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- [00:00]
Don LaGreca
If your football team had one option in their playbook, the results probably wouldn't be great. The same could be said for your investments. CBOE index options like SPX and XSP can help expand your investing strategies with cash settlement and potential tax advantages. If you're ready for a more dynamic game plan, head to betterwithoptions.com CBO Life is Better with options. Your investments could be too. There are risks associated with CBOE Company products. Review the disclosures and disclaimers@cboe.com USDISCLAIMERS this is the Don Hahn and Rosenberg Podcast.
- [00:35]
Peter Rosenberg
That sounds like heaven to me.
- [00:36]
Don LaGreca
Listen live weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 880 ESPN, the ESPN New York app and your smart speakers. All right, 6:00 hour. Don Han Rosenberg 880 ESPN so a couple of things here real quick. Thank you to Lou Goodman, the, the guy in the chair. I was wrong. Not Sony. It was Maxell. Okay, that's and I remember Maxell. That was the other brand too. He said Maxell and TDK were considered the best. So thank you for that. We also have from, from Connor Hughes an interesting update on the situation with the jets and their search for a head coach and a general manager. Again, the news of the day is that Aaron Glenn was brought in for a second interview in person, the first one that they've done that with. And then Lance Newmark for the GM also brought in as well today. And Hughes is saying that a lot of the other candidates are being told that the jets are going in a different direction. So either they're eliminating, you know, because they did interview a ton of people. So they're either eliminating a lot of people and like cutting it down to maybe two or three or they've made their choice and we're going to get an announcement on this sometime soon.
- [01:52]
Peter Rosenberg
Well, good organizations and unfortunately we can't include the jets in that well run organizations. They're gonna, they're gonna narrow their search down to two or three guys and let all the other hundred people they interviewed and say we're gonna go in a different direction. Saying to a bunch of candidates you're going a different direction doesn't necessarily mean that you've hired someone. It just means we're not hiring you because they have to have somebody to go back to in case something cuz even Connor Hughes mentions in the tweet that it could still hit a snag. Well if it does and you're going to have somebody else to have to go pivot to. But if you know that, hey, we're going to go with Glenn. We're pretty sure we're going to get him. If not, we do know our next candidate will say yes. So let's just tell everybody else that they're out of the running. So that's probably where we're at. If he didn't say about the hitting the snag, then I would say this. This looks like it's all but done, but it doesn't sound like it's done.
- [02:44]
Don LaGreca
Right.
- [02:45]
Peter Rosenberg
So if they're making phone calls, they're just saying that they're close and how. But I don't know, who would they pivot to?
- [02:51]
Don LaGreca
That's the question. Because some of the other candidates were like Arthur Smith, like, you know, they weren't names that, you know, really drew your attention.
- [03:00]
Peter Rosenberg
Do you remember off the top of your head who the best of the other candidates were that they interviewed? It might be Rex. Just from an experience standpoint, who else did they interview? Like, some of the guys I never really even heard of.
- [03:15]
Don LaGreca
No, a lot of. A lot of them.
- [03:19]
Peter Rosenberg
A lot of favors.
- [03:21]
Don LaGreca
A lot of them felt like that, like. And also, you know, Brian Flores was another name. They. They talked to him. But a lot of them are people that have to explain who they are. Right.
- [03:31]
Peter Rosenberg
Could that be somebody?
- [03:33]
Don LaGreca
Say that again.
- [03:34]
Peter Rosenberg
Could Flores be.
- [03:35]
Don LaGreca
Yeah, there were some people that were. Were definitely high on him. And at least he's got experience, right?
- [03:41]
Peter Rosenberg
Yeah, three years. He's got a losing record, but he did have, you know, a couple of winning seasons.
- [03:45]
Don LaGreca
Matt Nagy, I think, was another one that they brought in. I'm, like I said, I'm racking my brain trying to think of it wasn't.
- [03:51]
Peter Rosenberg
It was an impressive list in its, like, number. Like, they. A lot of people.
- [03:57]
Don LaGreca
Well, remember the. There was like, 13 gm. Remember the guy, Mike Greenberg, who's not the Mike Green, not Greeny, but Mike Greenberg from Long Island. Like, he was. Oh, Ron Rivera. I forgot about Ron Rivera. That's right.
- [04:07]
Peter Rosenberg
They talked about all the guys that had experience. Rivera, Flores.
- [04:11]
Don LaGreca
Yeah. Spags, Rex. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, like, names like that. So which one is really, you know, going to. We know Jeff Ulbrich is not getting the job. He, you know, he was smart enough to take a job somewhere else already. Darren Reezy, who was, he was with the Saints. Remember he took, he was the guy who took over interim head coach in New Orleans, but he's a special teams guy. Like, it's names like that that I'm seeing here.
- [04:37]
Peter Rosenberg
I think it's going to be. I Think it's going to be Glenn. Yeah, that's what I think. And with that, the snag could just be. Well, I don't know what the snag can be because you can't say there's a snag on going to the Saints.
- [04:49]
Don LaGreca
Better not be money. If it can't be money. That. That would be ridiculous. If he walks out because the money's not right. I don't believe that would be the issue.
- [04:59]
Peter Rosenberg
So the only snag I would think it would be would be is over the quarterback.
- [05:05]
Don LaGreca
Ooh.
- [05:07]
Peter Rosenberg
Or not. Not necessarily. Rogers, like, all right, if Rogers decides to retire, I want to do this. And what he's like, no, no, we're going to do this.
- [05:14]
Don LaGreca
No.
- [05:15]
Peter Rosenberg
Which is stupid because you haven't even hired the general manager. So you're saying the general manager is not gonna have a say in the.
- [05:19]
Don LaGreca
Well, again, that's why you want the package deal. You want two guys that are simpatico. And that's what I think that. That Newmark and Glenn are supposed to be is. You know, they have some history together, and would they both kind of be on the same page with what they want going forward? And I think if you're Woody, I just want. Two guys are on the same page. They agree on philosophy, they agree on style, they agree on culture, like, all that. Like, I just want that so that we don't have, you know, a disagreement right out of the gate about what to do at the most important position on the field.
- [05:48]
Peter Rosenberg
But that's the thing that make it so irritating about this sport in particular. Like, if he's a cap guy, is he a personnel guy, or is that going to be what I don't think.
- [05:58]
Don LaGreca
He'S supposed to be? No, he's not a cap guy. He's a personnel guy. Newmark, he's. He's been. He's been. He's done everything again. He's 28 years. I think he goes back to the early 90s with the Lions, so he's seen it all, by the way. I mean, he's seen the worst of it. He's seen the end of Barry Sanders, and then, of course, all the quarterbacks they've tried to go through. And then the renaissance over the last couple of years, he's run the gamut, but he's also done college scouting. He's done the draft. He's been involved in player personnel. He then moved on to take an assistant job in Washington. It was sort of like, for him, the ability to get out of A place he's been a long time to elevate himself into the ability to get a GM role. And that's certainly what this turned into because I mean, he spent one year, Washington couldn't have had that big of an impact or a major impact as an assistant GM on a team like that. So, you know, I think he's a guy that does have tons of experience. He's worked with a lot of different people. It's now more of what, you know, is he ready to take the helm as a guy that can put a team together from top to bottom?
- [07:01]
Peter Rosenberg
I feel a lot better about that. Higher than Glenn. Not that I feel bad about Glenn, it's just that you're talking about a guy that paid his dues from the general manager perspective. Yeah, I would like a little experience there. But you've been around the sport for that long, I gotta believe you know what you're doing.
- [07:15]
Don LaGreca
Not only has Glenn played and played at a high level in the NFL, you gotta also say it was 2010 when he got into coaching and it was, it's a great story. You know the story, right? Like he, he owned a bunch of restaurants. He did really well. He was a businessman. And then just, just said, I just love the game. And his wife just said to him, well, if you love it so much, and he'd go crazy watching games and yell at the tv. And she's like, it's in. You just go coach. And so he did. So we're Talking about almost 15 years as a coach working his way up to where he got to. So it's not like he's new to the NFL or you know, one of these 38 year old guys who, you know, they haven't had many positions in the sport now suddenly are elevated to a head coach. He's been doing it for a while as a player and now as a coach.
- [08:00]
Peter Rosenberg
Well, I kind of took from key. Sean Johnson's interview is that Key seemed to be really high on the fact that he played. And I think a lot of players, especially veteran players, probably respect the guys that played, especially at a high level, but just played. And we're starting to see this in all sports. Allen, where you've got first started with general managers like the no experience. Now none of them have any except lynch in San Francisco. But most of the time Ozzie Newsom had experience at gm, but coaches always had some experience at some level playing the game. Now it seems like in all sports it just doesn't, it doesn't matter. It's not a pre.
- [08:34]
Don LaGreca
A lot of them played. Played, you know, like a low level college or, or a mid level college or played Division 1 but didn't. Weren't stars. You know, a lot of them ended up just being, you know, the, the smart guy on the team, but didn't have all the skill right. Didn't have all the talent, but knew what he was doing. There's a lot of that and that's okay. But this is one again what I worry about with Glenn and we'll see again if he gets a job. But I, I know, I've seen him talk. I know what he's about. Like, he get. He knows New York. He played here long enough to know how it works in the media and all that stuff. It's just at the podium every day. I saw with Robert Sal. It just gets to you and it does pull you away from, you know, what you were used to doing, which is every day I'm just game planning. But I can't do that as a head coach because I'm a, I'm, I'm the CEO. I'm running everything. So those are the adjustments you have to make.
- [09:17]
Peter Rosenberg
There's so many fires that have to be put out. I think I told you this story. Our listeners from this time slot remember this. We, we had Brian Billick on. I'm like, he's great. Heck, did you not. How could you be the offensive coordinator of the 98 Minnesota Vikings, one of the greatest offensive teams in the history of the sport, and then you win a Super bowl all defense in Baltimore, like, what happened? He's like, I. When you become the head coach, you're putting out fires you don't have the chance to really put your expertise into. Yeah, you could, you can game plan, you can have a little bit of a say, but there's too many other things to do.
- [09:52]
Don LaGreca
Yeah, you got to trust the people.
- [09:54]
Peter Rosenberg
You know, you got this guy comes in with his prize. This guy's going, going through a divorce or this guy's injured. This guy. You got to talk to the media. Oh, you got to do this. You got to do that. And that's the stuff that bogs you down and how you handle that. But it's all important. It may not seem like important to a lot of people, but all that stuff is important to the winning and losing of it all. And can he handle all of that? There's no way. Even Bob Washuzen, who is in touch with the jets, and he's been around the game forever, calling play by Play. The only answer is, I don't know. We're going to find out, you know, but we don't know what kind of head coach he's going to be.
- [10:32]
Don LaGreca
800-9193776 so obviously keeping an eye on that story, seeing if anything breaks today or even this evening, just keep it right here on 880 ESPN in the meantime, Don, so you have at the bottom of the hour now, you'll have the pregame show for the Rangers and the Senators. And you know, as we're watching this team, they are getting points. But boy, that was that loss to the Canadians and beautiful. I love going there. That's a great building. There's so much energy. It's like, it's like basketball at the Garden, hockey at the Bell center is just so let's just go with that. But they had four leads. They blew all four of them. Quick. Can't get that 400th win. How was that a tough loss? Or are you like looking at it as. Nah, you're stacking points right now. That was a brutal one. But you know, just keep it moving. Where are they?
- [11:18]
Peter Rosenberg
That's the easy answer to just, hey, we got a point, right. 5, 0 and 3 in your last aid. And then they climb over Philadelphia, climbed over Pittsburgh. They got a chance to gain more ground on Columbus, who lost at UBS last night against the Islanders. So they, they put themselves. It's, it's still a point you want to have, but at the end of the day there was a point that was lost against the team I think you're better than. But also the league didn't do them any favors. You know, you got the four nations coming up in February, so they had to condense the schedule. So the Rangers were in Utah on Thursday. They, their day off was flying across the country. They played a game at the Garden and then had to go up, fly up to Montreal, which is not far, but you got to clear customs. The pain in the neck.
- [11:55]
Don LaGreca
Oh, yeah.
- [11:55]
Peter Rosenberg
Now Montreal went through the same thing they had Thursday in Dallas, but they got two home games. They didn't have to travel at all from Saturday to Sunday so that it looked like the Rangers lost their legs in the third period. They were out shot, what, like 16 to 6 in the third. So I think that was circumstances. But you know, right now they are four points out of a playoff spot, but two games in hand on Boston. And Ottawa's also got 52 points, but they got the same amount of games played. They can win this game in Regulation. It's pretty big now that. That's where you start to get this. Now, Allen, bring up a point about overtime. Gotta start getting two wins. And when you're facing teams that you're chasing after, like, don't win the game. And over. That was nice to win that game against Columbus in the shootout, but you only gained one point. Go out and get two points, you know, and, and, and see if they can do it against an Ottawa team that's, you know, their goaltending's been very good.
- [12:45]
Don LaGreca
Yes, they're.
- [12:46]
Peter Rosenberg
They're a sneaky team. Giroud's been very good for them. Bathurst, and they got some nice players there in Ottawa. Get the job done. This is a big game tonight. And then you got Philadelphia, another team that's in your conference on Thursday. And then Colorado comes in for a Sunday afternoon matinee. So doesn't get any easier for them, but let's see what they can do tonight. Get two points. That'd be huge.
- [13:05]
Don LaGreca
At least they got a bunch of home games too. And that's always important this time of year. And just get the Garden rocking. So, Don, I know you gotta run. I know you're preparing for all this stuff right here. I will, I will get into the. For those listening that are waiting for. I'll get into the Knicks stuff and the Trae Young of it all and all that stuff. And previewing the Knicks and the Nets. That'll be coming up before we close the show. We got tons of calls, but, yeah, you know how we've been doing this American Idol thing, but we've been getting submissions from different people to do a theme song for the show. So we played one last week that was pretty good and we kind of liked it. So we have another one. And this one is actually. This is, I believe, if I'm not. If I'm right. Johnny Grimmer. Did he make the original or did he make the morning shows?
- [13:53]
Anthony
He made the morning shows.
- [13:55]
Don LaGreca
That's what it is, Anthony. Okay, so, you know, do we have the morning shows song that the donkey here?
- [14:01]
Anthony
I'm sure it's somewhere.
- [14:02]
Don LaGreca
We just don't have to find it. Yeah. Okay.
- [14:05]
Anthony
Well, I have it if you want to hear.
- [14:08]
Don LaGreca
Just give us a little taste. Little taste out of the game.
- [14:13]
Jake
Got the number one pick in the NHL draft with the minute. Can't seem to do something dumb. That's an observation. Clt make them need to run.
- [14:23]
Don LaGreca
I see. You get. You get the idea, right? It's pretty good, isn't it?
- [14:26]
Peter Rosenberg
I think it's Very good.
- [14:27]
Don LaGreca
It's very good. Okay. So he decided that we are worthy of maybe him making a song for us. So let's play a little American Idol. We're gonna play the song and then see if we like it. So let's go with Johnny Grimmer's version of a Don Han and Rosenberg theme song.
- [14:56]
Jake
3 to 7pm on 8:80am Afternoon drive with Don Han and Rosenberg. Dom, the first voice at the station went from sportsphone to amazing play by play for the Rangers. Han was a beat rider. Now he's the guy on the pre and post for the Knick. Seems like his dream job. Rosenberg started as a hip hop. These days with his gigs, the resume is crazy. The list in pro pics lead to heated debates. Great callers keep it coming on a regular basis. E and M with the latest in sports and entertainment. Get the best guests for insight and information. Never complacent. Face it, that's lazy. And Jace, veterans of the game sent to pick up the pace, tune your radio, download the app, subscribe the podcast and run it back. That's a wrap.
- [15:45]
Don LaGreca
What do you think? Pretty solid?
- [15:48]
Peter Rosenberg
Well, it's more than solid. It's outstanding.
- [15:51]
Don LaGreca
Oh, wow. Okay, you're going.
- [15:52]
Peter Rosenberg
I think, I think it's terrific. Now here's the issue though. But does it fit what we're trying to do for a show song? It's a little too introductory. Like, you know, it's not like we're three guys who came out of nowhere and you kind of have to introduce the audience and give the resume. I mean we've been, all three of us have been at this radio station forever. I mean, I've been here since day one. Peter's been here nine years. You've been here over a decade, right?
- [16:18]
Don LaGreca
Yeah.
- [16:19]
Peter Rosenberg
You know, so I don't know if we need to spend as much time like with the resume. So the, the beat I love and then later on when he starts getting into the different aspects of the show, I just don't think we needed the resume early. So from a musical standpoint, a. But as far as it like fitting for what we, what we do, I don't, I'm not sure it fits.
- [16:39]
Don LaGreca
Okay. Jake, you're a music guy. How do you feel about this? I thought the beat and like the lyrics alone were good. I didn't. Once I saw the video online, I'm like, oh, this is a hit. This might be better than the last one, but I do agree with Don. I don't think it fits what the show is trying to do the vibe, right? Yeah. Like, our picture is of that sort of. And again, you hear our little thing that we put together that I love, which is a little bit of, like, you know, it's. It's biggie and yacht rock kind of thrown together, which is sort of what we're about. Maybe if. Maybe if we bellow it out a little bit, maybe bring in for like, one segment or, like. No, instead of using our regular instrumental, we'll use that instrumental kind of thing, like the lead in. You like that. Okay. Anthony, your thoughts? Yeah.
- [17:25]
Anthony
Look, Johnny does a great job. Listens to all of us, brings it all the time. I'm in a. I think the beat does fit in terms of, like, the vibe that we go for for the music. We've done a lot of heavy metal actually on the show, but also just that. Yeah, that kind of beat works with everything that we're trying to do.
- [17:42]
Peter Rosenberg
It does.
- [17:43]
Anthony
And I think that because, like, Johnny didn't have any drops for us, it's not as strong as DNR's, but that was perfected over a long period of time. So obviously, for both songs, I thought both were good and both could use some work, but that's what makes it American Idol.
- [18:00]
Don LaGreca
Okay. All right, so. So. So Don, Don's gonna. You're gonna send him to Hollywood, right? Yes. In the competition?
- [18:07]
Peter Rosenberg
Yeah.
- [18:08]
Don LaGreca
All right. Jake, is he going to Hollywood? Oh, he's going to Hollywood. Going to Hollywood. Anthony. Oh, yeah.
- [18:12]
Anthony
Give him the golden ticket.
- [18:13]
Don LaGreca
All right, that's three yeses. So it's four yeses. It's a yes for me too. All right, so Johnny moves on.
- [18:18]
Anthony
Peter liked it too. I saw him react to it on social media yesterday.
- [18:21]
Peter Rosenberg
And I could tell you, just looking at the reaction on social media, I didn't find one negative. Yeah, People like it.
- [18:27]
Don LaGreca
Yeah. All right, so we need more in the competition. We've got two so far. I think at least four. Right. Would be fair to make this a true competition so we can take it to, like, a final four into a championship round. Then we select the one we like the most.
- [18:39]
Peter Rosenberg
Mm.
- [18:40]
Don LaGreca
Okay.
- [18:40]
Peter Rosenberg
Like that.
- [18:41]
Don LaGreca
That's what we're gonna do. So keep them coming. Everybody at dhr, like, you got too many in this thing. Can you do it for me? So many things. Dhr, O N E S P N DHR on espn. Send it to us. We will definitely see it. And ones we like, we will play on the air and decide if you can move on. But so far, two have moved on. 800-919377, 6. I will continue with you with calls and some thoughts on the Knicks taking on Trae Young last night and beating Trae Young last night the way they wanted to, and then playing the Nets tonight in Brooklyn. Don, enjoy the game tonight. The Rangers and the senators, 10:50am Coming up at the bottom of the hour. And you'll hear Don right there if you want to catch the hockey game.
- [19:27]
Peter Rosenberg
Talk to you tomorrow, buddy.
- [19:28]
Don LaGreca
And so we have. Oh, wait, we just got some news here on the hall of Fame. So it's. So Cece Sabathia is in. First ballot.
- [19:34]
Peter Rosenberg
Bang.
- [19:34]
Anthony
Yep.
- [19:35]
Don LaGreca
Ichiro in.
- [19:36]
Anthony
Yep.
- [19:36]
Peter Rosenberg
Yeah.
- [19:37]
Don LaGreca
Who else?
- [19:37]
Anthony
And Billy Wagner.
- [19:38]
Don LaGreca
Billy Wagner in. Okay, well, those are, again, three pretty obvious ones to get in, so congrats to Sabathia for sure.
- [19:45]
Peter Rosenberg
I'm not feeling Billy Wagner first ballad, but really, I guess.
- [19:49]
Don LaGreca
What are you missing there?
- [19:50]
Peter Rosenberg
These clown.
- [19:52]
Don LaGreca
Oh, boy. Oh, this is a big one. Tomorrow. Tomorrow. Tomorrow for sure. We will get into this.
- [19:56]
Peter Rosenberg
He was a good guy. Nice guy.
- [19:58]
Don LaGreca
Can we try to get Cece tomorrow?
- [20:00]
Anthony
We can make an effort.
- [20:02]
Don LaGreca
Yeah, I'd love to talk.
- [20:03]
Peter Rosenberg
Easier now. Kay's gonna tell him. Kay's gone. Lead with that.
- [20:07]
Don LaGreca
That's. That's between you guys. Donnie, before you go, though, you have a little bit of business with us and enjoy the game, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.
- [20:13]
Peter Rosenberg
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- [20:52]
Don LaGreca
It's the world's largest professional network.
- [20:54]
Peter Rosenberg
Unlike resumes, LinkedIn gives a real time.
- [20:56]
Don LaGreca
View into a candidate's skills, experiences, and more. Huh.
- [21:00]
Peter Rosenberg
Let's do it. You're irreplaceable, Jane. But another you would be great.
- [21:04]
Don LaGreca
Find your perfect match with LinkedIn.
- [21:07]
Peter Rosenberg
Post your free job@LinkedIn.com achieve. That's LinkedIn.com achieve.
- [21:12]
Don LaGreca
Terms and conditions apply. Sergeant and Mr. Smith, you're gonna love this house.
- [21:19]
Peter Rosenberg
Bunk beds in a closet.
- [21:21]
Don LaGreca
There's no Field manual for finding the right home. But when you do, USAA homeowners insurance.
- [21:26]
Peter Rosenberg
Can help protect it the right way. Restrictions apply.
- [21:30]
Don LaGreca
Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg Podcast.
- [21:34]
Peter Rosenberg
I didn't listen to anything you just said.
- [21:35]
Don LaGreca
Catch the show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts. Han Solo here with you on Don Hahn and Rosenberg 880 ESPN as Don is now on 10:50am doing the pregame show for the Rangers and the Senators. So if you want coverage of that, you can go there at the top of the hour. At the end of our show though, it'll be the pregame show for the Knicks and the Nets at the Barclays center in Brooklyn. Not on MSG tonight though, because it is a TNT exclusive vehicle. So you'll have the on the TV side. But of course you do have the radio coverage coming up at the top. So on the hall of Fame voting, as we told you before the break, CC Sabathia is in first ballot. Ichiro Suzuki in and they remember this is two former Yankees now because Suzuki Ichiro was there with CC in 12 through 13, so 14. They spent a bunch of years together in pinstripes. But one note oh, a former Met Billy Wagner, he's also in as well. Carlos Beltran, however, will have to wait 70.3%. So he's close right there looking for the 75 that you need. So we'll see if Beltran does have to wait a year. So he won't be first ballot, but he seems like he's pretty close. We'll talk about that and more of course tomorrow on the show. Keeping an eye on the story of the day, which is, well, the Are the Jets close to naming their next head coach and general manager? Former Jet Aaron Glenn, the defensive coordinator with the Detroit Lions the last couple of years. He is reportedly in for a face to face meeting today along with Lance Newmark, who was a longtime assistant GM in Detroit who was spent the last year with the Washington Commanders. Looks like the two of them could be a package deal. We shall see. But before I get back to Your calls at 800-919-3776, talk about the Knicks and last night and I'm curious to see how people react to the way the Knicks handled business. So all of you know that the last time the Hawks came in was the middle of December. It was the NBA cup quarterfinal game and Trae Young did what he does. He loves being the villain. And so at the end of that game it was a Close game for a minute, but then he was just unstoppable. He made a bunch of shots, and the Knicks ended up losing the game. They did not go to Vegas. At the end of that game at center court at the Garden, Trey Young decided he was gonna pretend he was playing craps, you know, roll the dice. A lot of people saw it as he was, you know, doing something to the Nick logo, but really he was talking about, hey, we're going to Vegas and I'm, you know, I'm rolling craps. Like that's what it was about. But everybody got upset. And then there was this whole thing about the Knick should have done something. Nobody did anything. Let him do it. They should have gotten physical with him, whatever it is. Jalen Brunson told me right after that game, if you don't want him to do it, win the game, just beat him, and then he doesn't do it. Josh Hart and others, also the same thing. The only person that spoke up, and this is all the fans want, their pound of flesh. They want to get that moment where somebody's going to talk some mess back is Isaiah Hartenstein, who, when asked about it, said, I wouldn't have let him get away with it. He would have had to deal with me. Of course, that gets everybody all fired up. But as Brunson said, isaiah's not here anymore, so what good is it? So last night, the opportunity came to do something about it. Trey Young comes in the building. The place is packed. It was a MLK matinee, a 3 o'clock game, as you all know. And it actually started out a little rough. The knicks went down 10 early in this game, but midway through the first quarter, Mikhail Bridges suddenly, like just picks him up half court. And this possession was very interesting. He locked him up foot of every screen. All the little stuff that goes on didn't fall for any of his fakes and hesitations and all that stuff. Took away the three he tries to drive, took away the drive. And suddenly Trey Young picks up the ball. He's got nowhere to go. 24, second violation. The place went nuts. Like it went crazy. Now, it didn't turn the game, but it suddenly woke up the building. And then the Knicks competitive level went to another. Went to another level, and that became a great game. Mike Breen said on the broadcast, this feels like a playoff game, had that kind of atmosphere, but the Knicks were getting after it. Third quarter, everything turned. Bridges had 14, Brunson went for 12, 40 points. They put on him in the quarter, and The Knicks ended up winning the game. And that's the answer. But it was more than that because Trey Young had nine turnovers because of the defense. Jalen Brunson, who dealt with this Dyson Daniels kid who, who's. He's averaging three steals a game, like he's, he's a tough, tough, young defensive guy. And coming into the game, Brunson was shooting like 30% when play when facing him. Well, Brunson dropped another 30 point performance on him, had an elite performance. Like he was fantastic in this game offensively. And so he slayed the dragon that way as well. And then he just walked off the court and I had to walk off interview and I asked Brunson about it like right at the gate. I have to ask him like, okay, so you said the only way to stop Trey Young from doing things like that is to beat him. So I said with that little extra motivation, he wouldn't take the bait. He said, no, no, no, it's not about that. We got to win games. And here's the reason why. Like you could think that, oh, that's soft. Because that's. A lot of people told me the Knicks was soft after that game, which I found ridiculous. Because what you don't understand is that's actually mentally tough. When you are in these moments where an opponent, a villain, this guy, whatever it is, riles up the fans. The last thing you want to do is get caught up in that dumb emotion. Let the fans get mad. That's fine. That's what, that's what fans are supposed to do. You get caught up in it. But if players get caught up in it, what are you going to do? You're going to lay them out now? You're suspended for three games. Does that make any sense? Or in a close game, you're going to take a technically to take a flagrant. Why? So you can cheer and roar and get your pound of flesh and now it hurts the team. That doesn't make any sense. Or you're going to do something physical. You're going to do something where you start talking trash, get in a guy's face, they beat you on your floor. What do you have to say about that? Nothing. So they do you have it. You have that nose to nose with him and let the crowd enjoy it. You're still walking off with the L. No, what Brunson did is really smart. He didn't breathe any life into it. You know what he said? They're not worth my time. Whatever he's doing, I'M not getting into that now. Brunson, I'll let you know. They're friends, he and Young. They have respect, right? They're good. There's no issues. So it's not like he would want to do that because he even said, like, I. I knew him when I was in Dallas. Like, whatever he did here predates me. And that, of course, goes back to that first round series. So anybody, if you look at it logically, take out the emotion, because I know as a fan, you just want to see the old school Anthony Mason elbow in your face. Like, everybody loved that stuff. And I get it. John Stark's headbutt, like, that's what you wanted. And yes, that stuff's entertaining and fun. It's all part of the theater. But what Brunson is kind of telling you is they're not our problem. Like, I'm not. I'm not putting life into them. Because then they'll know all. We're in their heads, guys. We're in their heads. I don't let you know that it's bothering me because then you'll think, oh, no, you're in my head now. I'm rattled because of it. Now it becomes a story every time you play each other. No, man, I'm looking at the standings. You're 22 and 20. I'm 28 and 16. We're far apart. Like, I'm not looking at you. But they got to worry about is what's coming up in the next couple of months here. Cleveland, who's beaten everybody who looks unbeatable. Boston, who's going through something right now. In fact, the Knicks are right on their tail for second place. So those are the teams I'm worried about, those two. And, you know, we played Oklahoma City twice, went toe to toe with him once, and they smoked us at home the second time. We got to prove we can beat teams like that. I can't worry about this team. They're. Yeah, okay, so they've beaten the Celtics. They've beaten the Cavs. They've also lost twice to the freaking Wizards. I'm going to get all rattled about this team. So do you understand what I'm saying? Does it make any sense? If you just think about it logically, that whole controversy and everybody getting mad and all the stuff about accusing the Knicks of being soft and accusing Brunson of being soft, how last year's team would have stood up to Trae Young. Dude, stop. The true toughness is in the warrior that doesn't flinch in the Face of a swing just stares it down. Okay, but you're not in my head. I'm not going to let you have the pleasure of thinking that you're in my head. I'm going to look at whatever you did and say, it's beneath me. This is nothing. And while the fans want to get mad about it because they feel like it, you know, they, you embarrassed us and all stuff, fine, you had your day. But you got to come back here and we'll have our day. And that's what they did. Brunson had a brilliant performance against one of the league's toughest defenders. Physically tough to really just didn't stop relentlessly attacking him. Got him into foul trouble. Got him. The kid took a tech and he fouled out. That's how you respond. This is your best. I watched film. Now I'm in your head. Even Josh Hart, who normally doesn't hesitate to jump all over these things, he loves getting involved in this kind of stuff. Even he was like, nah, that's for you guys. That's for Nick's Twitter. They can have fun with it. For us, we just got to win games. And them saying that after the game last night is when I just. I started realizing, like, I see what they're doing, right? They're not buying into this. So I hope you all understand when we talk about that also, because they're going to come back. Remember, there is another game to play against the Hawks, because that game that I told you about was a quarterfinal game. That was an extra game. So they're going to play the Hawks five times now this year. So they're going to come back again. And by the way, if you look at the standings, they might face each other in the first round. The Hawks give the Knicks trouble. They've got all the things that the Knicks struggle with. They have wing length. They have good defenders that switch. They aren't a good defensive team as a whole, but the way they're built frustrates the Knicks because the Knicks aren't very big at a lot of positions. They shoot the three well. They love to get up and down and score. Like that's what they do. And so the Knicks had to figure it out. And they showed you last night that they could, and they did, and they did it. While Karl Anthony Towns did not have the best game either. He came back from the thumb injury and he didn't play great. But I just want everybody kind of put it to rest now. This whole thing with Trae Young, that Jalen Brunson is never going to breathe any life into that stuff because for him, that's beneath who they want to be getting caught up in this kind of stuff. In a playoff series, maybe, but in the regular season, no. Not letting you think for a minute that you matter that much to me. 800 now a 93776. Chauncey's in Westwood. We go to you now. Chauncey. What's up, Alan?
- [33:20]
Caller 1
What's up, man? First things first. You guys are like the Philadelphia 76ers. You got this amazing big three, but you're never all together. But when you are, it's. It's amazing.
- [33:31]
Don LaGreca
So you know what, Chauncey? You make a great point. It's like, how many times has one of us had to be solo? And how many times have the three of us been on the show together? Now, again, I would have loved to have been able to be there, but I had an unfortunate circumstance in my family that is certainly, you know, a sad one. Peter is celebrating something wonderful in his life, and that's a good thing. But we will. We will. But it is a fair thing to say, though, we got a big three, but we're never on the courts again. That's not bad.
- [34:03]
Caller 1
No. Understood, man. Life. Life happens, and you got. You got to deal with it. So it's all good. But anyway, about the Knicks, is it, you know, I've never been the type to be like, you know, Tom Thibodeau, he's burning these guys to the ground. But is it not a coincidence that it's their first time in a while that they get two days off and then he plays nine guys in the first quarter? He's keeping the guys fresh, and it's the best defensive effort we've seen in weeks, I want to say. And it's. It's like, I don't think he's burning them to the ground. I don't think game by game, the minutes are really going to make that much of an impact. But when you get to the fourth quarter and you've played 20 minutes in the first half, like, sometimes Mikhail Bridges won't even sub out in the first 18 minutes of the game. I'm like, thibodeau, what are you doing? Like you can find a couple minutes to rest these guys.
- [34:54]
Don LaGreca
Did you notice last night, he only played 28 minutes? He averages over 30.
- [34:59]
Caller 1
That and I 38. I thought the reason for that would be because he's going to play big minutes in his return to Brooklyn. I think that's what it is.
- [35:07]
Don LaGreca
And he had, and he had to run around screens chasing Trae Young. I think they wanted to be mindful of knowing that we're going to need you fresh in the fourth quarter to keep this guy under wraps. And so they, they, they didn't probably, they were probably careful not to burn him out. And Tibbs played four off the bench. Landry Sham. It got minutes. But you know what's really more important? What's more important is that you trust the bench. But when the bench comes in, they give you a reason to trust. All four players were either even or plus in their minutes. Like you can't have your bench come in and give away a lead. You have to have plus minutes off your bench. And I think that happened as well. So it's going to be a conversation as we hit the middle of the season now they've got to find pockets of a game to rest their guys, but you have to get a bench that can be productive and not suddenly put you into a deficit. That's something that, you know, we've got to see where it goes. Spike is St. Pete. Hey, hey, Spike.
- [36:02]
Caller 2
Yeah. I take Trey Young. He is a below average three point shooter and the beauty of last night's was Jalen Brunson manicured Dyson Daniels. He made him work and he got a good foul call on him. He got him rattled. He's a terrific on the ball and off the ball defender. Daniels. As a matter of fact, Quinn Snyder changed the whole defensive integrity of that team. They never played such good defense. They really did. With the exception of Trae Young who if you look it up, I'm guessing if he's more than a 33% three point shooter, I'd be surprised. He's a great passer but he almost had double digits in assists. I think the key, and I told you this before the season, sorry for my voice, but you had one, had the first cataract done yesterday and I see him really good. Yeah. One more to go next week and I'll be able to see you clearly see that handsome face. Listen, here's the trick to the Knicks. The top four in the east and the west aren't going to change. They'll juggle positions here and there. So my over for the year was the pistons at 24 and a half. I thought they're getting a better coach. I thought Cades is going to come into the top 20 player and I thought putting guys like Hardaway and Tobias Harris, even though they're at the back end of their career they're not going to win 25, 30 games. So I moved it over, took an early cash out and put it all on OKC to win it. I think they're so much better than anybody else because Boston cannot maintain taking 51 three point shots a game and shooting at a little above league average. They're crisscrossing their wings off a made basket and then there's sneaking out a guard to come around and up she goes. It's not working. They got look they want. I hate their guts. I've hated their guts all my life. But they caught every break and poisonous is not more than a 35%.
- [37:53]
Don LaGreca
That's their biggest, that's their biggest issue. Spike is to me, their bigs is a concern now because Porzingis availability regularly. You know, Horford's getting older and it's starting to show. Early in the season he looked like he had some energy, but you could see right now they're struggling. And a big part of why they're struggling is not just that the three ball isn't going down as consistently as it had been, but I do see some issues. First of all, Derek White's not playing well and they're big and they're big. Well, look, it's, you know, it happens. He's going through whatever he's going through where he's just not making shots.
- [38:26]
Caller 2
But he's a great defense.
- [38:27]
Don LaGreca
He'll figure it out.
- [38:28]
Caller 2
They got the best defensive backcourt in the NBA.
- [38:31]
Don LaGreca
Oh, well. With Drew Holiday. Yeah, I think that's that you can make that statement.
- [38:35]
Caller 2
But Jew Holiday was integral and then winning the chip last year.
- [38:40]
Don LaGreca
Of course. Of course.
- [38:43]
Caller 2
Hawkins shooting 44% from the weak side. 3.
- [38:47]
Don LaGreca
Well, again, that, that's where they find them. They find them there. But I, I again, I think for them what's going to be interesting to see this year, this year, this time around. And thank you, Spike, for the call. It's just simply going to be do they have enough left in the tank to go? Because they do have better play off their bench. But they don't have the bigs like the ability to rebound, defend at the big positions. And what you look at Cleveland, that's all they have. I mean they are. Cleveland is a legit, tough team. Legit. And it's going to be something to watch as they get into playoffs because that has been their issue regular season. They're tearing through the league, but that group has a history of not bringing it in the postseason. So thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg Podcast?
- [39:36]
Peter Rosenberg
I didn't listen to anything you just said.
- [39:38]
Don LaGreca
Catch the show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts. That's it. The old Han Solo used to come up at 702 in the greatest city in the world. But now coming up at seven is Knicks Nets coverage. Pregame coverage beginning right after we're done here. So again, waiting on the the jets and what they're going to do at head coach Aaron Glenn, Lance Newmark, both of them were in today. No news yet. We'll see some reporting saying that the other candidates have been already told that the jets are moving on. So that's interesting. Rich Samini also said something earlier today. Aaron Glenn was busy yesterday, reaching out to potential staff members and getting advice from people around the league. And the commanders were bracing for the possibility that they will lose Newmark as well. So all things, all signs point to the jets completing the deal. We shall see. Maybe something comes tonight, but you keep it right here in 8080, of course, all day tomorrow for the coverage. Bobby in Port Washington said he's back. So, Bobby. Hey, guys. How you doing? What's happening? We got you.
- [40:44]
Caller 1
Hey.
- [40:45]
Don LaGreca
Okay. I went to unh.
- [40:48]
Caller 1
Alan, your son's playing for UNH is good, really good. And is there a more beautiful campus and surroundings?
- [40:56]
Peter Rosenberg
No.
- [40:56]
Don LaGreca
Okay. The Knicks, we need DiVincenzo back. Oh, I have two boomboxes for you.
- [41:02]
Caller 1
You got boom boxes, no charge.
- [41:03]
Don LaGreca
My pleasure. Oh, yeah, I got vintage.
- [41:05]
Caller 1
I am vintage.
- [41:06]
Don LaGreca
I'm gonna be 74 soon.
- [41:07]
Caller 1
I've been playing them for at least 40 years. They play great.
- [41:10]
Don LaGreca
Still work. We want to put one in the studio, so we got to be in touch. Okay.
- [41:15]
Caller 1
You can have two if you want one.
- [41:17]
Don LaGreca
I'll send them wherever you want. I don't want to get in your business.
- [41:20]
Caller 1
And we need DiVincenzo back.
- [41:22]
Don LaGreca
We need DiVincenzo back. Here's the thing with DiVincenzo, though. Well, he's out indefinitely with this toe injury. This. This came out of nowhere. They thought he was going to miss one game. Now it's indefinitely. That's a concern. He was playing really well. He was getting into his groove, and. And then now, all of a sudden, this injury happened, so we have to watch that. But just one thing. I'll say, I think they'd love to have him back. In fact, I know they would. They can't, though, Bobby, until the off season. So if there was and if Minnesota. I don't know. From what I know, Minnesota loves him and wouldn't want to trade him. So it. But you're right, they do. They do miss what he could bring. And it's not that they. They got worse because Bridges is fantastic. But I agree that that element wouldn't be bad to have coming off the bench. Bobby, I'll let you go here, but when it comes to the boomboxes. Yeah, send them to the studio. We'd love them. Mark's in the car. What's up, Mark?
- [42:16]
Caller 2
Hey, Alan, thanks for taking my call.
- [42:18]
Don LaGreca
You got it.
- [42:19]
Caller 2
One. One statement, one question. First of all, I just wanted to comment on your comments about Jalen Brunson and Trey Young that, you know, we knew this guy was a leader. We knew this guy was a winner, but this is just another example. It's so simple to get caught up in that. And he's like, I'm not even letting this guy know that we're even thinking about him. I think that's the best way. When I was young, my dad used to say, don't talk to the other team. Just point to the scoreboard. And he's doing the same type of thing. So just fantastic. But the quick question was hoping to catch Donnie, but I know he's gone. Curious if you're hearing anything more about the Canucks and Rangers. I'm seeing some social media about J.T. miller.
- [42:59]
Don LaGreca
Yeah.
- [42:59]
Caller 2
Curious what you're hearing on that.
- [43:01]
Don LaGreca
Yeah, it is. It is. So, from what I understand, it was close and then kind of fell apart. And it's got to be the draft pick compensation that's part of this, right? If you're the rang, you really don't want to give up anything, too. I don't know. Anything. Anything like what a first. So I. I do think that's something that probably will come around another time. But, like, it. It feels like the right kind of move. It feel you're gonna have to give up something. And Anthony, remind me again, Anthony, what it was? It was rumor. Schneider.
- [43:31]
Anthony
Rumor was Schneider, Heidel, and a conditional first. There's also reports from Frank Cereavelli that said that it was in terms of taking all of Miller's money, and that was a sticking point for the Rangers, and they didn't necessarily want to do that. So it could be that. It could be the picks. It'll be interesting.
- [43:47]
Don LaGreca
It's probably going to be the conditions on the pick and then the money. I can't imagine it's because Heidel, as much as you love him and the talent he's got, its availability is the biggest question. And So I have a feeling they'll have to keep negotiating that part of it. And they've got time before the deadline. But you know, that's one that has really caught my attention, that one. But where are the Rangers? You know, where are they as far as what they want to do this year is this blow up and reset is this ad and see if you can get this team on the right track. You certainly have the goaltender and this is the time to win when you have the goaltender like this. So it, you know, again, it's something to keep an eye on there. And the Rangers and the Senators be getting underway in just a few moments. You can hear that game, of course, on 10:50am as Don LaGreca is wrapping up the pregame show as we speak right now over there at 10:50, but coming up here in just a few minutes, the Knicks and the Nets and you have the pregame coverage starting on the other side in just 10 seconds. So Knicks, Nets, can they get back to back wins for the first time in 2025? Stay tuned for that and we'll see you all tomorrow. Have a good night. Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast. Podcast. I don't want to know how the sausage is made, man. I just want to know it'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.