The Ryen Russillo Podcast - College Football Watch 2020. Plus, a Look at the Lakers and Clippers With Mike Trudell and Jovan Buha

Episode Date: August 11, 2020

Russillo shares his thoughts on the dragged-out CFB verdict (1:33) before talking with Lakers beat reporter Mike Trudell about the Lakers' underwhelming restart in the Orlando bubble, the need to find their closing rotation, the ways teams are trying to stop Anthony Davis, the idea of "flipping the switch" for the playoffs, and more (14:37). Then Ryen talks with Jovan Buha, Clippers reporter for The Athletic, about the Clippers chasing consistency, the core player group when healthy, the effect Kawhi and Paul George have on each other, the team's potential defensive adjustments, particularly against the Lakers, and more (38:26). Finally Russillo answers a listener-submitted "Life Advice" question (58:10). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

today's episode of the ryan rossilla podcast on the ringer podcast network is brought to you by state farm just like basketball guess what folks the game of life is unpredictable talk to a state farm agent and get a teammate who can help you navigate the unexpected. I did not expect the Lakers to almost lose to a Denver group. Speaking of teammates, usually it'd be Jokic, maybe Millsap, Grant. Gary Harris hasn't been around. Jamal Murray has been back, but Murray was on a minutes restriction. So once he hit 25 minutes, they didn't bring him. So the closing group for really the good chunk of the fourth quarter was Plumlee,

Bolbol, Dozier, Bates, Diop, and Morris. And the Lakers had A.D. Kuzma. They took out their bigs, so that A.D. closing group. A.D. Kuzma, who hit the game, winner LeBron, Danny Green, who had a couple big shots as well, and then they left Waiters in.

So, get yourself some teammates like that who can get it done against the backup teammates. That's the plan. Very LA-based. LA guy now. My LA Kings. The 405.

What's up? Don't take the 10. If you can, get a teammate who can help you navigate the unexpected. Talk to a State Farm agent today. Mike Trudell, Lakers reporter. I've been covering him for a while. He's great. I've known him a while.

And then Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who covers the Clippers. And then we'll do life advice at the very end. But today's open is brief, and I hope not too repetitive. But I just felt like I had to do a little bit on college football before we get started on all the NBA stuff. And I'll admit, as I was writing this out a little bit, I'm like, you know, you've touched on a lot of this stuff before. Okay. Although comedians can run around with the same act for like months. So, you know,

when you're doing a radio show every single day, like sometimes I would think about that and I go, just think if you're a standup guy, you can kind of shape a five or 10 minute set and just do it over. You could do it twice in the same night and nobody gets on your case. So let's just try to tackle like three different things here. The first is for the last two weeks, I've been getting texts and calls saying college football's done. And I was like, well, how do you know that? Cause I don't think it's done done.

And as I taped this now, even though on Sunday night with bills, like, yeah, it sounds like it might be done. It's still not done. And who knows by the time you listen, it could be done, but what's done. Is it done for the season? No, I think everything would be punting it to the spring. And the complications with that are still many. It's not ideal, but it's still better. Much like when the NBA was going through its deal to try to figure out if they were going to come back and play at all under what circumstances would people want to play in a bubble? And there was all this unrest and people were hearing different things. And then go wait do the players not want to play because

what i've heard is most of the players do want to play but a lot of this coverage makes me think the players don't want to play so what the hell is happening there then they put it to a vote it's an overwhelming vote the players are going to come back and play because guess what they didn't want to lose like 650 million in salary okay so they wanted to come back they're going to play the nba thing is going to work out. When I look at the college football part of this, we had the Big Ten unveil their schedule and then almost cancel the season or wait until the spring. Then you had most of the teams vote to not have it come back. When you had two, I think it was Nebraska and Iowa, it said they do want to come back. Then you start to dig in a little bit more and you call some schools and they'll say, well, now that the presidents and the academics are involved and these people are

lawyers and they have doctorates, not necessarily their medical doctors, but they are more worried, especially when you look at some of the liability stuff. And then I've read stuff that it's like, well, it's not really all about liability. I'm not surprised if we are talking about potential lawsuits because people sue people when they have an opportunity to sue. It happens. Not everybody does it, but a lot of people do. And that's why the rest of our premiums are through the roof for those of us that are not looking to sue everybody every single day.

But I can understand that being a real concern because you're opening up yourself to exposure as this big university if you have something horrible happen to a kid who's coming back and playing football. But the way the coverage has been handled on this, and this has become a really nasty, nasty deal on social media, it's a lot of ex-players that played college football saying the media is rooting against college football coming back. I don't think anything in the media is necessarily saying, hey, I hope COVID's worse so that football never happens again. But like I've said throughout this, it's like wanting something bad to happen to the NFL owners. It doesn't mean you don't love the NFL or you don't love football, but you don't like the owners and replace the NFL owners with the NCAA. And if some of you that hate the NCAA, which I understand and is justified in many cases, there feels a bit like a negativity to the entire story because first it's

a negative story to begin with this sucks everybody knows how much it sucks everybody's trying to deal with this the best they can and some days are a lot worse for others and you know like we get that all right that's the compassionate side of this but the real part of it is they the schools the big conferences like the players in the nba want to protect their salaries, they want to protect the TV money. It's all the same stuff. So the grownups would agree on the motivation behind this and having everybody come back and play. But whenever it's a player that comes out saying, well, I'm not sure, like we had with the Pac-12 that took over social media for two days. And a lot of times the social media stuff isn't even real. I have to always remind myself of that, where it's, is we really going to have a boycott and then we have bruce feltman on last

week's like yeah it actually started as 12 players from 18 so you go the way this was covered you would have thought it was 6 000 guys because we're talking about what 12 000 plus players at d1 schools and so as the anti-player movement or i should say excuse me the anti-player movement, or I should say, excuse me, the anti-playing movement builds momentum. Then the other thousands of players are going, hey, I actually want to still play. And then it becomes this weird game of, well, the players don't know any better, so they shouldn't come back to play from the media side of it. And then the ex-players that are now in the media get mad at the media guys that say that so i don't know that it's ever been about this is picking sides for people rooting against anyone playing against versus the ex-players wanting the current players to be unsafe probably the biggest pushback on any of this that you're going to get from me though is the apples to apples that we've done with all of these sports

baseball has not had a great start i don't know if they're going to make it through this. There are people saying they had no chance before this thing even started. We've had some bumps. I don't know if they're going to get through it. But to go out, basketball figured it out. Basketball was different. Basketball has less guys, 15, 14 guys on the team compared to 30 that started on MLB rosters. Basketball had less teams. So it's less people. It's less teams. it's eight games per team. It's not 60 games per team with 30 guys on the team trying to play every single day for the next couple months. It was just completely different. So you may not like baseball. You'd be super mad about baseball and how they handled everything with Rob Manford, which I get, but it's still not fair to act as if it's apples to apples. So now let's expand on that because I've heard for a long time that college football needs

a commissioner and I'm open to the idea, but the commissioner, if he existed, he or she existed right now was in charge and was the deciding person for all of the college football programs that are out there. That means you're representing like 120 programs from all over the country with all these different conferences, not just the power five, also the group of six, that that person would be able to get everybody on the same page. Now, first of all, whoever was this make believe commissioner can't make the virus easier to deal with. Okay. So the virus is winning more than any of these decisions, but I really resist that if the NCA had better leadership, that

somehow all of this would be worked out because all of these conferences would still be looking out for their best interests. That's it. That's just the way things work. So even with baseball, when you had supposedly one entity and Rob Manford representing the owners talking to one other group, the players union, and trying to figure that, and that couldn't be worked out for two months.

And yet Manford was still representing all of these different owners. We'd heard maybe as many as 10 teams, maybe it was five teams, somewhere in between. There was a group of owners that didn't even want to come back and play because of the bill, the amount of money they were going to lose just by coming back and playing because their teams don't generate as much revenue. And by the way, why you would have them as partners would be just tough to deal with when you're cutting them revenue sharing checks every single season from the teams that make all the money and put money into their payrolls. But you had dissension among those 30 when it still felt like it was two sides of one table. College football is a million sides

to this massive table. And to suggest that one person actually being in charge could speak for everybody and that they'd be able to figure this out. I don't think that that's fair. I don't mind anybody being optimistic. I don't even mind the Big Ten releasing the schedule and then days later voting against even coming back. I don't know if the SEC is going to figure this out. I don't know if the SEC and ACC were going to work out something and then it didn't happen. I think the Big 12, I mean, obviously, when we look at some of the states that are involved here, it seems to kind of make sense that maybe these teams are holding out for a little bit more. But I push back on the idea

that one person that would be a voice, a figurehead for college football would somehow make this better despite the numerous quotes that we have from so many great college football reporters that are saying essentially, talk to this AD today, quote, this is so embarrassing. What a disaster. What a disaster for college football. The last thought on all of this is if we can just accept what it is, like I said in the beginning, that it's about the TV money. And as much as that sucks because it's like, wait, the kids are going to come back and play. So these programs, they're going to put themselves potentially at risk, which is a fair way to

phrase it. And they're going to come back to be able to provide revenue to all these programs. The program's the ones that spent money on the buyouts. We covered that. The program's the ones that have cranked up the average annual salary for coaches by like 100% in just a very short amount of time. We've covered that, the administrative costs and all these different things. But don't be so anti the NCAA. And as I've heard, it's suggested that the players are the pawns in this movement around the chess board so that universities, all these programs can make all that TV money.

Okay, fine. But don't also then use the players as the pawns, as I've suggested before, in your movement to kind of punish the NCAA in a way that I've mentioned with an anti-NFL owner position. I don't mind if you hate the NFL owners. I'm not going to sit here and argue for them. But let's not forget about the kid who, one, is a senior.

They have a really good team. It's like, can we find any way to salvage this season? Or two, is a third or second round draft grade, but has been busting his ass all offseason and the coaches are saying, you have a real chance to make an impact here and improve your draft status. I'm not saying that's the majority of the guys, but that guy exists. Or number three, because this is a much larger group, the kid that loves nothing more than running out of that tunnel with Texas across the front of his jersey, coming out of the tunnel and representing his program and maybe representing his home state going, this is something I like to do. So if we're saying it's not safe, no counter to that.

But if you're saying that none of the kids should come back and play because the NCAA screwed this up when it sounds like the majority of the kids actually want to have hope that it could happen, if not in the fall, then in the spring, don't let the number of players that have real complaints, justified complaints about how screwed up this system has been forever, but don't let those voices outweigh the thousands of players that actually would love to figure out a way to do this. And again, do it in a way that's safe for the kids to come back. Because if there's two things I know will happen forever, it will be that people that work will find a way to complain about that work.

that people that work will find a way to complain about that work. And two, the person in charge of everybody at that job is going to be the one they complain about. And work is a loose definition here because you can say, well, you know, the kids aren't paid. Are they really employed? That's not even what the debate is about anymore. You show up to do the job. Your job at that point is to be a college football player. We can talk about the lack of compensation, all these different things. I don't want to do that anymore. But yes, there are players that

are going to complain about things, but how is that any different than anything else that we do? You're listening to this right now. There's a boss you have you can't stand. Or guess what? You're the boss of all these people. They talk about you all the time. They just do. And you might be really good as a boss and have a fair place and pay great wages, room for growth, all of that stuff. They're still complaining about you. It's almost weird now when we don't hear complaints about people in the workplace. Okay. So just remember that there's still a ton of kids that want to come out and play.

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Miller time gatherings and we will try to Rosillo with some of your Miller Lite, Miller Time gatherings, and we will try to connect you with some people at Miller Lite. All right? That's free of charge. That's just me hoping everybody gets through this. Okay, Lakers and then Clippers. Let's start with the Lakers. So part one of the LA Fest pod, Mike Trudell at Lakers Reporter has covered.

How many years now have you covered the team? Oh, let's see, Ryan. I guess since 2008 was my first year so I I joined I joined the Lakers the year after they lost to Boston in the final so it was good timing in that context that was good right they jumped in back-to-back titles there so uh let's let's talk about this team because tonight's game was interesting and I think it kind of speaks to everything that's going on I sent you kind of a joke text was like hey you want to come on and talk about this team because tonight's game was interesting. And I think it kind of speaks to everything that's going on. I sent you kind of a joke text. I was like, hey, you want to come on and talk about how bad the Lakers are? You were like, well, wait a minute.

And I was like, oh, that's right. I forgot the Lakers, guys. This is not what we expected. We know what kind of run they were on. That win against Milwaukee. I know they lost the Nets there, but there was that stretch there where you're starting to go, okay, this is really coming together. There are certain nights where I can excuse it. There's nights I don't think it's always about bad offense. I thought there were nights they've lost games, they've had good shots, but Davis has been up and down. LeBron's certainly more

aggressive the last two games. What is real about what we can at least say has been an underwhelming performance since the restart. So Ryan, as we're talking, I just finished up the Lakers and Nuggets game. And LeBron, I think, essentially answered the question for what's been going on with the Lakers for the entire seeding period. He said that he's getting there physically, but mentally, neither he or the team are there yet. He's like, the playoffs are such a grind. You just can't lock in

until you get there it's another level with playoff basketball and we'll be ready when it comes so that's how lebron summarized it and i think that that's been reflective in the way that they have played and you know look you can look at the bucks right two and four to this point the clippers have had some bright moments but are three and three and these teams all came into this knowing that they couldn't really gain much of anything aside from trying to find their rhythm and stay healthy and i think that that has been the biggest thing is like watching these games you have to separate that from what they were in march when covid hit but it's not easy to do because your eyes are telling you one thing when you're watching the

games but you've got to try to step back and think about the bigger picture that they're trying to get to. Yeah, that's great. But I still don't know what the rotation is. Do you know what the closing rotation is? And clearly with no Rondo, no Bradley, that was going to happen. I thought the group tonight, it felt like they really wanted this one against Denver, despite the fact that Denver sat all of its main guys to close. And it was still a struggle. I thought it was huge for Kuzma,

just because not only to hit that shot, but something to build off of, because I feel like everybody's had kid gloves about him all season, where it's like, oh, he's figuring it out, and you're like, he's played almost the entire season. They go small with Davis. Green hits a couple shots. Obviously, LeBron out there.

Deion probably surprised me a little bit with no Pope, but what do you think is the eight and then closing rotation for the Lakers once the playoffs actually start? Yeah, so I think it's a little bit more obvious than you might think. Like Vogel has been doing some experimenting with that nine and 10 spot for the rotation,

but for the most part, it's going to be the starters. So that's Casey being green in the backcourt. That's LeBron as the quote-unquote point guard on offense at least. That's A.D. and that's McGee. The three guys Casey being green in the backcourt. That's LeBron as the quote-unquote point guard on offense, at least. That's AD and that's McGee. The three guys who you're sure to see off the bench are Caruso and Kuz and Dwight Howard, at least to start the second quarter. And then Waiters, I think, has probably earned himself a rotation spot because they just

need that secondary creating when LeBron's not on the floor, especially so they can go to it time and time again. That 10th spot, you know, sometimes it's Marquis Morris, right? You might see Taylor Horton Tucker, who's played well. But those first nine, that's, I think, to me, the core group that's going to play the most. Because the Caruso part, he has these, and I'm not saying that, I had to come around to Marcus Mark

because Marcus Mark got better, and Marcus Mark's a better player than Alex Caruso. But Caruso has some of those impact plays. He has these in-between plays, I like to call them, that lead to just you trust him, but then sometimes I'll be like, okay, but is he really that good? I think there's a trust there with him defensively that's better than some of the other stuff because I think that's the biggest fear, especially with no Bradley. I don't know. Rondo, to me, although he looked good physically, I thought it was pretty problematic a lot of the season.

But the how are we going to slow down opposing point guards was a real problem in Oklahoma City. They sought out Kuzma on switches the whole time. So I can see why they go with Caruso, but I can't tell if he's kind of mascot overrated or somebody you really have to watch day in and day out to understand those smaller plays that he makes. So the first thing,

and to get back to your question about the closing lineup, which is, you know, that was a bad question. Yeah. I mean, but it's really the most important thing when you get into the, like the actual playoff games,

right? Who's has been the biggest price spot. He's been good. He's just been good on both ends of the floor throughout these seeding games. The reason is that he's healthy. He came into the season, and he had that foot injury with Team USA. And then he's playing behind LeBron and AD. His minutes go down.

His shots go down. And he just wasn't good in terms of his efficiency offensively. But he made a lot of progress on D. So you plug him in with LeBron and AD, and then it's either Green or KCP, probably whoever's shooting better that night, and then either Caruso or one of those two and that's your closing group because you can get away with 80 at the five because you still get the rim protection and then to circle back to Caruso so he's the net ratings darling of the Lakers I don't care two-man lineup a five-man lineup three like whenever he's on the court for example, when they play the Nuggets, he took one shot and he was plus 21. He's smart. You're right. We see the highlight here and there on SportsCenter from the dunk. Part of that is because of the way that he looks.

he'll set the back screen on the weak side of the floor at the right time to free ad for a layup. Like he does all that stuff when, and when you're playing with LeBron, that stuff is so important because he will find any little sliver of an opening in the half court. So he loves Caruso and you're right, Ryan, you pointed this out earlier.

Defense is where he really makes his money because Caruso can kind of, he can slide between the one, two, three, he'll even defend the post a little bit. So he like, he, to me has shown throughout the year i test and numbers wise that he should be on the floor when it counts yeah that's why i would think if it ends up being portland in the first round that it's going to be more caruso than it would be waiters because i still waiters has exceeded

expectations i've had from offensively but i noticed a bunch of plays in the fourth quarter where he's he's still kind of freelancing out there and i wouldn't say it's not understanding rotations it's just him not being super interested in that part of the floor um did was there any response anything you can share with us on the clippers basically trying to throw that game away to make sure portland could get into the ac because i i can already sense that this is a pissy thing with the lakers or you go all right we could work all year to get the seed, and now because of everything that's going to happen, we're going to get Portland as the eight? Yeah.

I mean, so Vogel got asked the question directly, and his answer was just – and Vogel's like really good. You cannot get him off of his game. He's just like, oh, every team's got to do what's best for them. Totally get it. And that kind of diffused it, right? He said the other one like, I don't know.

But the thing about the Portland matchup that is interesting to me is they're probably the team that has the least amount of answers for the LeBron matchup on the wing. You're right. No, I'm so glad you said that because we've all kind of fell in love with this Portland thing. Like, man, they don't want to do it. They have no wings to defend these things.

Yeah, Hartless and the New Yorker squad last year, they're not there. Then Ariza opts out and so I mean it's going to be you know Mello or Hazonia and then AD that was when he had his huge playoff series right against Portland different team for the most part but they had Dame and they had CJ so I mean I think that like the Lakers won twice in Portland this year uh you know they they have a lot of really good matchups there too but there's no question that Portland is better than the average eight seed I mean like with Nurkic healthy you know they're they have a lot of really good matchups there, too. But there's no question that Portland is better than the average eight seed. I mean, like with Nurkic healthy, you know, they're a potential top four team.

They're battling right there with Denver and Houston probably. So there's no question that this year it ends up not being the greatest time to be the one seed in the West with no home court advantage. And you get a really tough team potentially in the eighth spot. But, you know, that's kind of like you can't really complain about that. I would still think the Lakers are going to be the favorite regardless of which of those four teams get in. Well, what's going on with AD's

up and down stuff here in the bubble? So I would, for AD, I would kind of go back to that same thing that LeBron said. There have been a couple games where he's been super aggressive early and he has just dominated. Like, he wanted to go at Rudy Gobert

and he gets 40 pretty easily. Tonight early against Denver, same thing. They just have nothing at the rim to contain him. And he has three buckets in the paint in the first six minutes. Now, the thing I think that's more interesting, and I'll be curious your opinion on this, some of the really good defenses,

the Raptors, for example, who are going to pack the paint, double AD on the catch in that mid post area. That's where he's still, you know, got to, got to make sure that he's making those right reads and, and whether it's reposting or the Lakers go small and get them out to the perimeter, like they can do those things. But to me, it's almost always about how aggressive he is early.

Cause if he, if he, I know you've talked about him before you, there's nothing that you can really do when he's put, when he puts his head down and tries to get to the bucket. Like as long as he's going early and the defense isn't loaded yet uh it's it's almost impossible to stop with the skill and the leg that he has so i i think he'll be more consistent once the real games start because he was he had he had a couple of duds here and there but for the most part he was pretty consistent entity on that end throughout the season it's real positive review right now so far uh for this team but you're the thing about ad that is both

great and frustrating is because he is smart and he's not he doesn't need to be selfish which is weird because when you're when you're somebody that understands the right pass and then you get knocked for being too aggressive and then we look at some of these guys that put up huge numbers you're like yeah all he wants is buckets and then you know he never wins um so that's that's a really delicate thing and i don't know there's any perfect answer other than hey i like the way this guy plays or i don't like the way this guy plays but toronto was really aggressive about it and he was passing out of it but it's like okay you understand you're doing what they want to do all the time so am i wrong because i noticed it in the denver game where they did send that trap to him late has it has it felt like since the toronto

game teams are trapping him more just based on the results they saw in that trap to him late. Has it felt like since the Toronto game, teams are trapping him more just based on the results they saw in that game? I don't know if that's anything that's come up. It still feels like it's too soon. It's only a couple games. And maybe I'm just looking for it more, but it feels like something I've noticed.

No, and so you're not wrong to notice it, but it did happen periodically throughout the race. Sure. So it's been a thing that they've discussed all year. What do you do out of that action when you're going to bring that quick double against AD? Because he does like to catch the ball in that mid post area. And so all these teams, you know, these coaches, you talk to these guys like they're aware of what that is.

I mean, I think going back to what you said, too, about this team and the positivity. So I've kind of said all year long as I hijack this question back to you. No, it's good. It's good. They won the West by five and a half games right up to the point where it ended now but i think the clippers are right there and it may come down to who's healthier like they you know they played pretty even against each other i don't know if the rest of the teams in the west are are quite at that tier though they could win especially in the bubble so that's that's really the reason it's like they've had enough talent-wise to support their two-star system. And it's really going to be more about just how they gel

and if Kuzma can really fill that third spot. But have you seen anybody else that can be on that par with the Lakers and Clippers, all things considered, including the seeding fans? No. And so that's really what it is, right? So it's positivity because, yeah, they they're really good they're not necessarily they're no they're no title guarantee um it's not like the warriors last year before they got hurt right uh where where we kind of all go in

and we have the same opinion seems like most people more people than not in the media have set clippers you still get some lakers you get some bucks certainly um maybe maybe the lakers come in third in that sort of unofficial straw poll. But yeah, it's hard to take somebody out of that group still, I feel like, unless you think Toronto's made that inroads. I'm including Toronto in there, although I really like Boston against Toronto. You feel like that matchup? I do. I do. I did some deep digging on that one. I mean, yeah, they don't really have that big to punish Boston, right? No. You kind of hurt them.

No, and I feel like Gasol is a problem for Toronto against Boston. And if you go through the matchups, Boston's won the season series against Toronto 3-1, but all four of Boston's top guys played in all four games, which is kind of rare considering the differences. They were almost like Clippers East for a little bit there, Boston. But Jalen put up big numbers. Tatum, not as much.

Kemba was really good. Hayward, all right, but his shooting was good. But Siakam only played two games. Gasol only played two. And Gasol was terrible in the two games that he played, including the more recent one. But I didn't like Boston as much against a healthy Philly team And Gasol was terrible in the two games that he played, including the more recent one. But I didn't like Boston as much against a healthy Philly team because I've just seen how bad it can be against a really special big.

And there's part of it, too, where I was at the Embiid game when he went crazy against Boston, and I left it going, don't forget this game. Don't forget how brutal this was for them to try to defend him. But even though I'm more impressed with Toronto's depth and the execution, all these different things, I like Boston in that matchup there. But I'm not going to put Boston in tier one. I finally have accepted Toronto as a tier one team because even as good as Milwaukee has been to beat teams with net rating 11 plus points, which is historic, if Toronto were to beat them, I think Toronto's story this year is really surprising but now that we've seen it for this long I love the way they play and I would put them in the tier with a separation uh behind them and then in front of say a Boston or Houston or some of the other teams

yeah and I don't think there's that big of a delineation between the Bucks and you know that those other teams in the east if like if you think about it, they beat so many of those East bottom feeders because they're super deep. And they would, you know, Giannis and the starters would get them up 10. And all of a sudden you see it's like a 25 point game. So the net rating throughout the year to me is like a little bit different from Milwaukee. And the Boston thing, when they play the Lakers, at least, Brad was using the eight man rotation. And this was earlier in the season. I thought, wow, okay, as long as they don't have to go deeper on their bench

and they stay healthy and all that, I do think that they can be elite. But they seem to be a spot or two short when thinking this whole potential playoff run. That's the question I would have for them as opposed to Toronto, who has some guys they can fill into those 9-10 spots. Toronto's deep with just scorers all over the place. I mean, I'm starting to love Beninobi and the way he plays, and Davis won't play for a game, and then Thomas came in.

I mean, they had this absolute shootout there with Milwaukee in the first half. And Milwaukee, despite the defensive metrics, there's just been a lot of times in the bubble where you go, they're getting torched from three like what the hell's going on with this team so i don't love the collective well it's the bubble and it's all these different things it's like okay but yeah some teams are playing really hard some teams are taking this seriously and to have there are going to be a couple teams here that get burnt or they will say after they lose oh it was the bubble we didn't our guys couldn't ramp

up again okay well you know that's the job the job is to ramp up and get ready here all right still have a couple more things lebron post game he's explaining as you did that i'm not going to repeat everything but he did make a few headlines by insinuating there was stuff that was bothering him that was off the court and everything that was going on so that plays because as lebron saying it but it was weird as if he was suggesting there was this thing and then of course like all these guys that are so famous like yeah but i don't want to get into it you're like you just got into it you opened the door to this is there anything further that you can explain in this kind of throwaway line that made some news no i i don't have anything on that uh and i mean it's definitely a question that's

been asked right of like what did he mean by that comment? But the, if you just like these Zoom calls that they have, and the Lakers have been available, I don't know, man, I feel like it's been 100 times since March now. And a lot of guys have just referred to the bubble once they've been there as whether it's missing the family, whether it's like being outside the grind, whether it's not really knowing how hard to go in a given game, depending on one team needs to win, the other one doesn't. Like just all that stuff seems to have been a lot, but I don't have a good idea of anything specific that's going on there with LeBron. Is it because he, is he assigned to a dwight howard room is that the problem it's dwight um you was it were you talking about the uh i think the first thing that i heard about dwight in the ball right was that dj thing yeah yeah solo dwight pushed back on that was like

nah i wasn't the only one down there you know come on you guys are getting on me again i was i was the one that was the one guy this year that I just felt like I was totally wrong on because in the preseason, like he played nine games last year. He had a difficult stretch with what, four different teams. And all of a sudden,

he's really good. Like he was really good legitimately throughout the season off the bench for them. And so like in the bubble, it's been a little bit less even. And I'm, I'm very curious to see

how that sustains for the run. But like he was a totally, he really was a different guy. And I know you and Bill talked a lot about less even. And I'm, I'm very curious to see how that sustains for the run, but like he was a totally, he really was a different guy. And I know you and Bill talked a lot about this throughout the season, like expectations versus what he ended up delivering to me was like, I was just wrong. I did not think he was going to be able to have that kind of an impact that he did.

No, he's been, he's been really good. And I think it's the first time in his life. He's accepted who he is as a player. And even when he was a lot better, he didn't accept who he wasn't as much as he's accepted this year. he's accepted who he is as a player. And even when he was a lot better, he didn't accept who he wasn't as much as he's accepted this year.

That screen's rolling, like not as close up. But it was so – you know I love Bill and Stu. But you know what? It wasn't even Bill and Stu on the call. It was – was it Chris who may have done a game? And I forget. I forget what – I'm not trying to call anybody out here. It was basically the studio was doing the game.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, in the very beginning. but it was such a love fest for Dwight it was like you know in 2013 he was hurt you're like come on every one of you guys hated him in 2013 like let's not act like back then he was misunderstood like that whole deal sucked 2013 was a tough year I mean I used to talk about it with Nash um sometimes after the game and I I'm convinced what happened that year in the preseason, you know how they do the inside the NBA roundtables? And Shaq had made a comment that Dwight was just a screen roll big and couldn't post up. And so what I thought was Dwight was not really just doing the screen roll

of D'Antoni's system with Nash early in the season. And I thought that it was partly to you know, to kind of show Shaq and show everyone else that he had more to his game. And so that eventually changed in February. Kobe and Nash, they all kind of talked, and Dwight started to play like Dwight again. They ripped off, what was it, like 17 wins, and then Kobe tore his Achilles, right? So, like, it had sort of corrected. Who knows how that season would have turned out if Kobe didn't hurt the Achilles.

But up until that February, it was definitely all like that, It had sort of corrected. Who knows how that season would have turned out if Kobe didn't hurt the Achilles. But up until that February, it was definitely all like that, and it was not the most harmonious locker room, to say the least. Okay, two things before I let you go. The trust LeBron has with AD is incredible. And you could say, well, of course he is. AD's awesome. But that's something you still have to earn with LeBron. And I love seeing those two guys work together.

And I still think AD is the most talented player LeBron has ever played with. How different is that trust? And just like, hey, I know that I can work with this guy. Versus, I would say, the lack of trust that LeBron had with a very young group around him. And still was one of the more surprising things that he ended up there by himself because I knew that wasn't the original plan and that's like wait I actually am here with all these dudes all these young guys yeah it's a good question like when so when LeBron came to the Lakers and I know that that part of that early thought was okay somebody else has to be coming with him well to, somebody else was always going to be there.

If not, it was either going to be a trade or it was going to be the next year free agency. So it wasn't like he looked at that situation and was like, oh, I'll just be there solo and ride out my career. So a second piece was going to come. And clearly, it's not like he hadn't thought about this. What's the best fit that you can have with LeBron? Well, it's a guy that's a potential defensive player of the year

that doesn't need the basketball on offense, that can both roll to the rim and pop, that is going to defer if need be, but can also be aggressive. So there's no question, like their basketball fit is just obvious, right, from day one. I mean, they went, I think they were 24-3, you know, before they hit that losing stretch in December. And that's without having any of the roster playing together with a new coach with Frank

Vogel. So it clearly just works and it just clicks. And Ryan, the thing I think that works best about it just for the whole team sake, and you could say this about most sports, when you have a clear delineation of who of like who's supposed to do what, it's like, all right, it's LeBron and AD ad the rest of you guys figure out how to fit in around that like that's that's pretty common sense and that typically is going to work for me in an nba setting and it's not always easy to find man whether it's a personality thing or an encore fit like one of those two things sometimes happens when you just put stars together right away no such thing with ad and lebron in this case

are you picking them to win the whole thing i mean so this is where like it's legitimately better for my life if they win so i you know what i'm saying so like it's always better to cover a winning team um but when i when i came to the lakers to go back to the beginning in the 2008 year i thought that team was the best team because they were getting brian and ariza back after losing to Boston and they were going to have that angry factor etc. So like I quote unquote picked them to win that year but again it is a little self-serving. So this

year I don't think it's as clear I think that I mentioned earlier I think the Clippers are right there and I'm not sure to delineate between the two of them may just end up being who's healthiest but I do think that those are the two best teams I think that the most well-rounded. I think they can go big, they can go small.

And so those two teams, I think, are a separator even against some of the Eastern teams, whether you want to take Milwaukee, Toronto, or Boston, whoever. All right. He is Mike Trudell. He is at Lakers Reporter. And he's been awesome to me from day one, way before I came out here to LA.

So I always appreciate your help, man. Always good to talk to you, Ryan. Look forward to hearing your takes as the playoffs go on, man. Okay, cool. Before we get to the Clippers part, sports are finally back, and I've been taking in all the action on FanDuel Sportsbook. We have the Ringer Hoops Contest 2 for the NBA playoffs, so we'll give you all the details on that.

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Or in Colorado, call 1-800-522-4700. All right, Clippers. I'll call 1-800-522-4700. All right, Clippers. To continue the all LA theme, we now have a guy that I've been reading for a while from The Athletic. He covers the Clippers. It's Jovan Buha, who has done a really good job with this team.

So let's start at the beginning because we knew once the roster was put together, big expectations. And I don't know if the expectations grow because of some of the concerns now about the Lakers, but it's still crazy to think it's a do you get the sense of where this team is of like, yeah, we'd like to have a little bit more consistency, but they still seem extremely confident despite this group together collectively never doing anything. So I think you've talked about that before, that kind of almost sense of entitlement this group has a little bit. You have Kawhi, who's now won two titles. You have Doc, who's a former championship coach um and they kind of have that confidence and that swagger that you usually see from like a defending champion not really a team that hasn't done much collectively as a group um but I I think their play this season when healthy has backed that up they're 10 and 1 with their entire you know lineup uh they're 22

and 7 with Kawhi PG and Pat Bev 26 and 10 with Kawhi, PG, and Pat Bev. 26-10 with Kawhi and PG. So when healthy, this team has won at a 61 pace and been clearly, if not the best team in the league in that conversation right there with Milwaukee and the Lakers. So I think that's where they get it from is that when they've've been healthy they've been as good as anybody the problem is they have not been that healthy and that 10 and 1 record stands out because that's less than 20 of the season so um even now going into the bubble you know day one of the restart doc had all 15 guys either there or on their way there and was kind of looking at that first scrimmage game of, we're going to have everybody ready. That's not been the case.

They've had seven guys in and out of the bubble at various points for various reasons. But Lou Williams, most notably. But I think the thing with this team is just, are they ever going to be healthy? And I think as long as they have Kawhi, PG, and Pat, I think they have a chance against anybody. But those three are not like this, you know, kind of model of health throughout their careers. So I do think that's the thing you got to look for with this team is,

you know, can they stay healthy for two and a half months? How much of the availability patterns have been about, like Beverly's been hurt and George has had his moments, but I feel like with Kawhi, like I've had different people explain things to me like, oh, this thing, he's always going to have a problem. It's this arthritic deal. It's forever. And that's why he was so upset about it.

So this is just the deal when you have Kawhi. And it's just so crazy to think he's not all the way healthy and then he has these moments. I mean, people thought he wasn't healthy in the Eastern Conference Finals when they were down 2-0 to the Bucs. And the guy just completely takes over. And then he'll have a moment in the thought he wasn't healthy in the eastern conference finals when they were down to nothing of the bucks and the guy just completely takes over and then he'll have a moment the finals like oh something's wrong with his leg again you know like or he's just gonna win a title like so whenever there's these little concerns about him i just wonder how much of it is straight up we are so worried about him medically or we want to make sure he knows we have his back considering his history in San Antonio and the fact that he's going to play our option after a year?

I think it's a combination of both. You know, the way it's been described to me, this is something he's going to have to deal with most likely for the rest of his career. I think the original reporting on it back in like 2017 was it was a degenerative condition. And I think that's where there's been a lot of just misinformation with Kawhi's status because everyone calls it load management. When the NBA literally changed the term this season and calling it injury management. And there is a difference. He has issues with his knee and then that's why he's always sat out back to back.

The risk level of playing that second game on a back to back is much higher for players in general, but specifically for someone like him who's dealing with an injury and kind of trying to just manage it as best as he can. And it's something we've had to deal with as the traveling beat on the road where most often he'll take an hour after the game just because he's going through stretching and his ice bath and different exercises he does post-game that we have to kind of wait for to talk to him. So, I mean, that's the thing with the Clippers is, of course, if Kawhi isn't healthier or close to 100%, you know, that definitely caps this team's ceiling.

But the version I think you saw of him over the last like month and a half to two months of the season before the hiatus and the version you're seeing now, like that guy to me is as good as anybody in the league. And if they get that version, I do think they can win the championship. Impressions before you knew Kawhi and now that you've been on the beat despite the change of the schedule,

but you still had a bunch of months with him leading up. What's the thing that stands out to kind of you understanding him a little bit more? Because most people still don't understand him. The dude is funny. And I think he kind of has... You talk to anyone around the team, and it's like when the media is not around the team,

he's constantly cracking jokes. He's vocal. Are they good jokes? I guess, yeah. I mean, people just say like, this guy is not what you think he is. It's just... I've kind of seen it on the road a little bit where he'll be mid-conversation talking to someone and the media walks in.

And all of a sudden, he just freezes up, becomes kind of like the robot that we all see and media availability and whatnot. And I think that's just kind of the persona he wants to get out there is, I'm just Mr. Professional buttoned up. People call him a robot, Terminator, whatever. But the dude is funny. The players have all said that he's one of the most active in the group chat. They've had this group chat going since training camp. And people are constantly saying, he's the guy saying, let's go get in the gym, keep in contact with people during the pandemic and the hiatus and everything.

So I think the thing with him, I haven't seen it as much as you'd want to, is that personality. But I have seen glimpses of him being very animated and being very talkative in the locker room. And then we walk in there and he kind of stops. So your thoughts of Paul George as a player before and now that you've had him as well?

Paul George is so smooth. And that's a word that his teammates like to describe him with. And I think you kind of saw it in Indiana and OKC. But I think being around a guy like Kawhi, he's never played with someone like that. No offense to Russell Westbrook, but they're just different types of players. That's fine. Kawhi's better. It's okay. Yeah. But I just think that the attention that Kawhi draws has really unlocked this shooting version of Paul George that I don't think people really talk about where...

Like right now in the bubble, he's shooting 51% on threes, taking eight a game. That's not sustainable. But even before that, he was at almost 41% on eight threes a game. And you just look at it, outside of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, he's probably been the best high-volume three-point shooter percentage-wise over the last few years. So PG is also another guy that is very professional. You're around him. He's not really super loud or animated. But I think the thing you just see with him is how smooth and effortless the game is. He's one of those guys where it might not seem like he's having a good game, and then you look at the scoreboard and he's got 25,

and you're like, I felt like he hit three shots. But he just racks them up. I think the version you're seeing, though, in the bubble is the best we've seen him play all season. And I think that is the sidekick that Kawhi Leonard needs if this team is going to do what they want to do. Yeah, I saw some of the stuff you had in the athletic that basically Paul George metrics or as a top 10 player. And I am I don't want to sound like I'm anti George. I know I did this rant on Bill's pod on Sunday.

His playoff performances in big spots have been underwhelming for somebody that talented. And that's kind of what the deal is. It's like, I'm not out here to crush somebody. I'm here to say my expectations of you are such that I'd expect you to have some of these better games. And there's just some moments with Oklahoma City where I go, you know, you talk like playoff P, like you got to give that nickname back until we see something and we may see it here. And sometimes I look at his three point shooting and go, all right, the last two years, half of his shots are from three. But then I go, you're right. He's at 40%, I think, over the last four seasons. It's such a massive number for him that you can't really complain about shot selection with George because he's also not somebody that has to take

a million shots to be effective either. Defensively, though, is the thing that everybody should be horrified by because when it's beverly when it's leonard when it's george and i've seen it happen in games and when you get stuck and you switch and then you switch to another one you're like jesus this is ridiculous and i i felt like that's the thing like how aware are they because they know the numbers and i've mentioned in lebron's field goal percentage against any team in the NBA it's the worst against the Clippers that's a real thing like I think that's a real thing that carries over if they face each other in the playoffs have you heard them talk about that what they can do in these defensive adjustments and specific to how they match up with the Lakers yeah so this team

likes to switch one through four and more often than not they're playing a wing at that four spot whether it's Marcus Morris Kawhi Leonardorge um so really if you look at their personnel uh this is as switchable of a team as there probably is in the league outside of i guess maybe houston because they don't have a center um you know milwaukee's up there too toronto but you know the clippers have three elite guys in kawaii pg and and Pat. PG's defense has looked a lot better. That was kind of the thing with him early in the season was he wasn't trying as hard defensively. Now he's kind of ramped that up, averaging almost two steals a game.

But then I think the tertiary guys, you look at Marcus Morris, you look at Jermichael Green, even Montrezl Harrell is a bit of a switchable center depending on the matchup. And then you got Avita Zubat, who I think is the one guy that isn't really talked about enough. If you look at a lot of his per-minute numbers, they're right there with guys like Joel Embiid and Rudy Gobert. And not to say that he's that caliber of a defender, but he is a very good rim protector and he's good in his role.

So I think defensively, they're top five right now. They've been struggling a little bit in the bubble, but I do think when they ramp it up, you know, that that's kind of their calling card. I think you see what they've done against Luca Donchic in the three matchups. You know, Luca's still got his numbers, but he's not been efficient. They've been able to switch, like you said, you know, pats on him then Kawhi's on him and PG's on him.

They can play them straight up in the pick and roll. And I think if they end up playing Dallas, you're going to see that a lot of just throwing so many bodies at him, mixing it up, they'll full court press him, they'll zone him. And Luka's just not been able to figure it out. And it's kind of weird seeing what he can do

against Milwaukee or the Lakers and seeing what he does against the Clippers. And same thing with LeBron. So I think this team is well-equipped to defend the wings and guards. It's just a matter of playing AD and the Lakers can they do that against him because he torched them in that first game yeah and that's exactly where I was going to go with this and by the way Clippers 3-0 against this Dallas team that you know if you're not paying it and sometimes I'll lose

track of what every single season series is and I'll go back and make sure and before I looked at this one like yeah okay yeah everybody loves what Dallas did it was an amazing game from Luke the other night and by the way the Clippers have swept in this season so the AD part of it because you know you're out out in LA and I I cannot tell you how exhausting it is because every Lakers fan and you have the history you're supposed to be arrogant about it despite the fact it feels like the Clippers know who they are a lot more than the Lakers do but every conversation around anything Lakers Clippers is who's going to guard AD, who's going to guard AD. And I know Zubac has been better. The minutes per thing, I think it can be a little misleading sometimes for big guys just because it's like, well, look, if you're actually out there like

30-something minutes, then these efficiency numbers are going to dip. We saw some of his defensive problems. Golden State's not fair to compare him to last year because a lot of bigs are just useless against them but what's the plan then with davis because it hasn't worked out although i did think it was uh alarming a little bit for all the love for davis and how many times he gets to the free throw line that the oddity is that he doesn't seem to score in the fourth quarter against him so you bring up a good point um i think trez being out and missing these games has been important for the the other centers that the clippers are going to deploy which will be zubat he's played more he's put up similar you know his numbers have continued into playing more minutes he's yeah like 10 and 11 specific to that lakers game like those 10 Noah minutes, if you take them out and it's Trez. That was brutal.

Yeah. So I think it's going to be a combination of, you know, they've played, they've thrown some weird stuff out that I think Doc's been kind of hiding his hand a little bit, where like they've started Patrick Patterson in two of those games and Pat Patterson is not going to be in the rotation of playoffs. I think the one guy that has really found himself since play has resumed has been Jamichael Green.

And that was a guy they were really high on last postseason. If you remember, he took Zubat's starting spot in that Warriors series, was playing small ball five. And he's another guy who's been shooting 50% from three in the bubble. That's not going to sustain, but he's talked about going back re-watching film from the playoffs last season against golden state and he's a switchable guy who in that series he defended kevin durant reasonably well i mean katie was on a hot streak there's nothing you could do but i think going with him at the five could be an option

where maybe you see something like jamaical marcus kawai pg and pat bev and now you're switchable one through five any of those guys can check lebron or ad for possession with the exception of maybe pat and i think it's gonna be a lot of doubling and a lot of like kind of what toronto did i thought that was a nice blueprint of how you slow down ad you just double the crap out of him and say hey danny green kyle kuzma alex crusoe kcp, you got to make five threes tonight to beat us. And if they do that, you tip your cap and you lose that game.

But I think that's kind of going to be the strategy you see against the Lakers. And Clippers have done that a little bit, but they've mainly stuck to one-on-one post defense. And AD can torch anybody on that team if he gets one-on-one. So I think you're going to see a lot more doubling, a lot more rotating, and a better defense overall for the Clippers in the postseason. Yeah, it's something I mentioned with Trudeau before because I noticed it in the Denver game in the last one.

I think that post-Toronto, that Toronto trapped him so much. I feel like I'm seeing more trapping on AD just in the bubble after the Toronto. And I don't know if that's an overreaction or I'm noticing it more because I noticed it so much against Toronto. But you left Shammott out of that as a potential. What the hell happened to Shammott? I mean, his efficiency numbers are terrible. Some months it's like, oh, no, no, he's spreading the floor, spreading the floor.

He was terrible before the shutdown for about a month. And he's not scoring other than one game since he's been back. I'm not ready to give up on him, but I don't know if Doc looks at that differently or if he tries to, you know, sometimes Doc will do this thing where it's almost like he's trying to get somebody ready for bigger games, but he'll still play him in the first round of some big spots, knowing it's like we'd love to have you back as somebody I can trust in, say, a Western Conference finals. So Shamit had struggled to start the season. He dealt with an ankle injury early and he kind of lost his place a little bit in the rotation. And he started to finally play well. He had some big games against the Celtics and the Sixers before the All-Star break.

But the additions of Marcus Morris and Reggie Jackson really cost him his spot in the rotation. He went from, I think he was third in minutes before they got Marcus Morris, like third in total minutes. Ended up going to like 10th over that, you know, since they got Marcus. So I think it's just been him kind of getting squeezed there. Reggie Jackson had played really well.

He's not played as well since. I think that's going to be that ninth spot in the rotation to me is really between Landry and Reggie. I think you have the five starters and you have Lou, Trez, and Jermichael as your first three off the bench. And then that ninth spot to me is somewhat, you know, between Landry or Reggie, whoever's playing better,

whatever the matchup calls for. So, you know, I think I still believe Landry, you know, that this guy had one of the best rookie shooting seasons ever, you know, last season stepped up in big moments, hit the game winning shot in game two against the Warriors. So I have not given up on him, but he has been very up and down this season. And, you know, there is a little bit of that. Sometimes he's open and he doesn't make the shot that you kind of want him to make as an elite shooter. So I think he is someone to watch because if he can't like this team, the shooting could be a little scary for this team

at times, I think a little inconsistent. So he's a guy that if he can knock down 38, 39, 40%, he can earn, you know, eight to 12 minutes a night. And I think he's someone that could be a little bit of an X factor for that second unit. Has the team enjoyed Reggie Jackson closing moments when he thinks he's Kobe? Uh, I think Paul George has, I don't know about anybody else. Um, I mean, Reggie, it was like, he, he, he was shooting. I want to say that like a 67% true shooting percentage in the nine games after they got him. And it was like everyone was praising him. And I was like, let's pump the brakes a little bit. This is not going to carry over.

And since then, he's been shooting 39% in the bubble, still making his threes. But there's way too much. Like, I don't know if you saw that game against Brooklyn, but I think he started like one for six in the first like five minutes. And it was just like, you know, PG's out there. Marcus Morris is out there. I, you know, Lou got in there early and he's still having these wild drives

and throwing up these like eight foot contested floaters that you're just shaking your head. So I think he's the guy that probably gets squeezed looking at, they've kind of got with the time and rotation. I think it gets to eight, eight and a half. And Reggie's probably on the outside. How upset were the players about Lou?

Will I could tell doc was pissed with the way he says it. Doc's usually, you can read him. It's not like doc does not intend to have a poker face when he answers things, but he's also very pro player. I think doc is the best coach when it comes to stars that we have in the NBA right now.

But I always think it's kind of funny because if all the players like deep down love Lou Will, it's a completely different level of, I would say, reaction to somebody like that versus somebody they can't stand. The players love Lou Will. He's kind of like the voice of reason in that locker room where he doesn't say much, but when he talks, everybody listens. He was bred in the Allen Iverson school of leadership,

and I think he's carried on some of that stuff from AI, clearly. But the guys love Lou. I'm sure the doc, the coaching staff, the front office were not very happy with that. But he didn't end up testing positive. He was fine. It was just a four-day quarantine. So I think the players will let that one go.

Are you picking him to win the whole thing? Yeah. And I acknowledge that there's some bias and just being so close to the situation and watching them all year but i do think them at their best is the best of any team in the league i'm a little skeptical of them staying healthy you know i i just they don't have that track record yet and you know i i think you'd be foolish to say the top eight or nine guys are going to be healthy for, you know,

two months through August and September. But I am confident that if Kawhi, PG, and Pat can stay healthy, those three specifically, I do think this team could beat the Lakers

and the Bucs. At Jovan Buha, that is J-O-V-A-N-B-U-H-A. He writes for The Athletic. He covers the Clippers. He does a great job. So thanks, man. Thanks for having me on, man.

Appreciate it. You want details? Fine. I drive a Ferrari. 355 Cabriolet. What's up? I have a ridiculous house in the South Fork. I have every toy you could possibly imagine.

And best of all, kids, I am liquid. So now you know what's possible. Let me tell you what's required. Okay, life advice. And if you want to have us fix your life, not just your back porch. That was the old thing we used to do on the radio show. It's lifeadvicerr at gmail.com. Let's finish with a light one here because I like this one.

rsrr at gmail.com. Let's finish with a light one here because I like this one. Maybe one day we will do a best of. Hey, I'm 20s and I'm kind of confused right now. Maybe we won't do that one, but I'm just saying we could. Okay, this is from John. Good morning.

I'm in the same spot as a lot of emailers. Year out of college. Solid but not great job. Moving on to my own soon. However, I have a less career and hopefully different question. I'm about six. He says I'm about six feet and in parentheses 5'11". 195 with a 285 pound bench.

So an intermediate lifter wondering if the next step in order to progress to a three plate bench is getting a shoulder tattoo. Most of the bigger dudes at the gym have one, and I'm wondering if it's a good decision. Am I jacked enough? I'm the third, so leaning towards a Roman numeral three or something. How corny is this? He's calling himself out. Then he says to me, you seem to have a good balance of confidence

and only slightly douchey. Let me know. That's from John. Fair description of me. I will allow it. Although I do think that people that think I'm just a dick all the time, I'm like, yeah, I don't really know that you get that I'm kind of making fun of myself a lot too with the way I'll phrase some things, but whatever. We're not going to worry about those. If you're still listening to this podcast an hour later for life advice,

you probably figured that out at some point, or you just love this segment. And this is a really good question. Really good question. Okay, let's start with my tattoo timeline. I just missed it. I missed that whole thing. I missed the whole ecstasy and weird stuff you'd hear about on the internet with stuff happening with people in relationship to college. And I was like, what the hell happened? How did college turn into Ibiza or Ibiza if you're cultured?

So a lot of that stuff, I mean, Red Bull vodka was probably the most outrageous thing that happened. And it was right after, like nobody ever drank mixed drinks when we were in college. Like when you're younger, it was just who has the worst beer and then let's go there. And then, yeah, when you get a little bit older, maybe you order yourself a Tangerine tonic and think you're fucking Gatsby. But things evolved really quickly. And part of that was it just I don't know if it was the acceptance of the Internet or whatever it was, but I could see as I was bartending in the college town that I was still in.

I was like, things are like really getting wild here quick. And part of that was tattoos. So I just missed that tattoo window. Had I been younger, I probably would have gotten one and then regretted it because the chances are whatever you want that looks cool you probably can't even afford it right now so when i see a guy with a sleeve i'll admit i get a little jealous i have big arms i'm like you know what'd be sick as a sleeve but you know what i don't think it's gonna play a sleeve at 45 because then my parents are gonna think something's wrong with me and i'm into meth like at at 45, it's just a little too late.

Although, look, trust me, I kind of thought it was cool, especially the guys have the one that kind of creeps over the top of their hand. And in my profession, I can now get away with it. Now, I don't train Muay Thai that much, so it might not be a great fit. The bench hasn't been terrific with some of these injuries. But, man, were you guys asking about my abs? Because I feel like that wasn't in the email. Okay, so back to John.

were you guys asking about my abs because i feel like that wasn't an email okay so back to john um first of all don't get on your case for your bench being at 285 and 195 pounds because if you're just a year out of college the man strength is a few years away and you're going to be putting up big numbers so don't worry about it it's just magically going to happen one day where you're like oh my god i'm a man and now i have man strength i mean maybe not for everybody but i feel like that's happened to a lot of guys. Just keep plugging away, plugging away. And then something just sort of unlocks in you when you get a little bit older. 285 is really good, man. Good for you at 195, but it looks a hell of a lot cooler with six plates when you're repping that out. And trust me, I never was at a point where I was just like

throwing around six plates eight to 10 times. I wasn't. So I'm sorry if I shattered that image for you. So you probably can't afford what you want. So that's kind of a no. And if you're now comparing yourself to other lifters in the gym because you like their sleeves and what do you want to be like part of the sleeve gang? The sleeve gang may not even accept you. They may be like, oh, the guy who only benches 285. Again, not a bad number.

But if they're really like the big guys from the gym and then you're like, hey, guys, want to see my sleeve? I don't know. Is that what you really want to do? Or do you want to prove it to them in other ways so i would hold off on it right now the roman numeral three you know it's not like you said i want a dream catcher but i want the dream catcher to have oliver stone's face on it you know what i mean like that's not what you just said here so the three it's the family it's got the roman thing i'm down with that like i could I could see that a little bit. Maybe you make the three all the way down the outside part of the bicep and make them like pillars as if it's your foundation.

And then there's things that are interweaved in there. Some people seem to like dragons and skulls and boats. But that's a lot. So the three itself, I mean, again, you got to put some thought in this. You got to do it right. So if you do really want to do it, I think sleeves are still going to be in. I think it's going to be really weird at the beach in like 20, 30 years when some really old people have fucking sleeves. I mean, that's going to be weird.

And like, you know, girls with big sons and a unicorn on their lower back. And you're like, hey, is grandma, can you make more lemonade? Why do you have? So I don't think you're far off on this, but look, when I see Chris Long's sleeves, I think they look awesome. But Chris Long was a millionaire putting some serious stuff together. And his advice was always, if you're going to do a sleeve, make the tattoos big so you can see them. And he has some really cool ones in there and it looks awesome, but he's also like Thor size. So sleeve on a skinnier guy, not totally against it. Maybe you have a skate shop, maybe you play in a Blink-182 cover band. I don't know what your resume is, but I would hold off a little bit because i think you answer your own question when you ask am i jacked enough is that really the reason you want to do it you know are you are if you were 220

would you then get the sleeve i don't think that's really what it's about right now i would hold off until you have a little bit more cash you can put something together or unless you're totally rich just look at um just look at other dudes' sleeves because you can't really... I guess you can do a do-over with sort of like... Eventually having black moons up and down your body

to get rid of other tattoos you've read isn't going to look cool either. You're going to look like you just had cupping done all over your muscles. Hope that helps. Kyle, you can chime in here you you get some ink bro you don't want tattoo advice from me i think everybody knows that i'm like the one guy but i will see the only thing i will say you want to sleep no i don't uh the one thing i will say is like i was swatting away bad tattoo ideas for years and some would say I ended up with a bad tattoo idea.

But Roman numerals were always one of the first things that got swatted out of my head. That's all I'll say about that. Okay. All right. Fair. Fair enough. So Rudy has some Roman numerals, I believe, on his on his ankle. And it doesn't look bad.

Oh, no, no, no. It's on the inside of the wrist. And I think it looks good. So, you know. Yeah, most people I know that have tattoos have that, some form of that. I just love that we... Just didn't feel right. Yeah, we just solved all of John's problems, so let's stop.

Let's stop there. Let's just... Another life problems. So let's stop. Let's stop there. Let's just another life saved. Great job, us. All right. Please subscribe, rate, and review the Ryan Russillo podcast. And we will keep this train rolling. Talk to you Thursday. you