PTI - LeBron James, 2016 Cavs reunite on 10th anniversary of Game 7

Episode Date: June 19, 2026

This episode features Frank Isola and Taylor Twellman as hosts to discuss a range of current sports headlines, primarily focusing on international soccer and professional golf and  the 10th anniversary of LeBron James and The Cleveland Cavaliers historic comeback against the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Wayfair, every style, every home. Pardon the interruption, but I'm Frank Isola. And of course, they brought me on to PTI today as the host with the most soccer knowledge. Debatable. I'm Taylor Twelman. Did that feel good, Frank? Well, lasted? It actually did. To be honest with you, it actually did.

You know, I actually was on Maryland for a minute, and you technically broke all my scoring records. Technically. All two of them? When you scored your first goal, you broke my record. Welcome to PTI, everyone. Mike and Tony are off on a kite sailing adventure, so I'm joined, thrilled to be joined in his co-hosting debut. How about that? by the lead MLS analyst for Apple TV, Mr. Taylor Twelman.

Yeah! Look at that. He brought his own cheering second. A lot of Maryland people in this studio today. A lot of Maryland people, buddy. All right, let's start with the U.S. men's soccer team squaring off with Australia in a game that just ended. Christian Polisic was ruled out early this afternoon with a calf injury despite this,

and for the second straight match, the U.S. jumped out to an early 1-0 lead. This time on an own goal by Australia's Cameron Burgess, Alex Freeman. How about that of the U.S. added another shortly before that happened. Two-nill is how it ended. All right, Taylor, your thoughts on how this game played out. Let's start with Christian Policicc

in the injury first, Frank. I raised this yesterday that if he can't train for a full 24 hours before the game, you don't want to risk it because you gave yourself a little bit of headroom by taking care of Paraguay in the fashion that they did.

So the fact that he wasn't ready, no problem. them sit them. Now, I always believe that the United States could beat Australia without them. Quite frankly, they already did this in October of 25 when they beat Australia 2-1 in a friendly. Now, a little caveat to this was, would Pochitino

play two center forwards? Would he play one? Would he play an extra midfielder? He went with Ricardo Pepe up front. Brilliant move. For the first 45 minutes, Frank, they were dynamic. They were athletic in a game that was chippy, that was ugly. The field didn't play that fast, but the United States was the protagonist.

They dominated possession, but more so, other than an early chance from Australia, there wasn't a ton of threat. The second half, that's more alarming. But give me your thoughts on the first 45. I thought we were terrific in the first 45, and it's the first time, speaking of 45, first time since 1930 that the U.S. has won consecutive World Cup games. So we did make some history today. I agree with you.

I thought the field was terrible. I thought in the second half of Australia, besides the fact that they did a lot of complaining, I thought they were really physical. It seemed like a little at times like Australian rules football. So I think for the U.S., and I think there's the thing, Taylor, this team, we got a little fight to us. We got a little bite in us as well.

And I agree. I thought dynamic in the first half again, the first goal coming down the left side. This time it was Baligan, obviously in the first game against Paraguay. It was Christian Polisic, who did a great job attacking. So all in all, do I think they're going to have to play? play better as the tournament goes on. Absolutely. I thought maybe in the second half, Pachitino could have gone to the subs maybe a little bit earlier. I thought we had tired

legs. But I thought all in all, I thought it was obviously a good result. Anytime you win a World Cup game, it's a big deal, Taylor. Frank, anytime you qualify for the knockout stage for the first time ever with a game in hand, the United States men have never done this. And I couldn't agree with you more in the sense of this. The first game, you won in style. The second game, there was None of that. But you had to claw. You had to fight.

You had to do every little thing well in order to get a goal. The own goal would have been scored by Pepey anyway. So take that away. But the United States have not won two games in the World Cup in two different ways. That is going to be more momentum going into the knockout stage than winning both games with real style because now you've answered the call. We can win ugly. We can win pretty.

That's going to give them confidence. All right. A couple of things. I thought Matt Freeze, he needs to be a little. a little bit better with the ball at his feet. I think that was a smallish. I'm going to start nitpicking just a little bit here. I thought at times the back line needs to be a little bit sharper.

And in the second half, you know, Australia is pushing forward, Taylor. I would have thought maybe the U.S. like they did against Paraguay, you can get some kind of counterattack goal. They didn't get that in the second half. Yeah, I agree with you, especially second half. But Portitino could have changed that with some subs. I want to spin this forward. Less about what happened this.

afternoon because now the conversation starts where do you go from here Frank what would you do depending on the result tonight from Turkey A with the next lineup and what what that result needs all right obviously the big question is going to be Christian Polisic and we don't know if he's going to be available for the next thing all you need to know is when Alex Freeman scored his first goal and it was a bit of a delay because it got reviewed by VAR so it was a late celebration and everyone from the bench ran to the other end of the field and celebrated with Freeman. Guess who was one of those players jumping up and down was Christian

ballistic? So that was actually a good sign, I think, for me. But now you're in a position. And Turkey is going to be the best team that they've played in this group so far. They played really well against Australia. They were a bit unlucky. They control possession. If the U.S. can get, if you win the group, and you know this, now with the added teams in the tournament, they're going to have a very favorable round of 32 opponent. It's starting to set up really well for the U.S. in terms of who they can play. Right now, when you look at it, there's a chance they could get Bosnia,

perhaps, in the round of 32. But I think the question for you would be, what about all the guys with yellow cards? That's a factor now going into that final group stage game. Tonight against Paraguay, if Turkey A loses or draws, the United States win the group. I'm resting Christian Polisic

and I'm sitting any player on a yellow card because the second yellow accumulation would actually suspend them in the knockout stage. You also brought up the most important part to this. It's not a 32-team tournament. It's 48 teams. And when the United States win the group, that now means they play a third-place team

in the knockout stage. And when you win that, which would be only the second knockout stage game that men have ever won since 1990, then it gives you real momentum. Frank, don't risk it. If you win the group before the Turkey A game, I wouldn't even touch Christian Polisic,

I wouldn't touch Tyler Adams, Chris Richards, anyone on the yellow. There's no reason to set yourself up to have the best run you've ever had, and sometimes you've got to lose the battle to win the war. I want to ask you about Policic, but one thing about Tyler Adams, and these are the kind of games, and you've seen this with him over the years, whether in the MLS or over in England, when it gets really physical, sometimes Taylor Adams could, Tyler Adams, could lose his head a little bit. like the fact that he was able to avoid

a yellow card in this game. But if Polisic is healthy, why not playing? Isn't there something about catching a rhythm or you think, you know what? That's if they have already clinched first place in the group. If they've already clinched, you're not playing regardless. I'm allowing him to

be fully fit for whoever it is because then you've got the third place team of whoever group that is, and then you've got yourself into the round of 16. I'm not touching Polisic or anyone on a yellow. I don't care. Now, they have to be available because obviously you need players available if injuries come and subs happen in the second half. But there's no reason to touch Richards or Adams on a yellow and quite frankly,

allow Christian ballistic an extra week to get ready. Has your prediction of the U.S. changed at all after the first two results? So what are you thinking? Quarterfinals are bust. I'm not changing. I agree with you. I think that would be a great result. But guess what? If things break right for them, who knows, maybe they can land in the semifinals. All right, let's move now to the second round of the U.S. Open ongoing at Shinnock out on the east end of Long Island. Wyndham Clark finished his first round this morning at minus six and then shot a 69 in the second round to take the clubhouse lead at minus seven. Matt Fitzpatrick and Zandra Shopley are at minus three and Colin Moracawa shot a 65 to get to minus two.

Taylor, what stands out to you about today's play? The tournament's set up. U.S. Open is golf's toughest test. It's built around punishment. The winner who always prevails makes the fewest mistakes in the four rounds. And I'm going to give you a nugget because yesterday caught me off guard. John Rom shot the first bogey-free round in a U.S. Open at Chinnecock in the last 753 rounds played there. That tells you, and listen, Wyndham Clark, the fact that he's 700 through two rounds, nobody expected this.

I feel like, Frank, I'm watching the Open Championship, which is a completely different test. That's one built about creativity, ingenuity, inventing solutions to the holes. It's not about survival. And I'm not saying I won 2004 back where Billy Mayfair has a 12-foot putt. He misses. Now he's got a 15-yard bunker shot. That's not what I'm talking about. But the way this course has been set up, this is not Shinnecock Hills.

I've played it five times. Frank, the five times I've played it is harder than these guys are playing it right now. I say that a little precariously, but my point is, no, no, the winner should be one under. That's what Shinnock is. This is not the Open Championship. I've been disappointed by it. All right, so were you on the golf team at Maryland as well as the soccer team? I was not.

I was not. All right, so a couple of things about the course. They thought yesterday they were going to get bad weather. So the court was easy. They thought it would be hard. It was easy. And then today there was a lot more win. So the course played a little bit harder today.

By the way, Rahm 78, he shot today. And I like the fact that you mentioned when- And, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. And Moracawa and Schaftley shot 65-66 today. So the courts couldn't have been that difficult today. But are you happy with Wyndham Clark? Because the last time he didn't miss the cut last year at Oakmont, he destroyed the locker. And they basically...

Well, he's sorry. He just threw his bag at me. No, seriously. Windham Clark, he still, by the way, Frank, he still hasn't really addressed it, has he? No. He keeps skirting around it saying a year a lot of people can change all this. He hasn't publicly just flat out said, my bad. Yeah.

And you're talking about shooting under par. Only three golfers at the open at Chinnecock have done that. Three at the U.S. Open. Right. It's amazing. It really is. Seven under with two rounds to play? You've got to be kidding me.

What's your handicap anyway? Don't worry about it. This is a public show. Everybody can find it. It's a plus 2.6. Can we go on? I didn't ask for you a great point. I was asked for your handicap.

Let's take a break. But coming up, the same. Which team had the more significant win last night? Canada or Mexico. Mom, that's not true. I had it 3.5 in college. Trust me. And we've got three horses on the mound tonight.

Which starter is more intriguing? Toss up is next. Now he's going to say he was on the baseball team as well. That was pretty good with the golf stuff. Tony's going to be impressed with that. It bothers me. I like punishment. Taylor is about to play toss-up for the first time.

So good luck, punk. What's first? Toss-up. Who had the more significant win last night? Canada or Mexico? All right. I'm going to tell you what I like about Canada really quick because this kind of applies to you and kind of to me.

They have a bunch of college soccer players on that team. American college soccer players. I like that about them. You know, St. John's, Wake Forest, you know, Akron. But I'm going to stick with Mexico for this reason. They haven't played well. They did beat South Korea last night, which is a good team, got a little bit lucky. And now you know this, Taylor.

They could play if they round of 32 game in Mexico. Yes. If they win a round of 16 game in Mexico. So the crowd hasn't been happy. I haven't been happy with Mexico yet. To me, they've been a little boring, not really attack mine. But I think for them to be really the first team to advance to the knockout state, I thought that was big. That's why for me it's Mexico.

And Frank, momentum's on their side, right? They failed to get out of the group in 2022 after losing every knockout round game in seven straight World Cups. And you and I both know this, but the general public doesn't, that the Mexican national team fan is like a Yankees fan. You still have to have style with substance. But you and I, we remember our first, our first date, our first. kiss, our first car, our first beer. How about our first World Cup win? For me, it's Canada, because when you do your first, and it's been a real long time for this team, Jesse Marsh took over a team that had high expectations in 2022. They didn't deliver to then tie the margin of

victory for a host nation. That's icing on the cake. That sets them up to play a third place team in a knockout stage game. I know Kone's broken leg. That kind of takes the buzz out of it a little brutal. But keep an eye on this Canadian team. Jonathan David, who couldn't score a goal for the life of them at Juventus, now scores a hat trick. All of a sudden, it feels like they may be playing something bigger than themselves with Kone's injury. I think Canada's wins bigger. All right. And I know you don't care about this, but I'm watching that group. God bless Canada, Qatar, Switzerland. If Italy had just beaten Bosnia, Herzegovina, they would have been in this group. Are we going to do this now? Are we really going to talk about the what-ifs?

It's painful. It's painful to watch. But you're right about... Three World Cups they've missed. Don't remind me. Don't remind me. All right, Mr. Producer, what's next? What's next? Toss up, most intriguing starter to watch tonight. Terek Skubel, Cam Schlittler, or Jacob Mizzerowski.

All right, so you know I went with Italy, which means I then have to go with New York, Taylor. So I'm going to go with Cam Schlittler. By the way, right now, the odds-on favorite to be the A.L. Salyong winner. the ERA is 1.81. But here's the crazy thing. 7 and 3 this season, he's got one win at Yankee Stadium. Remember what he did last October with that great game that he pitched to eliminate the Red Sox?

But since then, only one game up in the Bronx. But for me, it's Cam Schlittler, Aaron Judge, dealing with an injury. Yankees are kind of all banged up. Their pitching is held up. For me tonight, it's Camp Schlindler. Yeah, the question is intriguing, though. So I feel like, Frank, it's sacrilegious for you and I. Not to say scuba, the two-time-scied young winner, who's established himself as the real ace.

Free agencies just around the corner. Does Detroit trade him? He's coming off an elbow procedure. You kind of have the question of whether or not who he's going to be. However, I didn't know Nolan Ryan came back to Major League Baseball. I had no idea. Mizorovsky is insane. He is baseball's version of a heavyweight knockout boxer.

Velocity? Absurd. 104.9 miles an hour. He hit the radar gun. What? strikeouts at an absurd rate. What is it? 130, 131. Strikeouts to lead Major League Baseball.

And then 40% of the batters that he face strikes out. For me, Frank, every pitch, every at bat, Mizorowski feels like an event. And for me to admit that for a Milwaukee brewer, as I'm a St. Louis Cards fan, that should tell you that's probably more intriguing. And how about the last time out for Mizorowski? Against Philadelphia, he throws a.

complete game one hitter, 15 strikeouts, no walks in his ERA and his last stage starts, 0.17. Think about that. I mean, you average about two-wolds against the Phillies. I know. Hard to believe. You did better than that. How about his knowledge of baseball?

It's pretty good. And by the way, they wanted me to call you punk. It wasn't, I didn't have it in my heart this day. No, it's fine. That's fine. Call me punk all you want. I'm coming to get you in the next block. All right, that's it, punk.

I think we've all seen enough. Let's take one last break, but still to come. Will tonight's match against Haiti? Will it be a breeze for Brazil? No, it won't. And Jazz Chisholm had a nightmare at bat. So why were his teammates smiling? Who's the punk now, Frank?

I knew he was going to get me on that. I knew he'd get me on that. It's a Friday happy time, people. Happy 54th birthday, Brian McBride. The striker was a staple on three U.S. World Cup teams in 1998, 2002, and 2006. He was the first American player to score in two World Cups. And in 1998, he was the only U.S. player to score at all.

One of his teammates on the national team was a guy by the name of Taylor Twelman. And I read a story in The Athletic that reported that McBride was starring at St. Louis University, and you were a local middle school kid in the early 90s. I was. You'd go watch him play, and you got to meet him. How cool is that? It was my fifth grade teacher, Frank, was he used to go have a meal with them.

Every Sunday his freshman year at St. Louis University, he was a scholar, he was a gentleman, but he didn't like me reminding him about that, that I was in fifth grade when we became teammates with the national team. My only regret is he and I never played in a national team game together. I wish we did.

Tell you what, he was a fearless play. He was not afraid to stick his nose in there and head the ball, that's for sure. Happy anniversary, LeBron James, On this day, 10 years ago, LeBron and the Cavs completed the most improbable of comebacks to beat the Warriors in game seven of the NBA finals. That Warriors team had won an NBA record 73 games in the regular season and had jumped out to a 3-1 series lead.

But Draymond Greed was suspended for too many flagging fouls in game five and the Warriors lost their edge. The Cavs were the first NBA team to ever come back from a 3-1 deficit and it was the first major title for Cleveland in any sport in 52. years. And while some wonder whether LeBron would return to the Cads this offseason, he's reportedly weighing whether to stay with the Lakers or how about this? Join the Warriors. Frank, you'll love this since we're in the summer of soccer. 2016, we're in Paris for the European championships. It's four o'clock in the morning. And I remember slugging the left shoulder of Bob Lee, who then

crashed into Mike Tariko and Julie Fowdy when LeBron had the block. I will never forget that. to the day I die. You just set the world record for name-dropping. By the way, the great block by LeBron was something else. And I think right after the game, the Warriors were on the phone with Kevin Durant saying, you need to join us. That's what happened the next season. Happy Trails!

Jazz Chisholm. The Yankee's second baseman was batting in the fourth when he experienced something no man wants to. Chisham fouled off a pitch that ricocheted off the ground. Ouch, and into his groin. Chisham agonized. His teammates smirked and smiled. They weren't quitting for long. recruiting for long, White Sox pinch hitter, Andrew Benatendi, a former Yankee.

Look at this bomb. Hit a grand slam in the 8th that broke up the tie and gave the White Sox a 5-1 win and snapped New York's four-game winning streak. What do you want me to add to this? What do I add to that? Jism's a little guy? He's really stout? What do you want me to say? Hang on a second.

Hang on a second. When that happens, I don't laugh or smirk. It hurts. Why would other guys laugh at stuff like that? I never really understood that. I don't get it. I don't know because it's not you. All right.

Let's go to something that hopefully in your wheelhouse. World Cup, the big, let's go to the big finish. The World Cup tonight. Sorry about that. Brazil, Haiti. Are you smelling an upset? No. Brazil doesn't look like a contender, but Haiti is a difficult out.

I just struggle to think that Haiti gets out of that group. Stay with the World Cup. Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, Ivory Coast tomorrow. Which game's more intriguing to you? Really, really good games. You know, back in 1994, when Taylor was chased around Brian McBride, I was at the World Cup when Sweden made the semifinals. Sweden looked really good.

They looked so good. Tunisia fired their coach after the game. Sweden is a very underrated team. I'm most intrigued by that matchup. The Angels put Mike Trout on the IL with the right hamstring strain. Your thoughts? The game of what if the answer would be Mike Trot, 17 home runs, 30-some-odd-R-Bi's, a-l-best, 54 runs, second.

second most walks in the majors, would the angels have ever done better to put a better team around them? And what if Mike Trout never got injured? That is the game of what if, and that is Mike Trout's career. Jonathan Taves retires. How will you remember his career? Three Stanley Cups, two Olympic gold medals. Congratulations. Last one, the Royal puts 14 on your Cardinals yesterday.

Had that taste, punk. I can't. Frank, I can hear you. We can't hear you. I can't hear you. There's bad audio. I'm Taylor Twollman. Have a great weekend. The World Cup, the United States is through. Now, here's SportsCenter. Look at the timing.