago before Paul George? Yes. This might be the best team they've had around Joel Embiid since he arrived and since he became this version of Joel Embiid, a guy who was a perennial MVP candidate and a guy who I know I know, when healthy, can elevate any team to contender. You know, they had a nice version of the Sixers a few years back when Ben Simmons was still a good player. And when Jimmy Butler was there and they made a bad decision, they kept Tobias Harris and let Jimmy Butler go.
And they just really haven't been able to get to the same height since. I think Paul George is the perfect fit. Like if you had drawn it up, you don't get to choose who free agents are going to be in a given summer. Right. When you have cap room or when you're trying to plan for your summer as an NBA team, as a GM, you can't just say, oh, ideally, we'd love to have this guy.
It doesn't work that way. But Paul George is actually the ideal fit between Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. And the Sixers are actually, you know, I think it's not even hyperbolic or controversial to say they're the big winners of the summer by getting Paul George. So, yes, now we go to the Paul George in his mid 30s.
Stay healthy. Can Joel Embiid, who has an injury history, stay healthy? If so, though, those two plus Maxey and a really nice supporting cast, a lot of whom were brought back from last season. I think it makes them, you know, at minimum, among the challengers to the Celtics in the East and probably the strongest challenger to the Celtics in the East, with all due respect to the Knicks and the Bucks and anyone else who wants to put themselves in that conversation.
And the Clippers, how are they feeling watching him walk away? I mean, I went through that building, by the way. That building is sensational. It is. Have you been in there yet?
No, no. Can't wait to see it. There is not a bad seat in the entire stadium. In fact, I went and sat in the very highest seat in the worst corner possible. And I would do anything to watch a game from there. I've never seen a building like it.
It's quite sensational. So how is it for the Clippers to watch him walking away and looking so happy and talking about brotherly love, et cetera? This is tough, right? You know, I will still say, and I know like on balance, on paper, that the record suggests that the Kawhi Leonard Paul George experience was a bust for the Clippers. That this was a failure. And I get that when you don't advance out of the first round, I think maybe more than once. When you don't get to the finals at all, when you don't win a championship after all that went with that, I get it.
Yes. As a basketball matter, you can say that the era was a failure, but I would say that we need to remember who the Clippers were for most of their history. Obviously, mostly in the Donald Sterling years, which were, in fact, Donald Sterling decades.
They were a laughingstock for a very long time. It changed during the Blake Griffin Paul, Chris Paul era. But up until 2019, no one had ever chosen the Clippers. Superstars were not choosing the Clippers. Kawhi Leonard choosing the Clippers and saying, I'm coming if you can get Paul George also, it's going to take a boatload of stuff to pull this off.
They did it. They became a destination. We look at the Clippers differently now. So it's a mixed bag, how we evaluate those five years. And for the Clippers themselves, I imagine, Susie, that it's kind of the same. They must have some really mixed feelings.
You know, they're far ahead in terms of their image and their profile. And now with this, as you just described, beautiful new arena opening up in the fall, they're in a much better place. And so they lost Paul George and they chose to lose him, frankly.
Let's be clear about it. You know, they could have kept him if they were willing to go the distance in terms of dollars and years. And L.A., Southern California, was home for him. It's one of the reasons he wanted to be there in the first place.
Losing him is not great, especially when you had the means to keep him. And it's the first time since Steve Ballmer took over that franchise that he has actually decided not to spend every last dollar it took. They made a choice.
And I get it. You know, it's tough being so heavily invested in two guys in their mid 30s, both with injury histories and given the results that they've had. But still, to be very, very clear, they have taken a step backwards in losing Paul George. They did a nice job in picking up some other pieces to supplement. But, you know, if they were a plausible contender before, I think they're now clearly no better than a second tier to third tier team in the West and the West is stacked. So I'm curious where they go from here. I think they left themselves some flexibility by not resigning Paul George, by not going into the so-called second apron, by not just tying themselves up for years in two guys who were in their, you know, not even late primes, they're in their Twilights potentially. So they've made the right move on some level as a pragmatic matter.
But where they go from here, how they pivot over the next couple of years is what I'm curious about. Needless to say, I did not see a Chris Kamen jersey hanging from the rafters in the Intuit Dome. I wanted to put that to rest.
Just saying. What are you hearing about LeBron? Like, you know, obviously he's putting on a clinic with the Olympics and the guys are traveling from England to Paris today. What are you hearing about him Laker-wise before we talk about the Olympics? Yeah, I mean, listen, first of all, just LeBron continuing to just be an absolute marvel of an athletic being at 39, 40 later this year. And he's the best player out there, it seems, on the U.S. Olympic men's basketball team. So just incredible to watch every time. It's like, oh, yeah, yeah, still him.
Yep, still the best guy out there. And there's a ton of talent on that roster. And, you know, hopefully they get Kevin Durant back soon. But LeBron and the Lakers, man, what a comedown it's going to be for LeBron.
It is for anybody, to be fair. But coming from the Olympic team where he's going to be surrounded by all this talent, including his teammate Anthony Davis, to go back to a Laker roster that is basically 99 percent the same. And part of the 1 percent that's not is, of course, his son, Bronny. But Bronny's not changing the Lakers fate. This is a 47-win team that didn't make a significant move other than go from Darvin Ham to J.J. Redick as coach. I don't quite understand the Lakers' offseason. I don't understand the Lakers' offseason at all. And look, they tried to make some moves. They couldn't get Klay Thompson. They didn't get DeMar DeRozan.
I'm just still sitting here waiting, Susie. Here we are in late July and it feels like the offseason is largely over. Most of the free agents have signed. There's still room for teams to make moves and try to figure out how to maneuver under the aprons.
But are the Lakers done? Howard, why is Rob Palenka still there? Because Rob Palenka is Jeannie Buss' choice. From the very beginning when she cleaned house years ago and got rid of Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss, she went for the people who she knew best and trusted the most due to long-standing relationships. And that was Magic and Rob Palenka. And obviously there were issues and Magic eventually left and then it just became Rob Palenka.
There are drawbacks to deciding to stick with just the people you know and trust as opposed to trying to find the best solution. And I'm not saying that Rob Palenka is not capable of doing the job. But I think the track record over the last several years, a championship notwithstanding, and I know it's a very large notwithstanding to throw in there, but that championship notwithstanding, I don't think the track record has been all that great. And I think Laker fans would be the first to say, yeah, they're not particularly happy with where they are. I mean, you're in Southern California.
I'm not. I imagine there's a great deal of discontent. Like, you look at where they are and you look at the roster now, largely unchanged. How is this team getting past Oklahoma or Dallas or Denver or Minnesota? They're kind of in a range with, I mean, they could be leapfrogged by the Pelicans who picked up DeJounte Murray and I think probably have a Brandon Ingram trade to come at some point. The Grizzlies are going to be healthy. They're probably going to leapfrog the Lakers.
So, like, I would just ask this question more or less rhetorically, Susie. Are the Lakers even trying to win another championship with LeBron James on the roster? Because I don't think it's clear that they are.
Yeah, I don't think that you're wrong. I mean, it seems to me, and you and I have obviously spent a lot of time covering that team, it's so radically different than it was when it was Shaq and Kobe and Phil and the hunger and the desire to win championships. And then in the second part of the three-peat, it just seems like, I know the conversation is always, who's the GM, LeBron or Rob?
But this is not the Dr. Bus kind of Lakers where you just wanted to kill yourself to get a championship. I don't have any doubt in my mind that Jeannie Bus, Rob Palenka, everybody in that organization want to win championships on principle. And I have zero doubts that LeBron James would love to get another ring or two before all is said and done.
And the clock is obviously ticking. He's already defied all odds, all precedent, all history. But one guy can't win. And you've seen Anthony Davis, and sometimes he's hurt, sometimes he's not. He's an incredible player, but you cannot win with age. You have to bring in younger blood and it doesn't always necessarily have to be related to you.
No. And then, listen, obviously, look, the Bronny James aspect of this, he's a project everybody knows that. I don't think anybody's expecting that the guy you were picking, 55th, whether it was Bronny or anybody else, was going to be the ultimate difference. They needed to make their splash in free agency slash trade market, and they've done nothing. They have done absolutely nothing to improve the roster. And just changing coaches is not going to get them from 47 wins and seventh in the West to suddenly top four in the West and in the mid-50s.
It's just not going to work that way. And, yeah, LeBron's another year older and Anthony Davis is another year older. And they had one of their better seasons together in terms of health this past season.
And history suggests you can't expect that every year. So where's the improvement coming from? D'Angelo Russell is who he is. Maybe there's an Austin Reeves leap. Maybe there's a Max Christie leap.
I don't think you're going to see some major Rui Hachimura leap at this stage. There's nobody else on the roster you look at and say that's the guy who's going to suddenly elevate them. So they needed more. They needed more firepower. They needed more help on the wing. They needed more defense.
They needed more shooting. This team is not built to contend. It wasn't built to contend last season, and they've done absolutely nothing to change that. So, yes, I do wonder as much as I know that institutionally or just almost genetically this franchise is predisposed to be championship or bust. Lakers exceptionalism is a thing, but their actions have not shown that this offseason. They've done absolutely nothing to indicate that they can or expect to compete for titles.
All right, Howard, enough talking about all these losers. Let's talk about the champs, okay? Celtics are bringing everybody back. They're paying a bajillion dollars. How are they going to make this work over the next couple of years with all the money they've signed and extended all these guys to? Yeah, now what Grossbeck is selling the team besides, that's far off.
I don't think we're going to see that right away. The Celtics are really well positioned in that, yeah, there's a second apron and all the stuff that goes with that and luxury taxes and all that goes with that, but the second apron is only really a problem if you need more talent. The Celtics, again, here we go with the when healthy, if healthy, and I know Porzingis is obviously going to be hurt to start the season or recovering to start the season, but when healthy, they've got everything they need.
They're fully stocked already. That's when you want to, if you're going to get locked up by this new second apron, do it after you've got a Tatum and a Brown and a Derek White and a Drew Holliday and a Horford and Porzingis and everybody else that they've got, they're good, they're good. They don't need to add anybody. They will be in trouble if they have any significant injuries, but that's basically true of everybody in this league. So they're not afraid of the luxury tax and all the extra financial penalties and I think most teams when given a chance to compete for championships in this league will say, you know what, as we saw with the Warriors, we'll spend the extra 20, 50, 200 million, whatever it requires.
The problem for today's teams that are contending at that level is the second apron then locks up all your ability to make roster moves, to acquire talent and all these other mechanisms start to disappear. But again, the Celtics already have everything they need. So as long as they stay healthy and whole, they're in great shape. They're going to be the favorites for sure going into next season. The Sixers will be right on their heels in the East. The Thunder will make a case for themselves and they've improved over the offseason.
There will be four or five teams probably at least capable of challenging the Celtics, but they're the clear favorites. He's Howard Beck of the Ringer. Thanks for talking Olympics with us.
I thought that was going to be an Olympics conversation because that's not going to happen. Howard, great talking to you. Nice to see you. You too, Susie. My best to Rich.
I will send it on. Thanks, Howard. See you, buddy. I mean, right? It's like Olympics time, so I thought maybe we'll talk about the Olympics then. And it's like, eh. Eh. Eh. Does anybody care?
Eh. I think we'll care once the games get here. It's not until the end of the week. There's some stuff going on right now, some rugby and soccer and what have you.
But I think once the games start. Those rugby guys are beasts. You are having a good time watching them this morning. I don't know what you're talking about. You're looking at female sideline reporters. Anyway, when we come back, that's Holly Rose speaking of speaking up.
Can't wait to have her coming up next right here on the Rich Eisen Show. We all know about the speed of sound, but have you ever thought about the sounds of speeding? If you drive over the speed limit, there are lots of different sounds that you might hear. Drive too fast and you could hear the sound of your vehicle crashing. The sound of ambulances and first responders desperately trying to free you from the wreckage. You could hear the beeps of a heart monitor. You could hear doctors and nurses in an emergency room as you're being treated for your injuries. You could hear the sound of worried family members in the hospital waiting room hoping to hear that you're okay.
You could even hear the sound of people crying at a funeral. Because if you drive over the speed limit, whether by a lot or by a little, you could do damage that's beyond repair. You could seriously injure yourself, or worse, you could hurt and even kill someone else. When you speed, you put everyone on the road in danger. One way or another, speeding catches up with you.
Paid for by NHTSA. Rich Eisen here for Sleep Number. They say opposites attract, and that's why the Sleep Number Smart Bed is the best bed for couples.
I can confirm exactly that. My sleep number setting is 60. My wife's is 70. It's just 10 numbers apart, but it is the world of difference.
You can choose what's right for you whenever you like. If you like a bed that feels firm but they want soft, Sleep Number does that. You want to sleep cooler while they like to feel warm, Sleep Number does that too.
You have to feel it to believe it. Find the bed that's perfect for both of you only at a Sleep Number store. J.D. Power ranks Sleep Number number one in customer satisfaction with mattresses purchased in store. And now, Sleep Number Smart Beds starting at $999. Prices higher in Alaska and Hawaii. For J.D.
Power 2023 award information, visit jdpower.com slash awards. Only at a Sleep Number store or sleepnumber.com. How many brothers do you have? Uh, three. Three? Yes. Are you the lone? I'm the second oldest, so I had some power. But you're the lone girl?
I'm the lone girl, yeah. Okay. Yeah. So I played a lot of sports growing up.
What'd you play? Soccer. Okay. Yeah. I played on all boys teams. Karate Kid.
She plays soccer. Oh yeah. I had to pretend to be bad in Karate Kid.
Right. I had to pretend. I didn't know what I was doing, but I was better than Ralph Macchio at soccer.
And probably a karate too. You put an old god damn to it. Of course I didn't train. I'm sure it would have been much better if I had trained. That wasn't part of your role. No it wasn't.
In the film. I could have kicked his ass. You could have swept the leg.
You could have done all that stuff. What was it like for you being a new actress in the world and getting to be in the Karate Kid right off the bat? What was that like for you, Elizabeth? Well I had been in the business for about five years before that, so it wasn't sort of this sudden experience. I was the Burger King girl. I did a lot of commercials.
Okay. I sort of slowly, slowly, slowly learned my way into it. So then you just showed up on the set of Karate Kid.
Did you have any idea how special that movie was when you were doing it? No. None.
None. I was worried. I thought it sounded a little strange. The Karate Kid. Yeah. And Ralph being Ralph. I didn't think that he would have any credibility as a karate expert. Wow. Ralph had no idea he was waking up today.
He's going to get thrown under an Elizabeth's huge bus. That's okay. I mean, hey, it is what it is. No, it was amazing though to see that movie actually stand the test of time. All my kids have watched it.
I love what it says about sports and about the relationship between Miyagi and Daniel is so beautiful. Right. So there's so much that's good about it. Welcome back to The Rich Eisen Show Radio Network. I'm sitting at The Rich Eisen Show desk furnished by Grainger with supplies and solutions for every industry. Grainger's got the right product for you.
Call clickgrainger.com or just stop by. Susie Schuster in for Rich Eisen. And when I book the show, I get to invite people I really want to talk to and pick their kids. And the best part of this was asking Holly Rowe to come on with me. I am so happy to see you, Holly from ESPN. Great to see you, friend.
How are you? I love your best mom ever plaque. I'm jealous. Well, thank you so much. I am the best mom ever. I know that you have a child too, but I can perhaps get you one for Mother's Day.
It's believe it or not, not the only one that they make. So I will. I love it.
I will in fact send you one. Holly, how are you? I am so great. I am just getting home from the WNBA All-Star game. That was absolutely epic. I can say it was maybe one of the best moments in WNBA history as far as the culmination of talent, all the excitement, all of the attention sold out arena and the ratings were out of this world, almost 4 million people at the peak viewership. So it was really cool. And then it was an incredible game with the All-Stars versus Team USA and it was competitive and exciting. Holly, what I love about this is that the world is catching on to the WNBA, obviously, because of Angel Race, because of Kaitlin Clark.
You've been covering it since its inception. You understand this game may be better than anybody else. So what has it been like having the world catch up to the talent and the excitement that you see all the time? Were you ever that little kid and you were like, hey, over here, I have something really cool that you can watch.
And nobody would come and see your cool thing. It feels a little bit like that. Like we have been screaming from the mountaintops about how talented, how deep, how great the WNBA is. And now there's because of some of these kids that went through college and had the NIL marketing, I think people are forgetting both Kaitlin Clark and Angel Reese, their games and their results were exciting, but they've also been marketed in a way that no college athletes ever have been before.
Major box brands getting behind them and marketing them while they're in college. So those eyeballs have translated over to the WNBA. Kaitlin Clark is must watch basketball right now, period. She is so exciting, her passing. And so it's been really fun because I think we're ushering in a lot of new fans and they're seeing that the product is phenomenal.
And I'll give you one example. So my little nephew, he's 10 years old, he's obsessed with Kaitlin Clark, but now he's also obsessed with Kelsey Mitchell because she plays with Kaitlin Clark on the Indiana Fever. And so that, you know, what is the saying, rising tide lifts all boats.
And I think that's what we're seeing in the W. Yeah. It was very cool when Rich and I were overseas in June, a cab driver asked us about Kaitlin Clark and now normally they'd want to talk about football, the NBA, what have you, but in halting a time, this guy's asking me about Kaitlin Clark, which I think was so exciting. Do you think that Team USA made a mistake, not including her and Angel Reese to go overseas? This is a hard question because at the outset, when they made that decision, I don't think it was a mistake. You know, Angel and Kaitlin were both coming off their college seasons.
They had not participated in any of the camps. People have to remember that there are training sessions and camps that lead up to the Olympics that Breanna Stewart and Asia Wilson and Brittany Griner, they're all participating in. And because they were still in college, Kaitlin and Angel did not have a chance to participate in any of those camps and start building that chemistry with Team USA.
So at the initial outset, I did not think it was a mistake. As I have watched Kaitlin Clark evolve in the WNBA, her passing is game changing. And I think, you know, if that decision was being made today, it could have been different.
But you know, it's hindsight is 20, 20. Kaitlin's playing great. I think she is one of the best passers in the WNBA right now as a rookie.
She just set the WNBA record with 19 assists in a game. But their players on Team USA are phenomenal. You know, when you talk about the decision, you have to ask, well, who would you have left off?
And that's where the decision was very difficult. Yeah, I mean, I'm sure that Breanna Stewart would love to have that conversation with you. The question is, though, is should the team have evolved? There seems to be, and this is from the outside looking in, so I want your take on this. It seems to have so much, there seems to be so much tension between the women that set the stage before and obviously, you know, Team USA has always rolled.
They've never lost in the Olympics. But is there, is there a perceived idea that there is tension between this younger class that's gotten so much more attention and the women that came before and set the stage for them? I honestly have not seen that in person. I know what social media likes to say, and how social media likes to blow everything up. But as I was watching Kaitlin Clark interact with Diana Taurasi and interact with Team USA, when I saw Angel Reese and Neko Ogumake, you know, high-fiving and interacting, I don't see that tension.
I do think that social media exacerbates that, so any little thing, you know, blows up. But I think one thing people are forgetting, this is competitive. You know, Kaitlin Clark is competing against these women. And for some reason, we expect women to be nice when they're being competitive.
And Drake has a great song, Susie, called Nice for What. And that's what I want to shout to the world of, it's supposed to be competitive. There is supposed to be tension with Kaitlin and other teams in the WNBA. So you know, Angel Reese has been very well accepted.
I think she's getting a lot of love from veterans. And I do think that that is something that social media has exacerbated. But I'm not seeing it in person, particularly the All-Star game where everybody was really getting along great. And it looked great. I mean, it looked like a serious NBA All-Star game environment where it just looked like I've never actually wanted to be at a game as much as I wanted to be at that one.
Of course, I was at visiting day in Maine, which is exactly the same thing. But you know, Holly, I just have loved seeing this develop. And the idea that women have to be so nice, I like how chippy it is. I like the fact these girls are standing there taking these fouls and going in hard. Who's your most exciting player to watch if you had to leave Kaitlin aside? Well, right now, the most the thing I'm the most excited about that I really think got lost during the All-Star weekend, because everybody's talking about Kaitlin Clark and Angel Reese playing together for the first time. And I think what got lost is that Breanna Stewart and Asia Wilson are playing together on Team USA. You know, these two are often pitted against each other because they are often the two finalists for MVP.
And so there's kind of this feeling of Asia and Stewie, you know, who's camper you in? And what I thought was really essential during the All-Star weekend, and then in their game yesterday against Germany, is that Breanna Stewart and Asia Wilson are the two best players in the world, period. And they are on the same team and how fortunate we are that we get to watch them play basketball. And they have combined, they've played two games now for Team USA, and they have combined for 86 points and 36 rebounds.
That is great basketball. And so to me, the Asia Stewie dynamic on Team USA is what I'm looking forward to for the Olympics. They don't play again until July 29, when they open the games with the team, Japan, that a lot of people in Team USA will tell you, Japan has given them the most difficult game in the last few years.
So this is a game for people to watch. But my eyes are squarely on Breanna Stewart and Asia Wilson, the two best players in the world, make no mistake. And I'll be curious to see Brittany Greiner get up there and put on her uniform and wear the USA. What will that be like as we watch her after what she went through her ordeal and rush to come back and put on that uniform?
Yeah, I think it's going to be very emotional. She did not play in their game yesterday against Germany, Brittany did not play, but I think number one, it's got to be a little terrifying and emotional for her to go overseas again. You know, she has not been to Europe since that ordeal in Russia, where she was wrongfully detained and held in a prison camp for over a year or close to a year. And I just read Brittany's book coming home so I could really get some insight onto what she's feeling.
And it's a lot of different things. You know, she is embarrassed. She does feel some shame because that was a mistake she made. But she is very excited to represent Team USA. She's proud to be an American, she's so grateful to President Biden, Kamala Harris and others who helped fight for her release. So I think it's going to be a really poignant moment when Brittany is representing the USA in the opening ceremony, and in that first game against Japan. Because if you've ever met Brittany Greiner, she is one of the most beloved figures in the WNBA.
She has the heart the size of America, she is a wonderful person. She did make a mistake, she's admitted to her mistake and apologized for it, but I'm looking forward to her getting back on the national stage and showcasing what she can do for Team USA. Holly Rowe joining us here on the Rich Eisen Show, Susie Shuster in for Rich. Back to the WNBA, because I can't stop talking about it. What are you most excited for as the women come back and head into the stretch?
Yeah, it's going to be really wild and frenetic. So the WNBA, the gold medal game is on August 11. And the WNBA starts up again, August 15. So all of these players, now there are a lot of WNBA players that will be playing in the Olympics, not just for Team USA. But there were three W players on Germany last night, Satu and Niara Saboli, Leoni Fibes, she plays for the Liberty. Megan Gustafson is playing for Spain, like there are WNBA players sprinkled through all of these rosters.
Australia has a lot of WNBA players in Ezzie Magbagore, who plays for Seattle. So I think it's going to be really exciting for WNBA fans to watch the Olympics, because there are so many W players who will be participating. But then the season kicks off again on August 15. It's going to be wild and frenetic. I will have a game in LA on the 15th, it's going to be like a really quick, all right, get back, get ready. And the second half of the season starts and then the playoffs will begin in October.
And so it's going to be frenetic and exciting. Oh, I mean, I can't even tell you that we get back in town from getting our kids on the 15th. They were going to a game that night. I mean, because we went to the Kaitlin Clark game here in LA with our daughter Taylor, who I told you is a 10-year-old Hooper. And it was, Richard will tell you, it was the most electric night I've had in, I still call it Staples Center, for so long. It was, I can't wait to see you when you come in town for that one.
I'm going to have to make this happen. Let's talk college football before you go. First of all, I can't even tell who's who and where they're going.
I mean, I'm so confused trying to figure out all of the different new conferences, but if we look at this new playoff schedule, who do you think will be the four teams that are in it? Yeah, it's really tough. Right. It's tough for me to tell right now because, you know, I'm just diving back into it myself, but I think that Alabama is a really interesting team. You know, you don't lose the greatest coach of all time in Nick Saban and just turn the page like it's normal. But I had a chance to cover Kalen DeBoer at Washington while they made that run to the national championship last season.
And I'm just telling you, this guy's a rock star and I absolutely love him. And initially Alabama had a lot of kids hit the transfer portal when Nick Saban retired, but they have started to pick up some steam in recruiting. So I'm really curious about Alabama.
I think that they are a team that can make some noise. And then, you know, Georgia, they have been recruiting so well under, under Kirby Smart, their quarterback returns. And so as you look at who can be good, I look at who has the most experience at quarterback. And right now that's Georgia. So I would say Georgia and Alabama are two of my favorites right now. And then Notre Dame is a sneaky third that I would put in that category because Riley Leonard, who's the quarterback at Duke last year, remember Duke got off to that great start. They were undefeated. I think they were six and O or seven and O until Riley Leonard got hurt. And he is now transferred to Notre Dame. So I'm really looking at fighting Irish. I get to cover their very first game, uh, Notre Dame at Texas A&M, and that is going to be epic.
Let me ask you this. Is it going to be a really long year for Rich for Michigan? I mean, how do we feel about the pickup from this and, uh, the follow-up will they beat Ohio state? Uh, yeah, it's okay.
So here's the thing. I really believe in their new coach. I loved him. Coach Brown is amazing. I think he's going to do a great job there, but that team lost a lot. So Blake Coram was the heart and soul of that team and anyone who watched the national championship, he absolutely dominated the line of scrimmage, ran the ball down Washington's throat. And so to lose both JJ McCarthy, the quarterback and the running back, like quorum is a big deal, but then they lost some of their key guys on defense.
So Michigan's going to have to reload, but I do think they've had a lot of excitement in recruiting. And I do believe in their new head coach a lot. He was their offensive coordinator last year called that great game. And he's the one who really established that line of scrimmage and that Michigan has to be tough upfront. They had the best line of scrimmage in the game last year. Their offensive line was the best line in the country, in my opinion. And so I do think Michigan will have that physical front and make a lot of noise, but you know, you brought up a good point. I do think Ohio state is a team to watch Ryan day.
They have fallen short against Michigan, obviously in the last few years, but I still think they're the most loaded team in the country right now. So, um, you know, those two teams actually can be playing for an opportunity to go to the playoffs come the end of the season. And one last thing, Susie, before we get off college football, I'm so excited for the college football playoff to expand. What that means is more fan base is more excitement. And I think there's going to be a lot more eyes and a lot more excitement around college football this year, because more people will be included in December in that expanded playoff. So I'm really excited. This is the most excited I've been for college football in a long, long time. Oh, I mean, you totally get it.
Holly. I mean, our house is paid for by the national football league, but I really loved covering college football. There's nothing quite as exhilarating as walking onto a campus game day through the hordes of people and the drunk students and the families watching, and then being there on the field with the, with the bands. I love it. So I think you have the greatest job in the world.
I really do. One quick story. So I was covering a game. This was Oklahoma at Tennessee when Baker Mayfield was just starting out as the first starting quarterback at Oklahoma. That game goes into overtime. Baker Mayfield runs it in to win the game and his legend is born. He goes on to win the Heisman trophy. And that night I drove through the night, um, got on a flight in Atlantic, went to the Denver Broncos opening season or opening game, uh, Peyton Manning's last year.
And I was looking around and I was like, I'm kind of bored right now. Like this atmosphere does not compare at all to what I experienced in Knoxville, Tennessee last night. So, um, the NFL is amazing. I think the play is the most exciting thing, but nothing can compare with the college football atmosphere.
No, it's the greatest. Holly. Great to see you. I'm so glad that you answered my call and hope to get you back on here on the rich guys and show very soon. Always love talking basketball with you. Thank you so much.
Love it. WNBA or bust. Holly really appreciate your time. You guys, there's nobody who knows more than Holly Rowe. She is a, she's an encyclopedia for the WNBA. And again, you guys, I mean, she was there when nobody else was listening and watching. And so she knows everything about every player.
And I love the fact that she is getting the attention that she deserves right now because she's bomb. But that's all I have to say about that. Agreed. Co-sign. Yeah. When we were at ABC and ESPN college football, we'd have these like three day, um, what's it called?
When you get together somewhere? Seminar. Yes. That'd be it.
Thank you. All those. And I'd say to her, like, how do you get that one to talk to you? And she said, well, how do you get that one to talk to you?
We would trade off some of the coaches that we have relationships with. My guy was Lloyd Carr, but anyway, that's just that, but I think she's fantastic. And we are going to go to that WNBA game because we can't get enough. It's kind of great. Let's take a break. When we come back, win loss, pet peeves, I got a power ranking for you people, baby.
But Oh, by the way, a lot of people on hold, we're going to take your calls. This kickoff time and believe podcasts are here to get you ready for the season. He wanted to change the culture and he wanted me to be a part of that with believe you get immediate reactions, gain previews and expert analysis from all 32 teams, plus all of your favorite college teams.
He's just rare in just about everything he does. Sideline to sideline, end zone to end zone. This was good for everybody. Just search believe that's B L E A V podcast. Wherever you listen. You told him about how you, you are the Bill Walsh of audio executives. You can't screw these up.
Your favorite catch phrase from the original predator. Go ahead. Here's one. If you please.
We can kill it. All right. That's number one. Here's number two. Okay. Okay. So what I'm going to do, I'm going to, I'm, I'm doing this blindfolded, wait a minute. Bill Walsh cannot have the volume up the bill Walsh of sound engineers, not have the volume up for the second.
This is not both. Well, of course. Can you go?
Oh, there's a method to his madness. Do you want to try one more time now? Okay, go ahead. Go ahead. Okay. We can kill it. Okay. If it bleeds, you can please.
We can kill it. Okay. Here's the next one. And here's the other one. Okay.
There's that one. Okay. Start bench cut.
All right. Get to the chopper gets cut because it's only an incidental line. And the only reason we remember it is because he's Austrian. If anybody else said choppers, it wouldn't have been a line. It wouldn't have been a line.
It's only because he's Austrian cut, cut. It's superfluous. We're going to bench. So what you're going to do is you're going to start if it bleeds, we can kill it because it, because it's a succinct line and it's done in a very naturalistic way.
It bleeds. Wow. We can kill it. Very well done. Now for everybody else who comes in here on the Rich Eisen show, we're going to show them. I'm setting the bar here.
We're going to show them this start bench cut because you have raised the bar, right here. We're going to edit out del tuvo. We're going to edit that out. Can you edit that out?
No, it's too good. Perfect. Susie Schuster back here on the Rich Eisen show. Have I mentioned that I'm the one that buys the tickets in the family guys? Have I mentioned that to you before? Rich makes it seem like it's him. Yo.
Who doesn't? Rich is always like, oh, I'm on game time and I'm looking for all the people. I'm the one on game time. You know, it's so stressful because you know, game time, guys, I'm the one on game time. I'm the one going on the app.
You download it. You can see where you're going to sit ahead of times when you're bringing your kids. You know where you're going to sit.
It won't be obstructed. You also know that you're going to save the most amount of money because when you have three kids times two adults, that's mucho dinero. So game time gets you the best deals. They've got flash deals, zone deals. It's just great. So when I need to go to a game and I go all the time, I go on game time, Rich doesn't do it. Come on. I'm the one.
The moms do it. Out of buying these tickets on game time, download the app, create an account and use the code rich for $20 off of your first purchase. Terms apply. Visit gametime.co for restrictions. Again, create that account. Redeem the code R I C H for $20 off of your first purchase. Download game time today.
Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. All right, Jack and Phoenix, let's do the win loss for the Green Bay Packers, please. Hi Jack. How are you? Good. How are you doing? I'm awesome.
Better to talk to you. How are you? Good. Everything's good. You ready to play this game? Yes, I'm ready. Okay.
Let's do it. Uh, week one at the Eagles starting off strong with the, uh, victory home for the Colts week two. That's another win at Tennessee Titans. Week three. Here's the thing.
I know the joke and I agree with rich. They're going to be a sleeper team. They're going to be a lot better than people think, but they're not better than the Packers. That's another win starting off three and oh, uh, week four Minnesota Vikings, uh, win as well. Week five at the Rams. Uh, that is going to be McVeigh's revenge.
That's a lot. Okay. Week six, Arizona Cardinals at home. Another win. Week seven, Houston Texans, uh, lost week eight Jacksonville Jaguars on the road back to back losses. Oh boy.
Detroit lions at home. I'm going to say a loss. No. Yeah.
Actually I'm going to go with a lot there too. Don't need the witness. I was leading the witness. No.
All right, fine. Bye. And then week 11 at the Chicago bears, uh, win as always, uh, week 12 home for the Niners. That is going to be a revenge game for us. I say that's a victory.
I like it. Uh, week 13 dolphins. That's the Thanksgiving day game.
Yeah. I'll say that's a, uh, I'll say that's a win. You're feeling really good about this. This is now on the road for the lions.
December 5th. Uh, we do, uh, we do a win there. Play well in Detroit, I guess like this at the Seattle Seahawks on the 15th week, 15 another win. Uh, week 16 saints Monday night, uh, that is a win. Week 17 at the Vikings, Justin Jefferson, flexing, sweeping them and finishing the season week 18 with the bears.
I'm going to say by that point, we're going to be resting and they're going to get their moral victory in their first win in like three, four years. Somebody count this up. One, two, I got 13 and four, but I might be off again. Two, three, four. I think you're right. Good counting.
TJ. Jack, do you have, you had to lose three in a row, right? One, two.
I do panic, but then they're going to turn it around. Yeah. Nicely done. Thank you, Jack. Ooh.
And efficiently done too. Thanks again for your time. Appreciate it. Uh, guys, rich is not the only one that can do a power ranking. I'll have you know, I know that you guys look forward to it. Now that he's become mr top 10 list, mr five list, man, mr list, the guy who hated list. Now he's got his own list for everything. So I thought it's not the only one that can come up with a list. So do we have some sound to roll here?
Power rankings, I'm not going to lie. Who did that? Snitch?
Who does that? That's fantastic. I love you.
You're my old, you're my bud. Thanks for that. Okay. What do we got?
Power rankings of my pet peeves. People. Oh wow. Okay. I got a lot of problems with you.
People can't wait. Number 10, slow Prius drivers, so annoying. It's always a Prius driver. You go so slow, slow. I got places to go. People always get out of the left lane in your Prius, then they go fast in the right lane. Pet peeve also rich likes to drive fast in the right, in the right lane drives me insane. Prius drivers get out of the way. I got places to go.
We're off to a good start. Number nine, people who leave cabinet doors open when they leave the room. I do that all the time. What, are you an animal? I do that all the time. This seems wildly personal. What are you insane?
I do that all the time. His name is on the coffee mug here. Not all of it.
I do love my husband very much. Number eight, whistling in cars. Who whistles in a car?
It's too small. Well, the music's playing. Whistling in a car. Not if it's another person.
If you're alone, you can do whatever the heck you want. If you're in a car with other people, very bad form. Don't whistle in a car. It's small. It's irritating.
If you're out in the field, whistle while you work, but don't whistle in a car. Number seven, who likes to get on planes the minute they announce boarding? Rich. It's so weird. Rich would get on it or before they can get you to sit on a plane for like 45 minutes.
Rich would get on the plane while they're assembling the bolts in the factory. And I'm always like, why do I want to go sit there so everyone can stare at me when they walk by? Right. Do you like how I just dropped that? That's great. Yeah.
We know, we know. So it's not like his seat's going anywhere. Like he's in one A or B. He can't take it. He cannot take it if the doors are open and he's not on. This is not rich. Let me just give you a preface.
This is not rich. Number six, people who chew with their mouth full or open. Close your mouth. I don't want to see your tuna sandwiches. It's disgusting. Close your mouth. What are you, an animal?
What are you, an animal? Is that, now that's directed at your kids? No, my kids, they have great, are you kidding?
I put them in the closet. Number five, people who are rude to bus boys or wait staff. Oh, that is big on my list. That makes me so angry. Yeah.
Agreed. I had a friend who used to be rude to them. I'd go to restaurants with her and guess what I don't do? You don't go to restaurants with her. I said, I can't do it. I've had people in my life like that for sure.
It's terrible. Like be, say thank you to everybody. Like the guy that's filling your water glass, say thank you because if he does it, by the way, this, this comes in later. Number four, noise polluters on planes. If you're on a plane, noise polluters, put on your earphones.
I don't want to hear your like kids like watching a video or see you're watching a game or you're seeing something like put on your earbuds. You know what I'm saying? It's rude.
It's rude dropping dirty clothes in front of the hamper and not in them. Again, very specific. Very, very specific. A certain person. I don't know what you're talking about today. I'm just saying, if there's a hamper, use it. Nope. Sarah Tiana, does he do it? Does that guy over there put them on the floor or in the hamper?
I have looked under that desk. It's disgusting. It's fine. It's clean.
Number two, this is a big one. People who smoke, who drop a lit cigarette on the floor or on the street and leave it there like it's trash. How is that not littering? I follow people. I'm like, can you excuse me? I've got my dog. Just stub it out. You put it in the trash can. You don't want to put something on fire.
I would rather have a fire than have my dog step on a lit and I follow my excuse me. Hi. You left something right there. That goes well. Number one. And it's like, I don't feel like it's that special, but people who don't say please and thank you, period.
It's called please and thank you for a reason. Do we have time for one more? Do you think we need one more? All right, we'll get one more. This is the daddy. Screaming red face, out of shape guys wearing other men's jerseys, berating the guys on the field for the lack of effort when they're sitting there with a hot dog in one hand and a pretzel in the other and a beer in between their legs.
And they're screaming. Very specific. Well, that covers a lot. The jersey's too small, buddy, and you don't play professional ball. So take it down a notch. Those are my pet peeve power rankings. Also, stop fighting at the stadium. Knock that off. You're just taking the attention away.
You too can do power rankings at home. Pet peeves are for everybody. But yeah, I mean, the guys wearing the jerseys and they're a Smedium.
Hi, Amy Trask. And they're wearing a Smedium, right? And they're complaining about the guys exerting effort on the court in front of them on the field.
Let's say you get off your ass and try it. Put down your hot dog. And I think that's come even more with gambling culture. Yeah. You couldn't make one more three pointer? I needed four more yards rushing.
That's because you dirty degenerate. You're about to gamble away your kid's tuition on whoever it was that's trying to go for three. The prop bets and all that stuff. Yeah, it's adequate.
You get your Smedium and you get out there and you try it. That's the other thing. It's like, I mean, we've talked about this before. I know you guys all love jerseys. TJ, I feel like you're more of a guy who wears a t-shirt and I love the fact that you wore Jerry West today.
That makes me feel so special because you all know how much I loved him so much. But the guys who wear the jerseys, usually it's like over like a t-shirt. It's never a good look. That's how Patrick Ewing did it.
So that's how I do it. Patrick Ewing could do it every once. And stop fighting at the stadium.
By the way, one of the most underratedly great and nice guys to deal with ever. Patrick Ewing looked really mean. Yeah, he looked really mean.
He looked really scary. Always said please and thank you. See things you don't always learn when Rich is sitting in the chair. But then again, you know, I try to bring a different spin to the Rich Eisen show. We still have a lot of show ahead of us.
The great Amy Trask is here, my partner for what the football she'll be sitting in that very chair when we come back. Welcome to Talkville, the Ultimate Smallville Rewatch Podcast. Season four. I'm glad that it's over. I'm glad that it's over as we know now that season five is supposed to be one of our better seasons. Obviously the tattoo storyline. You know how I feel about that. You hating that storyline probably a lot of joy because I kept waiting to see how it was going to keep going and then how they would somehow settle it. Change seasons one through four of Talkville before season five begins wherever you listen.
