OverDrive - OverDrive - May 22, 2025 - Hour 3

Episode Date: May 22, 2025

Join Bryan Hayes, Jeff O'Neill and Dave Feschuk for Hour 3 on OverDrive! TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun joins to discuss Brendan Shanahan out from the Maple Leafs, the overview of his tenure and Mitch Marner's possible next steps. NBA on TNT Kevin Harlan gives his perspective of the Pacers' elite comeback against the Knicks, Indiana's pathway to the win, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander winning the NBA MVP, and Hayes hands out his FanDuel Best Bets.

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Join today and be part of something amazing. Okay, if you dig straight down past the center of the Earth, are you still digging down or up? Down. But at some point you're going away from the middle. Back up. Down. You're heading deeper. Sure, but at some point you're going up, right? Gravity says it's down. Gravity! Dude, you failed science class. C- is not a fail.

A short phone call can help reduce loneliness. That's why Bell believes that whatever you talk about, just talk. I'm so glad you called, man. Even if you don't know you're up from town. It's up. Final Hour Overdrive continues, powered by Fanduo, bringing you everything from the opening line of the final score Brian Hayes the odog Jeff O'Neill Dave fast-check of the Toronto Star we're up on YouTube live. We've been doing that all this week We're gonna do it every day moving forward so you can watch this live on the TSN YouTube channel

And you can find the show afterwards in completion you can find every hour a bunch of great clips up there on the TSN YouTube channel See us on TSN to there on the TSN YouTube channel See us on TSN 2 or obviously on TSN radio streaming online. We're everywhere Everywhere we got a big hour coming up here Pierre Lebrun will join us in a few moments Kevin Harlan later in the hour our best bets I've got the five highlights of the Shanahan era get to that momentarily Just got outed because I've got a new phone recently my wife's got a new phone recently, my wife's got a new phone recently, and we've got the health app, the iPhone health app, tracking steps, I don't know if you guys do that. I know what you're going to say.

Okay. It alerted you saying you haven't moved in eight hours. That has happened a few times in the last couple of weeks, but what really stood out was, you know, when I play golf, I tried to walk as much as I can. No, you don't. No, you don't. I try. Dude, I've seen you and your buddies, you guys take your own carts so you don't have

to, like that's even more gross. Like that is really gross. That's so you just zoom to your own ball hit and you're not walking anywhere it's not like your buddy says your buddy doesn't say you go walk over there and hit yours and I'm gonna know right we are guys aren't moving literally in our own car oh man that's this it's gross behavior I'll admit it but I tried to move and we just looked at the app my wife's wife's like well, where are we at? And on Monday because it was the holiday. I was mowing the lawn I was doing all this time walk the kids up to the park. We walked to go get ice cows like

16,000 steps unreal Tuesday golf 4,500 steps and it's just like well, what about why are you like the golf cart? It's you know, it's killing you man So what are you do in a day not doing like just a regular day where you're not you don't even go to the gym what what would have a normal step b i think you gotta reach seven thousand don't you know we're not if you're not doing anything

all listen up don't get me wrong from not doing it you give me a football like an nfl sunday where i'm a little bit hung over, I will not hit 500. It's 185. Yes. I won't hit 500 steps. Now, it's different now with kids, but 10 years ago, 10 years ago, I had a day I remember I looked at my phone, it was like single digits, dude. It was almost impossible. You only got up to piss. That's it.

Basically, that's what happened. Probably ordered food multiple times and walked to the door. That's probably what happened. That clearly doesn't exist anymore. But I think just a normal day, work, bringing kids to school and stuff. I'm hitting four or five thousand steps. But yeah, this app, man, I got to track it.. I gotta be on top of things I've got buddy who claims if they have a massive night and a feed late they can sleep in and All the way through the next day and night and be ready for work on that Insanity man, that's that scary stuff. It's possible. I guess it is and I maybe I've done it at some point in my life

But that's tough to believe. All right. You want the highlights here? Yes, the news today Brendan Shanahan out as the president of the Maple Leafs after 11 years I went through the five lowlights find that online and find it on YouTube I'm sure we'll post it on Instagram and Twitter and everything. Here are the five highlights. All right number five legends row slash Jersey retirements. And what I mean by that is like the revitalizing of the history. I thought he did a remarkable job at that when he got here. You know, you can throw in the alumni box, which I'll admit,

I've selfishly popped in a few times. I get some steps walking into the alumni box. I've gotten that one. I go down. But I thought Legends Row was brilliant. And I think because they honored the Jersey numbers forever, right? They always honored them. And then the beginning of I want to say the 17th season, he told everyone to be in their seats early, and they retired the numbers. And that's when JVR was here and he had to move off 21 because Salming obviously and anyway, I thought that was really, really well done.

Really, really well done. So Legends wrote Jersey Retirements at five. Number four, this one's going to surprise you guys because of where we stand now and what we know now. But at the time, number four, the hiring of Mike Babcock. The hiring of Mike Babcock. I don't know if you would argue with me on that. Again, I guess now it's a different world

because of who he is and what he represents. Dave, you remember it, oh, you remember it. At the time, it was a grand slam. I couldn't believe they got him. Dude, I remember that. That was 10 years ago. I remember the introductory speech. We were down there, we set up shop, and all of the MLSC employees

came down to watch his introduction. It was like Lou Holtz was being introduced to everyone. It was the hero that arrived. Like that was the guy Mike Babcock was going to drag this franchise to a championship. Well, there was the sense of optimism where it was like these guys are going to be good enough and now the coach is going to come in to seal the deal and here we go. That was the feeling. Yes. Exactly.

And he was a super coach back then, right? There was no tarnish on the two gold medals with the Canadian Olympic team and there was no tarnish on the Stanley Cup ring. We didn't know what we know about Mike Bagpack then. And you're right, it was an absolute home run, grand slam, wooed him away from Buffalo, man. How about that? Who would have thought 10 years later, Buffalo still trying to make the playoffs and still

looking for their Mike Babcock. But that was 10 years ago. So hiring Babcock was at four. Number three, beating Tampa in 2023. I know now you have a jaded view of this clearly, but at the time that was such a relief for everyone, the fan base included, who had been goofed on by every other fan base in the league, including people in Buffalo saying, you even want to play off series in 20 years. You guys are losers.

You can't the team can't win anything. And for them to beat, Tampa had been to three straight cup finals all those overtime defeats three no in tampa in that series including game six of ours gets the winner uh... again it looks and feels different now because what happened last year what happened this year but beating tampa twenty twenty three i got that at number three any arguments there

that makes sense now that may have got that was a huge moment huge moment number two uh... making the playoffs in the matthews marner rookie season at first year yeah um... that was as fun and entertaining of a season as i i can remember following this team

you knew matthews was going to win the rookie of the year at that point marter was a wizard willy was was coming alive. Babcock was here. They made the playoffs. Oh, remember, you and I were in the alumni box on a Sunday night playing Columbus, the 82nd game of the year. I think we might have been in the building on the Saturday night because they had two home games that weekend.

It was against Pittsburgh on the Saturday night. Columbus on the Sunday. I think it was flipped around. It might have been Pittsburgh on the Sunday. And I remember Curtis McElhaney kicking out his leg and making a save on Sid that sealed the deal That's when they that's when they punched their ticket that was a Saturday game 81 game 82 was against Columbus to see if they play Ottawa or if they play Washington remember? That was the game of torts was in Columbus

And if they oh yeah They could have won the game and played all played Ottawa and instead they lost and moved into the as a wild card into the other division to play Washington. But that was just everything was so fresh everything that was the outdoor game I believe that year pretty sure it was down at BMO I was in the bill I was there for that. That's when a lot of this stuff happened legends were were all that kind of stuff. That whole season was magical. Maybe that was a precursor. Maybe that was the first little sign of, come on, you can't win that game.

Yes, beating Columbus. You know what I mean? Like where you could have had Ottawa and not Washington. You're right. That might have been like a little kind of look into the future where it was like, come on, you lose that game to Columbus? We't know what serious yeah, we didn't know it then but you're right because Columbus wasn't much of a team either No, they were gotta be Columbus gotta beat him now. You're running on a high beat this you play Ottawa But remember hey, they got up to one on the Capitals in that series, right? And it was like and at that time it was like wow

The Capitals are staring down the skeletons in their closet closet because they at that point they were the Leafs right like they were they were the team that couldn't get over the hump they were the team that was not performing the playoffs in the way they were in the regular seasons and yeah you're right and up to one and then they lose three one-goal games in a row yep yeah Bozak and overtime game three that was a great great night great game I remember that walking out of that building thinking, wow, they might actually win this series. And then at number one, the highlights of the Shanahan era, I have them winning the lottery, which again probably speaks to why we're in the situation we are today. That for me, the number one highlight

happened off the ice in suits. But when they won the lottery as big as the Babcock thing was, as big as you know these other things that have happened, that was just such a monumental moment. It was first overall pick, something they hadn't had since 85 when they drafted Wendell Clark. It was Auston Matthews. Everyone knew what was coming. Everyone knew who he was, what he was going to become. Babcock was here already. Marner was coming. Nylander was coming. Everyone knew who he was, what he was going to become. Babcock was here already. Marner was coming. Nylander was coming. That's number one for me, them winning the lottery.

They almost had the big Kahuna too. Not that Matthews isn't big, but I think they had the best odds going in. When the balls were dropping for McDavid, I think they had the best odds when it came right down to it. They did. Yeah, for the fourth lottery ball. They a lot of re and then it was the they had like three different options of the nine or ten that were available to win it and Edmonton had won and their number came up here's Pierre Lebrun our TSN

hockey insider Pierre at what point you know in the last few days did you think and maybe believe this was coming, that Shanahan was going to be out in Toronto? I mean, I kind of felt all year it was the more probable scenario unless the Leafs went deep in the playoffs and, you know, deep being past the second round. But then when the Islanders were granted permission yesterday to speak with Shanahan, I mean, I guess you had to read into that, right? I mean, why would MLSE let the Islanders give them the green light if they thought they were going to resign to run the Chanon extension? So that was kind of the slam dunk there. And, you know, listen, you guys have done a great job.

You lost a couple of hours going over all this stuff. I mean, at the end of the day, I start with, it's been 11 years. So regardless of whether you're glass half full or glass half empty with Shane, at the end of the day, if he was on with us, he would say, not getting this team deep in the playoffs, and you can't argue that. I mean, that's a big disappointment. But regardless of how you feel

about all the other things he did, and he certainly leaves a team that's better run than it was when you got here. 11 years is a long time. I mean a lot of people don't get 11 years to be a president of a sports team so it's not very sexy but honestly I just feel like the contract expiring and being here 11 years was probably the biggest reason. Yeah and you look at what this could mean for the the Maple Leafs moving forward

What do you make of the announcement that you know Brad Treliving will stay in as GM and as of now They're not going to immediately replace Shanahan And do you think this is the end of the president's role with this team? What do you think MLSC is going to do here? Well, that's what's interesting is that you know There's a quote in the statement from Keith Pelly and we'll hear more from him tomorrow and that's the key is to understand how Keith Pelly puts it tomorrow at his own

news conference but does he really have to hire a replacement for Brendan Shanahan? Keith Pelly wasn't here when Brendan Shanahan was hired so does Keith Pelly feel that there needs to be an in between him and the GM? And maybe he does, maybe he doesn't, but I don't think that's clear right now. Right? And so that's why what he has to say tomorrow will be important, but it may very well be that at least for a while anyway, that unless there's an obvious candidate that jumps out at him, maybe he's comfortable not having Brendan Chenin replaced. Number two, you mentioned Brad Treeliving, obviously he hasn't spoken since the season ended,

but I would imagine today's a tough day for him in the sense that Brendan Chenin hired him. Hockey guys, they go into a foxhole together, And so just because True Living wasn't let go today, I can't imagine it's a great day for him anyway. Because he's probably, and this is just me, you know, relaying what I've seen with other GMs over the years who lost the guy who hired them. You probably feel a little less secure moving forward about what it all means. So that's the other thing to keep in mind here.

Peter, what if any impact could Shanahan leaving have on the two key UFAs? Could it kind of change someone else's perspective? Could it affect that at all? I don't think so. Oh I mean I think tree living is really the key figure in those conversations anyway and you know John Tabaris made a point the other day I was at the clean out locker day and he made a point of saying that he had just had a meeting with tree living as all the players did but for his exit meeting and that he came out of it feeling pretty

positive about his chances of staying a Leaf. So we made a point of mentioning tree living, even though we hadn't asked Tavares about that. So I think that's still the GM's job. And I mean, I don't even think we need to have a conversation any further about whether or not there's a chance Mitch Marner stays. I think it's pretty much a done doesn't deal with going to market. But okay, going to market means he's leaving for sure?

Like that's your opinion that Marner's done? Well, nothing's for sure in life. I mean, I think I definitely, if you were putting a gun to my head, I would say that it's very, very likely that Marner leaves. In my mind. Now you never know again uh... could be after martyr said he wanted to decompress over the next few weeks and

and go over everything maybe come out of it and the other side feeling differently after the emotion and out of it but my company you go he's going to market for shanahan pierre you know obviously the island is a reached out he's got the built- relationship with Lulamarillo who's still hanging around as a advisor to the Islanders presidents.

Do you see a fit there in that management team for Brendan Shanahan? For sure, and I think really the person to key on is actually John Collins, Dave. Because John Collins, when he was at the league, worked with Brendan Shanahan, right? I mean, they were both at the league office at the same time.

And John Collins is, along with ownership, spearheading the search here for the New Hawk administration. So I think that's probably more the key relationship to focus on. There's no question in my mind that Shanahan, when he feels the time is right here over the next number of days, will meet with the Islanders. Whether or not he feels that job is for him, we'll see.

I can't answer that. But I will say that my sense is, some people have wondered, will Shanahan maybe take a year off and reset? I don't think so. I think he wants to get right back into it with the key uh... if you can so if the allan your job sounds good to him

and everything around it sounds good to him uh... you know may very well be that he feels that's where most of it well they've got the first overall pick uh... and they've got some cap space and we were trying to connect Mitch Marner to Brendan Shanahan and the Islanders. Could you see a connection there? If you think Marner is going to hit the market, do you have two or three teams in mind that

you think would show interest in him but also he would show interest in them? Yeah, hard to tell. I don't know that I would put the Allen's in there only because I think that whoever ends up there, whether it's Mark Bergevin or Matthew Dars as GM and then whether or not Chan-An's in there as president, I think they need some form of retool, not necessarily a rebuild. I don't think ownership there wants a rebuild, but I think a retool. So I don't think ownership there wants to rebuild, but I think a retool. So I don't know about splurging on July 1st as your first act on the retool. But again, let's see who they end up hiring. It's hard to answer the vacuum without knowing who the outers end up hiring to run their team.

But I think a lot of the usual suspects, if I had to guess, for Marner, I think I mentioned some of these teams last week. I mean, you know, no doubt in my mind that, you know, teams like, uh, like Anaheim and Detroit and Chicago will want to get in on it. Um, I had a piece today come out with Ken Holland, uh, interviewed Ken Holland today. And, and he obviously wouldn't get into names, but we ended our interview by him saying the Kings are absolutely intent on being aggressive here. We know Ken Allen likes to swing for the fences.

So I would surmise that the Kings would be one of the teams too. And they got cap room that would be in on Marner. But aside from that, I think Marner himself, if he goes to market, which I think is likely, will probably look at the old suspects. You know, Florida, Vegas, all the teams that we always end up keen on, where players seem to love to go. I mean, I think those teams would probably be on his list as well. Yeah, and yet those teams aren't going to give him $14 million a year. So how does that drive, you know?

Right. Let's see what he wants. What's that? Let's see what he wants, and let's see what he prioritizes. Oh, that would be sickening if he signs in Florida for nine and a half million dollars. He will just never be able to come back here. Ever. Ever again. I'm not saying that's going to happen.

No, I understand. I'm just saying if that happens, there will be no alumni, hey, coming back, good to see it like that. It'll just be the end. It'll be over and finished because the thought is, well, he's going to want all the money and Austin got this and Willie got that. That's what I'm having a tough time figuring out. If Mitch is about, if he wants to win, those teams make a lot of sense.

I could understand that. If he's like, hey, listen, I just if he wants to win, those teams make a lot of sense. You know, and I could understand that. Like if he's like, hey, listen, I just decided I want to win. Okay. You know, he never said he wants to redeem himself in Toronto and I want to prove I can win here, but maybe you want to win somewhere else. Yet, if you're going to do that with those teams, like they don't run their cap that way and, you know, they're not going to give you more money than their top dogs dogs but it may actually be a perfect spot because you'd go in there and he wouldn't be the man you know if you went to Florida be fourth or fifth in line in

terms of importance on that team yeah I mean again regardless of how this ends up play playing out I do feel like he sounds like a guy that needs to change the scenery yes so I'm not disputing that. I mean, if you had the power in you, Brian, to hypnotize and convince him to resign with a lease, would you really want to? Knowing that when he wakes up from that trance, he's realizing that's not where his heart is anymore. Again, I don't want to speak for him, but that would be where we'd be on the situation right now.

Yeah, no, I agree with that. I'm ready to move on. I think most people are. I think it's in the best interest of him, the team. I'm curious about what the negotiation looks like. That's what I guess what I'm saying because I've always looked at Mitch and all of them, not him alone, as he better pay me, I better get my money, I better get my contract. How does that possibly stop on July 1st

when he's a UFA? Like everyone saying he's gonna make all this money. Well he's not, if he goes to Vegas, I don't think he will. If he goes to Vegas or Florida or Tampa, I don't see how he could. Yeah, it really depends where he ends up, no question. And I can just say this, that regardless of how you rate his play is black performance i can absolutely sure you

not affected its free agent because of house of house of the year because of the other market because of the market for two what's where look at the list of players available july first yeah that's what you and If only one Apple was available at the market and you were craving an Apple, so were 10 other people, would you not be willing to

over-vade board? For sure. I just don't know what it says to your fanbase, well this is the only guy available so we just gave him a boatload and once we're going to get good and the playoffs come around he might not play that good but we did it anyway. Yeah but oh some teams are just trying to get into the playoffs. Not everyone just gets to start the season next October and say boy I can't wait to see what happens this year in the playoffs. Some teams are like we haven't been in forever. Mitch Marner is going to help us get in.

And that's what I'm saying. I guess that's where I'm driving at is if like if you're Florida and you look at them, you don't need Marner. Okay, sure. You'll take them. But why would you pay them more than you pay Sam Reinhardt? Dude, knowing why would you ever pay more than that? They have a kid coming up in the minors that might fill a void. They probably do. Yeah, they probably have something in the system that's just like we have that guy. Or you'd look at and say, why why would we just keep radmar shan like look what he's doing for us right now absolutely possible in the playoffs

it the one thing i would say about florida and it's not necessarily by anyone particular but they they will be interesting to watch it again and build you know well i would assume will be nominated for jim the year here in the in the coming days along with j Nilf and a few others but you know they've not been able to extend Sam Bennett for whatever reason right and again that's not the end of the world that it hasn't happened yet as you remember Sam Reinhardt

went right to June 30th at Mid-Date last year right after they won the cup so that one they have to sweat that one out before they finally resign Reinhardt but they've not been able to extend Bennett yet and I get it Bennett's a totally different player than Marner, different position, different attributes and obviously not quite the same offensive impact of course as Marner but if they can't resign Bennett which is absolutely possible just based on the fact they haven't been able to extend them during the year it It does open up some cap space. Not huge cap space, but certainly more cap space than they had, you know, a year ago when they kept the guys they did. So just keep that in mind with

Florida that they actually, and the cap's going up, right? The cap is not staying still like it did the last four years. So Florida between the possibility of losing either Bennett or Eklat or both and again they may sign those guys but if they lose them and the cap is going up they suddenly have more capper than they've had for several years and they who knows they might be coming off another cup so keep that in mind too crazy the statement you just made Pierre Like you said Marner is in a different stratosphere other than Sam Offensively offensively no no let me just finish let me finish

If you had to pick one guy to get you through a playoff series in Europe GM Pierre LeBron who would you want to sign? It would depend on what I feel my great. I just see No, no, but I mean it's important. So the Leafs, how they've played in the playoffs at crunch time, they need that kind of guy. But there are other teams that would actually need Marner more if they can't score. Like it depends on what kind of player you need. It's hard to answer those things in a vacuum. There's no question the Leafs need a Sam Bennett type player, whatever that looks like. Okay, so if playoff stats don't matter, Pierre, what is the market for John Tavares who showed

up on the score sheet and only won of the seven games against the Panthers in his turn in 35 in September. Yeah, well his contract was different thing in Toronto than it would on July 1st. There's no question about that. Teeves loved this guy, but it's not with him. It doesn't even sound like he wants to talk to anyone. He just really wants to stay elite. And you have to acknowledge that with John Taveras. He's been really consistent in his desire to remain here at home. But that means that there has to be a number that works. I believe that at the start of the year, I think I reported this stuff, I haven't, but the hell, I'll just blurt it out, but last September at camp, I think Tavares and his

camp totally used to be ready to extend right then and there. I think they probably would have signed for around five million a year. But then he went out and had a huge season. So, you know, I don't know that the number can stay there from where it was in September because of the points he put up this year. But on the other hand, he's kind of hurting his own leverage by saying I don't want to go anywhere and this is where the Leafs have to they've not done this a lot with their guys but I think they got to be a bit Mr. Me here and say well if you really want to stay this is the number I really do think that's what the Leafs have to do here. Yeah I agree with that.

Alright Pierre well we'll see it's been a crazy week and we're still in the third round. We've got more games tonight and we're still weeks away from the draft. I'm off to Edmonton on Saturday, going to catch a couple games of the Western Conference Final. Looking forward to that. Alright buddy, enjoy it, we'll do it soon. Alright guys.

Pierre Labrador, TSN Hockey Insider. Kevin Harlan of the NBA on TNT, he will join us next. All right, best bets later in the hour. Crazy night sports because simultaneously while the Oilers were throwing a win away down in Dallas, the Knicks were throwing a win away down in New York. And the Pacers, like breaking records in terms of comebacks and in terms of the score and in terms of how well they had to play and in particular offensively they were putting up every single shot was going in I mean needless to say and

Halliburton thought he had turned the lights out and he went to Reggie and he pulled the choke job and then it turns out it was a two and not a three don't even tell me either of you two had like you you had you saw this coming like you you're on the Pacers this year. No no no no. Dude I thought the Cavs were gonna kill them. Yes. I thought the Cavs were I'm sorry this might sound crazy.

I thought they were gonna kill everybody. They were unreal this season. They were they were they ran into injuries and then the Pacers to their credit they just never stopped. They never stopped and it continued last night a man that sought up close and personal from the nbnt tt joins us now his kevin harland what uh... was that like last night kevin well are good to be out with you and uh... pretty stunning about is stunning

is the choir shot back in twenty nineteen and then after after about as stunning as the Kauai shot back in 2019. When the Raptors beat Philly in game seven, pretty dramatic, you know, for that shot, for all the comeback ability that both of these teams have shown in the playoffs. By the way, New York has got a nice resume in these playoffs and what they've done coming back and winning against Detroit. They did it in round one in a game or two. They did it a couple times against Boston, the reigning champion in the second round in the East semifinals.

And so New York has that same ability, but Indiana has kind of been the story in that regard. Halliburton has been the guy pulling the trigger, and this team, the one thing that you noticed up close, even when they were down by 17, the Pacers stayed and played the same way. They jiggled their lineup a little bit and they took out their big man Turner, they got faster, they moved the pace up a little bit more, they had to play with more urgency. All of that played into their hand. And their style, their look, body language, whatever you want to call it, it did not change from the way they started the game where they hit like the first five, six, seven, eight

shots till the very end. New York, I thought, once the comeback was being put together, you could see body language, lack of Christmas in rotations and making the right switch and the right read and maybe even communication which you never know until you find out after the game and talk to them. But those things seem to get sluggish. They get a little wonky in there and Indy just began to play the way they played. They're the best shooting team, the Pacers are in the postseason. They're the second highest scoring team in these playoffs. So you can't exhale. The three ball will make it that way. And their style certainly lends even more to that because they'll race up and down and then press you after they make a basket and force you to get out of your rhythm. And the Knicks did. Everything worked well for the Pacers.

They had a timeout and a challenge late in the game, which they used, and it worked. And they earned that win. There was nothing given to them. People said it was a lucky bounce and straight through on the Halliburton shot and there's always a sense of that. But he's made so many and been so clutch that I think luck is out of it. Same with Brunson. They make big shots. They just do. And we saw that last night and that building was stunned. It was as quiet and as shocking as it was for that kawaii shot in 2019, but on the other side with exuberance and just like amazement at what people had just seen. Kevin, did you find yourself having to get some urgency into your call because sometimes and you're one of the greats, even the greats at the score like that, you're like, ah, maybe

it's story time, maybe we'll look around and then all of a sudden the comeback is on. How did you kind of get the feel for it of what was happening out there as the play-by-play man? Well my guys start kind of getting ready for game two. The guys I was working with, they start, well in game two and you know, I think Stan even said on the air, he goes, boy, I don't know how they're going to come back, even like less than two minutes to go. And the Neesmith kid was hitting all these shots, and it did, it crept up on you. And that's the problem when you're broadcasting a game with such a quick twitch to it. When there's such a turnaround in a small window, you can manage a quarter,

you can manage a half, but to manage three minutes, two minutes and have it happen so fast in such a collapse appear before you, you're staying in the moment with trying to use the building blocks of what just happened to lead you to make some sense is what you're watching now. So we saw the kid hitting the shots but then you got to start putting things together. You know a missed free throw here and there by the next down the stretch. Missing shots they were normally hitting early on. They were going at Brunson because he had five fouls and so his defense was a little going at Brunson because he had five fouls and so

his defense was a little shaky and a little loose because he didn't want to foul out and get that sixth. So you know there's a lot going on as you compress it. It's not unlike a football team where their selection of plays and the variety and breadth which they can think of, when they get in that red zone, when they get inside the 10 yard line, inside the seven yard line, and now that their catalog of plays will shrink so much,

that's kind of the way it is in a game like that from broadcast because you don't have time to develop with conversation and replays and graphics as smoothly and as maybe easily digestible as you would if it occurred over a quarter or over a half. This happened in the final couple minutes of a game and a conference finals. And it's a rat race to see, you know,

where your eyes should go on the floor, who could be that next guy to pull it off with keeping in mind how you got there and staying present in the moment. So yeah, now there's a lot going on. And sometimes in a game like that, you take off your headset and say, man, I sure hope we conveyed it,

In a game like that you take off your headset and say, man, I sure hope we conveyed it and at least explained why this was going on because there was a mindset with about four minutes left like this baby's all she wrote. How are the Knicks going to come back or how is Indiana going to come back with this loss for game two tomorrow night? And sure enough, it switched like that in the blink of an eye and we were left with one of the most thrilling finishes of these playoffs And and I dare say in recent memory And especially with the stakes so high because the winner here, of course goes to the NBA finals Well, Kevin, you definitely conveyed it you do a great job

But I I wanted to get your sense of where the league is at right now, because you're courtside every night. And it feels like six years removed from the Raptors winning the title on that Kawhi shot as a big part of it en route. It feels like the league is really changing before our eyes. We kind of have been accustomed to a league where, well, there was no getting past LeBron,

or there was no getting past the Warriors with the rant, or there was no getting past LeBron or there was no getting past the Warriors with the ranch or there was no getting past you know these dynastic teams that were seemingly unbeatable and now we thought maybe we had a team like that in the Celtics suddenly they're not that team Jason Tatum is gonna be out a year what do you make of the wide openness of this league as we sit here watching it? Well you bring up an interesting point because I think I think the league with load management with retiring giants like LeBron soon, Curry soon, Kevin Durant very soon, these guys are in the last literal years of their career and there doesn't seem to be

Like that that guy to get the baton We saw it when magic and bird gave it to Jordan and then Jordan passed it on and they got it from dr J and that's Jordan passed it on to Kobe who passed it on to LeBron and And in between we had the Allen Iversons and the Charles Barclays and we had these other bit players but there was always like a flagship guy. There doesn't seem to be a flagship guy right now. The league back in the days of David Stern, the late great commissioner of the league,

he thought we have got to build the stars. But I would contend that we've got a time now where maybe that can be adjusted. Sure the NFL has Lamar Jackson and the Ravens and it's got Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs and we've got greats in all sports with an individual significant player. But at the end of the day, it's the team. And I'm wondering if this is that opportunity with no great player on the horizon to maybe emphasize team like we see with the we've got Brunson, but the Knicks are a good team. We got the Pacers and Halliburton, but are a team and the star last night was this kid that no one really knows about this knee Smith kid. So maybe it's time to kind of shift that a little bit and push the team element so that when a star is gone you still have the team and when there's load

management and a great player is going to be out for 10 to 15 games, doesn't matter, you've still got the team. And the NFL has prospered that way, they've built matchups and rivalries with teams. And I know there are fewer players on the floor than an 11-man on each side NFL game and I understand that, but with nobody dominant, like ready to just jump out and grab this sport, and they keep pushing people, but that's the media. I don't know if that's the reality. And the media would so desperately love there to be

another Jordan, Kobe, LeBron, Kevin Durant. I don't know that there's one right now but there are a lot of great players there there are a lot of a lot of players that the the gilded alexanders and and brunson and hellebrandt but i don't know if you have a transcendent player right now so it might be a time for the nba to push the team thing and and the rivalry and build the strength of the league in that regard

and we'll see where it goes. But by the way, Toronto is represented very well in this series. As you know, at Basco, Siakam on one team and Ananobe on the other. And I know it must hurt Raptor fans and NBA fans in Canada to see two important players from their championship run a couple years ago, not even on the team anymore, but still very much involved and playing well with other teams in the NBA. Absolutely. With Kevin Harlan.

And on top of that, Shay Gilder's Alexander is from here. Oh my gosh, yes, of course. So we're all tracking Shea So we're well rep, I guess we're rooting against Minnesota yet. They're a border state. So maybe we should consider that You know, but Shea wins the MVP last night. We saw two nights ago. They set the tone They beat up on Minnesota in game one. We'll see if the Timberwolves respond. I think they likely will But you know, where do you stand on Shea and his ability to run off maybe multiple

MVPs? But what this might look and feel like if Oklahoma City, who's been the best team in the league all year, actually gets through this, gets to the NBA final and wins it. Like, isn't that exactly what we're talking about here? Like, Oklahoma City, Shea Gilder's Alexander, a Canadian kid, they could be winning everything, MVP and championship a month from now. And remember they had Westbrook and they had Durant and they had Harden when they made the finals many years ago. And Durant emerged out of that trisecta, although Harden was an MVP at one time with another

team, Houston, and Westbrook, you know, was an MVP. Amazing, right? I mean, like, so you're talking about there were three MVPs to come on that team, but Durant probably emerged as that transcendent player, the guy that he's not in the Jordan class clearly, but going to Golden State's not in the Jordan class clearly, but going to Golden State put him with the championships in a different field and a final appearance with Oklahoma State, Oklahoma City.

I would say that, yeah, she, there is an opportunity there for sure. And probably for Halliburton, the league is dying to find that next guy or the next couple guys and maybe this is how it begins. When Gilder's Alexander was traded to Oklahoma City, he wasn't even a starter and he has grown with the team and the thing that's great about Oklahoma City is not Gilder's Alexander, which you know stands alone, but there's such a great team and that's how Indiana is. And I

dare say that's how the Celtics were. And going back to the Raptors, they may have had Kauai, but they also had had others, Siakam and Van Vliet. And like so, you need a team to win. And I always, you know, like when we follow colleges here in the States, it's the brand, it's the logo, it's the university. Not a lot. Duke does a flag was, was the outlier this year at Duke, but Duke stands out cause they're Duke in Carolina and Kentucky and Indiana and Kansas. They all stand out because the team, the school, the logo and, and, and the team, the school, the logo, and the NFL, a lot of times it is just the arrowhead for

the Chiefs and the Raven, for the Baltimore Ravens and the Patriots for Brady in New England. But Brady's the first to admit, clearly I was the quarterback, the most important position in all of sports. But we had a great team and and that's the thing that i think is in in the that's what that's exactly what oklahoma city is not they they they took any name they had completely rebuilt to the draft and into very clever acquisitions in free agency

and they built a team and and because of that uh... they are where they are with the sixty-eight win season historical high net rating uh... they they did all these things and and and that's where they stand and and actually the paces are the same way they built like that the payroll the nix is huge

one of the highest in the nba but but the peterers have a lower payroll and aside from Halliburton and I don't even know that he's a household name. He's a little bit more today because of what happened last night but he didn't even play in the Olympic team. He was on it but he didn't play and so that just goes to show you kind of where he is in the hierarchy.

He was just named the most overrated player in a poll of NBA players in the league. They said he was the most overrated. And yet here he is with three big time shots in these playoffs. The team is three wins away from the finals for the first time in a quarter century. Yet I don't know if there's a lot of, there are a lot of people even before last night that could have said, who, who is he? Where do you play college where is he from we played at Iowa State and and and he was on the Olympic team by the way even though he didn't like so so like there's a lot going on with this team and and the more they win the more recognition they're gonna get but but make no mistake it's not just one guy

that is a team of what we saw it with the shooting of Neesmith last night as an example. Absolutely. It was one hell of a game, one hell of a finish, that is for sure. It's only game one. We're just getting started in the conference final. Enjoy the rest of it, Kevin. Really appreciate you doing this. Nice to be out with you guys.

Thank you for calling again. We'll talk again soon, I hope. You got it. Kevin Harlan of the NBA on TNT Why isn't Shay Gilder's Alexander and Ant-Man like how come they're not the next guys that did it's not have the sex appeal of a LeBron or like well, is it because of where they play? Yeah, I think it's combination of a couple of things. I mean LeBron was a phenom when he was 13 14 I get it. He's a different LeBron's a different beast. I do think Oklahoma City and Minnesota, like this is the challenge the NBA has.

They want to be the NFL. You can't snap your fingers and be the NFL. It doesn't work that way. Oklahoma City can't draw like LA. Minnesota can't draw like Golden State. You know, San Francisco, LA, Oklahoma City, Minnesota. that's San Francisco LA Oklahoma City, Minnesota It's simple like it's it's still a regional sport in many ways. Yes It's gone global in terms of stars and in terms of popularity

but It's still closer to the NHL than it is the NFL. The NFL is a different beast man About a haze. Do you think the clip show would maybe like Shay? Yes instead of that Paul George Trade dude. Oh one of the worst deals in sports history when you look back on it Alright best bets coming up overdrive continues TSN 1050 and on the TSN app Parley and second to the vandal sportsbook gap But then we'll make your picks and assemble the same game parlay and second to the Fandol sportsbook gap

Panthers puck line tonight plus one and a half. I think Carolina possibly wins if they do they're gonna have to earn it I think it's a close game. Maybe goes to overtime Brad Marchand one point card over Hagee three plus shots on goal in 60 minutes that parlay pan plus 384 best bets powered by fan duel and As we know live same game parlays now available for every Stanley Cup playoff game on the fan dual sports book app Please play responsibly 19 plus physically located in Ontario All right big news today Brendan Shanahan no longer running the show here in Toronto and We'll see what comes of it as of tomorrow afternoon. Keith Pelley is going to speak with the media. I'm guessing Brad Tree Living will speak as well

at some point about what the plan is moving forward. What does this mean for the Raptors, Toronto FC, the Argos, the whole empire down there, we'll see. But uh... it's been eleven years and it was a good run but ultimately you know it didn't get to the promised land and the Leafs have moved on. We'll see what Shanahan does from here. Alright boys, good stuff. Dave, thanks for doing this man, appreciate it as always. There's Dave Fest, Juggler Toronto star.

Thanks to everyone behind the scenes for helping out, we appreciate it. Everyone for tuning in today, TV, radio, podcast, web and up on YouTube, we appreciate that. We're out of here. Enjoy your evenings. Enjoy the games tonight, we're back tomorrow acts four p m will chat that that

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