Hour 3: Knicks & Damien Woody

Summary

Don, Hahn & Rosenberg Podcast — Hour 3: Knicks & Damien Woody

Date: June 4, 2026
Podcast Hosts: Don La Greca, Alan Hahn, Peter Rosenberg (absent, but referenced)
Featured Guest: Damien Woody

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Episode Overview

Hour 3 of "Don, Hahn & Rosenberg" dives deep into the New York Knicks’ playoff push, particularly focusing on their gritty Game One win over the San Antonio Spurs. This episode brings together game analysis, locker room insights, Knicks fan culture, and notable banter with former Jets lineman (and admitted Lakers fan) Damien Woody. The hosts dissect what’s driving this unique Knicks team, debate Jalen Brunson’s national perception, break down strategy and attitude, and even pivot for a few minutes to the Giants’ and Jets’ NFL off-seasons.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Fan Incidents & NBA Response

• Incident Recap: Discussion starts with the NBA investigating derogatory fan comments directed at Jalen Brunson. Brunson plays it cool with the media, declining to comment (01:58).
  • Quote:
    • Jalen Brunson (on fan interaction): "I'm all good about talking about that. All good." (01:58)
• Court Invader Consequences: Recent fan intrusion at an NBA game leads to a lifetime ban and debates about the adequacy of penalties and security protocol (03:35–05:59).
  • Memorable Moment:
    • Don Hahn: "I really would have just loved if one of the security guards just folded him in half...Like when you see the baseball security guards, they tackle dudes." (04:14)

2. Knicks Team Mentality & Locker Room Culture

• Brunson’s Composure: Despite being sick, Brunson remains positive and emphasizes accountability and improvement after Game One (06:58).
  • Quote:
    • Jalen Brunson: "It's all about...how you move forward and how you kind of respond in a positive way. So no matter what's going on, just trying to stay positive, still trying to find a way to win." (06:58)
• Defensive Chemistry: Team-first approach is discussed at length, especially regarding Karl-Anthony Towns' (Cat) defensive performance.
  • Quote:
    • Jalen Brunson: "It's all about just not pointing fingers. It's all about coming together and figuring out where we gotta be better next possession." (07:46)
• Old School, Ego-free Vibes: The group repeatedly lauds the Knicks for playing for the front of the jersey, not the back—drawing comparisons to classic championship cultures of the Patriots and 1990s Bulls (Damien Woody segment).

3. Knicks Fan Culture & Celebrity Spotting

• Knicks Fans in San Antonio: Notable showing of Knicks fans at the away game—some friction reported but overall a show of force and celebrity presence including Ben Stiller, Timothée Chalamet, and John Turturro (09:09–10:17).
• Arena "Vibe": The hosts discuss the difference in atmosphere between NBA arenas, drawing positive comparison to San Antonio's passionate fan base and their Fiesta jersey-inspired color coordination (11:40–12:39).
  • Quote:
    • Don Hahn: "I just thought it was different. We've seen everybody wear the same color. But the different colored T shirts, I thought were pretty cool." (12:39)

4. Game Analysis and In-Game Adjustments

• Spurs Fatigue: Discussion about San Antonio's exhaustion after a tough series, with particular attention paid to Victor Wembanyama’s presence in the paint and how the Knicks adjusted their attack (13:21–15:31).
  • Quote:
    • Alan Rosenberg: "When they drew him [Wembanyama] away from the basket, they were in go mode...But when he was in the paint...OG...instead he pump faked and tried to look for somebody to pass to because he knew there was no way I was getting to the rim on this one." (14:46)

5. Knicks Confidence, Perception, and National Respect

• Belief vs. Reality: Are the Knicks underdogs in name only? Discussion centers on their playoff dominance and the transformation of national perceptions as they keep winning (15:36–20:39).
  • Quote:
    • Alan Rosenberg: "That's one of the strongest traits a team can have, that collective belief. Like, it's a real thing." (17:25)
• Vegas Odds: After Game One, the Knicks become betting favorites for the series, shifting the narrative (20:07–20:39).

6. Damien Woody Joins the Show (Starting at 24:04)

• Knicks from a Former Pro Athlete's POV: Woody, a lifelong Lakers fan but married to a Knicks fan, praises the businesslike mentality and team-first attitude, likening the Knicks to Kobe-era Lakers and Patriots dynasties (24:24–28:05).
  • Quote:
    • Damien Woody: "This Knicks team is...very easy to cheer for. There's not a lot of fluff about this team. They have a very businesslike mentality. Kind of remind me of like, Kobe...we're not done." (24:29)
    • "They care more about the front of the jersey than the back of it...reminds me a lot of...New England. We were so much more about the team." (27:09)
• Playoff "Zone": Woody describes the special feeling of being in a collective team zone during playoff runs, drawing parallels to the Yankees and Villanova connections among Knicks players (28:25–29:10).
• NFL Minute: Woody pivots to the Giants’ wide receiver moves and raises concerns about Malik Nabers’ health. He’s skeptical that veteran additions like Odell and Smith-Schuster will move the needle (30:13–31:05). Positive on Jets’ offseason; discusses QB situation (31:11–33:08).
• Woody’s Unfinished Homework: Banter returns—Woody still hasn’t watched “Napoleon Dynamite,” an ongoing inside joke (33:10–35:19).

7. Knicks National Narrative & Jalen Brunson’s Ascendency

• Brunson as a Clutch Star: Callers and hosts marvel at Brunson’s ability to will the Knicks to victory and question why national media have been slow to recognize his star power (40:12–44:19).

  • Quote:
    • Caller: "How many NBA milestones can this guy get to until they start commenting on him like he's an NBA superstar?" (40:12)
    • Don Hahn: "Brunson is a guy you got to watch every day. We're not surprised by this...But I’m not going to kill the national media for not watching every Knick game." (44:19)

• Winning Mentality and Legacy: Parallel drawn to Derek Jeter and Eli Manning—players whose greatness was underappreciated outside New York until postseason heroics cemented their legacy.

• Is Brunson a Hall of Fame lock?

  • Alan Rosenberg: "I think he's a lock. First ballot Hall of Famer...a career as a winner and the best player on these winning teams. That says so much." (45:48–46:07)
  • Don: "Still work to be done here. Three more wins to get, and each one will be a little bit harder than the next." (46:14)

8. Wembanyama and Mind Games

• Some callers are irked by Wembanyama not crediting the Knicks for the Game One win; hosts say this is standard motivational talk and no cause for drama. (47:49–49:54)
  • Alan Rosenberg: "Victor Wimanyama is not despicable. He's a great competitor...right now, in the moment...they’ve got to play with themselves and say, 'We just got to be better. They're not better than us.'" (48:51)

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Notable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• Don Hahn on security response:
  "I really would have just loved if one of the security guards just folded him in half...Like when you see the baseball security guards, they tackle dudes." (04:14)

• Jalen Brunson on team’s mindset:
  "It's all about just not pointing fingers. It's all about coming together and figuring out where we gotta do be better next possession." (07:46)

• Alan Rosenberg on team chemistry:
  "It's like the nirvana moment for a group where just everybody just kind of gets it...The agendas are gone." (08:34)

• Damien Woody on the Knicks:
  "There's not a lot of fluff about this team. They have a very businesslike mentality. Kind of remind me of like, Kobe...we're not done." (24:29)

• Caller on Brunson’s superstar status:
  "How many NBA milestones can this guy get to until they start...commenting on him like he's an NBA superstar?" (40:12)

• Don Hahn on Brunson’s local perception:
  "Brunson is a guy you got to watch every day...we're not surprised by this...But I’m not going to kill the national media for not watching every Knick game." (44:19)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:49 — Jalen Brunson’s postgame comments on fan incident
• 04:14 — Security measures & intruder penalty debate
• 06:58 — Jalen Brunson on Game One performance & positivity
• 07:46 — Brunson on defense and team accountability
• 11:40 — Knicks fan culture & San Antonio arena atmosphere
• 13:21 — Caller Q&A on Spurs fatigue and Knicks’ paint strategy
• 15:36–19:09 — Knicks’ attitude, belief, and perceived underdog status
• 24:04 — Damien Woody interview (Knicks mentality, locker room culture, NFL thoughts)
• 40:12 — Caller on Jalen Brunson’s superstar status and national media coverage
• 46:29 — Callers on Knicks’ grit, Game 1 moments, and playoff turning points
• 47:49 — Discussion of Wembanyama’s reaction and mind games

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Summary Tone & Style

True to ESPN NY drive time, the hosts deliver a mix of witty, sarcastic banter and knowledge-heavy analysis, balancing die-hard Knicks fandom with healthy skepticism and self-deprecation. When joined by Woody, the show pivots to an athlete’s perspective—grounded, team-first, and humorously honest. The overall tone is passionate, insightful, and New York through-and-through.

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Transcript

[Don Hahn]

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[Alan Rosenberg]

This is the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Don Hahn]

That sounds like heaven to me.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Listen live weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 8 80, ESPN, the ESPN New York app and your smart speakers.

[Don Hahn]

Game time is brought to you by Tullimore Dew Irish Whiskey. Because when it's game time, Alan, it's telly time. It's Tully time. Yankees beat the Guardians this afternoon by the final score of 2 to 1. That's the only local in action today. And that was earlier this afternoon. The Mets are off. They're on their way to San Diego. But if you want something to watch, game one was great. Expect same for game two on ABC tonight of the Stanley Cup Final. Vegas and Carolina. From Raleigh, Tullamore Dew. The original triple distilled, triple blend in and triple cast matured Iris whiskey. Be sure to grab a Tullamore Dew or try the new Telemore do honey during today's action glasses up to enjoying Telemardu responsibly. Damian Woody's going to join us coming up at 5:30, Ian and at 6 want to hear from you at 1-800-919-3776. But the Nixon spurs spoke today after New York's game one victory. We played this earlier but it was a while ago. Allen talked about how Brunson was getting into it with a couple of fans. The NBA is going to investigate what was said by those fans. So clearly it was something offensive that the league's got to step in. And Brunson addressed it earlier today.

[Caller/Listener]

Jalen I think it looked like there

[Don Hahn]

was a bit of an interaction with

[Alan Rosenberg]

a fan at the end of the game yesterday. Was, was something said that you know, maybe crossed the line or.

[Jalen Brunson]

I'm all good about talking about that. All good.

[Don Hahn]

Now what can he say but he can't repeat what they said if it's really bad. And what if he says it or alludes to it and the NBA investigates and finds nothing. Right? I mean he's, he's got it and

[Alan Rosenberg]

I'm sure this is why draw attention, you know what I mean?

[Don Hahn]

And I'm sure, I'm sure the NBA told Brunson Listen, don't address it. We're gonna. We're going to handle it. You're gonna be asked about it. Just move on.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Right.

[Don Hahn]

We don't need to call any more attention to it. We're gonna handle it. But it sounded like he was frustrated that the officials didn't throw these individuals out of the game. It could have just been the official didn't hear it. Yeah, it's possible.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Very possible.

[Don Hahn]

But clearly, if the official had heard it, that would help the investigation, I'm sure. I'm trying to think of what end was that close to that. Was that the. Was that the. I guess that was the fans or was that behind the media table? I'm trying to remember.

[Alan Rosenberg]

No, they were right on the court.

[Don Hahn]

Right. So there wasn't any independent person you could talk to. Like, if that had happened behind, say, Breen, they'd be media guys. Yeah, they're neutral or whatever. But, you know, what are. You know, you're not gonna have fans, but they have the ability. They have the technology, I guess, to maybe listen to audio or talk to somebody might be in security that was close by. They're gonna find out probably much ado about nothing in the sense of I don't know if there's gonna be enough evidence to. To prosecute or to do anything like they did with a fan. In case you missed that at. Yo yo in the fourth quarter, actually had to have a jump ball because there was a turnover about to happen as he ran onto the court.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

And he's been banned for life from any NBA arena, not just San Antonio. And according to the investigation, there was somebody else involved. I don't know if it was somebody else who couldn't get on the court

[Alan Rosenberg]

or organize somebody that set it up.

[Don Hahn]

They are also banned.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah, but probably. Where'd you get the ticket from? This one bought it for me. Okay, well, you're out there.

[Don Hahn]

I've already seen it. See, this is the problem with social media. He's getting everything he wanted. So whatever punishment he gets, it's going to end up being worth it because I guess he sent out the video and now it's getting around, like, what it looks like from his end with the phone. So he's getting his 15 minutes. That's all he wanted to get. God, you know what? I.

[Damian Woody]

This is.

[Alan Rosenberg]

This is not even that interesting.

[Don Hahn]

I really would have just loved if one of the security guards just folded him in half. You know, did it like a baseball.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Like when you see the baseball security guards, they tackle dudes. Oh, yeah.

[Don Hahn]

Or if you remember, Mike Curtis of the Baltimore Colts, Right. I grabbed the football and he got clotheslined. I was like, oh, that's awesome. Awesome. You know, that's trespassing, man. I know that may not be politically correct, but I can root from home, Right. And I was hoping one of those.

[Alan Rosenberg]

You got to worry about. You got to worry about, of course, that. Lawsuits and everything.

[Don Hahn]

See, that's the problem is that then all of a sudden, he becomes the victim. But if your security guard went high, another one went low, I mean, how great would that be?

[Alan Rosenberg]

But honestly, do you ever wonder, though, in that situation, what rights do you have? What rights do you really. And I know there's probably a lawyer who could. Who could tell me chapter and verse how you could protect this person, but what right do you have to run onto an NBA. The NBA Finals court, which is forbidden. What right do you have to do that? So why wouldn't I be in my rights to think, hey, you know, you might be in danger. I might be in danger? And so I was worried about the protection of my player. So I had to. I had to do whatever it takes to tackle this guy, Right? Yeah, we both had to tackle him and bring him down. We don't know if he had a weapon on him. We have no idea. So if you had that as, like, look, this guy ran onto the court. You see the world today. Who knows what he could have done to our star player, Victor Wembanyama? I don't know what he was doing. You're going to tell me that this guy could sue the NBA if he has any type of injury? Because two of my security guards obliterated him on the court.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Now, the security guards there, they did a great job because they didn't. They just. They tied him up and got him off the court fast. They did the right thing.

[Don Hahn]

Yes.

[Alan Rosenberg]

But you and I both, you know, we all want our pound of flesh in these moments because we all. We all look at somebody that does something like that as a complete nozzle.

[Don Hahn]

But. All right, so what. What did he. I don't know what the fine he probably got. What, maybe $1,000 fine. Maybe he spent the night in jail. Maybe. I don't know that for a fact. He's been banned from every arena. Like, who knows if he's even a basketball fan, just trying to get his 15 minutes if that turned out to be it, that he gets watched by millions of people on national television. He now has a video of him running on the court that's going to go viral then that. That was more than worth it. You've got to discourage people from trying to do that again. So now there's probably a guy looking at, hey, I'm going to do that in Game two. What's going to happen to me? So I get banned. I don't plan on coming back anyway, you know, But I don't know, maybe there. Maybe he was prosecuted, I don't know. But I just. I hate to see something like that, for sure. Jalen Brunson talked about his Game one performance.

[Jalen Brunson]

Saw a lot of different things. I thought I shot some shots that I normally make. Had a couple bad ones as well, but it's all about how you move forward and all about how you kind of respond in a positive way. So no matter what's going on, just trying to stay positive, still trying to find a way to win.

[Don Hahn]

Yep.

[Alan Rosenberg]

He still sounds like he's got a little. Little head cold there.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, I thought about that.

[Alan Rosenberg]

You know, might be in his throat. Like, I know. I'm sure the medical staff there is pumping him with every possible pill or every possible medication to help clear it. But you could tell that he's definitely dealing with something

[Don Hahn]

he talked about. Did you believe Cat could play defense like he did?

[Jalen Brunson]

I think both definitely is capable, but throughout this run, obviously, he's been playing great. It's crazy to say, but we could all be better. I think the Cat playing defense, knowing that we have his back and no matter what happens when he's on the ball or off the ball, to be able to cover for each other, even when mistakes happen, it's all about just not pointing fingers. It's all about coming together and figuring out where we gotta do be better next possession. So I think the chemistry that we have is still continuing to grow, and that allows us to play better.

[Alan Rosenberg]

That's amazing. All they talk about is getting better and being better. Just the rhetoric coming out of this team over this stretch is, again,

[Caller/Listener]

I

[Alan Rosenberg]

use the term on msg, it's like the nirvana moment for a group where just everybody just kind of gets it. Everybody just finally kind of gets it. The agendas are gone. Everybody's tired of the agendas. Everybody just gets it, and they just know we had a chance to do something special and we're all in on doing that. That says a lot.

[Don Hahn]

It's special to watch it all come together the way that it did. Now, there were quite a few Knick fans in the building, not to the extent you saw in Cleveland and certainly not in Philadelphia, but There was a lot.

[Alan Rosenberg]

But the lobby. Lobby video.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, I did see the lobby game and yeah, there were a couple of incidents. I think a chain was taken from a Nick fan and it was like some fights and stuff, but whatever. But I did see that that kind of went viral a little bit. And it seemed to be a bunch of celebrities there too. I saw Ben Stiller. Who else did I see? Tracy Morgan.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah, obviously the usual suspects were there. That Joe was there, Chalamet was there,

[Don Hahn]

and did I see John Turturro? Yes, because I looked like it was John Turturro.

[Alan Rosenberg]

I do believe he was there too. No, there was a lot. And Sam Morrow was there, the comedian that we're good friends with, right? Yeah, I was texting with him actually, because he was sending me video because a bunch of comedians all got together and they ended up getting a jet out of there. And he was. He was fired up about that. I'm trying to. Who was it that. But yeah, like, it's a lot of. A lot of New York celebrities and also found a way in that building.

[Don Hahn]

And I did see some Nick fans that weren't celebrities either. Like, so some legit fans got into the building as well. And Stefan Castle talked about the Knick fans in San Antonio. You know, I don't want any fan from, you know, any team to have

[Damian Woody]

a good night in our arena, but

[Don Hahn]

I mean, obviously last night it happened

[Damian Woody]

to be the Knicks fans, but I

[Don Hahn]

mean, yeah, they were loud, but, you know, I think our fans showed out as well and don't think we executed on winning the game. So I feel like they had the right to celebrate after last night.

[Alan Rosenberg]

That's what's gonna happen if. If it's going to sound louder.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah.

[Alan Rosenberg]

When there's a bunch of road fans there. When your team's not winning and the road team's starting to make a push to 11 straight points to get a win, you're going to get. Your fans are going to get quiet and go to the exits and their fans are going to get loud. That's what you heard. But it's still remarkable to hear the MVP chance for Brunson at the free throw line. That have to get drowned out by ghost spurs. Go. You know what I mean? And that's a great building. I've called a couple of games in that building.

[Don Hahn]

Okay.

[Alan Rosenberg]

It's a great building. It is loud. It's. You know, they. They are very passionate fans there. So it's not like some of these other places. Like in. Again, we've done Washington, Charlotte, places where you just know there's no. There's no vibe whatsoever. So if New York fans show up, it's going to get a vibe. That place has a great vibe.

[Don Hahn]

And I did like what they did with the different color T shirts or all the colors that are.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Do you like that? I was wondering how you were going

[Don Hahn]

to feel about it. Listen, we can all do the. You see it in hockey, some of the smaller markets, too, like everybody wearing the white out or. Yep, there's a blackout. So it was unique. I thought it was. I thought.

[Alan Rosenberg]

All right, so you don't find it hokey. You don't. I'm glad you said that because I was wondering if you were gonna kind of say, like, what are you doing? Like, this is embarrassing because they do that there in Oklahoma City are two places that they put the shirts on the chairs, but they change the color for section section by section so it looks cool on tv. And they, they all feel away. It's almost like an obligation, you know, it's like, well, they. They put a shirt on the chair. I guess I should wear the shirt. You know, like the rest of us just throw it in our back pocket. We'll take it home and give it to the kid. But they put them on.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah.

[Alan Rosenberg]

And they do it. And then they see how it kind of looks really cool. Everybody's wearing the shirt. And now you see the colors. Like it's, you know, it's like you're playing at Ohio State or Michigan.

[Don Hahn]

I just thought it was different. We've seen everybody wear the same color. But the different colored T shirts, I thought were pretty cool.

[Damian Woody]

All right.

[Don Hahn]

Representing the Fiesta Spurs, I thought it looked cool.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Now, last night was the only game you'll see where the Knicks will wear white on the road and the spurs will wear the road car. The black jersey tomorrow night will be spurs in white, Knicks in blue.

[Don Hahn]

And that's fine because that's the traditional uniform.

[Alan Rosenberg]

And I know Rich Eisen now can rest easy knowing that.

[Don Hahn]

Hey, listen, I can rest easy as well, because it did. It did bother me quite a bit. Let's go to Alex in LBi, one of my favorite places on earth. You're on ESPN, New York. What's up, Alex?

[Caller/Listener]

Hey, Don. Mr. Don. Mr. Hahn, I didn't listen to the first. Yes, sir. I listened to the first half of the show or like 3 to. 3 to 4 o'. Clock. So I apologize if it's redundant. But, Alan, did you think that the spurs, the okc, seven games, the energy, did they get the third quarter. I mean, give it all to the Knicks. But did they get tired? I mean, they were rimming shots. It started the show when the Swiss cheese D. That's how you started the show.

[Alan Rosenberg]

No, no, when I. It definitely started. It started to show, is what I mean. Not. We started the show with it. It started to show in the third quarter, late in the third quarter, but especially in the fourth. That, you know, Wembanya for sure early in the game. Like, there were a couple times he looked winded. They had to give him a break. But I will also add, though, that he did. He did, was a huge part of a 90 run where the Knicks thought they were in command, up 8, and then all of a sudden the Knicks were down one with about two minutes to go. So he did still have something left in the tank to close the door, but he didn't realize that he's dealing with a team that just. You can't kill them. And Brunson came right back and answered, and, you know, the rest is history.

[Caller/Listener]

Allen, when Wemby's in the paint, does OG does he manipulate his shot? Is it different now? Does he try to put more of, like, a light feather on it rather than go at him? I really thought Wemby just shows that.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah, I really thought. The Knicks hesitated a ton early in the game in the paint with Wemby in the. Yeah, they didn't want to shoot with him around. They were very aware of his presence, and it's remarkable they ended up with 50 points in the paint. I don't know how they got to 50 when it felt like they didn't want to take paint shots in this game. But when they drew him away from the basket, they were in go mode. Like, you could see that they weren't going to settle for jumpers. They were going all the way to the rack. If they knew he wasn't in the paint, they were attacking the rim. But when he was in the paint. Oh, yeah, yeah. OG Normally will dunk a couple of those that he had, and instead he pump faked and tried to look for somebody to pass to because he knew there was no way I was getting to the rim on this one.

[Don Hahn]

Let's go to Steve out in California. You're on espn, New York.

[Caller/Listener]

Guys, great to talk with you again. Good day and a good, interesting game that we saw last night. And I love talking with you guys because it's mostly intelligent conversation when it comes to sports.

[Don Hahn]

Thank you.

[Caller/Listener]

As a result, my observations last night were that the Knicks walked onto that team, that floor, knowing they were the better team. The other team may have a better player, but as a team, they know they're better. And I'm realizing that everybody about the spurs, this is their first year, basically. Knicks have a first year coach, a team of veterans that has been around and who appreciate what the coach has taught them and allowed them to do now where they can respond and play in any way and react to anything that the spurs throw at them. They know there's nothing that the spurs can do that's going to surprise them. The one thing that surprised me looking at the box score was that there were only 20 assists. And I think that's because they missed so many of their shots early. At the beginning, they.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yep.

[Caller/Listener]

And this is another observation is that they were getting open shots first, played good defense, but the Knicks were passing the ball and getting open shots and missing them by a bucket.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yes, yeah, very true.

[Caller/Listener]

And yet later on it's, it started to come together for them. And so now, you know, I, I told you yesterday before that I believe the Knicks are going to win the series. I'm more confident of it now than ever. The spurs may win a game, they may win two, they may win three. I don't think they're at the point where they'll take four from the Knicks now.

[Alan Rosenberg]

You know, I just said well prepared. You should believe that. Now, something you said at the very beginning, the Knicks walked on the floor knowing they're the better team. I don't know if they know they're a better team. I know they believe they are. And that's a strong, that's one of the strongest, that's one of the strongest traits a team can have, that collective belief. Like, it's a real thing. And I'm not trying to, like, I don't know, Don, if I sound like, really corny here or if that's very trite to say, you know, they believe, but that's a real thing. When you look and I've covered a lot of teams and, you know, there's times where you watch a team and you just know, like, yeah, they're good, but they don't think they're that good. And you could tell by the way they're competing that they don't think they're winning this thing. Like, they don't collectively believe it. Like, this is a team that, like, I could see it in their eyes. Like, they just know, like, yeah, no,

[Don Hahn]

we believe we can do this, but why wouldn't you? Now listen, every Athlete believes in themselves, believe they can win. Oh, yeah, of course you could. You could take the 76 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and go to Pittsburgh to play the Steelers and they'll walk on the field game. I believe that we can win today. But that's just something you say. It's a belief, it's a confidence. Yeah, but when you dismantle three teams the way that you did in these playoffs, you beat the spurs two out of three times in the regular season and also beat them, you know, one of those games in the Cup. All right, regular season may not mean as much, but hey, you fat, you face them, you've beat them. So there's enough evidence there that why wouldn't you believe added to the confidence that you have as a professional athlete? I mean, this isn't misguided. I mean, they might be an underdog. Really, the only feeling of them being an underdog is the Vegas odds, which isn't nothing.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Oh, by the way.

[Don Hahn]

Standard.

[Alan Rosenberg]

But really that's turned. I don't know if you've seen the latest. Knicks are now favored to win the series in Vegas.

[Don Hahn]

All right, well, why not? They took game one. 70% of teams to take game one, win the series. They've taken back home court advantage, which they always look at as a, as a gold standard in the NBA. Right, Yep. So, I mean, how much, how, how much do you have to see to start believing, honestly? So I know they're the underdog. I know everybody said, well, they're not going to win. A lot of that stuff was said before the run. And then during the run, it was like, all right, let's see. All right, they beat Atlanta. Okay, I get that. It's first round Philadelphia. All right, they kind of own them and beats hurt. Cavaliers are the Cavaliers. But by winning as much as they have. And now you've taken game one. I mean, how much more evidence doesn't mean they're going to win, Allen. But, but how much. At what point does the underdog moniker just seem like a joke now?

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah, well, all right, so the odds have changed now. I'm just on the ESPN side here.

[Don Hahn]

I saw that the spurs were still favored tomorrow.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Well, they're favored tomorrow. Yeah, they're five and a half is the line. The spurs are laying five and a half in that game for game two. But the favorite now for futures to win the championship, DraftKings has the Knicks now at minus 140, the spurs at plus 120. By the way, just so everybody knows, Peter has sent the Human monies. We are good with Knicks plus five and a half tomorrow lockdown. How about that? How about that?

[Don Hahn]

He is making an absolute fortune now. Money finds money and I don't think anybody out there is.

[Alan Rosenberg]

But this is my as college fund is just growing by the minute.

[Don Hahn]

But I think fans are excited because he bets them and they win. He's, he's bet them now every one of these games during the run and they want to just keep that symmetry going. I don't think they're happy he's making a small fortune. I mean this is a guy that's in Italy right now.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

And the last I saw, the wrestling's over. So this has turned into a full blown vacation.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Oh, of course it is. This is no longer work. Although he'll find a way to finagle some expenses.

[Don Hahn]

You know people have lost jobs over things like that. You shouldn't even joke.

[Alan Rosenberg]

He won't.

[Don Hahn]

Hey, if you get away with, you can get away with, you know what I mean? Speaking of getting away with stuff, how about Damian Woody steals money from espn. We love D. Wood.

[Alan Rosenberg]

He's all in on this series though.

[Don Hahn]

He was, he was on social media last night. A fan reached out and said hey, you should go on Donna Rosenberg. And he's like, okay. And he's going to be on coming up next at 5:30. Always fun to be able to talk to D. Wood. I want to remind everybody though, ESPN New York's Beach Bash is back Thursday, July 2nd at Barre in Lake Como, New Jersey. Head down to the Jersey Shore. Join the Michael K Show and US Live starting at 1pm with an appearance by D. Pietro Rothenberg, Bart Carlin and more. We'll have plenty of giveaways for fans in attendance, a soccer watch party and a chance to test your skills by trying to kick a soccer ball past Rick DiPietro. Plus music from Surfin for Daisies, who will be playing an hour before the show and then after the show. It's all brought to you by Spike Day, Boost Mobile, Miller lite Fanatics Fest NYC and the New Jersey Lottery must be 21 years of age or older to enter game day at my place is kind of a big deal. If I'm grilling, chilling and watching hoops, my outdoor patio setup better be ready to play. That's where Wayfair wins. From patio seating and umbrellas to grills and grilling accessories, Wayfair's got it all. And it shows up fast.

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[Alan Rosenberg]

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[Don Hahn]

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[Alan Rosenberg]

Thanks for listening to the Don Han and Rosenberg Podcast.

[Don Hahn]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Catch this show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts.

[Don Hahn]

Somebody who's also watching it from afar and tweeting about it is our friend Damen Woody. Somebody reached out to him and said, why don't you go on Donna Rosenberg? And you said, sure. And here you are. Welcome to the show.

[Damian Woody]

Oh, what's up, fellas? How you guys doing?

[Don Hahn]

Doing very well. Nice and warm. Finally. It feels like June, but basketball is still in the air, man. But so I don't know how big a basketball fan you are. I know you're an Islander fan. I know you're a sports fan. But is this something new with the Knicks or is this something you've been following for a while?

[Alan Rosenberg]

Don't get it twisted. His family are Knicks fans.

[Damian Woody]

Yeah, well, listen, basketball is like my first love. Like, I love basketball. And, you know, for people out there, I'm a huge Lakers fan and my wife is a huge Knicks fan. So, you know, she's been unbearable in the house. But I will, I will say, like this, this Knicks team is, it's very easy to cheer for. There's not a lot of fluff about this team. They have a very businesslike mentality. Kind of remind me of like, like Kobe when, when, you know, when Kobe, you know, made that proclamation, it's like, we're not done. You know, I can, I, you know, I really appreciate that as a former athlete, that these guys are so locked in. And I just thought last night's game was. Was phenomenal on a lot of different parts with Cat played phenomenal. He outplayed Wimby. That was one of the things I tweeted about.

[Caller/Listener]

And.

[Damian Woody]

And Josh Hart, like, I don't know, like, everybody talks about Jalen Brunson and how he scored 13 points in the fourth quarter. That's what he does. He's a closer like. Like. Like, unlike any other. But Josh Hartman, like, the fact that he only scored three points and the impact that he had on the game, it actually reminded me, like, Dennis Rodman, you know, Dennis Rodman was one of those rare players where he didn't even score, didn't even have to score to really impact the game. And that's the way. That's what Josh Hart did last night. Just the impact he had on that game. And I'm telling you what, man, it's. The San Antonio spurs are in a pickle, because as much as people talked about coming into the series about, you know, the size of their guards and the problems that it'll present to, you know, Jalen Brunson, I can. I can say. I can say on the other side, I think the Knicks present an even bigger problem on the perimeter with all the guys that they can throw at the San Antonio spurs guards.

[Alan Rosenberg]

And the experience factor, too, is such a. Such a big deal. All right, so, like, you're a spoiled Laker fan. You've seen a lot of winning and a lot of great players and all that stuff, but, you know, and I know that Knick fans can be unbearable. And I love. I'm sure your wife loves to know that you're calling her unbearable right now. But. But is there a part of you, though, D. Wood, especially somebody that's got championship rings like you.

[Damian Woody]

You.

[Alan Rosenberg]

You know what that's like. Is there a part of you that appreciates what you're watching, though? Even though I know you're not a big Knick fan? But is there a part of you, like, because of what they are? Not. Not because it's the Knicks and you live in this area, but. But the. The team, like, what the team, no matter what their logo was on their jersey, is there something about this team that. That just appeals to you?

[Damian Woody]

Absolutely. Because it seems like they care more about the front of the jersey than the back of it. And so, you know, like, it's. So. It reminds me a lot of, like, my time in New England. You know, we were so much more about the team. The team. You know, Coach Belichick used to always just. Just pre show us about the team. And it just seemed like this Knicks team is so well connected. You know, it's not a lot. It doesn't seem like guys have these egos or, you know, it's gotta. I gotta get mine. As everybody knows their role, they play their part, and it's just refreshing to see and, you know, you know, in an era when everybody's about me and getting my, you know, getting my stats and getting my time, it just seems like the Knicks are just all about ball, all about team, all about business. And I think that's why, you know, this fan base, the Knicks fan base is really gravitated towards this team and confidence, too.

[Don Hahn]

And I remember when you were on the jets and you were going to the championship game, I remember interviewing you once and you said, I would, I would. We were running the ball so well. I would tell the other team what we were running and we would still, you know, get the first down. But just what's it. Just tell us, as an athlete, what's it like to be in that kind of a zone?

[Damian Woody]

Oh, man, it's. It's unbelievable. It's rare. It's rare when you're in that place where you, first of all, you got to have good players around you. But when you have the chemistry and you have the players around you, and I used to tell people all the time, when I was with the jets, we didn't even have to communicate because we knew each other so well. Like, we just did what we did. And I'm pretty sure, like, the Knicks probably feel the same way. Like, those guys have been around, they played together. A couple of those guys have obviously played together in college at Villanova. So again, it's the camaraderie, it's the trust, it's the coachability. And when you combine all those things, the experience that those guys have, it makes for a very, very tough team to beat.

[Alan Rosenberg]

See, I love it. I love that you're in. You have no choice, because I know that the TVs on in your house. I'm sure your wife is watching our post game show all the time, enjoying my analysis of the Knicks. And you're just staring at it going, not this guy.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, that's what she was not discounting.

[Alan Rosenberg]

But while we have you, d. Wood. That's not what I meant. While we have you, d. Wood, I'd be remiss. We don't get a little football from You. And, you know, the Giants added a lot of veteran pieces into their wide receiver room, And Odell Beckham Jr. Is one of those names. Is, you know, when you see that reunion and you look at, you know, Smith Schuster and you see Berrios, do you say to yourself, oh, they're adding some vets to put around young Neighbors to put around the young quarterback and stabilize and all that stuff? Or is it a sign that maybe they're concerned that neighbors might not be ready not only for week one, but maybe not ready for much of this season because of the issues he's had with that knee?

[Damian Woody]

It's the latter for me. Like, when I saw all those signings, that wide receiver, the first. First name that came to my mind was Malik Napers. And I was like, oh, you know, this. This can't be good. You know, I've always said, like, when they have to go in multiple times on the same knee, that's never a good thing.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Damian Woody]

And so for an explosive athlete like Malik Nabors, who not only has a vertical speed, but the elite change of direction and the. And the ability to create a lot of yak yards, you know, this is concerning for me. So I don't know if he's going to be ready at the beginning of the season. And to be quite honest with you, none of those guys, you know, Odell Beckham Jr. And, you know, Smith Schuster and Braxton Barrios, they don't move the needle for me. You know, they don't move the needle for me at all. And so I think this is something that Bears watching with Malik Neighbors talking

[Don Hahn]

to Damian Woody here on Don Han and Rosenberg. What'd you think of the jets off season?

[Damian Woody]

Listen, I like it. I think they've been, you know, they've been flying under the radar. They've been, you know, things have been quiet. They've added a lot of talent on both sides of the ball and. And listening, the change of coaching staff, and I think the big. I think the big thing is, you know, what are we gonna get from Geno Smith? You know, are we gonna get the. The Geno over the last, you know, when his time in Seattle, where he was, in my opinion, was like a top 12 quarterback, or are you gonna get the Geno that was with. With Las Vegas, which not a lot of, you know, there was. That was a bad Las Vegas team. There's no question about that. But, you know, but if you get into Geno from Seattle, I mean, listen, that's a big, big deal for. For the for this jets organization.

[Alan Rosenberg]

And, you know, it's really just Gino. There was some talk that maybe Russell Wilson would come in as a backup quarterback, but, you know, he chose to move into the booth, which is a much safer place for anybody to go. So he's, he's retired now. Cade Klubnick is the backup quarterback. Bailey Zappi, like, what, are you confident enough that the jets can go into this season with that as a quarterback room, or do they. You think they need to add a veteran backup with. Even though Geno is a veteran himself, but just in case something happens with Gino?

[Damian Woody]

Well, I think they got time. Like, you don't have to rush and do anything right now. I think, you know, I like, I like what they're. They're doing right now. They're basically saying, let's see what the fourth round quarterback can do. They're going to give them an opportunity to be that, you know, to be the number two quarterback, and that's going to extend it in training camp. And, you know, at some point in training camp, you're going to have an idea like, okay, the young man is not ready. Let's go get a veteran. Usually when you get a veteran, the veteran quarterbacks, they, they've been in all these systems. They understand it. Been there, done that, so that wouldn't be a problem. But they want to give K Clubnick every opportunity to try to win that number two job.

[Don Hahn]

Now, we understood during football season you were a very busy person.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Oh, boy.

[Don Hahn]

And life is not your own when you're home. You've made that very clear. Oh, no. But have you been able to squeeze in Napoleon Dynamite?

[Damian Woody]

You know what, Don? I love you too, man. I knew you was going to bring this up. Yeah, I knew, like, I was. I, I knew you was going to bring this up. And, you know, I. Listen, how about this? How about I squeeze it in, in? Like I could do it today in between these, these playoff games. Maybe I can try to do it then because I've been really slacking on the Napoleon Dynamite assignment.

[Alan Rosenberg]

He's. He's not watching it.

[Don Hahn]

I. Actually, it was a couple of weekends ago.

[Damian Woody]

You know what?

[Alan Rosenberg]

He's not doing this.

[Damian Woody]

You know what? You know what, Don? I. We gonna have to wait until after, after the finals because we got hockey going on too. Like, I've been watching that. So I like my, like my plate runneth over right now, so I'm gonna have to wait till all these playoff games are over, then I'll address that.

[Don Hahn]

You know what? That was a fabulous game one between Vegas and Carolina. You got that tonight on abc. So we appreciate your. You're watching all this sports. We should get together, man. We should all watch all this stuff together. I know the Knicks, we can't with Alan, but, you know, maybe during the Stanley Cup Final, we can get together.

[Damian Woody]

I would love that. You know, like. Like, I'm a huge hockey fan. There's nothing like playoff hockey. And that game won against the way that the, you know, Las Vegas Golden Knights came back, man, was. Was phenomenal. I love it.

[Don Hahn]

And, you know, the kids have seen Napoleon Dynamite, so, I mean, I've. I watched as a fan. It's a family kind of movie, so let it go.

[Alan Rosenberg]

It's not a family.

[Don Hahn]

No, no. I did show it to the kids. Cause there's nothing dirty. They don't use any words. There's nothing.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Well, no, but it's.

[Don Hahn]

It's.

[Alan Rosenberg]

But. But what. What movie did we get McNutt to watch? And she watched it right away was Wayne's World. Wayne's World. Did you hear that, D. Wood? So we gave it. We gave the same assignment to Monica McNutt. She watched it and was, you know, I mean, not impressed. You know, she said it was a very. It was cultural. She said she understood a lot more about us.

[Damian Woody]

A lot is cultural. I will say this. She's. She's a better student than I am. I got to tighten up on the. On the assignment, but I'm going to get to it. I promise.

[Alan Rosenberg]

He's not going to like this movie.

[Don Hahn]

We've built it up too much. You know, it's not Citizen Kane, but, you know, hopefully you'll get to watch it. But listen, we really appreciate this. Enjoy all the sports that you're watching, and we'll be talking to you soon enough when football season starts.

[Damian Woody]

All right, take it easy, guys.

[Alan Rosenberg]

My man.

[Don Hahn]

Damian Woody. When did we start that? Like, the beginning of the football season.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Seriously. It was like the first couple of times he was on with us.

[Don Hahn]

And I give Monica credit. We talked about Wayne's World, and the next time she was on Bang, she's

[Alan Rosenberg]

on a road trip. Put it on nice and easy.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, but I knew you were going to ask Monica. They don't have any children yet. She just got married.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Right, right.

[Don Hahn]

And so she's busy. But you said traveling on the plane. You know, throw it in. It's only in like an hour and 40 minutes. Right, but it doesn't sound like he's king of his castle there. Well, I think between the kids and his wife. He's.

[Alan Rosenberg]

That's what it is. It's not just his wife. It's the kids who run. Run his life, which we're all like.

[Don Hahn]

He might have to raise his hand when he has something to say.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Hey, listen, you know, I don't know again, your kids are young. I got three girls. You think I'm running my house?

[Don Hahn]

No, no, I'm not running.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Not even close.

[Don Hahn]

And you know what? And there's.

[Alan Rosenberg]

I sometimes walk around my head down just so no one notices me.

[Don Hahn]

Hey, I gotta be honest with you. There's perks to that too, right? Being silent sometimes comes with less responsibility and I'm good with that.

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[Alan Rosenberg]

thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Don Hahn]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Catch the show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts.

[Don Hahn]

Let's hear from you at 1-800-919-3776. Let's check in with Lou Manalapin. You're on. Donjon and Rosenberg, what's going on?

[Caller/Listener]

How's it going guys? Let's go. Nick's that was an incredible game last night. Very, very similar to the CAVS game, Game 1 of the Cav series where, you know, as a fit, as a fan, you're like having a heart attack. You're, you're, you're looking at this team and you're going, what are they doing? You know, why can't they hit shots that, you know they've hit before? And you didn't think that, you know, unlike that Cavs game where you, we didn't really think that they could come back. I was looking at the live lines, I was like, I have to take the Knicks again. You know, as long as Jalen Brunson is in the game, there is a chance that we could win. And you know, you just, the national story around this Knicks team is kind of, it scratches my head. You know, I scratch my head thinking about it because it's like, Brunson, how much can this guy do? How many, how many NBA milestones can this guy get to until they start like actually commenting on him like he's an NBA superstar, like this guy's beyond an NBA superstar. What he's done for this team, not only on the show, but the list, I mean, since he came to New York, he's called his shot, and he makes his shot every time. You know, there's guys that you guys work with, that you have on the station all the time, you know, that want responsibility or they want the credit for the Knicks. It's like, Jay, Jalen Brunson does this because Jalen Brunson's the true professional at what he does. He knows that he can make the move that could win the game. You know, it's like someone that's really good at chess or a boxer that's just taking the right shots but hitting them harder. You know, when he crosses up those guys, you know, he goes through three spurs players, and all we heard on the national storyline was that the spurs defense is going to shut down this Knicks team, and why were they going to do what every team couldn't do?

[Don Hahn]

Well, you know, by the way. Go ahead.

[Caller/Listener]

No, one last thing. It's. It's. I talked about losses yesterday, you know, when the Knicks might lose. I don't think this team could lose if they play like this. If they play like crap for a quarter and a half and then they come back like nothing even happened and put the pressure on the other team.

[Alan Rosenberg]

That's it, Lou. And it's. That's why I was saying, like, this is a team that's gotten to a point now. They're hard to kill, and you can't let them off the rope. You can't let them get up off the mat. So if you're up 14, it's got to be 20. If you're the Cavs and you're up 22, it's got to be 25. You've got to bury them. Like, you can't let them get up. And that's the problem. It's. These teams don't realize they let them get up. And all the Knicks say, and, you know, Landry Shammat said this to us last night. They were just like, you know, all right, we got to find our game. We got to just stick to what we're doing and believe in it, because we know it works and it'll come around. And the whole idea is just hang around, just. Just stay in it, because, you know, once it. Once we get it, if we gets close late in the game, we know we got that guy. Like, we know we've got Brunson. And when you got that guy, you have A reason to believe you can win.

[Don Hahn]

He sounds. This sounds very familiar. I'll give you an example of a couple of other players. Okay, what do they say about Eli Manning outside of New York? You know, pedestrian, regular season numbers, you know, ended up finishing 500 in his career, which is kind of bogus because he hung around just too long, unfortunately. And then all of a sudden he's winning Super Bowls and it's like, oh, my God. But if you watched him every day, you'd know that he was better than the perception around the country. Same thing with Derek Jeter. You know, when Derek Jeter played, like outside of New York, Sports Illustrated always have the players voted him, you know, the most overrated player. Because if you didn't watch him every day, he didn't get it. He didn't hit a lot of home runs. You know, he didn't. He didn't have a ton of MVPs. You know, you didn't watch him every day. And then he'd go to the, you know, go to the World Series. You'd finally see him and you'd get clutch. You. But you didn't know the greatness unless you watched it every day. Brunson is a guy you got to watch every day. We're not surprised by this. We sweet. See it all the time. But do you think the national media is watching, you know, Knicks kings on a Tuesday with a 10:30 tip? No, they're not.

[Alan Rosenberg]

You know what you saying? Because the argument's always been, when was Jeter ever the best shortstop in the game? That's all right. That's always the pushback. He was never the best player at his position at any time. And it's like, yeah, but the guy went, he won. And that's. I mean, is that the best compliment you can pay? Jalen Brunson is all the things to compare him too, right? All the things you can say about him is the guy's a winner.

[Damian Woody]

Right?

[Don Hahn]

But now they're seeing it, but literally for the first time. Yeah, because you saw it a little bit last year, but then they lost in the conference final, right? Now we know who he is. And now the rest of the country, I think, is starting to pick up on this guy. Because if you're a winner, well, then you got to go out there and you got to win. And he hasn't done that yet. Now he's finally in a final coming like last night. It's the coming out party for the rest of the country. But we knew this. We've seen this But I'm not going to kill the national media for not watching every Knick game. They're treetops, right? They're watching history, they're watching that there are bigger stories, they're bigger teams. The Knicks weren't overly impressive as a team during the regular season.

[Damian Woody]

Right.

[Don Hahn]

They finished a three seed when many people felt that was an underachieving regular season. So we've got the benefit of watching these guys every day right now. They're got. They're getting to see it. And believe me, I said it earlier, the whole reputation of Brunson and the Knicks will completely change overnight if they lift that trophy next week. Completely change.

[Alan Rosenberg]

And I'm telling you, perception, you're right. And I think he's a lock. First ballot hall of Famer.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah. Well, he's got a lot of basketball left to be played, but it doesn't.

[Alan Rosenberg]

He does. But, like. Like my point, remember, it's basketball, so college counts.

[Don Hahn]

Oh, yeah. Yeah, definitely. He's gone.

[Alan Rosenberg]

A career as a winner and the best player on these winning teams. That. That says so much, man.

[Don Hahn]

No, no, it does. But still work to be done here. Three more wins to get, and each one will be a little. A little bit harder than the next. Lang in Connecticut, you're on. Don Hanna. Ro.

[Caller/Listener]

Yeah. I woke up this morning. Yeah. What a dreamlike night. I couldn't believe it. I woke up this morning and it just felt like a dream. I. I wanted to just make mention of one thing, and then I have a question. That play where Brunson out jumped for a cell, I mean, it looked.

[Damian Woody]

It looked like he.

[Caller/Listener]

You know, it comes down to inches, right? That sports. And it comes down to who wants it more. And it just looked like Brunson wanted it more like Vesel. Maybe he thought he was taller, he'd get to it. Just didn't look like he didn't show that much effort compared to Brunson. And then for him to make. Yep, yep. And I just want to get your take. So I look at this playoffs, I think there's been two pivotal points and there could be an emerging third, which we may not even need because I think this team is so locked in, I don't know if they even need Bolton board material. But obviously game three against Atlanta really woke them up right when they went down 2, 1. And then before the Eastern Conference finals, the kind of psychological trick, if you will, with Mike Brown showing, you know, the video montage of them walking off the floor last year. Right. Really kind of. You know, that stings Right. But then, you know, I, I, I don't want to make any generalizations, but the fact that Wemby is so arrogant, he is despicable to me. For him to say that they gave away the game and that the Knicks didn't win it. I know he can't say the Knicks didn't win it, but then why even say anything?

[Don Hahn]

And I just find you can't. You've got to, you're the, you're the leader of your team.

[Alan Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

You've got to send a message that, hey, we got to play better. And they do that. They did not play great. I mean, the Knicks had a lot to do with that, but the spurs didn't play their best game. Wemby didn't play his best game. And I think the Knicks would have done the same thing. Hey, you know, we gave this away. You know, I don't look at it as throwing shade at the opposition. It's trying to build up your confidence and let the rest of your team know, hey, we've got to do better, guys. So, dude, I understand there's a disrespect. Don't worry about what other people think, what other people are saying. If this run has proven anything, it's about how you feel about them. Okay? And then if you lift that trophy, then all the disrespect fades away and all the hate and all that, it's not gonna matter. All right? And, but, and if you don't do it, unfortunately, that'll galvanize the haters. That'll galvanize everybody who says, see, I told you you couldn't do it. But right now, they're proven everybody wrong. Who cares what other people think? We got to stop that in life and in sports.

[Alan Rosenberg]

I know.

[Don Hahn]

Who cares what other people think?

[Alan Rosenberg]

I know. It's like you want everybody to be unanimous in how and how much they love your favorite team and who. I don't want that. I could care less about it, but it is. And if you're. First of all, Victor Wimanyama is not despicable. He is. I love the guy. I think he's going to be a great face of the league. He's a great competitor. He's right now, though, in the moment. First of all, he was very complimentary at Brunson, but he's gotta say, the, the mind games, they've got to play with themselves and saying, ah, we gave that one away. We, we just, we just got to be better. They're not better than us, you know, like, like Castle said, we still think we're the better team, but, you know, we didn't play well enough to win. Because if they said, man, they're just so good, I, I don't know how we're gonna beat them. Like, oh, no, you can't. You know, like, you can't do that. So that's what you're going to say when it's over. Maybe you'll get some compliments. But did you notice even James Harden after the series was over, even he said, you know, I still think we were the better team. It's like, James, let it go. You know what I mean?

[Don Hahn]

But. But let it go in the body of the series. You can't. You can't give it in. So I'm not going to get on Wemby for that.

[Alan Rosenberg]

No way. Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Jalen Brunson]

I don't want to know how the

[Alan Rosenberg]

sausage is made, man. I just want to know what's good. Hear more of Don Allen and Peter weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 8 80, ESPN, the ESPN New York app, and your smart speakers. You can't reason with the sun. Trust us, we've tried. This summer, it's time to put that angry ball of fire on mute. Columbia's Omnishade technology is engineered to protect you from the sun's harsh rays that can burn and damage your skin. The sun is relentless, but so is our gear. Level up your [e-mail] to spend more time outside and less time slathering on aloe lotion. You're welcome, Columbia. Engineered for whatever.