The Ringer NBA Show - KD’s Suns Debut, Load Management, and Five-Year Anniversary of the Rockets-Clippers Tunnel Debacle | Off Guard with Austin Rivers

Episode Date: March 3, 2023

Austin and Pausha are back and kicking things off by discussing KD’s debut with the Phoenix Suns (3:46). They touch on Durant’s performance alongside Devin Booker, dive into his role on this particular team, and discuss which tenure was more successful: KD with the Warriors or LeBron with the Heat (5:06). Then, they dive into Charles Barkley’s comments about load management and provide insight from today’s play while also comparing the older generation of players to this generation (16:16). Later, they introduce Story Time and reminisce on the five-year anniversary of the Rockets-Clippers tunnel incident (35:19) before wrapping things up with another rapid-fire round, discussing whether or not double-dipping is an acceptable way to eat (54:05). Hosts: Austin Rivers and Pausha Haghighi Producers: Erika Cervantes and Ben Cruz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey, it's Kevin O'Connor. I've got some big news for you. The mismatch is hosting its first ever live show in Los Angeles at the L.Rae Theater on March 6th. Me and Chris Vernon are going to be there. I'm fired up about it. At the L.R.R. There's been performers like Bob Dylan and Kendrick Lamar and rage against the machine in Licky Lee.

I'm fired up. Get to be on that stage with my guy, Chris Vernon. We've been together since 2016 doing NBA podcasts. And now we're going to get to meet a lot of you who have listened. to our show for so many years. We'll do a Q&A at the end. We might have some special guests, but we're definitely going to be talking basketball.

It's going to be a lot of fun. I'm excited about it. Tickets are going fast, though, so be sure to head to the LRA.com to get your tickets now. Doors are going to open at 7 p.m. And the show is going to be starting right at 8 o'clock. Let's go, baby. What's up, everybody?

Welcome to another episode of Offguard. I'm your host Pasha and joining me, my man coming straight from Cali, Austin Rivers. What's going on, man? How's the Cali weather treating you? What's up? What's up? Cali's been a little different and a little weird this time of year now, I guess. It's been like cold and rainy. I feel like I'm in like Seattle. I don't even know what's going on. That's got to suck for you going from Minnesota, where it's cloudy. You get five days in Cali. You get five days in L.A. Or four days in L.A. and you're... Yeah, yeah. But it's been, I mean, I'll take it.

Yesterday was pretty solid. Today was pretty solid. I'll take the weather. You know what I mean? It's better than what I've been used to when I go home in Minnesota. I love Minneapolis, but my goodness is it fucking cold. It's freezing. Have you gone to any restaurants out there, some of your favorite spots? I have, man. Craigs. Shout out to Craig.

Wally's. I love some wallies. Love a little bit of, a little Javier, Century City for lunch, you know, a little Uvo, a little pasta action. You know, all my little spots. We've been here for like four days, so I've actually had genuine time to, like, after practice or before practice, hit up some spots. So it's been really nice. Yeah, I phacedime to you yesterday, and I was pleasantly surprised to, that you answered. I thought you were going to be totally busy and you were in your hotel.

The curtains were, the curtains were up and you were just locked in. And I guess the weather was kind of shitty out there. Yeah, it was, it's been like the first night I was here was like freezing and it was a grinning. And then yesterday it was like 60 and sunny. I think today's a little bit warmer. Today's a great day. Bless, man. Very happy to be out here in Cali.

I was born here for people who don't know, Santa Monica. Brief time here. My pops was with the Clippers, I think, in one year, a couple years he was here. So, yeah, it's always surreal coming back out here. Would you ever, when your career's over, settled down in L.A., like a lot of players do? Or are you Orlando? I don't know if I'd settle down. This would have to be like a second home type thing.

My roots will always be in Florida where I'm from Orlando. That's for our, yeah, that's where I'll raise my kids. But something else out here, like on a, you know, I do think obviously a lot, you're going to have to spend a significant amount of time here if you're in the industry of media or really anything in sports in general. A lot of things kind of float through L.A., New York, Miami, but I think L.A. more than any city, I think even ESPN itself, a lot of their headquarters and people are out here now. So everyone's out here.

So yeah, I do see myself having to get something out here eventually for sure. Nice. Let's get to it. The long anticipated everyone wanted to see KD and a son's jersey finally happens. And he had a great game against the Hornets, 23 points and 26 minutes, 10 out of 15 from the field. How do you think you looked out there? I liked KD. I really liked KD in his debut.

It seemed so effortless, which is how. he makes it look pretty much every night, but just seemed like a natural fit, didn't have to force anything. You could see already the mental freedom and allows Devin to go out there and play with having someone like that. I think there's a lot of pressure off his shoulders.

He could kind of just go be free, be the score he is, be the playmaker he is. And Kevin is such a complimentary piece to any team. The way he scores is so efficient that he really could fit into any team. He doesn't have to have, he could just score the ball in a variety of ways. Remember in Golden State,

he could score coming off a downscore. screen, he could score on the ISO, I mean, because he could shoot the ball so well. So he'll hell never be an issue, complimenting any team because that's just how skilled Kevin Durant is one the best scores ever. And he looked really good, man. They're going to be really good. They're going to be good. It's just a matter of what they can get from, I think everybody else, but a lot of those guys that are role players that play well. Terrence Ross helps. I really like the Sun's team. They're obviously well coached. They're going to have an exciting run here in the second half, I'm sure. Don't you feel like every player that comes off of an injury, it

It takes a while for them to get into it. They're rusty. You've came off injuries before. First couple games, you know, you have to get the pace, the rhythm back in. I feel like KD comes back every time, misses a year, and looks exactly like Prime KD. I've never seen him look rusty. Between him and, like, Karee, because Kari does that a lot also, you know, Karee's been through, like, bro, how many times is like Kiree had a suspension or whatever, whether it's been where

he's hurt, hiatus, there's a lot of different things, right? he has spent significant time away from basketball, and then he'll come back, like, game one and have 32, and he really makes it look so fucking easy out there. Him and Kevin, Kevin's even, I think, even on a different level. You know, Kevin had, what, 23 last game? What did he shoot from the field? 10 out of 15.

Yeah, you know what I mean? Like, that's ridiculous, man. 10 out of 15 is a great night for just about anybody in the league, for him to have that in his first game with this new team, with everybody watching. It's just shows, like, how, a calm, collective, and confident he is on the court, no matter what the situation is.

Kevin is like a true assassin for hire. That's kind of what he is now, right? He's like the mercenary of the NBA. He's just like any team that's looking for a championship can pay him max dollar to come there and help them get over the hump. You know, I mean, that's this type of player he is. And I asked you the other day, I said,

yeah, we got KD for a couple more years of, you know, him having playing at this level. You stop me and said, fuck, no, he can do this for five more years if he wanted to. Yeah, I just think with how light his body is, the load management, the impact on his joints. I don't think, you know, his game is just limited to the next couple of years. I just think this is the type of player score, skills, especially a skill level,

to shooting ability with his size. He can get a shot off pretty much anytime he wants. He could probably play realistically. If Kevin really, really wanted to, I mean, how old is Kevin right now? He's 34, 35. So yeah, he could probably play like if you really want to. I think he could play like another eight years. I know that sounds crazy, but like he really could do that easily.

Not easily, but he would be still an elite player, I think, for eight years straight. Yeah, you made a good point that he just comes in on any team and fits right in. And people don't give him the credit. People obviously have a lot to say about him, a lot of it negative with, you know, the way he's kind of gone about his career. But the guy joined a 73 and 9 team and fit in almost perfectly. made that one of the best teams I've ever seen in my lifetime, which is really hard to do for any player.

I don't care who it is. LeBron would have a tougher time fitting in with a team like that than KD, the way he seamlessly did it. Goes to a new organization with Kyrie and all new teammates, balls out there after a crazy injury. He just kind of fits wherever he goes. And I think hopefully when his career is over, people kind of appreciate that all the negative stuff.

That's a really good point, Pasha. And the thing is, that's interesting about that is, as a viewer, you, you, as a spectator of basketball, you should always try to take your own personal feelings out of it and judge a situation for what it is and judge a player for what it is

instead of putting your own emotion into it. And I think it's very hard for people to do that with Kevin, just in general, because that decision till this day really bothers people that he went to the team that he lost to,

and he went to the team that happened to have the best record in modern basketball history, you know, 73 and 9. He joined that team. And at that time, we're talking Kevin was even closer to his prime prime. And he was arguably the best player in the world, along with Braun, obviously, at that point. I think LeBron was still at that point the best player in the league.

But Kevin was right there in the mix, and they were up 3-1. I mean, everything that you could possibly put that could bother people about that, that's just what it is. Kevin made that decision. With that being said, to your point, the side. psychological, the things that would be going through your head in terms of as a player joining a team and not trying to mess up. 73 and 9, I don't want to mess up what they got going on here. They're clearly got everything going on. They're one of the best teams in the league.

Yad, yeah, yeah. To join that team, it would not be easy, man. And you've seen a lot of basketball players try to join that team. And, you know, it works, it doesn't work. But to Kevin's level, you know, that's a whole different thing because you're not like just some like role piece. their system, you're like a big now centerpiece in a well-oiled machine. And that's not easy to do. And he fit in so easily. He fit in, I mean, they were just better. They were better with him. And people also forget most importantly that even though Kevin did all this, he did join the team he

lost two, they're up three and one, team was 73 and I, whatever, whatever. Kevin is the reason they won. and it's just a fact. If you go watch the Cavalese series, not to say that the Warriors wouldn't have got there without him, not to say any of these things, but I was on the Rockets at the time playing that team. I could tell you how,

and they beat us without Kevin. Kevin went down, and they still beat us in that series. So that's why I can't say, I think they would have got the finals regardless because they were just that good of a team. But winning, they wouldn't have won without him. He was the best most dominant player in that finals.

Psychologically, psychologically, LeBron coming back from 3-1, I think he led that series and points, rebounds, assists, the whole thing. Yeah, I feel like he figured the Warriors out and they wouldn't have beat the caps the next couple of years. No, no, no.

And the way that Kevin played was just, I mean, brother, the shots he was hitting, the big shots he was hitting, he was dominant all series long. He just extended what run they already built for themselves and kind of like a dynasty that the Warriors built for themselves. He was able to extend it at that time. They've obviously been able to do that since then.

Yeah, I mean, that was, Kevin doesn't get a lot of credit for that. You know, he only gets hate for that decision. I understand. I get it, whatever, whatever. But the bottom line is he was incredible. And what he did was incredible. And people need to, like, also see that side of it that, you know, Kevin really fit in the greatest team in the league seamlessly. And then elevated them and was the best player in that team.

You know, he just was. He might not have been the most important. I think everybody else stepped to that system and culture over there is like the centerpiece. but, you know, Kevin really was the best player in the finals, and he was dominant. I think it's also super important that Katie won the finals MVP both of those years and had the most memorable shot in both of those finals, the one over LeBron in game three. So that kind of, that made it, that sealed a deal that he was, for me, in my eyes, they wouldn't have done it without him.

Yeah, yeah. I don't think there's any arguing that anymore. I just think people are just still salty about the situation, and it is what it is, you know. I have a question for you. What tenure do you think was more successful? LeBron with the Heat in those four years, four finals, two titles, or Katie with the Warriors, three years, three finals, two championships? Which one do you think was a more successful run?

I'll give the edge to LeBron because he helped build it where Katie elevated it. It's just kind of two different things. It's hard to measure the success because they both are so dominant. They both are the reasons their teams won. They both were finals, MVP's. You know, you can kind of go back and forth for apples and oranges with that. But I felt the heat were a team that LeBron came to, and they built that team with Way, with Bosch.

You know, they did it together. They went their first years of finals, obviously lost in the Mavs, came back when the next year. And they won the year after that as well, didn't they? Maybe the spurs. So, yeah, oh, gosh, yeah, I was at that game. Okay, well, let's stop right there. What was that like? Because I heard they were roping things off.

Confetti about to drop. They had the confetti thing up top ready to go. They already had in the hallways where the players go, they had these big stands that they were bringing out to like the stage because, you know, the Spurs were like getting ready to just close it down when everything. I mean, Spurs family members were out of their. seats and like towards the bench like they were all roped off like they had already left their seats like it was a done deal you know what i mean people were half their arena left everybody was out of there i mean like the miami heat fan base half of that arena was like they were already out the way to the door and then things just went from you know boom boom boom boom down the line you know

miss free throws you know turnover office rebound uh three point i mean it just kept everything happened wrong for the spurs and the heat somehow put that together. Once they won that game, you knew it was a wrap. So, yeah, that was crazy. But yeah, I would get the edge of LeBron. He helped build that from ground, I don't want to say, yeah, from ground up for whatever that is. You know, he had it with Wade and Bosch. People felt obviously, you know, obviously in similar way to Kevin, people didn't like that he went there either. You know, I mean, he was LeBron. There were two of the most hated teams. Both of those teams were hated. They were, especially the heat.

I think the heat even more. I really do. LeBron was, he was like the villain of the NBA for like two, three years. I mean, you remember the Nike commercial

that he had to come out with, you know, because he was so hated. People were burning his jersey, Cleveland, especially. I think like their infrastructure and like the business slowdown

when he left. Like it was just multiple, you know, which isn't his fault, but still, it's a multitude of things that people didn't,

And like he had the whole show that he had on ESPN, the decision brought to you by decision water. Like vitamin water had a commercials, like brought to you by decision water. I'm like, whoa. This guy, you start drinking stuff and just making decisions. As much as people hated the decision. People already do that now, huh? People already drink a little bit and make decisions, huh? I think it's really cool that people, that we had that in our lifetime that we got to see that as bad as it was.

and for his career, his brand. It's kind of one of those moments. You know where you were when LeBron made that decision in that plaid shirt he was wearing or whatever. Yeah. Yeah, that was crazy within itself.

But yeah, the edge goes to LeBron in that one, in my opinion, where KUD kind of went to something that was already great. He just made it on a hold of. He made him like unbeatable. And, you know, Kevin has to be given credit to that as well. I think people always view it as a slight,

but Kevin was dominant with Golden State. He was, I mean, he's been dominant everywhere. where he goes. And there was no different there. And like you said, when LeBron left Cleveland, it kind of all went to shit for a while. They got,

I think they got the number one pick three out of four years after he left. Compare that to Michael Jordan, who, when he retired in 1993, the Bulls won two less games the next year without him. That's another conversation for another day, though, for our LeBron, Michael Jordan arguments. We won't bother that right now.

Our never-ending argument. We won't take it there yet. So recently, Charles Barkley made a comment about load management, Everyone hates it, especially fans. I know teams, you know, they feel like it's necessary. But he said something to the effect of you're going to make 70 million, but you can't play basketball three or four times a week with, you know,

you're staying in the best hotels, you're flying private, the best medical stuff ever created. What were your thoughts when you saw that? You know, I've had like mixed feelings about that comment because there's a truth to it. You know, and I think Anthony Edwards even spoke on it, my teammate, just about how stars need to play more and load management sometimes gets out of hand. I do agree with that in the sense. But my thing would be, I don't know what they could possibly do about considering some of the things that the NBA is implementing. There's now a play-in game.

You could be a top 10th seed and still make the playoffs. So, stars are they inclined to play every single night? I don't know. I don't know. The way the NBA set up currently with a lot of things that they're trying to put together, like it only helps stars. be able to... That's a really good point. I don't want to interrupt, but that's a really good point.

I'll see a team lose five out of six games, and they're still like... The Warriors are a five-seat right now or something. Yeah. People will lose games, and they'll still be right in the mix. Just right in the mix. I guess that's a really good point. I didn't think about that.

A player could not play with your star player for a week or so and not really fall in the standings. No, you can figure it out. You have like five games without them. You win, like, two, lose three. So you're just down one game. Then he comes back and plays again. Like, that's the way the NBA is set up right now.

It is so tailored, I feel like, for a lot of guys to be able to load management, to load manage correctly. And that's something that I think was a lot different in Charles' game. I think just the technology and everything that they had was different than. Yeah, you know what? To Charles' point, he is right. They did play more. They didn't load management.

But that's why I don't know if you've ever seen those guys walk. And I'm not even trying to be, like, disrespectful or funny. Like, I watched my dad walk. I watch like these older guys that played the NBA walk, man. Like the damage on these guys' bodies is... Watching Kevin McHale when he was coaching the Rockets going up and down the sideline. It was brutal. And that's most players from that era.

I mean, I'm not saying all of them. I'm just saying a lot of guys from that era. And they'd say soft to this or that. But like, bro, you know what I mean? Like, that's your body. You know, guys want to be able to move and be healthy after age 35, 36, 40, whatever you retire, right? from the NBA.

That's, that's, I don't know. I think that's a point to be looked at. With players making, with players making $50 million a year, yeah, you don't want to take that risk with guys because that's a lot of your salary cap. This team is investing $50 million in a guy. They don't want him to get hurt. And with all the science that's showing now that, you know, teams, what people don't realize is a lot of teams are holding these players out and they're implementing these plans

for these players. When I was in Memphis with Chandler Parsons, he was cleared and ready to go, and the Grizzlies were holding him out when he wanted to play, and it was an issue. So people think it's all the players that are doing that and calling them soft. A lot of teams are doing that as well. Yeah, it's crazy to me just because I feel like that's a decision that sometimes is made by players and sometimes it's not. I've seen it both sides there.

I've seen sometimes like a guy fight a team because he wants to play and they're like, you know, you need to rest right now, which is what it is. I think teams started getting fine for that. And there's been situations where, you know, a guy's trying to sit, you know, sit down and he wants to rest. And you could see there's animosity within like the locker room or management or coaches. Like, why the fuck isn't this guy playing? You know what I mean?

But guys are healthier after they're done playing. Guys are playing way longer. You know, LeBron's dominant right now and he's in year 20, man. you know what I mean like a 10 year career which is still a long career in today's standards but back then was like a very long career that's a long career Michael played 13 years or something like that you know what I mean didn't he like what what MJ play well I think he played 16 total if you count the wizard's because yeah yeah okay yeah yeah but you know what I'm saying though most he did come back but a lot of guys played like 10 12 13 years I think NBA careers are

longer now. They're healthier after. You know, there's been more of a scheme to guys being healthier, playing longer term to make more money. And a lot of guys in the NBA previously did not make a lot of money, which I do think there's resentment there. I mean, we

could talk about that easily, just transitioning in. How much hate does how much hate do a lot of older players put on younger players today? A lot of that is true, but the game has also changed. It has evolved. You know, they say we're soft. and this, this and that.

The game's just changed, man. We got guys pulling up from half court. It's not that we're not playing defense. In fact, it's easier to play defense with your hands. I promise you. I wish I could play like it was 90s. And I could fucking hand check Steph Curry around the whole court and be able to put my arms on them and touch them.

You know what I mean? Like, I got to guard guys who are way skilled, way faster, quicker, can shoot better in this era than they did in that. And I can't touch them. That's why you're seeing scores of 175 to 170. 140 to 130. You know what I mean? Like you got the best players in the league,

Damian Lillard, Steph, LeBron, Kevin, the list goes on. Yokage, Janice. Look at the players that we're talking about skill level-wise compared to back then. And then you add to the game, or to the fact that we literally can't, like you, it's very hard to be physical with them.

In fact, the playoffs is the only time you consistently see an emphasis that the refs are like in unison about, like, all right, we're not going to call as much. let them play. Other than that, it gets a little, it gets, you know, it gets hard to guard out there, man. Like, it's, it's, yeah. That's a thing people don't talk about also. Maybe it was a little easier to defend in the 80s and 90s when you knew a guy would only shoot maybe two threes or a team would only shoot six threes that entire game. Well, you're only guarding them, you know, a small part of the court where now, where stuff comes down, dame comes down, you have to guard them the

entire length of the court. It's way easier to guard a guy, you know, let's say you're guarding Scotty Pippin in the 90s, you don't have to guard him at the three-point line necessarily, right? He only only just wanted to shoot maybe two a game. And wouldn't that make it... I mean, you're out there. Isn't that easier when you know a guy's not going to shoot a three and you only guard him a certain part of the court?

Yeah, I mean, if you go back and watch like the 90s finals, watch just watch any of the 90s finals. I'm not saying any of them, 80s, 70s. Watch how off someone's guarding someone at the three-point line. I could have got a three-point shot. off anytime I wanted to. Now I have to guard a guy a step over half court because of the range of some of these players and the skill level of some of these players. Yeah, and I watched the game one time with Courtney Lee, who always, he's a big, 90s were better, you know, back then those players

were better, tougher, et cetera. And me and him were watching a game. It was, you know, like a 1990s game on NBA TV, like Hardwood Classic. And a guy caught the ball at the elbow, and the guy guarding him really wasn't even guarded him. And Courtney was like, wait, what? He was so shocked by that and I remember thinking it's a lot easier to guard if you're not guarding guys and they're not capable of maybe making those threes or those long-range shots it's probably easier to guard them right 100% it's just it's just it's just I mean yeah you just you just you already explained it bro imagine guarding someone five feet off of them and being able to be like in a help and a load and not worrying about a guy shooting a three because it's just considered a bad shot or a far

shot or whatever they you know but again I'm not I'm not here to like uh make fun of them It's just a different era. It's just an evolution of basketball, man. Just like technology is way better now that what it was then is the same thing with everything else in life. The evolution of social media, access to kids being able to see and watch their players do every move, practice it. You know, I learned a Euro step in 10th grade, 11th grade.

You've got kids learning Euro steps in kindergarten now in pre-K, or first grade, whatever, second grade. second grade, these guys are doing the same moves that I learned. It's the evolution of basketball. Do I think the 100-point scoring record will be broke again? Yeah, I do. You know what I mean? That type of stuff is headed. I think in the next 10 years, someone will score 100 points in a game. Damien Lillard has scored 70 something the other day. I don't even know when they took them out the game. But I guarantee you there's going to be a team, especially on like a losing team where a guy's like really, really good. And it's like the second half of the season and they're not really playing for much.

They're just out there kind of fucking around. You see that with like some of the the teams that are making the playoffs. But they got a really good score in their team. They can have one of those weird games that like the guy has it going. The whole team's just like, let's see how many points you could score. I'm not even kidding. That you could just see that happening. Well, unfortunately, if there's a really, if there's a really shitty team with a good

score on it, they would probably bench him or sit him out for the year to tank. They probably wouldn't even play that guy. Yeah, I mean, yeah, you're right. But I'm saying like, maybe like with like 15 games left, 12 games left. But yeah, you're right. I mean, that's going to start happening over the next five to 10 games, you're going to see those teams players just not play because everybody's going to be getting ready for this draft and trying to give their chances a little bit stronger case to get to what,

Victor? If I was a, if I were to tell you right now, there's a player that's alive that's going to break the 100 point scoring record, who would you put your money on that it would be? In today's current climate? Yeah. Out of the pool of NBA players today. I don't think you think anyone in college is going to do it. it'd have to be a guy that could shoot.

Because you'd have to do both. You'd have to hit a tremendous amount of threes to score 100 points. It's because it's not like Will, where you could just dump it down to him and he could just turn and shoot over somebody. I mean, it's just like, and I don't take anything from Will, because his numbers are just ridiculous,

but it's just, we're not even going to get into that. It's just different right now. If someone's scoring 100 points of modern day would be insane, I do think it'll be done. Today, I do feel like if Joel Embed, he just really wanted to just dominate a game, like, to a crazy level, he could probably score 100 points. I did not think you were going to say Joel and beat.

If I had 20 guesses, I wouldn't have guessed Joel in me. I really, I just think he could, if he really wanted to be like, just be a dog and go, like, post up every single time and just go get fouled or laid it. And if they threw it to him every time down to Florida, go shoot. Like one of those weird games were like, you know, Joel, so many points you can score. He could probably get close. There's just nobody in the league. with his size that could guard him.

I mean, Yokinj is the only other guy that, like, those two battle each other. I mean, I don't know, man. I can see that happening. We got to look up. We have to look up the next time the Sixers play the Rocket, so maybe Joel will score 100 there because the Rockets are the team that will give it up, for sure. They're the ones that are giving up those big scoring nights. I'm just keeping it real.

Let's be honest here. Clay Thompson has like 13-3s is against the Rockets. Damien Lurna has 71 points against the Rockets. You tell me. Yeah, the rockets are doing what they're, you know, they're going after Vic, man. You know what I mean? They're going after Scoot or somebody, you know.

That's pretty clear. So for the record, are you going to, when your career is over, when the Senate is set on your basketball career, are you going to be one of those old heads on TV talking shit about the new generation? Absolutely. Just wanted to make sure we're on the same page. No, no, no, no. I don't think I'll ever, you know, there's a fine line, man.

There's some guys who do it tastefully and are able to give opinions without being disrespectful. They just are doing their job. You know what I mean. Like, I like what, you know, Kenny Smith does. Kenny Smith can give an opinion and have it be done eloquently and give his thoughts out there. Some might be on the side of a player. Some might be against, but it's never in a disrespectful way. And there's a plot there are people who do it the right way.

You know, but JJ Redick. JJ Redick's another one. JJ gives opinions all time. You know, I think this guy does this or this or that. But like, he rarely crosses the line of disrespect. He obviously made the comments about the plumbers and firemen, which a lot of former basketball players didn't really like, understandably so. But his point was made.

But our current players, you know, I think it just has to be done with that line. and some guys do it differently. You know, I think their lines blurred, but I think they get paid to do that. And some guys are okay with doing that. You know what I mean? So it's just, you know, that's all I can really say to that.

In the last podcast, I have to slide this in really quick. You made the comment, you looked that into the camera and you said, those guys that think they could play basketball, those guys that are they're like fitness, they, you guys suck and you can't.

I want to clarify, because that a lot of people reach out to me afterwards. That does it also mean, that if you didn't play basketball, that you can't talk about basketball and analyze basketball. For example, like some of my favorite guys, like Colin Coward, Ryan Rusillo, people like that, they never played. They could still watch basketball and have great takes. You weren't talking about them. You were talking about guys I think they could play in the NBA, they can't.

I'm talking about people who have no background at all in basketball. Or don't, like, for instance, someone would be like, well, Stan Van Gundy's never played in the NBA. I'm not talking about people like, Stan is a basketball brainiac. Lawrence Frank is a basketball brainiac Those are people Eric Spolster is a basketball brainiac These guys were around the game their entire life No, they didn't play it at the highest level

But they've been around it Those aren't the people I'm talking about I'm also not talking about fans Who have watched basketball their entire life And played but might not have just been athletic enough Or good enough to be You know, picked on a team I'm not talking about those people either

Those are people who watch basketball I'm talking about the people who just like Tune into a game and we'll see something And just go on the comments and start talking crazy, and their comments are so far off from anything relative of the truth that it just comes across as like, I don't even don't want to respond to this guy because he's so, like, it's just such a dumb take. There are so many dumb people that watch sports, not just in basketball, and have no idea what they're talking about. Those are the people I'm

talking about. If you're a person who watches basketball, I don't even want to say religiously, but, you know, a lot. And you've been doing it for a long time and are a genuine fan and play at lunch with your friends or this or that, I'm not talking about you. Those are people who watch basketball. I don't think their minds are as sharp as of the people who actually are around and played, but those people are qualified to be able to watch basketball and talk their shit, whether they're right or wrong. I'm not even talking about them. But yeah, to the people who just on Instagram spewing just the dumbest shit ever and had like really zero knowledge of the game or history of the game, yeah, I think those people are idiots and I stand by

that whatever. I agree with you, by the way. All right. Thank you. Thank you. You got quiet on me there. You got a little quiet on me there. I was like,

I was trying to figure out where I stand in those people that you're naming. I feel like I'm, you know. You're not, okay. You're the perfect example, though. Like, you never made the high school team. You never played basketball anywhere. You grew up literally around basketball

and watched basketball your entire life. You know more about basketball history in terms of stats and shit than I do. Like, you are not the, type of person I'm talking about. I'm talking about people who really don't know anything about basketball. Like don't like, don't know. I'm not talking about people who play, whether it's organized or not and watch.

Those people, I'm not talking to. Now, in terms of them thinking they're good at basketball and could do what NBA players do or like thinking the guy at the end of the bench is not that good, those guys, are the people I'm talking about as well. Those people are idiots. Oh, and those are the people that don't actually know basketball. If you knew anything about basketball, for instance, you, You never played basketball, yada, yada, yada.

You have been around the game long enough and know enough that the guy at the end of the bench of an NBA team could go play at someone's local L.A. fitness and look like Michael Jordan. You don't have to keep saying I never played basketball. Okay, I just didn't play my senior year. Jesus, I was on a team with four NBA players. It's the best high school in Florida history and don't argue that.

But you never played varsity, though. Yeah, I just, I was 5'10. I have NBA players on my high school team I could have went to Winter Park and made it You guys were bums You had two players Joey Rodriguez started in the final four Brett Chance D1

Chandler Parsons NBA Nick Clayte this NBA I average 30 in my leagues It makes you sound like I'm a freak I'm very athletic What is this? I don't think people you guys hang around That's actually not true at all

But you know what I mean I don't think anybody looks at you And sees former basketball I think people see you your face on the here and they think Oscar podcaster Oscar Oscar is insane Oscar Isaac I want you to that's the nicest thing you've ever said about me Danny Ricardo um the thing I get first of all how many you love you love some Daniel you love some Danny Ricardo what's Daniel Ricardo you love him he's the

most like it off like it's like this he's the most what likable athlete on the planet everyone loves them no one has anything bad to say about Danny Ricardo besides he's not a good driver. Is Janice in that same conversation? Sure, man. But like James Harding got into it and said he had no skill. Like no one's saying anything bad about Danny Ricard. The Daner Ricardo is the man. And it's not weird that I have a big nose and curly hair and everyone thinks I look like them. It's not a big deal. Have I been to Vegas where people stopped me and thought I was Daniel Riccarta? More than once. I get it all, I get it all the time. I don't even think it's a compliment. You're just calling me two-canned Sam. Yeah, Jesus. Austin's eating cupcakes at 30 when he's

36, I don't even want to see it. You're going to be a stretch guard out there, Antoine Walker. I'm always going to be skinny, bro. Well, my family's not, okay? And I'm telling her now, I have the genetics of a DJ Khalid, and I have to watch everything I eat. I'm over here fasting. I feel weak. I think you're everyone's, you can be, I think people will like you more than me on this eventually. You're so more, you're the average Joe. That's, you're doing it again. I'm not. Yesterday I did 25 pull-ups I was just warming up. I'm not confident about a lot of things, but I'm strong.

If we're playing Dodgeball, if we're both characters thrown in the Dodgeball movie, which team are you on? Are you calling me the pirate? That's insane, bro. All right, let's take a quick break, and when we get back, we're going to do a little story time with Austin Rivers.

It was recently the five-year anniversary of the Rockets, Clippers, tunnel incident that you were involved in, even though you weren't inclined. Fantastic. Can you kind of maybe walk us through that? Maybe tell us some things that maybe the casual fan didn't know about that night? I know it started with you and Trevor Areza, but it was a chippy game the entire time. You know, that to this day is so weird to me that Trevor got that mad at me just because

it just was so not that big of a deal. The step I was saying on the sidelines, because I wasn't playing, I was in a boot. I had a suit on, and I had just got done with a procedure in my foot, like weeks prior. So I was in, like, a walking boot. And I was just talking, but it was just like normal trash talk. I didn't call anybody, like, names or anything. I bet that game had so much animosity towards it. But Chris leaving going there, that I think he probably got caught up in the moment.

And then I got caught up in the moment. We're just kind of like talking back and forth. but I never thought I said anything that warranted the incident that took place after. With that being said, I think, again, like I said, there was a lot of different feelings there. I think I was just one piece of it. There was Blake being involved and Chris being involved and this guy being involved and this guy being involved. And there was a lot there. Was a shock.

I was in my seat of my locker. Again, I didn't play. I had my boot on, so I didn't really think anything of it. And I'm on my phone, and all I hear is, hey, hey, hey, hey, I just hear, like, somebody grabbing somebody. And I look up and, like, Trevor was, like, five feet from me, like, trying to come. I don't even know what he's trying to do. It can't be talk because no one's busing in someone's locker to go talk to him. So I don't know what his true intention was or, like, what he thought he'd be able to do,

especially, like, in front of my teammates like that. But he was on one, you know what I mean? Like he really did that. So he came in and that happened. And then after that, like guys kind of piled in after him from the Rockets, making sure he was okay. And when that happens, you got guys running in the locker room and this team's after that game and everything that's been said between both parties, you know, a lot went on in there.

A lot of pushing, a lot of grabbing. It was just like chaos. It was chaos. Chris Paul was leading the charge through a secret. He wasn't, he wasn't, he did go through the alleyway. It's not like a secret alleyway. Anybody who's been in the staple center down below, even media knows about this. It's just a hallway between two lockers.

That's all it is. It's not like a secret passage. It's not even that far. It's like 15 feet would be the difference. I mean, you literally like go into the, you open the side door of the locker and it goes into this empty hallway, which goes right into the other locker. If you really wanted to do that, I think they have that door blocked off or locked now, but whatever. he wasn't leading the charge

he didn't come in he was like there he is grab him you know what I mean like he just like he just appeared after but Trevor was the first one that came in and then Chris might have been like the third or fourth person after that maybe second person after that but he wasn't coming in to fight anybody and I don't even think Trevor came in to fight

I think Trevor really kind of came in I can't speak for him but he came in on some like you know trying to check me type shit you know what I mean like yo who What the fuck was you? Who were you talking to? You know, whatever, whatever. You know, I just felt like he was really all in that moment. And, you know, was from my eyes, for what I saw, you know, it looked like he was really, you know, about that action. He came into the locker. I'm like, really trying to press me type of shit.

But I, again, I was in a boot sitting down. So I look up, I'm like, what is going on, bro? So I get up. I'm like, bro, you know, I start talking my shit back to him. Just like, what are you doing, bro? Like, what do you, you know? After that, it turns chaos. A lot of Rockets players came in there. And then I just see guys just all over to place, just grabbing, pushing, shoving, security is running around there. Police was in there. It was a circus.

It lasted for like, I could be wrong here. One of the other players would have to correct me, but maybe like 30 seconds to a minute. I mean, it was just, it wasn't something that was resolved in like 10 seconds. And they pushed him out of the locker room. Like it was like eight or, there was like five or six rocket players in there. But we were like in this little corner of the locker room by the passage, like the doorway. So like it was like all of us. packed in here. It was just

like guys talking and it was I think it was a moment where like you had a group of like 14 players just being overly emotional and doing too much. All of us were. We got we got too emotional and took it the wrong way. So that happened. That was definitely one of the crazier fights I've been

since I've been the NBA. I mean the LAPD was called people made a big deal about that. And everyone to decide I'm glad you clarified that it wasn't some secret passageway or tunnel. People act like Chris Paul turned a candle and like some mysterious wall turned into a door and opened up. He wasn't like running through

the hallways with a lantern, like having people follow him. Like he opened the side door to his locker or walked about 10 feet and opened up another door that everybody in Stable Center working history knows about. I mean, that's and then yeah, that happened. But there was nobody like throwing punches or anything like that. I wasn't that serious. Just a bunch of guys pushing and shoving and just being a little bit dramatic and angry.

We all were. I was talking too much. That guy was talking too much. This guy was talking too much. It kind of went too far. But it was what it was. Another story I want to get to, you were involved in a trade that a team thought

they were getting one Brooks and ended up getting another Brooks. And you were involved in that one. I was traded during the game. I was playing a game. Who are you playing for? us playing for the Washington Wizards we were playing the Brooklyn Nets

we I think we actually might have won that game maybe we didn't win a lot the team was not that game I don't want to say we because it sounds like halfway through the game you weren't on the team yeah I guess at some point in the game it wasn't we anymore at some point they lost the game

or won the game I got traded and I think it was like four quarter. I go back to like the locker room after and they're like, you know, you're just got traded to Phoenix. And I'm just like, you know, and Kelly Ubrae was also in the trade, but he was going to Memphis. So we were all just like, all right, you know what I mean? And obviously that DC situation wasn't working really for anybody, just the team in terms of just like that team not

working. So I think the organization at that point, you know, decided to go a different direction. We're on our way, or like the, they pull us right after we leave the arena, me and Kelly assigned. They're like, hey, hold up. The trade has been held off because they got the Brooks's wrong. I was like, what are you talking about? He's like, the son thought they were getting also Dylan Brooks, not Marciaun Brooks, because there's two Brookses on the Grizzlies.

And I was just like, you have to be fucking kidding me. So me and Kelly now are back on the team that just traded us, and we had to fly on the plane, get in the bus, fly in the plane with the team that just traded us back to, like, our city. And, like, we get off the plane

and, like, unloading the bags so you're, like, in a room with everybody, or, like, right outside the plane, waiting with everybody, the coach, the general manager, everybody, just getting your bag, you're just like, there's not a lot to be said there.

So the train ended up not going through, I believe. I think they ended up making a trade for Kelly, in a different way or like, yeah, whatever, I don't know. I ended up getting traded. I think I got traded to Phoenix. I don't even fucking remember.

Isn't that sad? Isn't that sad, Pasha? You're just numb to the kind of moves that were, I mean, you've been in the long time. I'm over here the last like 30 seconds, putting that thing together. I'm over here just rambling. Just trying to like, I'm like trying to put this together in my head

of like, what the hell happened in your career? Where did you go? What happened? I don't even know. I've been through so much in this league. I don't even remember. All I know is the trade didn't go through. Then it went through, but like Kelly went here, I went there.

But those like 48 hours, it was really weird. Kelly ended up in Phoenix. I didn't. Long story short. Thank you. No, not really. Phoenix would have been amazing. But that didn't work out.

And I then ended up signing what changed my career. It turned to be a great deal. Houston, bro. Houston was amazing. And I'm going to H-Town. So we both got to go to great cities and great organizations. organizations. DC was a great organization as well. It just fit just wasn't I think right at the time with that roster we had. But Kelly ended up going to Phoenix. I ended up going to Houston and the way we go.

There we go. You went to the Houston Rockets and you played for Dan Tony. You played for your father, obviously. You played for Thibs. I want to know, I mean, those are some pretty, you know, big time coaches. What were the differences between those guys, kind of how they coached? Maybe the just the way they were off the court even. Yeah, man, every coach I've played for has been so different, like completely different. I always thought they would be similar. You know, all coaches would kind of be alike. But it's just been so different everywhere I've gone.

Just from a cultural standpoint to how much you practice, how hard you practice, how long you practice, what's emphasized, you know, how much yelling, how much talking, how much interacting does each coach do with each player? It varies on each team that I've been on. You know, Dan Tony was a very loose environment, very free, put a lot of trust in us. But that's why his teams usually tended to be veteran players so they could usually manage themselves and handle it. We had a really good team. We had a high power offense.

I liked playing for Mike. I had a lot of fun playing for Mike. And I had a lot of fun playing for that team. That was a fun team to play on. We were really good. They were good. Right before I got there, they had Chris. And that's the year Chris had got hurt.

where people believe to this day that they had a chance to beat the Warriors, they're obviously up three, two, before Chris goes down. So, you know, it's a valid. By the way, shout out to the Rockets for being one of the only teams. When Katie was on those Warriors teams

and they were the best teams I've ever seen in my lifetime, half the league decided, we're just going to tank, we're giving up. Let's look for it. Let's look for the future. The Rockets were the only team that were like, fuck that.

We're going to go for it and we're going to compete with them, and they did. There were the, so props to the Rockets, you know, those Rockets here's people say whatever they want about, you know, Mori Ball, but they were one of the only teams that saw the Warriors and said, let's go, let's go after it. Yeah, yeah.

They were, they were very competitive. Those games, those series were very competitive. I can't say it was a rivalry just because we never beat them in a playoff series, but we definitely had a lot of moments during the regular season and even in the playoffs. I remember being down 02 to them and coming back and being 2-2. You know what I mean? Like really making it a series and, yeah, we could, we, we, we, We fell short.

But yeah, those years in Houston were great. You know, playing for my pops was great. You know, it had its drawbacks, but that was due to the things we all know about, just like in terms of just the public perception and, you know, the animosity of playing for him, you know, that took its toll. But everything else in terms of just basketball-wise, coach player, playing for him, his staff, Sam Kassel, I grew a lot there in my years in L.A. I had a lot of fun playing there.

I've had a lot of moments. Denver was one of those situations. I love playing with Yokic. Sometimes it's a player that really makes a situation very enjoyable. He's a fun guy to play with in terms of on the basketball court where you know you could get a shot at any point. He plays pass first. And then even now, man, like Finchie.

Finchie's a great coach, bro. Like he's different, you know, maybe not more. like everyone's different Moni was very exes and O's you know my dad had a lot of exes and O's who was general like and leadership like and Dan Tony was free you know fast pace

scoring scoring you know everyone has their kind of thing Finchie's like a very good coach in terms of like he really holds everybody accountable holds everybody accountable for top to bottom puts a lot of trust and confidence in his players very honest with what he needs from you what he wants from you and that can a lot of times help a player just understand their role, their situation, and try to excel in it.

So I've had a lot of different experiences, man, even going to Coach K to Duke. You know, I mean, there's just been, I've been very thankful and blessed to play for a lot of different coaches, a lot of great coaches. And, you know, high school, David Bailey. Shout out to David Bailey, AAU, Therian Joseph. So, yeah, it's been fun. It's been fun. Do you think there's coaching in your future? I don't know, man. I really don't. I want to just loosely say yes because that task is a difficult one.

Coaching is no easy feat, man. You've got to put in more time than the players. You have to be at the gym before the players, after the players, breaking down film, watching film, preparing for not only tonight's game, the next game, the next game. I mean, bro, being a coach is exhausting, especially a head coach. I mean, the pressure and anxiety and the hot seat that coaches face today in the NBA.

It's like the most unsecured job in the NBA almost as being a head coach. it's a hard job to do, man. So I don't take that lightly. I do think I could do it, but it would take a lot of hard work. Yeah, it has to be something I'm 100% dedicated to, because like I said, assistant coach, coaching in general is a hard job, bro. So maybe, we'll see. I think the front office, the agency side, the business side,

especially the front office side, that's also intriguing to me as well. want to continue to learn about that and possibly you might see myself doing something like that as well. So we'll see. I feel like every time I'm around your father, you just seems exhausted. So, you know, coaching takes, you know, so much of his time. I know he loves the golf. Do you think, you know, you can see a time where he's going to maybe, you know, put the clipboard down and maybe kind of enjoy that, you know, Bel Air Country Club membership he has?

Or do you think it's, do you think he's going to coach to the wheels fall off? I think he'll coach until the coaching doesn't present itself anymore. more. First off, I think he's, that's who he is. My dad lives and brings basketball, and I think he was literally born to be an NBA coach. I know he played in the NBA and he had a, you know, a good career. I think he was even made more so to be a coach. He just has that character and he has a lot of traits that go along with being a coach. And a lot of people don't like my pops. In terms of his style of coaching, I shouldn't say a lot. I say some people, he's got a lot of hatred over the past couple of years.

He really has. I've seen it, whether it's in comments, Twitter, media, it's just been so unfair. You know, it's like if Doc's team doesn't go to the sister, I've seen this the other day, I've seen players talk about this. You know, if Doc's team doesn't go to the conference finals, you know, I see them making a head coaching change. Why? Why?

Why is it any other coach held to the standard? They don't get to conference finals? Are they going to remove this coach, too? is his team, is his roster filled with like five all-stars to where like he has to win or go to conference finals or he gets fired? I don't, there's only four teams that get to the conference finals every year. There's only one team that wins. Why is it for whatever reason that when like Doc goes to a team, it's like, you know,

if he doesn't get to the conference finals this year, I think they need a coach change. Why is that his standard? Why aren't you saying this about the bucks or Boston? Those teams have really good teams or Miami or this team. Why is it? I don't see why play. are always putting my dad's name into that. Well, also in the East, you have the Bucks and the Celtics.

There are two best teams in the NBA right now. If they don't make the conference finals, they're not expected to. Vegas doesn't have that making the conference finals. That's the thing. It's like, I don't understand why, but that's like a, it's a constant, constant scenario that is revolving around my pops, that there needs to be a coaching change if he doesn't make the finals or docs overrated. Like, what are y'all talking about?

First of all, I'm going to say, 76ers have, I don't want to say overachee this year because they're a really good team, but they have a really good record and I've played really well. James has played really well.

And a lot of guys, Maxi missed time. They've had a lot of time. James Starr off missing time. And they still are one of the best teams in the league. All right. It's like a known thing within the league,

I think, and I don't even say this being biased. I say this proud and very thankful for this, but most people would agree that my dad is one of the top tier coaches in the NBA. I think anybody who, says he's not would just be on that that's just on some hate and shit that's just the truth uh with

that being said uh is he perfect does he have his flaws yeah every coach does but this standard that he's held to is just ridiculous it really is bro it's like if he doesn't make the finals or doesn't go to the finals which i'm like it's so funny because you know he's one one it's not like he's one 14 like i don't know what this standard is it's like this lebron's standard of coaching that like i see some people in the media do with him and i've even seen former players say that. They're like, you know, if Doc doesn't do this, he's going to be this. I'm like, why are you saying this about him? There's like 12 other coaches that are in teams that are just as good. Why are their names done in the mix? And also, it's like so funny to me when I see this

coming from black people, black men, young black players, I'm just like, what the hell? The amount of like work that's been put in for like black coaches to now be a prominent thing in the NBA, like the work in the history of time. My dad, I think is the, all-time winning is black head coach or I think he's second. That's, what are we talking about here? And I say this as a proud of as the son and yeah, I might be biased or whatever,

but that's just ridiculous. I've seen this over the past couple of weeks. That stuff's just absurd and they're wrong. Lenny Wilkins is first. But yeah, whatever, man. Let's get on rapid fire. Rapid fire Okay my first question for you

If you're starting a franchise right now With any player in the NBA Who are you picking? Janus Hands down Who would be second Luca I think those are two pretty good answers

I feel like really quick I want to slide in that Janice If the bucks end up with the best record in NBA Middleton has not been Middleton all year and they end up with the best record He's been hurt

He's been hurt He's been hurt is, yeah, Janice is going to win MVP because I don't think they want to give it to Yokic. And Janus is going to sneak in and win MVP, especially if they have the best record in the NBA, best player on the best record in the NBA, I think it's his to win.

That'd be his third, right? Yeah. Yeah, I mean, him or Yonkaj are going to win. Him and Yokos are the two most dominant players in the NBA right now, and it's just a fact, especially over the past four or five years. They've been the most dominant players in the NBA. And Yonis is dominating.

He cannot be stopped. There's really no other answer to start a franchise with other than Janus. He plays just about every game. He has a motor that cannot be taught and cannot even be like it just is someone, it's either something someone has or doesn't have. To add to that, he's loyal to a small market. Loyal to a small market. A lot of people aren't like that anymore. Let's be honest.

He's also very likable, man. He's a very likable guy. just from everything I hear. You know what I mean? What he's done for his brothers, what he's done for his family, you know, even his unorthodox ways when he's on Instagram live or when he's on his phone,

just because he is from a whole different culture. He's foreign. Like, people find him very humorous. He's funny. He's normal. He works his ass off. They say he's the hardest working guy on the team. It's always nice when the best player is also the hardest working.

And, you know, he has guys bought in around him and like playing there. And they have guys, and you always know a guy's really good when, like, the role players also around him have been there for a long time. Like, Brooke Lopez doesn't want to play anywhere else. Drew Holiday doesn't want to play anywhere else. Chris Middleton doesn't want to play anywhere else.

Bobby Porterst doesn't want to play anywhere else. These guys have been there for a long time. And, like, I've built this culture with him of championship basketball. I think Janus has to be number one starting a franchise. If I'm a GM or a president and I can have any team for the next 10 years, I'd have this guy. This guy's a, look, everything he does. he'd go first.

And look what you're saying. You have a bunch of guys that want to play in Milwaukee because of him. It's a small market. You know, you and me grew up in Orlando, which is, you know, considered a small market. It's hard. You know, Shaq left us. Dwight left us. You know what I mean?

And to have someone stay and have other players, you know, attract other players that want to play with them, that's a no-brainer who I would have to start my franchise with. And how much maintenance is Janus? A lot of these superstars can be, I don't want to. to say the wrong word, but they could be difficult to deal with. You know what I mean? Some of them are a handful, you know, and Janus seems like someone who just kind of just does his work and goes about his business. And I think people really love, you know, that's a nice thing to work with and not have to deal with on a daily basis where you got like drama or issues.

You know what I mean? So, yeah, I like that. I like that pick. next question you could have one jersey in NBA history who are you taking you don't have to get me a player what team who has the best jersey

in NBA history that you would take and if you want to give me a specific player in that era you could give me that too let's say let's say you're going

to a pull party you get to wear a throwback jersey who you what jersey that's a different answer because I would throw

like an unorthodox player in like a jersey you know I mean like I'd have like a pinstriped you know uh uh Bulls jersey that says Ku Klux on the back.

You know, I wouldn't have Jordan or Pippin. I like the unorthodox players that people forget about. I'd have a, you know, let's see, I'd have like a, an old Raptors pinstripe jersey, John Wallace, Gerald Wallace, I'm sorry, Gerald Wallace, you know, something like that, maybe a Damon Stottomier, you know. But if I had to pick one, I'm an Orlando guy, the pinstripe, Penny Hardaway, the black jersey

that's your favorite jersey yeah black black black with the white pinstripes and you're rocking penny you're going with penny to that pool party yeah I think I'm gonna go I'm gonna go with a Vladi Divots Lakers jersey from back in the day just because

I'm gonna play on kind of the way I look but I think the best jersey in NBA history might be you do have a little Vlade in you don't you I got to grow You wouldn't rather do like a black sack sack jersey I mean he really came to his own back then

But when he came into the league He was like burst he burst onto the scene Magic Johnson brought him in A little Doug Christie A little Doug Christie sack jersey I would have a Doug Christie jersey I do think the magic Maybe I'm biased

The magic back in the day had the best jerse And then the magic had those jerse With the stars in them When Team Act played there What about a retro? What about a retro Minnesota jersey What about like a retro Tom Googliata? I would definitely go with the Doug West

retro Timberwolves jersey Little Terrell Brandon Little Terrell Brandon jersey That's not bad What about a Glenn Rice Hornets jersey Because I do own that

Somewhere here It's a purple Hornets Glen Rice jersey 41 I like that I like that What do you think of the 90s What player do you think

Doesn't get the respect What kind of fell into the cracks Like slipped through the cracks That we don't talk about anymore Like a Mitch Richmond Allen Houston Yeah a lot of these guys They don't get talked about

Eddie Jones there's players from this generation that 20 years from now people are going to forget about too that you're going to slip through the cracks I'll be in the locker room talking about these guys and players on my team have no idea who the hell I'm talking about

I could be talking about like Eddie Jones or like Glenn Robinson Big Don't shout out They'll be like Yeah they'll be like Who who? I'm just like holy shit man

Like these dudes are young It's like a whole new era of basketball Like they just like it's like they know Sam Cassell as a coach. Like they have no idea like as a player he was minorated to God. Like they don't know about like it's just, yeah, that that's just where we're at now. You know, I don't know. It also doesn't help that.

That was an era before like they had social media and YouTube and all this stuff. So like a lot of you guys clips just get, they just get forgotten about, man. There's grainy footage, grainy footage on YouTube of some of these players. I mean, if you want to go see some highlights, it's going to be tough to watch for sure. It is, bro. Some players are like, yeah, like some of these guys, like there's not a lot of footage. They're like these weird little mixtapes on YouTube with like terrible music in the background. And it's like, look is this guy.

I don't want to watch this. They don't have like edits and like clips of them like scoring 20 every night like you do of like modern day players. You know, you could track every players, every game on YouTube now. They just don't have that. So it's tough for these guys to really know any of these dudes unless you were like a student of the game really early. Or, you know, if you're our age, 30. You know, I mean, that's like really that. It's shocking to me.

me that guys don't know a lot of these players uh but whatever i i feel like also yeah if you you know you know who kennie smith is you know who these guys are if you're in the media you know younger the younger generation will know who you are but every now and then i'll i'll find a guy that just retired had a great career i'll find his instagram and he'll have like 15 000 followers or something 15 000 i'd be like weird picks and i'll be like oh my god and like this guy just kind of he retired kind of lives a nice quiet life somewhere and he just wasn't he didn't coach afterwards. He wasn't in the media afterwards. 15,000 is generous.

15,000 is generous. I've seen guys with like 1,200 followers, bro. 1,400 followers. And this guy played in the NBA for like 12 years and was dominant and like, you know, made some good money and like just didn't do anything after in terms of in the spotlight. It's like living a normal life somewhere. I'm just like, yeah, this is crazy to me.

You'll see it on Instagram. You know, the picks are always like just really weird. I'll be like him like eating a cheeseburger like or like him driving in a car. They're not like good like Instagram picks because they're not like insta savvy. it's just like the whole, it's like what is going on? But people just don't really know about a lot of these fallen stars. I don't want to say falling because they're not falling. Just a different life now.

You know what I mean? One's in the spotlight. One's not. If you're like young, younger 20s in the NBA, most of these guys don't know a lot of these older players. Like 21s, 22 years old. I'm not saying everybody because every player is different. But a lot of these guys, when I talk to them and we have these conversations, they'll be like, who?

I'd be like, bro, you don't know who this guy was? They're like, nah. I'm like, oh, my goodness, bro. And it's the worst, too, like, for a guy, for example, like La Trell Spreewell, he's only known for the PJ Carlysmobile incident or that run with the NICs where they, you know, but people don't remember. LaTrell Spreewell.

He's only known for what, what do you say? He's only known for the incident with PJ Carlisima, the choking incident. I'm not even like, I do know about that. I do know about that, but I don't even like, when I think it's LaTrell Sprewewee, I don't even think of that. What do you think? He was first team all NBA in 1994.

He was a player. And people just don't really even know anything about him now. If you want my honesty, the first thing I think of when I think of the trail Spreewell is, I think of his rims that he came out with, the Spree Row wheels. Spinners? Then I think of those shoes that he wore that every time he stepped, the back of the wheel used to spin.

Do you remember Chris Weber's Dada sneakers? I had a pair. Come on, man. Don't play me. I had an argument. It started with Sharif and Murph yesterday. You're two good friends.

And they, we got into double dipping. How do you feel about double dipping? It's fucking disgusting. If there is a table side gawk and we're out there, one dip, one dip.

They said it's okay. They said it's okay to double dip. He goes, well, we do it all the time. I go, I'm going to start asking for, I'm going to start asking for my own dip. Well, that just tells me everything about, who is that,

Murf and Sharif? Yeah. They were saying it's totally, fine, and they thought I was in the minority of this. I said the least you could do if you're going to get another dip is flip the chip. So your mouth part is... I don't care if you flip the chip. The chip is still going in the dip.

It's one dip per chip, and then you eat. And then if you want to put more dip on the chip, get a new chip. That was crazy. No, I'm telling you. And we went to a poll on Instagram. Someone posted it. They were saying it's completely fine. Then we got into...

Then we got into drinking after each other. That's fucking disgusting. Austin, if I had a Gatorade and I was drinking out of the spout of the Gatorade, would you put your mouth on that spout? Absolutely not. No. I'm telling you, they said I was in the minority and that is very normal. Everyone shares drinks. Everyone double dipping, it's completely fine. No.

Do you know what, though? That's very, how big of a part of you were you in college? Like, were you a frat boy? No. It's very cultural. It's a good thing. Like, you go to college. There's a lot of people that go to college and party and hang out friends.

Like, those guys are just passing around things even more than drinks. Okay. They don't have a lot of boundaries. Two chips, two dips in a chip, two chip, whatever. No problem. Drink after each other, no problem. Yeah, I remember people playing beer pong, and like this dirty ball would go into the cup of beer, and they were just drinking that beer.

It was shocking. If I saw some, like, just nasty, greasy frat boy throw his little dirty ping pong, in my beer, I'm not going to remove that ball out of my beer and then proceed to drink the beer. But I'm not a frat boy. We're going to get a lot of hate by this. This comment right here that we're saying right now

is not going to go over well for us. People going to look at us and think, who are these little boozy bastards? No, no, no, no, no. I think this is a totally normal thing. I think we're in the majority here. I have a question. I don't think so.

I really don't. I think they're right. Let's say I had a spicy margarita and I was drinking out of it. I took a couple of sips. would you try it? You were like, you were curious, you were like, I want to try that drink.

Would you put your mouth on that drink and try it? Would you drink after me? At the very worst, I would just spin the cup. I got to get fresh lips landing zone. My lip has to be the first one to touch that side of the cup. Fresh, fresh lip landing zone's okay. Do a little spin action. You got to look because some people are just sipping all over the place.

So you got to be careful about it. You see a little residue on the end of the cup. That lips have been there. But you're absolutely not drinking out of my straw. That's just ridiculous. For me to put my two, I can't even say that aloud. I'm telling you, people, do that.

I can't even talk about that. That's just not even, no, man, I'm not doing that. Am I putting, I'm not going to put, no. Okay, and I do think maybe it's situational. You would drink after your girlfriend. Absolutely. Now, would you drink, maybe there's levels of your friendships where you would drink after some friends?

There's no levels. There's some friends you, it's situationally. Maybe some friends you wouldn't drink after some friends you would. If you were in a pinch. There's definitely, might be tears because there are some friends of mine who are just, it's just absolutely not a lot of my drinking after him.

And then there's some like, you know what this guy thinks like me? I'm really, really thirsty. There's no drinks around. I've been running on the track for two hours. We're doing conditioning. It's tryouts in high school. He has a Gatorade.

You want to waterfall it. I mean, I would just waterfall it, by the way. I would 100%. Why does your lips happen? For instance, because I'm trying to think, like, if I'm, like, really thirsty, getting it on with a workout. And so I was like, yo, I have severe gatorade. I'm like, yeah.

And this guy grabs and just puts his mouth on it. I would be like, yo, just keep the gatorade, bro. That's just ridiculous. Right. And I feel the same way about double-dipede. I think it depends. It depends what type of drink, too, bro. Like a gatorade, a water bottle.

Like, bro, it should be waterfall. Mouth on that's gross. Milk. Oh. Well, I can't tell you the last time I had a glass of milk. That's just not really a thing for me. I haven't had like Oreos and milk since I was maybe stepping out. By the way, all the people out there who just casually walk into their kitchen,

open their fridge, and pour themselves a glass of milk. You're a freak. You're a freak. And I don't even know what else to say about it. If I'm thirsty, it's water or anything in the realm. For someone to like come in after like a hot day's work, grab a glass of milk and be like, ah. you're different.

But you've seen like to show hot ones where they're eating the spicy wings and they'll have a glass of milk there. That's different. That's different. It's supposed to, you know, you know, I think calm your like senses in your mouth from the heat. Just for the record, and we'll put a bowtile

on the end of this convo. Just double dipping is nuts. The people that just take a bite out of a chip and how big is this chip that you're taking a bite and going in for a second dip? I don't care if it's queso, guacamole, salsa, a double dip in the chip is nuts.

I don't care. And by the way, I don't care if there's three people at the table, eight people at the table, it's wrong. Double dipping's wrong. But like if a girl was really, really pretty and she double dipped,

would you care? I said it was situational. I told you that already. So Jessica Alba puts her chip and dip, bites it, puts it right back. You're like, you know what? I really don't mind. Yeah, if Jessica Alba's at my table,

the last thing I'm thinking about is the dip in the chip. And I'm thinking about some of them. That was probably, I'm in a wild panic blacking out. Completely drenched in sweat. All right, well, let's go back to him. Jessica Alba, in other words, can leave the chip in there. She could just leave her chip in there, come back to it.

And you're like, no problem. I'll pour the dip on my head if she wanted it. If she found it funny, I'll do whatever Jessica Alba wanted. It's her world. I'm living in it. Literally. You would simp for her, in other words. I mean, she's not like my go-to, but she's definitely, I mean, she's a court.

What are we doing here? She's gorgeous. Austin, you have a big one tonight against the Lakers. Good luck. Today was kind of a crazy episode. Looking forward to speaking with you next week. My dog, appreciate you, man. As always, it was a pleasure.

This one got a little bit out of a hand, but hopefully everybody enjoys him. Have a good weekend, bro. Yes, sir.