The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz - Adam Silver Asked the NBA Question Nobody Wants to Answer | Alley Oop 187

Episode Date: May 29, 2026

Adam Silver just asked a question that could change the NBA forever: Should referees eventually be replaced by AI? In this episode of Alley Oop, Trysta Krick and Juju Gotti dive into one of the wildest debates in sports today. Would robot refs actually improve officiating? Would NBA fans trust artificial intelligence more than human referees? Or do sports fans secretly need refs around so they have someone to blame after every controversial call?The conversation goes everywhere from AI officiating and Adam Silver's vision for the future of basketball to OKC's flopping controversy, the Western Conference Finals showdown between the Thunder and Spurs, Victor Wembanyama's impact on the league, Luke Kornet's surprising rise, and predictions for the rest of the NBA Playoffs.Plus, the crew tackles one of the most important questions in sports entertainment: Why do fans love T-shirt cannons so much?! In this episode:• Adam Silver's AI referee debate• Should NBA refs be replaced?• OKC flopping controversy• Spurs vs Thunder predictions• Victor Wembanyama discussion• Luke Kornet's timid performance• Knicks fans being Knicks fans• T-shirt cannon power rankings• The future of NBA officiatingDo you want AI making calls in Game 7? Or are human refs part of what makes sports great? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Do you know by any chance what's inside those balloons, like what drug is inside of those balloons that they sell outside of Madison Square Garden? It's some sort of like, because they out of the balloons and then they get high and it's not helium. Not helium. We can guarantee you ain't no damn helium in the balloon.

It might be some LV. People don't know about that. Like, you had to be in New York to see it. Like, what the hell kind of drugs outside of the MSG in a balloon package? But got Mali balloons. Yeah, no doubt it's like American gangster. and blue magic.

How you doing, says? I'm good. I see that Spurs jersey on. By the time this episode airs, we will know whether you wore that as a good luck charm or as a bad omen. I'm hoping it was a good luck charm. Game seven on Sunday, baby, lock it in, man. I'm already confirming it.

What a game last night. The Spurs showed nothing but resilience or they're out and they were ass. Wemby, huge performance. Oh, my God. Just great rebounding from him. Didn't allow the moment to get too big. Nope. You know, it was really tough for, a tough one for Deeran Fox.

That ankle's clearly still bothering him. Staff Castle though, what a game. Didn't turn the ball over much. Right. Apparently, I mean, only five this time. Thank God. But speaking on them, boys, man, do you think, because we're in the future,

do you think the winner of this series is the foregone congen Because what the Knicks don't show me is they don't give a damn about your conclusions nor your chest cavity. They're going through it. Yeah, that's a tough question because I feel like just like the Jets and other teams like the Kings. Yeah. It doesn't matter what I see on paper from you. Like the brand is the brand, right? And what we know about the brand of the Knicks that we basically just like put everything out of our minds.

It's like, well, it's the Knicks. So they're going to lose. Like the Knicks are never getting over the hump. It's been since 1970, whatever. Enjoy your bing bong. Every time you guys think you climb a little higher, the fall is even further down. And like we probably should have seen him being a finals team. A lot of people thought of this, you know, the favorites.

They were the favorites to make the Eastern Conference finals, the favorites to make the finals out of the east. And we were like, nah, though, but like the calves. And like, also Boston and Tato's bag. It's like, because it's the Knicks. Right. That's the only reason. Every time I see the Knicks win and they be outside, I always think of this specific guy.

Whoever you are out there, salute to you, brother. Hey, yo, KD, don't you wish you would have came to the next? I got one question. You know, KD! I think about that brother once a day in the playoffs because the harsh reality is, I think my boy wish you would have went to the next. I bet you that the Knicks don't wish that they would have gotten KD

because you probably don't get to this place with KD. You only get to this place with Jalen Brunson. Jalen Brunson is the ultimate piece of the puzzle. Have you ever played Mind Sweeper? Oh, yeah, yeah. I always lose. I don't know where that bomb is. And you push that one button and then like 40 button,

that's Jailen Brunson. You get Jalen Brunson and then it's O. Giannobe, Mikhail Bridges, Carl Anthony Towns, Landry Shammit, Woo, the Shamwile. Josh Cart, aka Alex Crusoe. Alex Ease with the headband. Another headband.

Right, salute to Dave, too. I'm sure he's happy about this, Dave East. But, bro, the Knicks fans are meeting the expectations. We thought that, yes, if the Knicks get this far, the city is going to need to close down roads check the city is going to basically put up barricade check already everything you thought was going to happen from burning jerseys lighting joints on the burnt cavaliers jersey smoking the cab pay literally right bro it got to be so much fun to be a New York Nick fan bro you lived in New York for a little while I did I live right around the corn from MSG

bruh can you imagine still living there oh my god it's crazy you walk around MSG after a game. You walk around there when it's good. And we were there for the first round of the Detroit series last year. And I had this on. And you had that Jersey on. And that was, it was written.

Yeah. Like the crowd goes insane. And they've got their little, I don't know, do you know by any chance what's inside of those balloons? Like what drug is inside of those balloons that they sell outside of Madison Square Garden? It's some sort of like,

Because they out of the balloons and then they get high and it's not helium. Not helium. We can guarantee you ain't no damn helium in the balloon. It might be some NB.

People don't know about that. Like that's a, you had to be in New York to see it like, what the hell? Right. Drugs outside of MSG in a balloon package.

I got Mali balloons. Yeah, no doubt it's like American gangster and blue magic. Bumpy Johnson's out here selling helium in the balloons. Bro.

Do we got videos, man? The Knicks fans have been going crazy. I saw one brother waving a flag on Madison Square sign. I'm like, brother, if you don't get down. But then I remember, man, the cops can't even get to, bro. Let it go. Let the flag fly.

Either way it go, man. The Knicks, it's just been so wonderful, brother, to see this and witness this. The joy in all my dead Knicks fan's eyes that I finally see, I think it's been worth it, man. My boy, Mike from Queens. I'm going to hit you up soon. bro. My boy been going crazy, man. It's like the fog of trauma.

Yeah. Has been lifted. And you know the besmircher how she feels. It's like, why don't you bill me up? Baby, just to let me down. Like, I feel that. I feel like, remember when it was Dallas and it was like, oh, Luca Magic? And they beat Shea and them.

And it was like super exciting. And then all of a sudden you get to. Boston and it's like oh yeah Luca da da da da da da da da and it's like sweep gentlemen's right and it's like oh damn we really aren't close oh wow sheesh right surprise two batman's like I feel like that will be the spurs or the damn bro you know what I mean like I'm choosing

the nix bray I don't care I'm taking the nicks moving forward I my prediction at the beginning was I think nuggets and nicks in the championship boy was I wrong on the Nuggets part. But, man, for some reason, I believe, bro, if OG is going to be healthy, if McCall Bridges is going to have that look in his eyes, because he finally started missing a couple of shots

in the blowout game that they just won. Brough, I think them boys are going to be a tough out, man. No doubt. I think you're going to need some role players to come with it. And so I'm wondering about if you don't get those Landry, shamit shots, aren't falling because Alice Crusoe is putting his body his elbow into your gonads. What do you have?

Like if Jose Alvarado's not there, if really is just Jalen Brunson on an island, what's it going to be? I hope we get seven. I want to see a seven game finals. Yeah. Like we saw last year. The first two games with the Hawks, I feel like was the last time we're going to see them boys look that laxadaisical.

Lackadaisical. Lachadaisical. Huh. In the comments, let me know. Is it laxadaisical? or lackadaisical. Either way it go, it ain't the next.

But, and you know who wasn't lack of days ago at the end of the game, even though they got beat the other day, Wembe. And Bid. My boy got in the ears

of Bids back and my boy Mason Plumley and said, take him out. You already know what to do. I want him dead. I don't want your life. Right.

Bring me his thumbs. And damn it, Mason Plumlin got in the game and said, you know what, bro? I got it. Yeah, I'm going to my boy McCain back. Yaya!

And then McCain snitching during the post game. I don't like, do you like snitching in the post game? I love snitching the post game. That boy said, hey, man, Plumley told me at the free throw line. I got more. Right, I got more for you. Oh, whoa, officer. Who asked you that?

But I think it's, man, I think we're seeing the evolution right now of Wimby's psyche at least, because we saw him, he in the right place. The monks, KG, Bill Russell, Kareem. He doesn't work with every single Shaolin star. Wu-Tang, Sixthal-Lute. But he ain't been had grown men put elbow to lower sternum so consecutive like they're doing right now. He hasn't had grown men grabbing his jersey on purpose. He ain't had grown men saying, we don't give a damn.

Yes, you're that. And he's going through it right now. So if they get it done, more credit. But at this point, I don't even blame them if they don't get it done. Because look how far they've come on year three with Wemby. I think Wembe, what we're seeing for him is the evolution of a mob boss. He realized that once he hit Nas Reid in the face with the elbow, that's a RICO charge. Hey, yeah.

You've already done it one time. Can't do it anymore. You need the underlings to handle the business for you. So you go, I don't know. All I said was get out there and have fun. I like. Have fun, guys. And then they were like, oh, fun.

Fun, that's the cold word. That's the code word for the streets. Right, right. Our code word in the high school was our coach would be like, Jew, go for the ball. I'd be like, oh. Where he at? Which one?

But I think to that point, though, I think that Ms. Johnson could stand to play a couple of more of those big guys. throughout the game. We don't need... Little Olenick? You feel me? Pure jumper. Kelly Olenick, breaking news.

I know he didn't wear socks at one game, but my boy as an NBA player, this long veteran style team to team for a reason. You don't just stay in the league and go team to team if you ass. Kelly Olenick is the Kevin Durant of Mason Plumlee. Ooh. Hold on.

Let me get that. You see what I mean? That was fire. Pure. Look, my sister, pure from the, look, my sister, pure from Arc. Like, SGA in the mid-range, that's her, man. Yeah, bro, for sure. Because, bro, like I say, you don't just bounce team to team ass.

Nobody even wants you, bro. I saw what you did over there. He can enforce, too. All right. I saw what you did in Miami. Come put our jersey on. We need that. We need people in here to teach this brother right here.

And I think that Gil Kelly O'Lennon. If it ain't Kelly, Gil Luke. Give a Mason, give BizBack Two, three minutes Do you call him Bismack or BizBack? Biz back. Is that, what's his name? Bismack. Return of the Mac.

Is it Biz Mac or B. She's like, no, no, no, no, it's Biz, B is Bess Mac. No, it is. No, it is. Sluke the Biz. I'm bringing Bizzy back. You got what I need. Yes.

But my name is not Biz Bip back. Whatever the hell. I think they could stand to give my boy a little help from time to time just so he don't have to get all the Hardinstein elbows. Well, yeah, I think what you do is just like that you have 10 fouls between you two. Use them all. Use them. Use them on Hartinstein.

Use them on Chet. I'm not saying to hurt them. But go have fun out there. And guess what else? They get 12. Use all 12 of them. You feel me? W.

They actually get 12. Exactly. Use them all. And between. Bro, I'm telling you, bro, because when they put that Hartinstein and Home Green lineup out there, you already have someone out here guarding a hundred footer that shouldn't be. So let's just go ahead and, hey, bro, Biz, come use your file. Matter of fact, biz might be the last one off the bench.

I ain't going to hold you. Salute, Biz. You already know how I feel about you. I ain't know what's business, Matt. But at the same time, the other three, Luke Cornett, at least, bro, because Luke has been rendered ass in this series. And you know how I feel about the Green Hornet. I mean, excuse me, the Green Hornet, but at the same.

Why do you think he's been so bad? But I think he's not getting enough opportunities. He know that when he in the game, this is it. You only hear for two seconds. So I feel like he's playing more tentative or- He needs more minutes. Exactly. He needs to feel like, okay, I can make a couple of mistakes.

Yeah. And when I give you that lob, that's what you're like, that's what the coronets for. You feel me? because right now Spurs Twitter, NBA Twitter, they are trying to come up with reasons that they are seeing Luke on their TV screens in these big games. And I want to remind them, no, no, no, no.

Champion. NBA champion, Luke is fire. Remember during the season, he was hyping up, he put a cup box to the Magic City night, but neither here nor there. I just think that he can give you more than he's giving you. Every big man on that rock,

Kelden Johnson shouldn't be the only one out here running through chess. You feel, me? Come on, bro. Especially we see how soft OKC is. Where is Devin Vessel been? Come on now. I feel like I haven't heard his name at all.

At least in two, three games, or two games at least. Two games at least. Right. And my boy got hopped. My boy going to beat that shit on bounds if you lay it up too lazy. Dylan Harper, we need you to grow up too. Like, I don't mean emotionally. I mean just like physically be a man.

Grow, grow some strength and like show up because you've been awesome. People have been wanting and calling for Deeran Fox to be off this team because of You and how early you are on stage. Now that lights are bright, don't get blinded now. Right. Don't get blinded by the ice now. Come on now. Where's your shine?

Where's your blame, blame, Dylan? Because last two weeks, we were talking about your head, the chain thing under your shirt. It's time to pull it out, big, doll. Because them hot sauce and one crossover is in front of Case and Wallace, that ain't going work, bro. He's one-on-one in the back court. That's Scooby Snacks for my boy. You can't be getting real.

It's a play-out. Bray, bro. It's the offs. and you getting ripped in the back court for two. Uh-uh, bruh, no, no, no. Even though you're a Ricky, still, you got to protect the only, the most important thing out there. Come on, post up in the half court.

How about to my mic off? Put your butt into them. Wow. Y'all heard it. She said it. Happy birthday to my sister, too, by the way. Come on now. We're going to roll out the camouflage carpet for my sister.

Happy birthday, man. Thank you, thank you. What's your plans this year for being one year older? What's your goal? Like, what do you want to be? Like, next year this time, you're going to be like, I ain't on that shit no more. I want to make 5X what I make now.

And I want my skin to look glowy when I wake up. Tell them. And I want to not have a single nail break off my fingernail bed. So I want to be on my shit. I want to have my schedule aligned, Jiu. Yeah. Like, not a single nail grows off and falls out in 2026, 2027. You got to stop smacking me, bitches across

the face. Facts. Fidnails. Come on. What about Ali? What's the plans for Ali? Where are you planning to be next year with Ali's? Ali needs more chains.

He needs more outfits. He needs some jerseys. I want to get Ali a brand deal for 2026, 2027. You hear that, ladies and gentlemen, if you got there, N-I-L my boy. N-I-L-L-A-L-L-L-L-Y. You feel me? But yeah, man, how do you feel about just the discourse around Shea-Gilder's Alexander and the boys flopping.

their ass off, man. Now Adam Silver has taken to the Pat McAfee show saying he thinks the officiating is all good. I think everything is going great. Soon we're going to have AI officials one day but for right now I can't kiss

Tony Brothers ass more than I'm kissing it right now. What does Tony Brothers have on Adam Silver? Brough. Fam. He got the files. He got the files, fam, because I think we're all maybe I'm wrong. I'll ask you, are you getting to the point where I am, where I'm like, I'm kind of sick of this guy

Adam Silver. Like, I like Rob Manfred more than I like Adam Silver. Preach. And that's hard. That's a tough one. That is hard as hell because my boy been screwing up for years and Adam just got to the stage. But damn, bro, I thought you were posing. He came in and suspended Sterling.

And everything's been downhill from there. We were like, ooh, I like this. We were like, oh, I like this. This is what I'm trying to talk about. Yeah. Nobody was next. My boy letting Wimby both folks in the face. Ha, no suspension.

He good. No postgame interview for my boy, Wemby. Don't do it again. No fine. He's probably working through some shit. Is Adam Silver delusional or is the AI referee situation a good idea? Well, I saw that he is so online that he's listening to criticism at all times on Twitter. I think while the.

thought of that I get. Like, okay, get an idea of what's your customer base, how they're feeling about your product. Like, do we need, like, are we cutting, are we stepping on this too much now? Do we need to bring back a little more purity? Now it's like, oh, shit, people are dying. It's a little too pure.

Holy moly. Maybe we need to add a little something to it. Penelope Cruz. Exactly, a little Penelope Cruz situation. So I get all that. But you're making too many. any tweaks. Yeah.

You need to make the changes, stand on the changes. Let it sizzle and marinate a little bit. Like you did the playing tournament. Yeah. We all were like, fucking playing tournament. We fucking hate this. And it's like, ah, I kind of like the playing tournament. Yeah.

Let's try to just get it to a place where the league's in a set of stasis. Yeah. Before you start talking about, oh yeah, no, we're putting an NBA team in Paris. All right, bro. Shut up. Br, bro. Shit up. Stop talking.

Somebody cut it, Mike. Is he got a PR person? Because they need to step in on Adam a little bit more. Like expansion's on the way. It'll be in Vegas. Is Vegas a good idea? Like, I feel like Seattle's kind of the idea. You know what I mean?

Exactly. Oh yeah, like this Dundon guy, we don't care that he's cheap. He's a billionaire. It's like I don't think Adam Silver has good enough advice. Yeah, yeah, for sure. Because like you say, there's rarely a time in a basketball game that the fans get more excited outside. of Portland when any shot goes in, then when these magic words are said, who wants a t-shirt?

Oh, what the fuck? I think game seven. Game seven, who wants a t-shirt in that order? Brough, grown-ass men knocking kids over. I don't give a damn, let me get that shirt that just says thunder on it. Listen, there's a reason that when that t-shirt launcher comes out, people, lose their gosh on minds. They're pushing people out of the way.

That shirt is an extra, extra large. It is translucent. You can see that man's nipples underneath. But God, it says spurs. Right. I'm talking about you watched that motherfucker one time. The sleeves never got the same. One of them is short.

It literally has the collar wavy. When you get it, they've literally put it into a ball and put it through. threw a cannon. And they're like, yo, I want that. I need that.

I will kill a kit for that. Bro, like them Nick shirts we got last year for going to the game, one wash, unwearable. But hey,

I would have died for that shirt that day. You see me, I was taking them out to the other chair. Oh, anybody's in here? I'm getting this from a girl.

You need the towel and the shirt. Come on now. Towel and the shirt. Right. We ain't talking practice. We ain't talking

game 37 of the season. We talk about the Aus and we're in Portland. The Ose. Let's crank this thing up. But hey, man, Adam Silver, I don't trust you to get it together, but I'm going to give you some grace because the boys out there playing their ass off right now, man. The league right now, I think is in one of the best places. It's been in some time. You agree with that? Yeah,

I do. Yeah, outside of the officiates. Outside of our childhood. Right, right. You know, the whole thing. That was the peak. Right, right. Ninety-nine. Right. Cash money records. was about to take over at that point for the 99 and the 2000. You did. But at the same time, my only solution and advice to Adam is, bro, before we do all

this computer technology, AI, stuff that we're going to need billions of dollars to spend on, how about let's just shape these rules a little bit better. Stop giving folks two challenges and expect them to not have no more say so, even though y'all

got the two calls wrong. You know what? That may be one of the things in basketball that I just allowed without thinking really like, no, that's bull-h-h-h-h-ha. That'd be like if you got into an argument with your girl and you're like,

tell her two things that she did wrong. And she's like, yeah, I did do those wrong. Upon further review, you're correct. And then you do another one. Upon further review, you're correct. But no more, Ju-ju-ju. You can't call me on my bullshit. No more.

It's like, no, you're on some bullshit. Clearly, I'm two-for-two. Right. Until I get one wrong, I get to keep going. Keep going, bro. Because you're the one out of pocket. Not me. I'm just trying to keep us in some sort of place of accuracy.

And I'm just correcting you and being like, actually, the ball went out on Chet's foot. Right. You feel me? Come on now. And, brough, flopping itself, if you're going to call the file and Shay or whoever, the Jay, Jay Williams, gross. I thought you would, you remind me of future a little bit out there with the dreads living life.

I was like, I messed with my boy from Arkansas, hard-nosed player, running into my boy, Kelton Johnson, just falling down. Bro, hell now, uh-uh. We need to institute, bro. We're going to review this play. If they want to challenge it, we're reviewing it. And if we saw a flop, oh, on top of that,

Dareball, free throws. Come on, man. That's what I was just about to say is, is that should be like a take foul. That should be like when it's a side out of bounds play and you grab somebody when they don't have the ball. A flop is that egregious. Right, bro.

Especially if y'all ain't going to use the rule, which you instill. I ain't seen a referee do this once. One free throw, possession. Exactly. And until y'all can get this right. If OKC had to give up one free throw and possession, every time Shay flopped.

I bet you that would be the quickest thing for Shay not to flop. I'm going to lose my 20. Come on. Because 17 of those free throws, we'll call it. He goes 16 for 17 or 15 for 16. Yeah. Eight of those free throws were flops. Uh-huh.

Eight of them. So like four flops, eight free throws. And you're one by four. Yep. And you won by four. Bam. You did? Come on, man.

We went in by a hundon every week. And that's going to do it for another episode of the Ali. man. Thanks as always to Ms. Rebecca and our brother Dylan. Man, any words on the way out of here? Just a great game by Wembe. I just really appreciate his bounce back performance from game five to game six and just really looking for game seven. Yeah, man.

And also, bro, the Thunder back-to-back championships, man. Here they are. They did it last night. We love y'all, man. Without y'all, who the hell are we? Catch us again this Tuesday. DLS hoops on YouTube. Go to the Alleyoop Show.com.

Mess with the kids, man. We mess with y'all. Lock in. Lock in. www.