Some people just know they could save hundreds on car insurance by checking Allstate first. Like, you should know you should check your draft stats first before you put them on your fantasy team.
Or, you should definitely check the expiration date on that can of bean dip you picked up at the gas station first before you dive in. Yeah, checking first is smart, so check Allstate first for a quote that could save you hundreds. You're in good hands with Allstate.
Savings vary, subject to terms, conditions, and availability. See Allstate.com for details. Allstate Fire and Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates, Northbrook, Illinois. As a business owner, you're always going that extra mile to pursue your passions, so you deserve partners who can help you go further with premium benefits and rewards. The American Express Business Platinum Card offers world-class business and travel benefits, so you can get more for your business wherever it takes you. With the Amex Business Platinum Card, you can earn 1.5 times membership rewards points on select business purchases. And you can get complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges worldwide, including the Centurion Lounge, so you can keep running your business while you're on the go. See how the Amex Business Platinum Card gives business owners like you the tools and rewards to do more of what you love. Terms and points can't apply.
Learn more at AmericanExpress.com slash Amex Business. This is the Rich Eisen Show. I mean, that's just like the only reaction you can have for Anthony Davis being sent for Luca Doncic.
Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. You never trace star for star. Veteran coaches text me and say, I've never seen anything like this. We kept it between us. Jay Kidd didn't know about it. Earlier on the show, ESPN NFL analyst Lewis Riddick.
Still to come. Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt. ESPN NBA reporter Brian Wintourst.
Senior writer for the MMQB Albert Breer. And now, it's Rich Eisen. Our tour of the Rich Eisen Show is on the air. This show will emanate from the Super Bowl experience starting Wednesday all three hours on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from the Super Bowl experience in the Super Bowl town of New Orleans, Louisiana. We're excited to go there. And then, of course, I'll be part of the NFL honors on Thursday night helping introduce the new Hall of Fame class.
It's a huge honor to do that. Sunday, Super Bowl Sunday, eight and a half hours, I will be hosting for NFL Network, NFL Game Day morning. So, it's going to be a busy week and already a busy first hour. We got two more hours to go. One of the things I love about a Super Bowl, and this is my 22nd, 23rd that I'm covering for NFL Network.
I've kind of lost track, which is kind of cool. Good to be honest with you. It's a good problem to have first class issues, right? Is the journeys. It's the journeys of players and franchises and coaches to get to this game. And for some, it's a long time coming. And we forget about this because it's two teams that played each other in the Super Bowl two Super Bowls ago.
That it's a first time around for some, including some that have been waiting a long time and including for some for whom a ring might be missing. The only thing missing in an otherwise Hall of Fame career. This post hit me today across my path from DeAndre Hopkins.
Who said to all the kids out there living in small towns and small houses with single parents to the kids who see violence, who see loss, who don't get the resources they deserve, but who still have big dreams. Know that I was a kid in your exact shoes. And this week I'm playing in the Super Bowl. Don't give up hard work.
Keep believing where you start doesn't determine where you end up. How amazing is that? And a perfect way to bring in the man whose team has a chance to three-peat.
But it is the first time for DeAndre Hopkins, who the Chiefs traded for in the middle of the season. Back here on the Rich Eisen Show, the CEO and chairman of the Kansas City Chiefs, Clark Hunt. How are you doing, Clark? I'm doing great, Rich. It's so good to be on with you today. And it's great to have you here.
We last saw each other prior to kickoff. I wonder how that that post from DeAndre Hopkins hits you, Clark? Yeah, well, DeAndre is such a special person in addition to being an amazing player. And I think he's speaking for any number of veterans in the NFL who've never had a chance to compete in the Super Bowl. I know how excited he is, and we're very, very lucky to have him on the team. He came in and really helped stabilize our receiver corps at a time we had a lot of injuries.
And I have no doubt that we wouldn't be where we are this week without DeAndre's contribution. Yeah. And just again, the journeys, it hits me in the gut when I see, you know, opportunities made through the sport of football.
Lives changed, families changed, you know, addresses changed. And, you know, I know you've been at the cross section of this for quite some time. And it's just something I wanted to start our conversation with, Clark. Yeah, I think it's really amazing how big the game has become. And it's something that as a family we think a lot about, a lot about those early Super Bowls, which my dad had a chance to be part of. And, of course, he was part of really helping create the Super Bowl with the founding of the American Football League. And I think he would be shocked in terms of how big it's grown.
But you're exactly right, Rich, how it impacts everybody who gets to be a participant in the big game. What do you think he would think about knowing that the first ever three-peat in the history of a game that he helped create and also dub the Super Bowl? What would your dad be thinking with the opportunity that your team has in front of it this week? Yeah, he would be absolutely thrilled. I had the chance to enjoy the Chicago Bulls two three-peets with him. My dad was one of the original investors in the Bulls, and he and my mom loved going to Chicago to cheer on the Bulls, particularly during the Michael Jordan era.
Of course, they got to enjoy two three-peets, and it was so special for them. And it would be hard to put into words what having his Chiefs have the opportunity to win three Super Bowls in a row. I think he would be beyond words. Especially since your quarterback does have a lot of comparisons to Jordan right now in a lot of shows like this. We're hearing Jordan's name thrown about, Shaquille O'Neal's name thrown about. And as a matter of fact, those are the last two guys who have won the MVP of their championship game three times in a row, which is what Mahomes can do. He can join these names in the pantheon of North American sports, not just the NFL, Clark.
It's an amazing comparison, but very deserving. Patrick is still pretty young, and hopefully he has a very long career ahead of him. But with what he's already achieved, he certainly deserves to be on that level and considered among the greatest athletes ever in the history of North American sports. Now, decisions to trade up in the draft to go take a kid like him, does that cross your radar screen in a draft room, or you just sat back and let everyone do their gig on a night like that? No, it was a substantial move, and it was going to require giving up some pretty high draft compensation in the future. And so it was something that we talked about in the weeks leading up to the draft, something that they got the approval from me to see if they could get done. I had a little chance to watch some tape of Patrick at Texas Tech, and it was breathtaking, and I can see why Brett Veitch and Andy Reid were so taken with him.
And just so glad it all worked out, and I think, needless to say, it worked out better than any of us would have thought. Yeah, and the seven-year anniversary of trading Alex Smith to Clearway, that happened just last week. And then I was speaking to Andy on Friday's show, Clark, and it's just amazing what he has done since joining your organization. And I'm curious to know, what was the conversation, the interviews with Andy like when you were interviewing him for the head coaching job all those years ago?
Because that was truly the first major piece of the cinder blocks that have led to this possible three-peat palace you're building there in Kansas City. Yeah, I've had a chance to think a lot about that interview back in January of 2013. We'd come off a very difficult season, having won two games, and we really needed a cultural reset. And when I got into the interview with Andy, it became evident that he was exactly what we were looking for, what we needed. We needed somebody who was experienced, somebody who, of course, had shown already that he was a great coach on the field.
He was able to come in and change the culture of the team very quickly. In fact, you'll probably remember we went from winning two games in 2012 to winning nine straight games to start the 2013 season, which I think says a whole lot about Andy. I want to give some credit to Alex Smith as well. That was our big offseason move that year, adding Alex, who certainly helped stabilize our quarterback situation and was a great leader. But you just can't say enough great things about Andy and what he's done for the Kansas City Chiefs. Yeah, and you could also say, based on the conversations I've had with him back in the day and even in the present day, Travis Kelce, you could say Alex Smith helped solidify and sort of stabilize the tight end position there as well. He was crucial in starting Kelce on to what is now a Jerry Rice conversation like Hall of Fame playoff and regular season career at that position.
Yeah, no, you're exactly right. Obviously, the trade, sorry, the draft decision to take Travis and Travis was somebody that Andy knew because he had already drafted Travis's brother in Philadelphia. And he really thought that Travis could develop into an outstanding tight end.
And I think the environment that he was brought into really helped get his career off on the on the right foot. Clearly, having a great coach like Andy Reid and his outstanding coaching staff was a big part of it. But having a great quarterback like Alex Smith and when people think about Travis, they think about Travis and Patrick. Well, before Patrick became our quarterback, he and Alex had a special connection as well. Clark Hunt here, a few minutes left with the chairman and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs here on the Rich Eisen Show.
A couple of conversations being had right now. I would love to bring to you, since you're one of the 32 members of the National Football League as well and one involves your team. I'm sure you're aware of the conversation many fans have that there is a zebra thumbprint on some of your wins. Clark, how do you respond to the fact that there is a scale and the zebras might have a thumb on it in favor of your franchise? Yeah, it's something we don't take very seriously.
I think, you know, depending on what stats you want to look at, you could come up with any conclusion. There's certainly some stats that show us as one of the most penalized teams over the last seven or eight years. And I think it's only natural that you start having these kind of conversations when a team has a lot of success. I mentioned the Chicago Bulls already, just thinking back to that era. There were a lot of commentators who made the same comments about the Bulls or Michael Jordan always getting the call. And I really think it was a case of the greatness of Michael Jordan and his teammates more so than the referees having an impact on those games. And then one of the plays in the championship game that people still talk about was the spotting of the football in which Kansas City got the ball. And some thought that Josh Allen did get the line to gain to keep possession of it. The reason why I'm bringing this up is if the technology exists and I think it's getting there to spot the football using GPS chips, lasers and things like that, would ownership, membership be up for getting that on the field?
I absolutely think so. Something that I've seen over the last 10 or 15 years is a real willingness by the NFL ownership to embrace technology. That obviously starts with replay, which I think has made the game a lot better. There's no sense in having the fans at home who are watching on TV see something that should have been called or was called incorrectly and not have the ability to correct it. And so as we move forward, there will no doubt be technological changes that will make it easier for the referees to officiate the game and get it right. Because at the end of the day, that's all we want who are associated with the league.
We want the right calls on the field. And again, I'm unfamiliar with what committees you're on. If this is a committee that you're involved in, do you know how close we might be to getting this technology used in the National Football League, Clark Hahn? So I'm not a member of the competition committee, and I think that's the committee that would look at that first and bring it to the ownership. So I don't know where that stands.
All right. And in terms of things that you absolutely have a part in, how much do you think about, and again, I know you've got a big game, you're not there yet. But how much do you think about keeping this going and making sure that the right people are under contract and that you head off any impasses at the pass and that you're making sure coaches stay and players who might be thinking of retiring, maybe another contract comes and things of that nature. How much are you thinking about the next as opposed to the here and now with a franchise like this?
Yeah, well, I think that's the challenge any time you have sustained success is keeping the group together. There are a lot of distractions, a lot of opportunities that come for your players and coaches. And I think we're just so lucky in Kansas City to have Brett Veitch as our general manager.
I know he's already thinking a lot about next year, even though his focus this week is going to be on the Super Bowl. He's fantastic, though, at looking ahead and thinking about all the possibilities and knowing when we should make a move to try to prevent something from happening to us externally. So he's fantastic.
Obviously, Andy's been doing this for a very long time. He's great not only with the players, but with his coaching staff. He has one of the best coaching staffs in the league.
It's a very experienced coaching staff, and we've been lucky that so many of those coaches have wanted to stay in Kansas City. Before I let you go, I know this isn't your team, but the Dallas Texans is where, you know, your dad has a history in and the family has a history in before the Kansas City Chiefs. And the son of Marty Schottenheimer just got named the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. What would your dad have thought about that piece of news in the NFL, Clark? He would have been so excited. We all got to see Brian grow up in Kansas City when his dad was the head coach of the Chiefs, and I couldn't be happier for him. I think he's very deserving of the opportunity and will do a great job for the Cowboys. Okay, I just wanted to throw that in your direction. It's just kind of amazing how things occur in our world, in our football world, where you just can't make stuff up.
So, last one for you. What would a three-peat mean to you? I think it would really be a credit to Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, his teammates for the work that they put in, not only over the last three years, but really the entire time that they've been with our organization. You know, the two of them are tremendous leaders. One is our head coach. One is one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. And I think it would just validate their relationship and the fact that as a head coach and quarterback, they're one of the greatest combinations in the history of the National Football League. Well, I appreciate the time here before you're heading off to New Orleans, and I appreciated you coming on the show prior to opening kickoff.
And then, you know, this season unfolds. I'm just trying to point out these two things. I don't think they're mutually exclusive that you appear on my show and something generationally potentially happens.
I'm not looking for a share or a ring. I just wanted to point it out, Clark. I appreciate it. I enjoyed being on the show at the kickoff for the season. I'm glad we're doing this this week. It's a good omen. I appreciate you saying that, and I hope it does bear fruit for you and your family in the ways that you're hoping.
And, you know, the Philadelphia Eagles are a stout opponent, and I'm sure they would love to prevent it. But all that said, I will see you in New Orleans, and I appreciate the time here, sir. Yeah, absolutely. Great to be on with you. I wish you the best of luck.
That's Clark Hunt, chairman and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs. Do you think I'm going to get a playoff share now? Probably not. OK, no.
Wasn't looking for it. But, you know, maybe when we're there in September, you know, Gates Barbecue will send us some food. You're saying we'll run it back? That's what I was looking for, Richie. Oh, my word. You know, Brockman don't think so.
You know, I'll never know. We did have some great meals there and a great time, and the Kansas City Chiefs fans are great. And, you know, same thing with the Eagles fans.
We want to be fair and balanced. We did invite Jeffrey LaSalle on this program. We're waiting to hear if he says yes. But Clark, great to see him here, and I look forward to seeing him in New Orleans.
All right. Whether you're ordering wings for the game, whipping up a seven layer dip or ordering pizza, there's something about football that makes you want to eat. Jerry's eating rice?
I love saying that. UberEats has had the best deals on game day food this football season, no matter what you're craving from two for one pizza to buy one, get one wings. UberEats has been dropping new deals each week, all season long, because UberEats is the official on-demand delivery partner of the National Football League. Order now for game day. Terms and conditions apply.
See app for details. We'll take a break. Brian Winhorst is next, and he will answer the question.
WTF, Brian? Are you looking for a voice that truly represents your values? AMAC, the Association of Mature American Citizens, was created to champion the needs of Americans who believe in faith, family and freedom. Members gain access to incredible member benefits and discounts, including the award-winning AMAC magazine. From exclusive discounts on travel, insurance, everyday services, to a strong voice in Washington, the Association of Mature American Citizens is here to make a difference in your life and in our nation.
Anybody at any age can join, and you'll belong to a community that stands for timeless American values. In honor of President Trump's first 100 days in office, AMAC is offering an incredible deal, incredible. Enroll in a five-year AMAC membership for 47% off. Normally it's 60 bucks, join today, it's $32.
That's $7 a year. Visit amac.us slash mark, that's a-m-a-c dot u-s slash mark. Join today. Take advantage of this special offer. That's amac.us slash mark.
Join AMAC and become part of a movement that stands for you, your family and your future. As a business owner, you're always going that extra mile to pursue your passions, so you deserve partners who can help you go further with premium benefits and rewards. The American Express Business Platinum Card offers world-class business and travel benefits, so you can get more for your business wherever it takes you. With the AMEX Business Platinum Card, you can earn 1.5 times membership rewards points on select business purchases, and you can get complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges worldwide, including the Centurion Lounge, so you can keep running your business while you're on the go. See how the AMEX Business Platinum Card gives business owners like you the tools and rewards to do more of what you love. Terms and points can't apply.
Learn more at American Express dot com slash AMEX Business. I got a riddle for you. What do yoga mats, a toothbrush, and a Hyundai have in common? I'll give you a moment.
Time's up. If you guessed they're all fun, well-designed, and super useful, you guessed wrong. The answer is you can order all those things on Amazon.
That's right. You can now buy a Hyundai on Amazon, the same place where you order yoga mats, a toothbrush, and pretty much everything else. All from the comfort of your home. And the best part, you won't even have to break down a car-sized Amazon box after, because you'll pick up your Hyundai at the dealer.
I mean, picture this. You're in your PJs, snugged in on your couch, you pull up Amazon on your phone, and start the process right there. Just locate a nearby dealer, pick your color, your options, check the price, and with a few dotting of some i's and crossing of some t's, voila. Your Hyundai is ready for pickup. It's that easy.
Just remember to put some real clothes on before you head over, will you? Hyundai, now available on Amazon. Visit HyundaiUSA.com or call 562-314-4603 for more details.
Limited availability only through participating Hyundai dealers in select markets. Back here on the Rich Eisen Show, this is a very busy man, so let's just jump right in right now from ESPN, one of the best in our favor to reach out to when something major happens in the association, Brian Winhorse. Good to see you, Brian. How are you, sir? Hey, Rich.
How are you? I'm stunned, man. You know, I'm still stunned.
What was your first reaction when you heard about this, Brian? You know, we live in a world where it's rare that those of us in my position are unaware of the possibility of a trade. We don't always know all four corners. We don't always know if it's going to happen. But most of the time we have an inkling or we've heard something. And so a lot of times our reactions are muted. That was not the case here.
There was absolutely no indication whatsoever that there was any possibility of this. So it was truly a stunning thing. And, you know, someone in my position, you instantaneously want to be on the hunt for more information to understand why it is. And I'm still in a lot of ways on the hunt for that. I bet. I bet. And so, I mean, I think you nailed it perfectly, Brian, in your initial reaction.
My son and I were watching it on the ESPN app on Saturday night. It's like a pocket listing. You know what I mean? Like it was a pocket listing of what you call it, like a billion dollar property. And there was only one buyer that was aware of it. I've never heard of anything like this in any sport anywhere, actually. Yeah, I think in the days since, as I've talked to people in the league, what I would say is people can get their minds around wanting to trade Luka Doncic. You know, people know about the warts that he presents. You know, Dallas not wanting to give him $350 million is surprising. It could be a terrible mistake. But people can understand why the organization could come around to the idea they shouldn't do that. Especially in a world where you look at the situation that the 76ers are in with Joel Embiid and they're really locked in there.
So that they understand. And I think even within the league, there is an understanding of why the Mavericks would only deal with the Lakers because the Mavericks believe that they can win the title this year and they only thought that Anthony Davis could make that happen. And they say, okay, even though that may not get them the best return, there's an understanding that you would want Anthony Davis. What I don't think people in the league understand, at least they haven't come to grips with it yet, is why not get everything that the Lakers had in this trade. I understand why the Lakers wouldn't offer it. I don't understand why the Mavericks wouldn't get all of that. So, like I said, the more time that goes past, the more you kind of understand. Because this was sitting with the Mavericks and the Lakers for two weeks. They could think all of this out before making the choice. The rest of us are playing catch-up in the thought process.
I'm not over that last hurdle in terms of what the Mavericks were able to get back from the Lakers after they decided that's the way they wanted to go. All right, let's put a pin in that part of it, Brian Windhorst. ESPN's Brian Windhorst here on the Rich Eisen Show.
Our Infinity Sports Network radio audience just rejoined us as well. So, when did this start? Let's start from the genesis here. Based on your catch-up, as you said, upon learning about this over the weekend, your knowledge of when it started and why. Yeah, so I can't remember exactly how long ago the Lakers visited Dallas. They've gone there twice, so I think it was the second trip.
Rich and Nico and Rob Palenka had coffee. And you have to understand the history of these two guys. They go all the way back 20-plus years, Rich, when Kobe Bryant was at Adidas. If you remember, early in his career, he was at Adidas. And he was leaving Adidas and going to Nike.
It was a big shoe-free agency. And his agent was really Rob Palenka. It was one of the first moves that Kobe's primary agent was to execute this move. And Nico Harrison was a young executive at Nike. He was not the guy who was negotiating the deals, but his job was to win Kobe Bryant over on the front line, on the ground. And they did this deal together, basically, Rob and Nico. And over the next 20 years, when Nike did something with Kobe, which was a lot, it was Nico Harrison executing it. It was Rob Palenka negotiating it.
They did this for years. Five years ago this month, or I guess it was last month when Kobe passed away, Rob and Nico were together in tears when that happened. Their relationship is beyond just two GMs.
It's very long. And so I don't know if another GM could have negotiated like this with Rob. And so it stays quiet.
They put it together. Nico described it as something that at the start was sort of a hypothetical, like, would you ever trade Anthony Davis? I don't know, would you ever trade Luca? And it sort of got more and more serious.
And that's why it was able to stay quiet. And I wouldn't say that Nico Harrison is in the Laker extended family, but certainly the Lakers have a trust level with him because of decades of work with Kobe Bryant. So part of the reason that this goes down and the way it goes down is because of the Nico Lakers, Nico, Rob Palenka relationship. And so I think really at the end of the day the big giant decision that the Mavericks made is they didn't want to give Luca Doncic the $350 million because normally when a player gets eligible for the Supermax, the team rushes to sign him. I use this example with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Shea Gilders Alexander is eligible for the Supermax in a market like Oklahoma City. If you can lock this guy down for five years during his prime, I'm telling you on June 30th at 6 o'clock, whatever the time is when he's allowed to sign it, the Thunder are going to have the paperwork on the table. You would think that a guy like Luca, 25 years old, five-time first-team All-MBA leader of the Finals, you would think you would want that guy locked down for the back half of his 20s. And the Mavericks made the decision, no, they were not going to do that.
So once you've made that decision, once you've decided we are going to not have this guy be our franchise player, after that all the decisions in some ways are a little less complicated, and they were less complicated because they wanted Anthony Davis and they had Rob Palenka to go that route. And Brian Windhorst here on the Rich Eisen Show, I listen to every word you say, whether it's on this show or somewhere else, and I'm trying to follow some breadcrumbs here, because I do remember you were quite strident during the playoffs last year about Luca's comportment on the court and his ability to stay healthy, to stay on the court, and then in retrospect also Michael Finley taking the beer out of his hand, like he's in charge of the dorm, sending him back to his dorm room. I'm putting this all together, Brian, and just saying, did the Mavericks just not buy that Luca was worth that money based on his physique and his comportment and everything else that might be underneath the iceberg tip here, Brian?
Yeah, based on their actions, which I'm reading by them trading him, yeah, I think they didn't believe that. And the reason I was so viscerally upset during the finals last year was because I have seen Luca in these big games before in international basketball. Once I was watching him in EuroBasket, the Slovenians were the defending. EuroBasket, I know it's outside of America so people don't care about it, but the toughest tournament in the world to win as a team is the European Championship.
All those teams are loaded, they've all got great players, they all played together for 15 years. To go through that tournament win, it is big. The Slovenians were the defending champions. It was one of the great things Luca's ever done, is lead Slovenia to the European Championship.
I mean, think about that. Think about little, teeny Slovenia winning the European Championship, beating the French and beating the Germans, beating the Italians, beating the Serbians. And he was in this game and he completely lost his cool and fouled out because in international basketball, when you get a technical foul, it counts as a personal foul and you only get five. He got his cool, got technical foul, fouled out of the game, Slovenia gets eliminated. A couple years later, they're in the World Cup in Manila, Philippines.
I am there. They are playing against Germany, the eventual world champions. This is a vital game. They need Luca. They are trying not just to win the championship, they are trying to qualify for the Olympics, which is a really big deal.
They finished fourth in the previous Olympics. They're trying to qualify to get back. Luca completely loses his cool at the game and the officials. He goes to center court during a foul shot and is screaming at the secretary general of FIBA in Spanish, screaming at him, claiming the referees are against him, as if FIBA would not want Luca in the FIBA championship game. And a couple of minutes later, can you imagine, though, can you imagine, this was like the international quarterfinals, can you imagine if like during the Western Conference Finals, Luca Jancic came out to center court and was MFing Adam Silver in the stands at center court? That's what was happening. He completely lost his sight of the game, completely lost his cool and got ejected. So I had seen him do this several times. In other words, he should have learned from this. And I know you might say, well, who cares about the FIBA World Cup in the Philippines? Well, he does. It's important.
And I saw him do it twice and cost his country. So if we get into game three of the finals, it's an essential elimination game. No one has ever come back from 3-0 down in the finals and he completely loses his cool.
And they end up winning game four. The Mavericks were on a roll at that point, but he gets ejected. He fouls out because he lost his cool.
He's screaming at his bench. His demeanor is absolutely unacceptable for that game. And the finals were over. And I didn't think the finals should have been over. I thought that finals should have been more competitive because I watched Luca and how great he was in the Western Conference Finals against the Timberwolves. And I was frustrated that I'd seen him do this before and that he hadn't learned his lesson. So somebody who's in the media, who doesn't even really know Luca, but has watched him do this, got that frustrated that I would lose a little bit on national television. Imagine if you were the team that he plays for. And it comes from a place where you respect his talent and respect what he can do.
It doesn't come from a place of dislike. And even when I went on that rant, I believed that someday he would overcome that, that his failures early in his career where he would lose his cool and he wouldn't be able to be in the game for his team, whether either he had been ejected or fouled out or he wasn't in the best physical condition. I thought that would just be part of his story.
I thought that would be something he would overcome. I can close my eyes and see Luca holding the Bill Russell trophy in his right hand and holding the Larry O'Brien trophy in his left hand, having overcome it because he's good enough to win everything in this league. The Mavericks felt that that wasn't gonna come with them. And so they, with their actions, I don't need them to say it, I can tell by what they did, didn't believe that he was gonna overcome that and the Lakers do and so we'll see.
And we will see, Brian Windhorst, few minutes left with Brian Windhorst of ESPN. So do you think LeBron can help with that? I mean, what does the LeBron-Luca-Lakers look like and for how long, Brian? Yeah, I mean, the thing about it is, is that the Lakers' world just changed. The Lakers' world is now about Luca.
Their decisions going forward with who they bring in and how they structure their team are about getting Luca comfortable and getting the most out of him. And for 21 and a half years, that's where LeBron has lived. LeBron has lived in the world where his teams do everything they can to maximize him. So LeBron, you know, I don't want to say he's a supporting star, but essentially that's what's gonna happen now. And so I do think the two of them can play together. I don't think the Lakers' roster is set up to maximize the two of them.
So they're gonna need maybe to do something between now and Thursday and especially this summer. And because they didn't give everything they had for Luca and I mean, I respect that they were able to negotiate in a way that they retained some assets, some players and their one other first round pick, and they even have these pick swaps they can use. They have some things that they can do to build this team out, but that build-out will be around Luca and LeBron's role will be to support Luca. And I do think LeBron will hear from him eventually, and I don't want to speak for him, but I think we'll hear that LeBron wants to do that. I think he is interested in handing over the Lakers in a better place than when he picked it up. And obviously when he picked it up, it was a terrible place. And he brought him a championship, and I think he'd like to help Luca get situated.
I think that's something LeBron would like to do to be his last act is to leave the Lakers in a good place. Right now, though, you gotta wonder who's rim protecting in purple and gold right now, Brian. Their defense is, they're completely ill-equipped to play defense. And they would admit that too. They didn't have a nine-step 18-month plan to make this happen. This fell in their lap.
So now they've gotta change everything. Yeah, and then on the Dallas side of things before I let you go here, the conversation, obviously losing Luca, fans are livid. Certainly when you see what you're getting back, it's like Austin Reeves, you think at least another one or two would be coming. But Anthony Davis is not fresh off the turnip truck here, man. I know he's got a reputation of street clothes and Data Davis and all that sort of business, but he's at the top of his game right now albeit banged up.
What do the Mavericks look like in your estimation? Well, first off, Dallas is getting a player and is absolutely still in his prime. Anthony Davis has been spectacular his last two years, I'd argue.
Statistically, he may have had some better years in New Orleans when he was the center of everything. He has been as good as he's ever been these last two years, and he's been healthy. I know he's got an abdominal thing right now, but he's been healthy. He's been great.
He's physically in a great place. He was awesome for Team USA. His impact on Team USA was more in the early in the tournament. People remember Steph and KD late in the tournament. He was awesome last summer for Team USA.
He's got this regimen that's got him in a really good place. I think Dallas fans are going to recognize that they've got a great player here, and Dallas is going for it now. I expect them to be active between now and Thursday trying to add another piece or two. They still have definite assets that they can use. Plus, they've just got this Laker pick that they can also shop if they want.
They're going for it now. They're looking at a two- or three-year window with where Kyrie's age is and where AD's age is. They look at the West, and they think, to win in the West, you've got to have size. The teams ahead of them in the West don't have awesome size. Oklahoma City doesn't.
Maybe they will when they're fully healthy, but not right now. Houston is ahead of them and doesn't. Memphis isn't really big. Even Denver, to match up with them, you have to have size.
If you're trying to beat those teams, you've got to do it with size. Dallas' move here is to put their team in better position to win the title this year and next year. It is stunning when you think about that they would not take the guy who led them to the Finals last year and say this is a better way to go, but that was the evaluation they made as an organization.
They took the beer away for good. You know what I mean? I still can't believe it.
Biggest trait of your career, right? I mean, nothing comes close, right? There have been some enormous traits, but as far as I can put in historical purposes, never before in the history of the league has there ever been an active All-NBA player traded for another active All-NBA player. In other words, they didn't win it three years ago and they're past their prime. Two guys who were All-NBA in the middle of the season getting traded for each other. It's never happened. So just from a player-for-player swap, it's a stunner. That it came out of the blue is a double stunner. And that it came where you had a top three-ish player in the league at age 25 is quintuple stunner.
So no, I've never seen anything like it. There's a multiplier of stunners, man. And I appreciate you working us in, man. I know you've got a lot going on. Appreciate it. Look for more of my calls. And thank you.
We'll chat soon. Have a great week. You bet. Right back at you. Thank you, Bron. I appreciate it. It's at Windhorst ESPN, the best of the best joining us.
Put it in perspective. Just a multiplier of stunners. Man, you thought Steve Austin was out there.
And by the way, great mentioning the history of the two general managers together and how maybe that's why they're only talking to each other. And if you let it out that, hey, who wants Luka? Who wants Anthony Davis free for all?
Then you are committed to sending. Lakers wouldn't send Anthony Davis away if somebody of Luka wasn't available, right? Well, then you risk pissing off Luka that this gets out. And now he gets so unhappy that he's even being mentioned in trade rumors.
What? I'm a top three guy in the league. Why am I getting traded? Now he gets pissed. Now he's going to demand a trade.
And then it just kind of gets super, super ugly. And you're not going to get somebody like Anthony Davis back? Probably not. You're going to get a bunch of picks, which is, you know, the unknown, rather than getting an all NBA player back. Is it Valanciunas that the Lakers can get right now? Is that who it is? For big? Yeah.
Like Nurkic is totally falling out of favor? Yeah, Walker Kessler is a name that keeps getting thrown out, but he's going to be expensive from Utah. You got to get somebody, though, don't you?
Have to. If you're serious. Unless Jackson Hayes is the next.
Unless you're going to give up 120 a night. I don't know. And hope to outscore them. And then who?
Who? I mean, it's going to be fascinating to watch this all work. Also, by the way, like with this contract coming up, are we like a thousand percent sure he's going to re-sign with the Lakers? Well, first of all, why wouldn't he? I mean, I don't. Maybe he comes out here and doesn't like, you know, there are people.
Fourteen percent state income tax is not great. There are people in this country who don't like Los Angeles. Maybe he comes here. He's like, I don't I don't like it.
I mean, I'm just saying. Chandler Parsons has been kind of all over this this morning. He said that last week Luca just bought a 15 million dollar house in Dallas and cried when he was told he was being traded. Yeah, because now he's got to pay 25 for a house in Brentwood. That's why he's crying. His cost of living just went up. He's got a young family.
I don't know. Well, plus, you're thinking you're never you're never going to leave. Well, you're also crying because it's one hundred and nineteen million. Then he's not getting the supermax. And I know at this point in time, you know, NBA salaries, they're all insane. And you're you're making insane money regardless.
One hundred nineteen. But Luca is going to make 80 million a year very soon. I think if he had no idea this was being talked about for weeks and it's just like you're gone and you're not getting the supermax. And I could totally and he's just bought up and his family wants to stay there, they want to live there, and he's thinking he's going to stay there forever and he's going to be with one franchise. He sees what Dirk Nowitzki did and he's going to be on the same career path. And that it's something he wants to do.
I totally would understand why he'd be just like, what? Excuse me. Like you're doing what? Yeah. And then it's OK.
So I am now going to instead of being the next Dirk, I'm now in the same line of Wilt, Kareem, Magic, Kobe, Shaq, LeBron. Oh, now me. Oh, pal. I mean, I guess that doesn't suck. Oh, OK. All right. So I'm now the centerpiece of the Los Angeles Lakers for the rest of my career.
For an L.H. like me, that stinks. A Laker hater.
I'm with you. I don't want to have to hate Luca. I don't want to have to hate Luca. I have to hate him now. I got to boo him, Rich.
Yes, I do. No, you don't. There's going to be 77 yellow jerseys all over this stupid town and it's going to suck. I ain't with it. I hope I hope he plays it out and decides that he feels better on the East Coast or something.
I want him as a Laker. I hate this. You know who's psyched? Jerry Jones. No one's talking about Brian Schottenheimer right now and there in Dallas. Oh, they still are. They're now equating Jerry with them. Oh, they're blaming Jerry for it. You got to see some Instagram posts. They're all in on Anthony Davis?
Is that what you're saying? I'm sitting at the Rich Azencio desk, furnished by Grainger with supplies and solutions for every industry. Grainger has the right product for you.
Call clickrainger.com or just stop by. I used to like Luca, too. I've got a top five list of my top five storylines of Super Bowl 59. I need it. That's coming up. Same thing with Albert Breer.
Oh, by the way, we haven't even talked about Myles Garrett saying I'm the Jimmy Butler of the NFL. Back in the Rich Azencio in a moment. But here's Rich Ackerman with an update. Let's talk TurboTax people. You might be sitting there going, wait a minute, Rich.
I don't get it. It's not April. Why am I thinking about my taxes now?
Why should I? Because with TurboTax, you can have an expert file for you as soon as today. You get a TurboTax expert's undivided attention when you use TurboTax. And they work on your return in real time. Once upon a time, taxes is all about waiting and wondering and worrying.
That's three things any fellow football fan can relate to, right? But nowadays, it's all about a TurboTax expert giving your taxes their undivided attention. Just like your Fantasy League waiver wire. Experts file with 100% accuracy so you can get your best return guaranteed. Know how it's all working for you right now rather than finding out at the last second and wondering if the person who's doing it for you knows what they're doing. With TurboTax, they've got an expert who knows what they're doing all the time. Now this is taxes. Intuit TurboTax.
Get an expert now on TurboTax.com. This episode is brought to you by Shopify. Upgrade your business with Shopify, home of the number one checkout on the planet. Shop pay boosts conversions up to 50%, meaning fewer carts going abandoned and more sales going cha-ching. So if you're into growing your business, get a commerce platform that's ready to sell wherever your customers are.
Visit Shopify.com to upgrade your selling today. I want to say this. I am a man that knows when he's defeated. I was beaten this year.
Yes. So my business manager is supposed to have the hat for us. He did not bring the hat. Oh, we're throwing Jamal under the bus right here. He did not bring the hat. Who is thrown under the bus by the bus just right now?
Yeah, we're looking for him. See, he didn't even show his face. I was willing to wear this hat. He had it made up and everything. Well, he told me that the hat that he made up had the final score. No, he had the hat on there. It was a hat. I don't know what that was.
The hat is supposed to read the following. I am going to listen to this. Hear this.
Yes. Hail to the victors valiant. Hail to the conquering heroes. Hail, hail to Michigan the leaders and best. Wow.
That is for you only. Wow. You know it. I honestly did not. What did it take for me to do that? I honestly can't have thought of anything else that you would do that would make me think that you would not have to follow through on your end of the wager, which is where I should have gone to Michigan hat on the faunted field of Notre Dame with touchdown Jesus behind you.
But do I let him out of that end of the bet now? He's that was pretty epic actually. And he nailed all the words. He grew up in the state of Michigan. He should know them.
He should know them. I mean, that was like 30 years ago. I had to look him up to make sure I was saying it correctly for you. Also, I'm getting visions of like Jerome practicing before he came out here. That did sound rehearsed.
Yeah, it sounded rehearsed. That was great. That took a lot out of me. Great job, Jerome.
You know that. That was awesome. That was awesome. Thank you. I appreciate it.
All right. Guess what? A guest on Wednesday's edition of the Rich Eisen Show in New Orleans, Jerome Bettis. Oh, I cannot wait to have him on the set and introduce him as a.
How will I introduce him? Hall of Famer, dear friend, Super Bowl champion. And in a conversation where at least one of us beat Ohio State this year.
You can mention that. Still pissed I rooted for his team. I mean, he made it to the final.
I mean, I'm rooted for his team for nothing. By the way, it's not Marcus. It was Marcus Freeman sat next to me at the Royal Rumble. He did. He really didn't get a chance to talk to him. But he was about four. He was in row one.
He was about four seats away. Go up to him. I want to bother him. We bother him.
You're at the Royal Rumble. He's too locked in on what's going on. You can't. Well, I mean, I got a chance to speak with him. I would have, of course, dropped your name and blah, blah, blah.
But I just never really made it down. You have to drop my name. You just drop Ashton's name.
It's better. I don't think he knows Ashton, though. How do you know that? He knows you. Everybody knows Ashton Kutcher. But I know he knows you for a fact. Okay. So that's why I dropped your name. Very good.
So do we want to do the top five next or do we want to do a top of next? I'll do that. Okay.
Then we'll talk Miles Garrett, too. My goodness gracious. Unbelievable.
This was a great weekend, man. Dude. That's craziness.
Stupid. So much stuff happened. The Rumble was, I can't imagine being there. Watching it was so sick. We'll get to that in a second. I want to hit that in a second because our radio audience is about to return. We barged in in the middle of the conversation with Brian Winhorst, who's just the best. Honestly. He is the best. He knows it and the way he talks is just so matter of fact and simple. It's so great. I love it.
I can't get enough of it. Here's a riddle for you. What does a Jeep brush and a Hyundai have in common? If you guess they're all fun, well-designed, and super useful, you guessed wrong.
You think you're right, but you're wrong. The answer is you can order all those things on Amazon. The best part, you don't even have to break down a car-sized Amazon box after because you'll pick up your Hyundai at the dealer. Hyundai, now available on Amazon.
Visit HyundaiUSA.com or call 562-314-4603 for more details, limited availability, pick up through a participating Hyundai dealer in select markets. Let's go back to the phone lines here. Who's the gentleman on the second one there wants to talk about Dallas Mavericks? The name has disappeared. Do you have that up there?
I cannot see it. Fitz in Dallas. You're here on the Rich Ass Show. What's up, Fitz? Hey, now. Hey, now. Hey. How are you guys doing today?
You tell me. What's going on? What's happening down in the Metroplex? Anything up? Anything going on there? I thought I'd give you a boots on the ground assessment. I'm telling you, everybody around here is walking around like a flippin' zombie.
I mean, I was at my dentist this morning and to even see as my mouth was open, she was like, can you believe this? I'm like, uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh. Let me tell you this, Fitz, Fitz, I don't understand, wait till Anthony Davis drops his first 30 and 20 game on somebody and Kyrie's got 15 assists and 20 points and Clay might make some threes and the rest of the team that was such a terrific supporting cast last year is playing just as well. You know what I mean? Honestly, I know you're going to miss Luca, but it is not some slappy you're getting in return at all. Yeah, I concur and that's my contention as well.
I am like TJ though in that I grew up in Oklahoma, so the Mavs are kind of my secondary team because I live here in Dallas, was born here, but thunder up, baby. That hurt for the thunder, but gentlemen, thank you again. I hope you have a great rest of your week. Thank you, Fitz. Good luck at the Super Bowl and Rich, as always, you're the best. Thank you, sir. Appreciate you saying that.
Great way to finish a conversation, always, since I never get that at home. Is this on? Wow. You know she can hear you, right? I think she's here.
Is she here yet? It's not, it's not, it's my children. Okay. Well, you know, they listen too, right?
No, they don't. They're in school. Papa, we heard you spoke on the radio. Stop it. Stop it. Papa.
So it's like a three-way tie for third in your house or something right now? I have no idea why he makes it sound like my, like my household is like a Peter Pan scene of British children. Yeah.
Like in their stocking caps. Why? Because all I know is he likes to go to a British cooking show or whatever it's called. That's good.
The great British baking show. Okay, whatever. So I just. And it is not. I just assumed. Because Hollywood is very much not Peter Pan at all.
All right. Is he from Hollywood? Oh, he's grown.
He's not. Does he sound, does he have a British accent? How was the Royal Rumble? You just went, you went there so I'd shut up. How was it?
A hundred percent. How was it? How was it?
Yeah. I mean, honestly, goodness, man, just the entire weekend with the, you know, WWE, 2K and WWE. It was, it was like a dream come true.
Who would you speak to for no contest wrestling? We stopped by. We had a great set of guests. So first of all, we had L.A. Knight come up, former United States champion. Then we had Bailey.
That was great. Why was Bailey great? Well, I got to share a story with Bailey that I met her. I'm sure it was a story.
What else? Who else did you see? Sure it was a story.
I'm sure it was Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman. We got to acknowledge them. That was awesome.
Yeah, I saw that photograph. That was neat. You know, they were great.
And Carlito. Fantastic. So that's who we got out. That's who we got time with at the 2K event, which was awesome. It was a great set up. And how was the event itself?
It was amazing. A lot of gamers in there just playing the new video game and O'Shea and I got to go on and, you know, O'Shea's an avid gamer. I haven't really gamed much lately, but I picked up the sticks. I did fairly well.
He didn't beat me in a triple threat, but I'm like, I've been playing this for two minutes and you barely beat me. So I'm going to get a copy of the game and I'm back in it now, you know, but yeah, that was great. Shout out to the 2K people. They were amazing. They treated us just ridiculously well. That's great.
This was great. And then after that, you know, we had a few hours to hang before we headed to Lucas Oil to go watch the Royal Rumble. Right. And then after the Royal Rumble, you started piecing together the pod, which will be out on Wednesday. Yes, sir.
Did you get enough for two? You think? Perhaps.
Maybe? We'll see how it all works out. The Royal Rumble is coming out on Wednesday, Albert Breer coming up in hour three. How was Royal Rumble itself? The actual match itself, it was awesome. You know, the women's Royal Rumble match kicked it off and that was exciting. Just a lot of, you know, talent, a lot of, you know, what the Royal Rumble, Rich does, it takes all the current superstars and then they'll also add some of the up and comers. The people who years from now are going to be big and then they'll also bring back some stars of the past. So you've got a little bit of all that with the Rumble, with the younger women coming up and then some of the legends like Trish Stratusch and Nikki Bella showed up.
So the women's Royal Rumble match was great, Charlotte Flair, Ric Flair's daughter. So Bella was there, was Fabs close by? I did not see Fabs. You see Fabs? I didn't see him there. Did not see Fabs. You know?
And then there was a... I'm just naming people who got to stick in the Fantasy League. The Fantasy League, right? That's right. But not us. We're out. We're out. But we at least won the place where we're going. We won the new one.
Maybe that's why Fabs kicked us out. Yeah, you were too good. Okay. Sorry.
Keep going. You know, there was a good two out of three fall tag team match that happened and then Cody Rhodes, a friend of the show, I guess Kevin Owens, in the ladder match, which was vicious, bloody. Cody ended up climbing the ladder, snatching the belts that were hanging above the ring. So you were watching at home. I was watching at home with Cage. How was it seeing TJ on the screen with O'Shea Jackson Jr. and Pat gave you a shout out? Oh, yeah.
Shout out to Pat McAfee, man. When they said, hey, the celebrities in the house, I kind of pulled out the phone because like, oh, they're going to show O'Shea and TJ is going to be next to him. And then when CM Punk was coming down in the rumble, they flashed to TJ again and Cage just goes, hey, TJ.
Nice. Wouldn't it have been great if Bear was there to jump into your screen and block you? If he was only there. Bear sent me... Because Bear called me Saturday on the way to the rumble. He wanted to tell me, hey, don't call me and tell me what's happening because I got to go to a birthday party.
So I can't watch until tomorrow. Wow. Bear tells me what's going on.
There you go. And then as I landed and my phone went off, Bear sent me 10 straight text messages about everything that happened with videos of him eating like James Cage loves to eat. Were you surprised that Jey Uso won? We were kind of... No, not really.
Like, I thought that would be the most feel good thing. When you got the most popular guy in the company, he's the most over, not just in America, but worldwide. It kind of makes sense that you're going to elevate him to main. He was already main event Jey Uso, but he really is main event. It felt like they might have given Cena the pop. By the way, I'm back in for a month and I know everything. It felt like Cena was going to get the pop there with being the last dance and everything.
Because you never know what's going to happen at that point. So that was exciting. Yeah.
I'm just glad that no contest wrestling is part of Royal Rumble and next year when they have you back, you will be faunted. Not just O'Shea. It'll be TJ Jefferson's going to get a font. Regardless. Regardless, I'm happy.
Yes. YouTube personality, Benny Johnson has cracked the code on a new era of newsmaking. It's got to be music to your ears. It's like the angels singing.
Listen, learn, and laugh. I had a feeling you'd be in a very good mood. Oh, this is going to be a glorious day on Capitol Hill for you, sir. It's a new cultural landscape. So it's an important moment right now. Does this deserve another look? The Benny Show. Sees it in all of its glory. Follow and listen on your favorite platform.
