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Dan LeBatard
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Mike Ryan
Now's a good time to remember where tequila's story truly began. In 1795, Cuervo invented tequila. Cuervo, what are you doing here?
Stugotz
Cuervo? Anytime someone says Cuervo, I show up.
Mike Ryan
Well, I do know that to be true. But even during ad reads like Cuervo, I think he could lay out especially.
Stugotz
For one of our great partners, Sweet, delicious Cuervo.
Mike Ryan
Since then, Cuervo has stayed true to its roots. The same family, the same land, the same passion.
Stugotz
Cuervo.
Mike Ryan
So enjoy the tequila that started it all.
Stugotz
Cuervo.
Mike Ryan
Cuervo, the tequila that invented tequila. Proximo. Cuervo.com, please drink responsibly.
Chris Cody
Cuervo.
Stugotz
Billy, do you have any advice for me on the better place to start today? That Stugatz is here. And we have some New York radio sound to play for Stugatz in the audience now that some of the poisons from New York are trickling in. But we also have a feud between Pablo Torre and Bill Simmons.
Amin Elhassan
Ooh, I mean, is this his thing now? Pablo just feuding with people for attention? Geez Louise, it's Nick Wright. One minute it's Bill Belichick's girlfriend. Another minute it's Bill Simmons. I mean, I only got a minor in journalism, so I guess maybe to get the major, you miss, like, the. The classes on making yourself the center of every story and debating with your subjects.
Billy Gill
He is going up, though. It's elevating. Right now, he's at Bill Simmons, like mogul of the industry.
Amin Elhassan
What's next?
Greg Cote
Who, How, How.
Billy Gill
How much higher can he go?
Tony Kornheiser
Us?
Stugotz
But he's already feuded with me, so.
Billy Gill
Right, so that's kind of already done.
Amin Elhassan
But you can end that real quick.
Stugotz
I could.
Amin Elhassan
All of it?
Tony Kornheiser
Yeah.
Stugotz
I don't.
Chris Cody
All your feuds?
Amin Elhassan
No, no, the Pablo situation.
Stugotz
Well, Billy, you're the boss.
Tony Kornheiser
Agreeing with, I don't know, all the feuds.
Stugotz
You have me ending all of Pablo's feuds.
Amin Elhassan
I'm just saying, if Pablo feuds with you, I mean, you're the boss. You sign the checks. You could say. You know what? This feud is over.
Stugotz
I don't sign the checks.
Tony Kornheiser
I'm not. Who does.
Greg Cote
It's electronic at this point.
Stugotz
I don't have anything to do with the checks. Like, you guys keep blaming me for the checks. And I don't have. I'm not in charge of the money.
Tony Kornheiser
Who do we blame for the checks then?
Stugotz
Skipper? Well, he's still here.
Chris Cody
What responsibility do you have?
Greg Cote
I do believe I can be found.
Stugotz
What I'm doing right now, it's not the money.
Chris Cody
Oh, you cash him?
Stugotz
I do cash them. I do cash some of the checks, yes. So do you, though.
Chris Cody
I've cashed a few.
Stugotz
So does everyone around here. I. Who. Who is on the checks? Whose signature is actually on the checks?
Greg Cote
Because I get direct deposit.
Stugotz
Yeah, me too.
Billy Gill
It's like a squiggly line for me. I can't see whose name it is.
Greg Cote
We still have you, Dan, for some reason. Going to the atm, same, depositing the check.
Amin Elhassan
I got to get him before five.
Chris Cody
That's how he likes to do it.
Tony Kornheiser
I mean, with a burlap sack with a dollar sign on.
Stugotz
You know what's funny about this? This is what's funny about this. Just yesterday. Because I knew it. No, listen to this. This is great. This was so Miami. I'm not kidding you when I tell you I bank okay through the rain. And why it's a pretty harsh rain because I want cash. I want more cash than the ATM will give me. So in the rain, you needed that bad? I was just before 5 o' clock.
Chris Cody
You requested more cash than the ATM had.
Stugotz
I requested more cash than the ATM gives per day.
Chris Cody
Oh, I have a limit.
Stugotz
There are. Yes.
Amin Elhassan
It seems nefarious.
Stugotz
I shouldn't have limits. What do you mean it's nefarious?
Tony Kornheiser
Hitman.
Amin Elhassan
Yeah. What do you need all this?
Greg Cote
I'm with you, though. Why is the bank limiting me? Hey, my money.
Stugotz
I don't like any limits on my cash. And I enjoy giving my cash to whomever I like without any paperwork involved with the giving of that cash. I prefer to have it in my hand old school Miami style. And what just happened at the bank yesterday that was funny is that I run in. Why are you holding your hand in front of me when we're.
Chris Cody
You like to give out cash.
Stugotz
We're only doing audio, though. We're not on video right now.
Amin Elhassan
You notice he was waving.
Stugotz
You take that picture Also waving at everybody to pay. Pictures. Prom queen. Because you don't know when we're on the air. This was a very Miami thing, though, yesterday. So I run inside through the rain and the lightning strikes are so strong and crazy that people are gasping and running very quickly inside. The bank had been otherwise empty. Now there are a whole bunch of people running in. They give me my cash to take outside in a garbage bag.
Chris Cody
Wow.
Stugotz
Power move so that it won't get wet.
Chris Cody
Was it spilling over how much cash?
Stugotz
I needed a garbage bag so that it wouldn't get wet.
Amin Elhassan
This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugats podcast.
Stugotz
The headline is Bill Simmons trashes Pablo Torre over Bill Belichick, Jordan Hudson reporting. I will read some of these quotes for you guys in a second. Pablo Torre will be appearing on Bill Simmons his podcast here. The quote is, Pablo Torre would have done a long podcast about Leo Farnsworth trying to practice with the team and then done a media tour about it afterwards. Simmons said, shocking his co hosts. I've never seen anybody dine on a stupider story for a week and a half while pretending you're a journalist. What the bleep was that? Seriously. So Pablo Torre was made indignant by this because he has 11 sources. My favorite part of the article, though, was Simmons also discussed the NFL and the 1978 film Heaven Can Wait on his good movie.
Amin Elhassan
It was the Rewatchables. It was supposed to be a movie pod. The weirdest part is why they were talking about Pablo and I guess it's.
Chris Cody
A movie podcast and why Pablo is going on Bill's podcast. What do we get out of this?
Amin Elhassan
Yeah, it seems like you're gonna pick a fight with Bill Simmons. You get him on your podcast, so you get the clicks.
Greg Cote
Doesn't sound like Pablo's doing a lot of no these days.
Tony Kornheiser
Well, we can. We can talk about Heaven Can Wait though, right? Warren Beatty, football player, right?
Chris Cody
Yeah.
Tony Kornheiser
You guys, you've never seen it.
Stugotz
Go ahead and just search YouTube there so you can see Warren Beatty as a quarterback. It's throwing motion. This was a movie star for the Times, and I want you to see just the general lack of arm strength and SK involved. I've told you before that Adam McKay said that it took a full year to teach Danny McBride how to throw a baseball in Eastbound and Down. It took a year because he was so unathletic. I have seen very little funnier than John C. Reilly trying to catch a foul ball as a catcher in the movie. Love of the game. John C. Reilly cannot run and certainly cannot do whatever athleticism is required from going from the catcher's position to running backwards, flipping, popping up the basket. In terms of difficult things that people don't know how difficult they are. Catching a foul ball as a catcher isn't the most difficult thing, but only because punt returning exists.
Billy Gill
Then did they take John C. Reilly to like catcher school. They're like, all right, here, here's. You got to flip up the mask or your pop time. What's your pop time?
Stugotz
Can you imagine John C. Reilly having any athleticism? Tell me. I mean, there have to be. What is it? Is it DiCaprio? What was the basketball movie that DiCaprio did where he was very.
Tony Kornheiser
Basketball Diaries.
Stugotz
Couldn't. Couldn't dribble a basketball.
Tony Kornheiser
Basketball Diaries. Although I almost said love and basketball.
Stugotz
You have seen any number. We could open it up to the audience. Give me the least athletic thing that you have seen in the movies from an actor. Charlie Sheen and Kevin Costner have been celebrated for at least having a high school baseball ability to move around in a way that doesn't look ridiculous. But no, no. And Costner has done some stuff with golf where his swing doesn't look horrific. But most actors cannot recreate athleticism in a way that's realistic.
Chris Cody
Well, it's easy for Costner because at a base level he looks like he could be a baseball player or a golfer. He does. So it's an easy role for him.
Stugotz
I think of him as shorter though. Is he smaller?
Tony Kornheiser
I don't think he's a short guy. But if I got the one for you and no one's going to beat me on this. Kevin Bacon. The air up there, him dribbling a basketball.
Stugotz
Michael J. Fox and Teen Wolf.
Tony Kornheiser
Oh, that's a good one.
Chris Cody
That was believable.
Amin Elhassan
Kevin James was an MMA fighter in a movie.
Stugotz
Oh, that's a great one.
Tony Kornheiser
That's all right.
Billy Gill
Kevin Costner, 6:1, by the way.
Chris Cody
Wow.
Tony Kornheiser
Yeah, he's a tall guy.
Greg Cote
Air bud.
Chris Cody
Sneaky tall.
Stugotz
Put it on the poll at Lebitard show. Is Kevin Costner Sneaky tall at 6 foot 1? Let me get to what it is that I missed yesterday. And it's nice to see you, Stu Gotts, but you denied us yesterday the ability to really be a vibrant, forward looking show.
Chris Cody
I wasn't on the schedule.
Stugotz
Well, I think that you probably negotiated being out after bad Knicks losses. I thought that that was part of your negotiation. Somebody, somebody mentioned that there were some addendums in your contract after jets losses and Knicks losses. But thankfully we have a number of New York gas bags at our disposal who was Saying all sorts of things yesterday. And perhaps you will take us on a path how it is that it felt to see not just Indiana win, but Indiana then did. I mean, the thing that is the most fun these three days for a fan base before you get to the Finals, which is Indiana just trolled New York and its fans on social media for the last couple of days. Just the organization itself, Halliburton all making fun of New York because winners get the last word.
Tony Kornheiser
Yeah, Halliburton got Stiller with a good one because Stiller was like that duffel bag because he's flying back to New York and Halliburton said, now we're just trying to pack y' all up. Which is pretty odd. But also it would have been cool if he said it before the game. Like the wait till after the result.
Stugotz
That's kind of the Pacers themselves. As an organization. We're making fun of Knicks fans, but let's just get some sound here. We've got Geo here and Stugach. You know what this is? After that Knicks loss, WFAN is 20 shares all day because everyone is just screaming and yelling and blaming now. It's a weird thing because Amin is correct when he says this was a good Knicks team. Exceeded expectations. I would say exceeded the average expectations. Has to be considered a positive season given that it's the best season in a quarter century for the Knicks franchise. The Knicks franchise does not win playoff series. Does not win playoff games. That is a recent phenomenon. And so I'm sure New York radio hosts will be totally reasonable about this. Let's hear from Giovanni after. Immediately after the single greatest Knicks season this century.
Greg Cote
Talking about Karl Anthony Towns.
Chris Cody
And they went and they traded for him and he's making $50 million a year. And at the core, he's a loser. That is their biggest problem. The guy is a loser. He's a losing player. He complains. He is soft. He shows you flashes where he's the best player on the court. Not enough. He doesn't play enough defense. He bitches and moans. He is up until this point in his career a loser.
Greg Cote
I mean, that one. That's hard to argue with.
Chris Cody
It is. That's. It's well done by Geo. You have to stay on the front end before you call a guy a loser that he's making 50 million per year.
Stugotz
So, okay, this is not fair commentary to call Carl Anthony Towns a loser. I don't know how both of you are like, that's fair.
Tony Kornheiser
He.
Chris Cody
He didn't win. I mean, what has he won? Yeah, right.
Stugotz
He's probably won more games in his career than. He's lost.
Chris Cody
Some lean years, man. Years.
Stugotz
College and pro. You believe this is a player that has lost more than he has won?
Chris Cody
Wait.
Amin Elhassan
Now we're extending it to college?
Tony Kornheiser
He only played one year of college.
Stugotz
High school too.
Billy Gill
Dan. He was probably undefeated in high school. You're right.
Amin Elhassan
Elementary. I mean, he's.
Stugotz
Okay.
Greg Cote
I would just argue there's little gymnastics being done there. That is just like he's. You can't argue with that. He's lost.
Stugotz
You can argue with calling a human being a loser. Who is top 1% of the top 1% in a very competitive field at making money. You can argue with that. Yes. You can't. It's not an Gio did not close down the argument with a truth we can all agree with by saying the factual statement. Carl Anthony Towns is a loser.
Billy Gill
Oh. Record for a career. 317 and 328.
Stugotz
Days.
Tony Kornheiser
Year.
Stugotz
You called college year. Gets him over the top.
Tony Kornheiser
Let me take a look.
Billy Gill
Let me take a look.
Stugotz
11 games over 532.
Chris Cody
0.
Tony Kornheiser
They were more than 11 games over.
Stugotz
500 in Kentucky. Is why I concluded the college years. He's over 500.
Tony Kornheiser
Heady play.
Stugotz
Thank you. Also greatest shooting big man I've ever seen.
Chris Cody
Oh.
Tony Kornheiser
You know, Mike Conley lost more home games in his first like, week in the NBA than he did his entire life before that. Including high school, aau, college, everything. He lost like. Like something like four games at home.
Chris Cody
I lost five games in a week.
Tony Kornheiser
Yeah.
Stugotz
Yeah.
Tony Kornheiser
With the Grizzlies when he was a rookie.
Stugotz
Damn it.
Billy Gill
They were 38 and 1.
Chris Cody
That was a good team.
Amin Elhassan
It's a good team.
Chris Cody
They win an addie.
Tony Kornheiser
No, that was a one.
Chris Cody
Loser.
Amin Elhassan
Loser. Yeah.
Stugotz
Speaking of losers, the Rocker, the Rockies beat the Marlins yesterday. Come on. The last team to get to 10 wins.
Chris Cody
How terrible.
Stugotz
Speaking of losers, the Rockies had In their last 31 games on the road won three of them.
Billy Gill
Not how, more like who.
Stugotz
Who was there to see it?
Tony Kornheiser
Oh, that's good point.
Stugotz
There was nobody there.
Amin Elhassan
That was a rainy day.
Chris Cody
Yeah, rainstorm.
Amin Elhassan
You were mentioning it. There was people gasping in banks of the lightning.
Tony Kornheiser
Gasping at this picture garbage.
Greg Cote
This is during the national anthem. There was a good four or five minutes before first pitch. This is a misleading.
Billy Gill
So you had how many people jumping in?
Greg Cote
There were 5,000 people there.
Amin Elhassan
The concession stands look packed. That's the thing. Is this park good? Concession stands. You want to. Yeah. Hang out there? Probably checking out the bobblehead. Museum. That's a thing.
Tony Kornheiser
Did anyone get the alligator hot dog? Y' all doing that? Done that.
Amin Elhassan
What?
Tony Kornheiser
They got an alligator hot dog at Marlins Park?
Chris Cody
Yeah, the gator dog.
Amin Elhassan
Gator dogs.
Chris Cody
I'll try it. Yeah.
Stugotz
Put it on the poll at Lebatard show. Would you like to eat a hot dog made out of alligator at Lebatard show? I know people say alligator tastes like chicken. Put that on the poll as well.
Chris Cody
That's just a thing that you say, though, to get people to eat it. Hey, it tastes like chicken. It doesn't taste like chicken. If it tastes like chicken, I'd eat it.
Billy Gill
It does kind of taste like chicken. It's like a mix between chicken and calamari. Is is where gator lives.
Tony Kornheiser
It tastes like a chicken that's been swimming. That's the best way I could put it.
Stugotz
Put it on the poll at Lebatard show. Does gator taste like a chicken that's been swimming? When you say that, though, when you say that, it's a. A mix that includes calamari. All of a sudden you're making the texture gamey in a way that even if it tastes like chicken, I am going to be reminded I'm eating allig are getting in the way of my taste.
Tony Kornheiser
Why would your thoughts get in the way? I might want to be present with my thoughts when I eat alligator. The first thing I do before I think the first bite, I was like, yeah, you thought you were top of the food chain. Guess again. And then I take that big bite and I want to savor every. Like, this guy thinks he's the apex predator. Guess what, buddy, Little bit higher than you, there's an apex over the apex. It's called man.
Chris Cody
But when you think of the animal you're eating, it ruins the experience a bit. Right? When I think of a turkey and I'm eating a turkey sandwich, I think of the poor turkey and it ruins my experience.
Tony Kornheiser
I think turkeys are very aggressive, asshole type birds. I'm like, oh, you thought you were just a big bully on the block. Guess what? Now you're my sandwich.
Greg Cote
What's the animal you feel the most guilty about eating?
Stugotz
None.
Tony Kornheiser
I mean, it's kind of evolution.
Stugotz
Lamb for me.
Tony Kornheiser
Yeah, Lamb. Are you kidding me?
Billy Gill
Delicious.
Tony Kornheiser
Lamb is. This is what I thought when I eat lamb is like, oh, you thought your mommy was gonna protect you and everything? Like, guess again.
Stugotz
Gotcha.
Amin Elhassan
We found a picture of later in the game if you want to see it.
Greg Cote
I told you guys the flag is still up too.
Stugotz
Billy, I appreciate Doing that photoshopping and just changing fake news.
Tony Kornheiser
Not Japanese flag.
Amin Elhassan
Well, they honor all the people playing.
Stugotz
So it's good visual joke there to exclude the audio audience. You're always producing in a way that is inclusive for everybody.
Mike Ryan
YouTube.
Amin Elhassan
It's the wave of the future.
Stugotz
Put it on the poll at LeBatard show, please. Does something being gamey ruin eating for you? Yes, because I don't want gamey and chewy with my protein.
Billy Gill
I love the game.
Tony Kornheiser
Gotta love the game, man. For the love of the game.
Billy Gill
Love of the game.
Stugotz
So we had Gio's opinion given on Karl Anthony Towns. Chris Cody said it's inarguable and a fact Karl Anthony Towns is a loser. No more words need to be expressed expressed on this subject. The subject is closed. No one's allowed to disagree with the assessment that the greatest shooting big man there's ever been and someone paid at the top 1% of the top 1% of a pretty competitive field is simply a loser. No other submissions on opinions will be allowed by Chris Cody who says that the entire committee has closed. Gone home. It's over. Carl Anthony Towns is a loser. And it's forevermore. You're saying, right? This is not until he wins.
Chris Cody
I mean, right, right.
Greg Cote
For this season. For this season, until the next season starts.
Stugotz
Loser. Okay, but he won more than all the teams but four in the sport. He won more, but still a loser according to fibs.
Greg Cote
Did you guys see what he did in his press conference? We made the final three because their series was still going. It's like you made the final four. He's just like we made the final three.
Stugotz
You know what? Good point by Tibbs. I did math poorly there. They were one of the final three teams by schedule. Their season was a game longer. Third place Minnesota's. They are the bronze medalist on playing games. Bronze medalist, either the second loser or just a loser. But we can agree the bronze medalist is a loser. Put it on the poll at Levitard show. Is the bronze medalist a winner or.
Greg Cote
A loser clearly ahead of Minnesota?
Amin Elhassan
Well, depending on how the finals play out, they may. I'll look into it. They may have played more games than one of the teams in the finals based on how quickly the series goes. So they could be a silver medalist in terms of games played this season.
Stugotz
No, put it on the poll at Le Batard show. Go ahead, Stugat. Ask the poll question.
Chris Cody
Did the Knicks finish in third?
Stugotz
Let's play the sound here of Sal being more Sal than Gio is. He is talking about Tyrese Halliburton. And he is contorting himself in order to give New York the credit for Halliburton being relevant.
Sal Licata
New York put you on the map. You don't run. Bleep. We put you on the map. Whether it's Wally Zerbiak saying he's overrated, whether it's his performance against the Knicks a year ago, whether it's the Knicks choking one in Game 1, allowing him to again be the villain with the choke sign. Without New York, nobody gives a crap about you, Tyrese Halliburton. You don't run squat. Here's what you better hope you run. You better hope you don't run into a buzzsaw in the Thunder in the finals, because beating the Knicks is not the trophy that you should be trying to get here. You've done that now a couple of times. So stop with the I run New York stuff. Stop with your girlfriend on social media. Go New York. Go New York. Go home enough. Without New York, you're nothing. We made you. We run you.
Chris Cody
Oh, 20 shares.
Tony Kornheiser
Yeah.
Chris Cody
Now I get it, by the way.
Billy Gill
I get it.
Tony Kornheiser
Like, you know. You know, Tony, you played basketball growing up, right? I did. You played pretty high level high school. You played in college. But as you go older and you got to play against people, you know, NBA players, right? You start to see, oh, my God, like, there's such a gap.
Billy Gill
There's levels.
Tony Kornheiser
There's levels to this. I heard that, Dan. I know. People in my group chat were, like, laughing, and some people were angry, whatever. And I was like, man, that guy's good at this radio thing, huh? Wow.
Stugotz
I don't think that's good at this radio thing.
Tony Kornheiser
What?
Stugotz
Because I don't think that after the New York Knicks have lost that way. This is a sentence that could come out of your mouth.
Sal Licata
We made you. We won you.
Billy Gill
That's the dismount, though, Dan. What?
Tony Kornheiser
A dismount Musical. You know, you always saw, like, this thing being like, music. That's music, right?
Greg Cote
He had to go to break there and be like, like, I sound ridiculous.
Tony Kornheiser
No.
Chris Cody
No way. Are you kidding me?
Stugotz
He's like, got him.
Tony Kornheiser
They applauded like NASA when they got the guys back from Apollo 13.
Sal Licata
Everyone, yes, we made you. Yeah, we run you.
Billy Gill
The producer in the back saluted him.
Amin Elhassan
The Knicks presently lead the NBA in games played this season because they had longer series in each round than the two teams that made the finals. However, their lead is only two games, so they will finish even if it's a sweep. Two Games shorter than the longest. Yeah, but close.
Stugotz
Stugotz, finally. Yeah, way too late. After the parade float has left, leaving only litter behind, can you please give us your exclusive New York Knicks thoughts? As someone who just experienced the best Knicks season in 25 years, raising the expectations to a place where, of course, New York fans, and we knew this was going to end this way. If the Knicks season was going to end, it wasn't going to end with Brunson being blamed for anything. If the Knicks season was going to end and it was going to be a product of failing to meet expectations, the place where you're going to put the most expectations is on the big Guy that is bigger than everyone else and has one block in the entire series. And now you read all the reports, surely, I mean, you've read these reports as well, that all of the Knicks were frustrated all season about Karl Anthony Towns doesn't know how to play defense, doesn't know when to do what, doesn't know his assignments. And all of that unraveled toward the end of the season when the wheels fell off because all of the Knicks were exhausted because they were only playing six players.
Tony Kornheiser
So it was incredible reporting by Fred Katz and by James Edwards III for the Athletic. A lot of people were like, oh, so they just had this ready to go. I said, yes, this is how journalism works. We have the autopsy written as soon as the team is entering elimination phase. You got to have it ready to go because that's the number one time people want to read about what went wrong that season. And so in it, they're talking about a lot of things. It's not just about Towns. It covers almost everything. Everyone's got a little blame in there. Probably Brunson's the only one who goes off unscathed. But with regards to Towns, it's that attention to detail. Now you got to remember they're coming from a year ago, they were exact opposite. They were scrappy offensively, but defensively they were elite. This year they were an elite offensive team, but the defense kind of waned. And you remember on the show I used to, I was telling you guys, guys, I'm not confident in this defense. It's good enough for the 82 game season where nobody cares. And we're Milwaukee tonight, tomorrow we're in Cleveland, the night after that, Chicago. But when you get to the playoffs and people are game planning and they're attacking weaknesses, there were just too many. And one of them was Karl Anthony Towns. His either non desire or non ability to execute defensive Schematics, right? And that's exactly what we saw. Indiana attack. If you think about game six, that run in the fourth quarter where they started blowing wide open, what was it? It was Tyrese Halliburton, high pick and roll. Cat is sagging in the paint. And Tyrese like, okay, I'm just going to go and hit this floater that I'm excellent at. And he hit again and again.
Stugotz
Those floaters, though, God almighty, they're just killers, backbreakers. They're just there, those floaters. He hit three straight floaters, and each of them was like, that's got to bounce off the rim. Like, that shouldn't go in clean.
Chris Cody
It's a terrible job by those players for holding on to that, that Carl Anthony Towns was not willing to play defense, that he's soft until after the Knicks loss. Say it while the season's going.
Stugotz
I think they may have actually said it to the reporters. And the reporters just held it.
Chris Cody
I think a terrible job by those reporters. I mean, what are we doing?
Stugotz
Well, but Amin's telling you that it's standard operating procedure, that everyone's got their autopsy for the things that went wrong. When you start blaming people, allow me.
Chris Cody
To be the one to criticize Jalen Brunson, okay? Because he's our best player. He's the guy. He's the reason. Because Dallas didn't think he was very good, The Knicks thought he was going to be good. Not this good, but he's turned out to be great. He got them to the Eastern Conference semifinals a year ago. Eastern Conference finals. This year. We also, you know, conveniently forget that Jason Tatum got hurt in the series against the Knicks for Boston. But Jalen Brunson is the leader of that team. He is the leader. Leader. Jalen Brunson, how about you work on your defense? Because when they see the leader, because he's a defensive liability for that team, when the rest of the team sees the guy who's the leader, who's never going to be criticized, working hard to improve his defensive game, the rest of them will fall in line. This is on Jalen Brunson. You could blame Carl Anthony Towns all you want. Jalen Brunson is their best player. If he wins, he gets all the credit it. And when they lose, he deserves at least a portion of the blame.
Stugotz
Let me ask you this, Amin, because I remember the most common criticism of Shaquille o' Neal was some form of work on your free throws. And all I would see Shaquille o' Neal doing was working on his free throws. It's not that he didn't care about his free throws, is that he wasn't good at it. When Stugats demands Karl Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson be better at defense, I don't think they can do be. I don't think they know how to be. I don't think that they have the footwork and speed and quickness and size, both of them, to be what they have to be on defense. I think they're limited there, and no amount of will will make them better at defense. Do I have it wrong?
Tony Kornheiser
So, first of all, for Shaq, you're absolutely right. You know, obviously, I was with him for a year and a half in Phoenix, and he shot something like 80 to 85% in the practice court. And it's not just that he made them. His form looked different. So his whatever anxiety he felt at the free throw line was so crippling that it changed his form. It made him look like he was just kind of shot putting it. When he's on the practice court, he's shooting jump shots, he's pulling up off the dribble. He's mimicking other players. It was pretty intense to watch to see someone go from so confident to just something completely different in game scenario. But to answer your question, I disagree. I do think so. For Brunson, there is a physical element. He's small, so there's only so much he can do. He was one of the league leaders, I believe, in charges taken, so that's good. He's good in that sense. But I think, like, he can do more if he's doing less offensively, because that's the other part of it is, like, he has to carry so much of the offensive burden. What we did was praise how great he was in fourth quarters in his clutch time. That energy comes from somewhere. And he's borrowing from a defense reservoir, probably, right? As far as Towns go, I don't see anything physically preventing him from being a good defensive player. It's literally just mental focus, right? What we're talking about is, like, for instance, those Halliburton floaters. You know what he wants to do. You got to go up and greet him up there. You got to meet him at the screen level, and you can't sag. You can't play that drop coverage. You know this. You know what the defensive game plan is. This is just a guy who either is forgetful or doesn't care. One of the two.
Stugotz
Man, I just.
Greg Cote
I forgot to play defense.
Stugotz
I Have a hard time.
Chris Cody
It's hard to say he doesn't care.
Stugotz
I have a hard time believing that the problems with Karl Anthony Towns aren't matchup problems when they bring, when they bring to him matchups meant to exploit the fact that he's very big and he is graceful enough offensively for that size, but can be slow footed on defense and is only good on defense when he's got a Gobert next to him or a Mitchell Robinson. Because I mean, it's crazy to say that someone that size had one block in the Indiana series and had one block the last time that they were in the Western Conference finals.
Chris Cody
At the core, he's a loser.
Tony Kornheiser
Dan, I'm going to tell you what it is, right? Tom Thibodeau, his staff, they're under no illusions of what he is capable of doing and not capable of doing. So they designed the defensive schemes to take that into account. It's not like, hey, you got to switch on to Halbert and guard him like you're Evan Mobley. They know he's not that. They know he can't do that. But they do have schemes that they want to do. Now this is what coaches always say. We're going to draw up the scheme. You do it this way. If it does not work, that's our bad. If you execute the way we told you to do it and we still get beat, we're still getting scored on, that's our bad, right? We got to go back to the drawing board and figure out something else. But if you'd never do the scheme that we told you to do, how can we ever know? It sounds like from the reporting, he wasn't doing the scheme.
Stugotz
Okay, but let's do it this way, okay? Because you can make the arguments that this is a person that is mentally deficient on defense, they will have more information than us on that. I can say resolutely and flatly, can I not? Carl Anthony Towns is not a good rim protector. Yes or no? You agree with that or you disagree? Carl Anthony Towns is not a rim protector.
Billy Gill
I agree.
Tony Kornheiser
He wasn't this season though.
Stugotz
Yes or no? He's a good rim protector. Yes or no?
Tony Kornheiser
Not the season. No.
Chris Cody
He said no.
Dan LeBatard
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Chris Cody
Folks.
Greg Cote
The Dan Lebatard show with Stugots is sponsored by BetterHelp. BetterHelp. Look, I once tried to power through stress by yelling at my toaster. True story. And it didn't help. Toast was still burnt. Men, we're out here pretending we've got it all figured out. Duct taping our emotions together like we're fixing a leaky boat with a burrito wrapper. And surprise, it's not working. Six million men in the US Suffer from depression every year, and most don't talk about it because, you know, we're too busy being tough and fine and watching highlight reels of ourselves. Missing feelings like layups. Here's the truth, guys.
Chris Cody
Guys.
Greg Cote
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Amin Elhassan
Expertise.
Greg Cote
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Mike Ryan
Look, as a small business, we don't get to clock out, ever. We're always on nights, weekends, holidays. So when it came time to hire someone, we couldn't waste time. We needed help. Real help. Not Stugat's nose. A guy help. We use LinkedIn jobs. And we'll be honest, we didn't expect it to be that easy. We posted the job for free. LinkedIn basically held our hand and wrote the description for us. Next thing you know. Candidates, qualified ones. Not resumes written in crayon. Real people who want to work. Imagine that. LinkedIn gives you all the tools, deep insights, easy filtering, one place to manage everything. We even threw the little hashtag hiring frame on our profile picture, doubled the number of applicants. Now we're part of that 72% of small businesses that say LinkedIn helps them find high quality candidates. Post your job for free@LinkedIn.com dls that's LinkedIn.com dls to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply.
Stugotz
Don LeBatard.
Tony Kornheiser
I'm just here to say one thing. The Knicks are back.
Stugotz
Stugats.
Tony Kornheiser
Tyree Salibraton, six points.
Stugotz
Fraud.
Tony Kornheiser
Everybody was like, yo, he's better than Jalen Brunson.
Stugotz
He's better than Janet should attract to him.
Tony Kornheiser
Fraud.
Amin Elhassan
This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugach. The Panthers not trying to capture Lord Stanley's cup starting tomorrow. Why are we talking about Cat and his rim protecting ability? Geez Louise.
Chris Cody
He is, up until this point in his career, a loser.
Stugotz
I have in front of me. There is only one player in the entire league to win a game in the conference finals last year and win multiple, multiple conference finals games this year. His name is Carl Anthony Towns.
Chris Cody
Huh?
Stugotz
It's the only player in the sport.
Chris Cody
Loser. A loser.
Amin Elhassan
How many Larry o' Brien's does he have, though?
Billy Gill
Zero.
Stugotz
I don't believe that rim protecting of Carl Anthony Towns is something that he's deficient at because he doesn't care about being good at it.
Chris Cody
A loser.
Stugotz
Do you understand how insulting it is to say that of somebody? Do you understand how little it regards what athletes have to do when someone's not good at something and you say, well, they don't care enough to be great at it?
Tony Kornheiser
Dan, I'm not using a blanket statement here because he wasn't good at it as ipso facto, he doesn't care. I'm telling you, based on the reporting, his own teammates felt like he didn't care. And that's different, right? That's a very different thing. We're not doing sports talk radio just calling him, oh, he doesn't care. Whatever. We're going off of, of very good reporting from very good reporters who are tapped into that team. And when we read that, and we know that, like this is how they feel about him internally, that's where we're. The launching point for all of this.
Chris Cody
Is he's a loser. Dan, what do you do with the fact when a guy has all the physical traits, all the physical ability to be a good defender at the rim and yet he's not. What do you do with that?
Stugotz
What do you do with Shaq being good at free throws in practice and then he gets in front of the game and he's not good at free throws like Carl Anthony Towns has Never been regarded by anybody is a good defensive player. And it just is wildly. It's wildly insulting to assume that that's so simply because someone doesn't care enough about being a professional.
Chris Cody
Loser.
Tony Kornheiser
Dan. I made them win the count.
Stugotz
He didn't said it. There was a Detroit series where he didn't make any of the ones that. That needed to count.
Tony Kornheiser
There was a Detroit series where I did. You forgot about that one.
Billy Gill
Could the answer be that he's just slow?
Chris Cody
Loser.
Billy Gill
Right. And like that. And that's. That's the reason why he's a bad defender. He's just really slow and plotting like he.
Tony Kornheiser
That's the. That's the thing.
Billy Gill
If you work on your agility, your quickness, like, maybe you can be a better defender.
Chris Cody
Loser.
Stugotz
The interesting thing about you saying slow is that his teammates are saying it's mentally slow.
Chris Cody
Loser.
Stugotz
That the teammates aren't even saying that it's physically slow. It's that he doesn't understand what they're. What his assignments are on defense. How many times in that series to Guts were you frustrated because the seventh pass to Indiana was making at the end of the shot clock was the one that was wide open in the corner for the most efficient shot? Wide open because they were taking it right before the shot clock because he wasn't doing whatever he had to do on some sort of rotation.
Chris Cody
Loser. I was. I was frustrated the same amount of Carl Anthony Towns as I was at Jalen Brunson for playing.
Stugotz
I will tell you that I think this is what's happening here. I mean, and I think it's what's also happening with his teammates. They're just doing this physically. Jalen's trying hard because look how small he is. Of course, look at how good.
Chris Cody
I mean, optics factor into it.
Stugotz
Yeah, but it's. But perception is not reality. Reality is reality. Like, okay, optics factor into it. They lost, and therefore you call him a loser. I generally am not willing to say that somebody at the top of their profession doesn't care about their profession.
Chris Cody
But Dan, when you have a guy of that size with those physical traits with. With. With ridiculous ability, he does for a guy who was that tall and the last three seasons he's 0.6 blocks per game, you have to start questioning some things.
Stugotz
I'm saying that he's not good at block shots that he. Cement footage.
Chris Cody
He was, though.
Tony Kornheiser
But also, Dan, Dan, like, not caring comes in many different forms. Not caring could be like, man, I don't care. Like, that's. I think how you're taking it. But there's a. There's another form where it's like, hey, I really need you to lock in. All right, cool. Walk out there, and he forgot what we're doing. Doing. Like, that's. That's a level of not caring. It's not a dismissive not caring. It's not like he doesn't feel remorse for it, but it's still a level of you didn't care enough to execute.
Stugotz
I would. I would argue at this point, if you're having trouble with the playbook, it might not be caring. It might be some sort of mental deficiencies that make for difficulty with what the playbook is like. And perhaps that's. That is also insulting. But I'm simply.
Amin Elhassan
Would you rather be told you don't care you're dumb? I mean, I'd rather be told I.
Billy Gill
Don'T care if I'm dumb, but I do care and I'm trying. Then, you know, there's that.
Amin Elhassan
There is that with you.
Stugotz
Amin, your thoughts here on which one's more insulting? Because I do believe we can just have the assessment. It's allowed. He's not good at this.
Chris Cody
Loser.
Tony Kornheiser
I would definitely not want anyone to question my mental ability to do anything. I would rather you think that I'm just laying lazy or I don't care, or I'm dismissive a million times before I have anyone call me a dumbass out there.
Stugotz
Put it on the poll at LeBatard show. Which would bother you more? People thinking you're lazy or people thinking you're dumb?
Chris Cody
I get both.
Amin Elhassan
So turns out Shaq won four NBA titles. Not a loser.
Chris Cody
Not a loser, not a loser.
Amin Elhassan
It doesn't matter about his free throws three straight. Four times, they didn't win the count.
Stugotz
You said that Carl Anthony Towns is a loser. I skated in with the math, and from my math friends of he's slightly over 50, 500 since his college career. What do you imagine the Knicks record is over the last 25 years? Is Carl Anthony Towns the loser? Is the organization the loser? Do you think the Knicks have won more than they've lost the last 25 years?
Chris Cody
The funny thing about this entire conversation, he's six wins away from being the savior. Ridiculous.
Stugotz
I understand why we call athletes losers. In no walk of life or occupation does the way that that man is measured end up with any other person of comparable skills being called a loser.
Billy Gill
Knicks are 869 and 1139 between June 3, 2000 and June 3, 2025.
Stugotz
They run Halliburton.
Chris Cody
Losers.
Stugotz
New York runs Halliburton from watching the next round.
Chris Cody
Watch.
Stugotz
New York is running Tyrese Halliburton. Burton.
Chris Cody
Sal is right about that, though, right? Loser. We don't talk about Halliburton when he's playing the Bucks. We don't talk about Halliburton except when he plays the Knicks every year in the playoffs. We made Halliburton.
Stugotz
I have said before that New York, when it comes to the math of things, is always time squaring everyone's importance, including the failed realtor that's now president of the United States. Because when you are a fraud there, you can be a fraud anywhere.
Sal Licata
We made you. We run you.
Tony Kornheiser
Such a great dismount, man. It's a what? Play it again.
Sal Licata
We made you. We run you.
Tony Kornheiser
It's. It's. It's that. It's that rhythm. Yeah.
Stugotz
It does have song in it. It does have the. The quintessential New York arrogance that you want. It just doesn't allow for the fact that your season is over.
Sal Licata
We made you. We run you.
Tony Kornheiser
Their season being over is what made him in.
Chris Cody
Yeah.
Greg Cote
Did he have, like, two seconds left on the clock? And he's like, we run you. And then he's like, I got two more seconds. I gotta say something else. Just like. It just felt forced, like you dismounted and then you did something else.
Sal Licata
We made you.
Greg Cote
Oh, two seconds left.
Sal Licata
We run you.
Chris Cody
We've all been there, though.
Stugotz
It's so good, though, in how empty it is.
Sal Licata
We made you. We run you.
Tony Kornheiser
4.
Amin Elhassan
2.
Stugotz
They lost after he's eliminated.
Sal Licata
We made you. We run you.
Stugotz
The Pacers are one of the great underdogs to ever make the finals. The Pacers would be, if they won the championship, the single most surprising team to ever win the championship. And that's sport ever.
Tony Kornheiser
No, not ever. 75 warriors.
Chris Cody
Ooh. Who was on that team?
Tony Kornheiser
I've had that one before.
Billy Gill
He's had that take before.
Amin Elhassan
Al Adels best player, you could say, in the last 50 years, though.
Tony Kornheiser
Nate Thurman, Rick Barry.
Stugotz
What were the.
Tony Kornheiser
Your arch nemesis.
Chris Cody
I mean, Nate the Great.
Stugotz
What were the 75 warriors in terms of record? What were they as an underdog before the season, and what were they as a seed?
Tony Kornheiser
I think the answer to all those things are gonna confirm what I'm saying, which is because this was a team that was designed to fail. They wanted to tank that season because they were trying to move the team, and Al Adols was given control, and they said, hey, man, get whoever you Want. And he actually went out and like loaded the player, the roster with black players, which was at the time unheard of.
Billy Gill
48 and 34 in their season. In 74, 75, Rick Barry, 30 points a game wide.
Tony Kornheiser
Rick Barry was killing.
Chris Cody
He was a baller.
Billy Gill
Six assistant.
Stugotz
And the, the Pacers won how many this year? 50.
Tony Kornheiser
Yep.
Stugotz
Yeah, this. I don't know if I can say that it is more surprising to have a black team that we weren't expecting to be black, win the championship, led by white guy. Yeah, but you, you just said something about the 75 warriors that suggested that when they were white, nobody expected anything from them. And then they became a black team led by Rick Barry, the championship.
Tony Kornheiser
No, what I said was. What I said was they were. The team was designed to fail because they were trying to move the team. And so they told Al Adels, get whoever you want. And so he got a bunch of black players. And they're like, yeah, whatever, knock yourself out. And that's the idea was this was. This is going according to plan. This was a team that was planning to tank the season. So before you asked me what were there before the season, what before the finals, all that stuff though, throughout the whole way, everyone was like, this team is going to fail. Even as they got to the finals, they're playing the ball bullets. And everyone said, okay, that was a nice little Cinderella run you guys did, but you're gonna get your ass beat now. And what'd they end up doing? Tony Sweep. They swept them.
Mike Ryan
Howdy, folks, it's Mike Ryan. Now, if you've been listening to the show a lot lately, you've heard so much playoff talk, playoff hoops. Down here in South Florida, we're especially enamored with playoff hockey. It's not just limited to the playoffs. Motorsports, tennis, golf. It's truly one of the best times in the sporting calendar. And with the weather outside warm and up, it's just perfect to hop in a pool, maybe grill up some food, but most certainly crack open some Miller Lights. I just described a pretty perfect day, didn't I? And it culminates with Miller time. There is something about a perfect grilling day. The sun's out, friends show up, and that first sip of Miller Lite just hits different. I've been stocking up the cooler with it for years. This year, Miller Lite turns 50. That is five decades of cookouts, laughs, and ice cold moments that never miss. And if you've listened to the show for its 20 year existence, you know this to be true. Miller Lite. Great taste. 96 calories. Go to millerlight.com dan to find delivery options near you. Or you can pick up some Miller Lite pretty much anywhere they sell beer. Cheers to 50 years of Miller time. Celebrate responsibly. Miller Brewing Co. Milwaukee, WI 96 calories and 3.2 carbs per 12 ounces.
Tony Kornheiser
Look.
Mike Ryan
As a small business, we don't get to clock out.
Chris Cody
Ever.
Mike Ryan
We're always on nights, weekends, holidays. So when it came time to hire someone, we couldn't waste time. We needed help. Real help. Not Stugot's nose, a guy help. We used LinkedIn jobs. And we'll be honest, we didn't expect it to be that easy. We posted the job for free. LinkedIn basically held our hand and wrote the description for us. Next thing you know, candidates qualified one. Not resumes written in crayon. Real people who want to work. Imagine that LinkedIn gives you all the tools. Deep insights, easy filtering, one place to manage everything. We even threw the little hashtag hiring frame on our profile picture. Doubled the number of applicants. Now we're part of that 72% of small businesses that say LinkedIn helps them find high quality candidates. Post your job for free@LinkedIn.com dls that's LinkedIn.com dls to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply.
Podcast Summary: The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Episode: Local Hour: We Made You, We Run You
Release Date: June 3, 2025
In the "Local Hour: We Made You, We Run You" episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, hosts Dan Le Batard and Stugotz delve into a spirited discussion encompassing media feuds, the intersection of sports and pop culture, and a critical analysis of the New York Knicks' recent performance. This comprehensive summary captures the episode's key moments, notable quotes, and the dynamic interplay between the hosts.
The episode opens with a heated discussion about the ongoing feud between sports journalist Pablo Torre and media personality Bill Simmons. Amin Elhassan initiates the conversation by questioning Torre's approach to feuding with industry figures for attention.
Notable Quote:
Bill Simmons said, "I've never seen anybody dine on a stupider story for a week and a half while pretending you're a journalist."
— Mike Ryan [05:05]
Stugotz and other hosts express skepticism towards Torre's journalistic integrity, highlighting Simmons' public criticism. The conversation underscores tensions within sports media and raises questions about professionalism and credibility.
Shifting gears, the hosts engage in a lighthearted debate about the portrayal of athleticism by actors in sports-related movies. Tony Kornheiser brings up examples such as Warren Beatty in Heaven Can Wait and John C. Reilly's performance in Catcher in the Rye, questioning the realism of their athletic capabilities.
Notable Quote:
"Tell me. I mean, there have to be. What is it? Is it DiCaprio?"
— Stugotz [08:00]
The discussion highlights the challenges actors face in convincingly depicting athletes, with mentions of Leonardo DiCaprio's struggles in The Basketball Diaries and Kevin Bacon's basketball scenes. The hosts critique the lack of genuine athleticism, emphasizing the disconnect between acting and real sports performance.
A significant portion of the episode centers on the New York Knicks' impressive season, marking their best performance in a quarter-century. However, beneath the surface success lies a contentious critique of key players, particularly Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson.
Notable Quotes:
"He is a loser... His biggest problem. The guy is a loser."
— Chris Cody [11:58]
"We made you. We run you."
— Sal Licata [21:40]
The hosts dissect Towns' defensive shortcomings, labeling him a "loser" due to perceived deficiencies in rim protection and overall defensive play. The debate intensifies as they consider whether Towns' issues stem from a lack of effort or inherent skill limitations. Additionally, Jalen Brunson is scrutinized for his defensive role, with arguments about his leadership and on-court performance.
Dan LeBatard and Stugotz further explore the Knicks' playoff journey, questioning strategic decisions and player responsibilities. The discussion reflects broader themes of accountability in sports and the fine line between constructive criticism and derogatory labeling.
Injecting some humor and local flavor, the hosts discuss the novelty of alligator hot dogs being served at Marlins Park. The conversation veers into the taste comparison between alligator meat and chicken, sparking varied opinions among the hosts.
Notable Quote:
"It tastes like a chicken that's been swimming."
— Tony Kornheiser [15:18]
Stugotz and others debate the texture and flavor profile of alligator meat, with Tony humorously likening it to a mix between chicken and calamari. The segment serves as a playful interlude, showcasing the hosts' rapport and ability to pivot between intense sports talk and lighthearted topics.
As the episode progresses towards its conclusion, the hosts tie back to earlier themes, referencing historical NBA teams such as the 75th Anniversary Warriors. They reflect on past underdog successes and draw parallels to the Knicks' current trajectory, emphasizing the cyclical nature of sports fortunes.
Notable Quote:
"Tony Sweep. They swept them."
— Tony Kornheiser [44:03]
The final segments blend nostalgia with present analysis, providing listeners with a rich tapestry of sports history and its influence on today's game dynamics. The hosts wrap up the episode by reiterating their critical stance on player performances while celebrating the Knicks' organizational strides.
Conclusion:
"Local Hour: We Made You, We Run You" offers a multifaceted exploration of sports media feuds, the portrayal of athleticism in entertainment, and an incisive critique of the New York Knicks' season. Through engaging dialogue and notable quotes, Dan Le Batard and Stugotz provide listeners with both entertainment and thoughtful analysis, maintaining the show's signature blend of passion and humor.