The Big Suey: The Future of the Thunder

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Big Suey: The Future of the Thunder

Podcast Information:

• Title: The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
• Hosts: Dan Le Batard, Stugotz
• Episode: The Big Suey: The Future of the Thunder
• Release Date: May 23, 2025

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1. Introduction to the Episode

In this episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, hosts Dan Le Batard and Stugotz delve into the intricate dynamics shaping the future of the Oklahoma City Thunder (OKC). The discussion spans various facets, including recent investigative journalism, NBA rule interpretations, and strategic team management through trades and draft picks. The episode is rich with insights, humor, and candid opinions from sports enthusiasts.

---

2. Pablo’s Investigation into Belichick and Michael Jordan

Timestamp: [06:15]

A significant portion of the episode centers around Pablo’s investigative reporting concerning Bill Belichick and Michael Jordan. The hosts express skepticism and concern over the invasive nature of Pablo’s methods.

• Dan Le Batard: "I was never in on this story. It bothered the hell out of me because it's just like, man, why do we need to go inside these personal lives of these folks..." ([07:03])

• Billy Corben: "Pablo, what the... This is crazy. I don't understand what this is." ([08:01])

The discussion highlights issues related to privacy invasion, especially concerning high-profile individuals like Belichick and Jordan. The hosts debate the ethical implications of digging into personal lives and the potential repercussions on public figures.

---

3. Ethical Implications of Investigative Journalism

Timestamp: [09:06]

The conversation extends to the broader impact of such investigations on individuals’ lives and public perception.

• Dan Le Batard: "But he's wearing clothes. Yeah, unfortunately." ([08:24])

• Billy Corben: "If we were dealing with a case of, like, pick someone else... Then it's different." ([10:36])

The hosts question the necessity and morality of exposing private matters, especially when the subjects are public figures with substantial influence.

---

4. Misinterpretations of NBA Rules and Player Conduct

Timestamp: [24:00]

The discussion shifts to NBA rules, specifically focusing on Anthony Edwards (SGA) and the interpretation of fouls during games.

• Amin Elhassan: "It's artful. It's so frustrating. I wish people would take a second to just watch these games without worrying about the group think that's on social media..." ([31:06])

• Billy Corben: "James Harden probably the first person to really perfect it." ([33:31])

The hosts critique Nick Wright’s commentary on SGA's fouling tendencies, arguing that social media narratives often distort the true nature of on-court actions. They emphasize the importance of understanding player strategies, such as deceleration and positioning, to appreciate the nuances of basketball gameplay.

---

5. Evolution of the NBA Game and Defensive Strategies

Timestamp: [33:18]

Exploring the evolution of basketball, the hosts discuss how modern players embody a balanced skill set, making them versatile both offensively and defensively.

• Billy Corben: "SGA, like Luka Doncic, like James Harden...decstop.com' ([33:56])

• Amin Elhassan: "It's artful." ([33:57])

The conversation underscores the shift from specialized players to those with a well-rounded game, highlighting how this evolution impacts team strategies and player development.

---

6. Oklahoma City Thunder: Trades, Draft Picks, and Future Outlook

Timestamp: [35:00]

A central theme of the episode is the strategic maneuvers by the Oklahoma City Thunder to build a formidable roster through insightful trades and effective utilization of draft picks.

• Billy Corben: "They traded Paul George for Sabonis and Victor Oladipo and then Sabonis was then traded for Tyrese Haliburton." ([37:30])

• Dan Le Batard: "They also got picks from that Russell Westbrook trade." ([37:43])

The hosts analyze the implications of these trades, emphasizing how acquiring players like Tyrese Haliburton and securing multiple high-value draft picks positions the Thunder for sustained success. They discuss the importance of balancing experienced players with emerging talents to create a competitive and adaptable team.

• Dan Le Batard: "You could point to Paul George. Like them trading Paul George was the start of what got us here." ([37:57])

• Billy Corben: "They hit on so many good draft picks that they were able to trade Josh Giddey... for a role player, and Alex Caruso because they knew they could just fill out the rest of their roster." ([38:43])

The episode highlights the Thunder's long-term vision, leveraging past trades to acquire future assets, and the strategic importance of each move in shaping the team's trajectory.

---

7. Fan Perspectives and Team Loyalty

Timestamp: [40:02]

Dan Le Batard introduces a thought-provoking scenario comparing the current Thunder roster to a past iteration featuring Kevin Durant (KD) and Russell Westbrook.

• Dan Le Batard: "Would Oklahoma City Thunder fans rather right now obviously their favorites for the next two rounds are this is the best position they've been in to win a championship maybe since 2012..." ([40:02])

• Jeremy Tache: "I think they keep this iteration." ([41:37])

The hosts explore the emotional and strategic dilemmas fans face when choosing between a historically successful team with star power versus a strategically built team with sustained potential. They discuss loyalty, fanbase expectations, and the challenges of team rebuilding in professional sports.

---

8. Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Timestamp: [42:46]

As the episode concludes, the hosts reflect on the importance of strategic planning in team management and the role of investigative journalism and media commentary in shaping public perceptions of sports figures.

• Dan Le Batard: "They talk about that constantly. There's never been a great defense. You know what I like about them? They do it clean. They do it right." ([34:16])

• Billy Corben: "Most journalists are great journalists. But yes, he's a dick." ([14:09])

The hosts reiterate the significance of balancing media scrutiny with respect for personal privacy and emphasize the Thunder's promising future based on meticulous team-building strategies.

---

Notable Quotes:

• Dan Le Batard: "Why do we need to go inside these personal lives of these folks..." ([07:03])

• Billy Corben: "Pablo, what the... This is crazy. I don't understand what this is." ([08:01])

• Amin Elhassan: "It's artful. It's so frustrating. I wish people would take a second to just watch these games..." ([31:06])

• Billy Corben: "They traded Paul George for Sabonis and Victor Oladipo and then Sabonis was then traded for Tyrese Haliburton." ([37:30])

• Jeremy Tache: "I think they keep this iteration." ([41:37])

---

Conclusion

In "The Big Suey: The Future of the Thunder," Dan Le Batard and Stugotz provide an in-depth analysis of the Oklahoma City Thunder's strategic growth, the ethical boundaries of sports journalism, and the evolving landscape of NBA gameplay. Through engaging dialogue and expert insights, the episode offers listeners a comprehensive understanding of the forces shaping both individual players and the team's future prospects.

Transcript

[Mike Ryan]

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[Dan Le Batard]

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[Stugotz]

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[Dan Le Batard]

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[Billy Corben]

Why are you listening to this show?

[Dan Le Batard]

The podcast that seems very similar to the other Dan Lebatard podcast. I'm sorry.

[Amin Elhassan]

I'm not going to apologize for that.

[Dan Le Batard]

In fact, the the only difference seems to be this imaging.

[Billy Corben]

I have been tempted in restaurants just walking past tables to grab somebody's fries that if they're just there. That hasn't happened to you guys.

[Dan Le Batard]

I've done it.

[Billy Corben]

And now here's the marching man to.

[Dan Le Batard]

Nowhere Fat face and the habitual liar.

[Stugotz]

This episode is presented by DraftKings. DraftKings. The Crown is yours.

[Dan Le Batard]

What was the pump there? The train. What are you doing there?

[Stugotz]

Just working it.

[Dan Le Batard]

Choo choo.

[Stugotz]

I Like them.

[Billy Corben]

You know what's funny? When you guys do that now, I don't know when you're playing the clip or what I'm talking or when anyone. Like, everyone's gotten so good at doing that one impression. Just limited fake. Hawk.

[Chris Cote]

I love it, man. I like them. That means I'm truly a part of the family and I appreciate it, man. Regardless, if people think my name is Walter, I'm okay with that.

[Billy Corben]

Walter.

[Chris Cote]

I've actually. I've actually started to embrace the name. I looked up T shirts this week that said, hi, my name is Walter. But they wouldn't have got here on time for me to wear it to the studio.

[Dan Le Batard]

So I could see you as a Walter. You give off a little.

[Chris Cote]

Do I look give a Walter 90s tactical.

[Dan Le Batard]

It wouldn't be Walt, but Walter.

[Chris Cote]

I feel like it has to be Walt. As a black man, there's no way I could be Walter and not be called Walt.

[Dan Le Batard]

What? Williams.

[Stugotz]

By the way, we got a note from our producer Taylor during that last segment, and I think he hit the nail on the head here as far as the style, the vest. Jeremy versus Hawk. This is a two America's thing. Nothing Jeremy wears could look cool, and nothing Hawk wears would not look cool.

[Billy Corben]

That's a good point.

[Amin Elhassan]

I think it's totally fair. From another I try. I try so hard.

[Chris Cote]

Goat brother. Yeah. From the other goat of racially.

[Billy Corben]

What is he?

[Chris Cote]

He is. He has the authority to speak.

[Jeremy Tache]

Hawk, when you walked in, you were like.

[Billy Corben]

Especially after you said, what's up?

[Stugotz]

My.

[Dan Le Batard]

What's up, Walter?

[Chris Cote]

What's the angle?

[Jeremy Tache]

What's the angle of that hand? Are we going this way?

[Dan Le Batard]

Are we going up? We're going down.

[Chris Cote]

Where are we here?

[Jeremy Tache]

What's the angle?

[Billy Corben]

That's a big one, man. Incoming thing. Also, when you find out Taylor's last name is Vipulous, that even makes him more confused.

[Chris Cote]

Was that Greek?

[Billy Corben]

I don't know. I don't know what it is.

[Chris Cote]

We don't know.

[Billy Corben]

But Taylor. The mention of Taylor reminds me of something. It reminds me of North Carolina, which reminds me of the one and only Michael Jordan. Well, no, no. Bill Belichick. Close. Michael Jordan. Jordan, maybe.

[Chris Cote]

Have you talked to Michael Jordan recently?

[Billy Corben]

Not since hall of Fame, when he.

[Chris Cote]

So when he got inducted in the hall of Fame a decade ago, he'll.

[Dan Le Batard]

Talk to him at his funeral when he goes, what?

[Billy Corben]

Not a couple words. Not since Jay Adande going into the hall of Fame.

[Chris Cote]

And I like, oh, this is a meme. That's what Michael Jordan.

[Billy Corben]

This is who Brother, I wish. I wish it was like that. I wish it was like that.

[Dan Le Batard]

We played this game.

[Chris Cote]

I love playing it. It's my favorite game.

[Stugotz]

I wish MJ knew me less.

[Billy Corben]

Hey, man. Hey. All I gotta say is I didn't try to talk to him. He stopped me. He stopped me. And you know what? Shout out to mj, Man.

[Chris Cote]

Are you wearing Jordans right now?

[Billy Corben]

Of course I'm wearing Jordans right now. These are team Jordans, not Team Jordan.

[Chris Cote]

Oh, my gosh. He's never met you in his life.

[Billy Corben]

These are not team Jordans, sir. You don't even know what these are exactly.

[Chris Cote]

What are those?

[Billy Corben]

These are exactly. You're just showing your ignorance right now. You don't. Wait, go. Go wait in line at finish line for your pair, okay? God. Yeah. This guy.

[Chris Cote]

Finish line.

[Dan Le Batard]

That was unnecessary.

[Stugotz]

Can we at least show the audience.

[Mike Ryan]

Foot action?

[Billy Corben]

Yeah. All right. There you go.

[Stugotz]

I don't see. I don't think they saw.

[Billy Corben]

They're zooming in on it right now.

[Chris Cote]

What are they? Seriously?

[Billy Corben]

They're SP ones, I want to say.

[Chris Cote]

What are SP ones?

[Billy Corben]

You don't have to worry about. You don't need to worry about what's happening at high levels, Sean.

[Chris Cote]

I like how you keep it vague. It's like I'm not telling you because it's. If you know, you know. Or I'm not telling you because. Tony, you remember, nobody likes them.

[Billy Corben]

You remember when it was in the playoffs and it was. I know. It was the warriors, and someone was complaining, and I was like, yo, you don't need to concern yourself with things that. Durant said that to C.J.

[Jeremy Tache]

Mccullough. Yes, yes, yes.

[Billy Corben]

I knew I was going to get there Sooner or later. SP1, by the way, I'm looking at Hawk Screen. He's. I swear to God, he's got the SBJ 40 under 40, like, invite on the screen.

[Chris Cote]

That's not an invite, that's a retreat.

[Billy Corben]

Okay, whatever.

[Chris Cote]

The honorees. Yeah. Apparently, I gotta. I haven't gotten around to signing up. And I'm one of those people that keep the tabs open till I'm like, okay, I just. My to do list. Like, all my tabs are my to do list.

[Billy Corben]

So before we got sidetracked on this whole Michael Jones, my best friend thing, I want to talk about Pablo, who's taking this investigation into Jordan slash Belichick to another level. So we remember the video of Belichick leaving this house with it every day, right? Yes, exactly.

[Chris Cote]

Why was that a big deal?

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, great audio.

[Billy Corben]

It's Great audio, for one. But for another thing, they keep trying to deny, right? And Pablo, when he came out with that story and they said he was wrong and false and all that stuff, he came with a very cryptic message like, yo, don't let me go back into the archives and pull some.

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, here's why. It was a question, right? And I didn't get this either. It's like, why? If it was, as it was reported that this was Jordan's house, then why would she leak the ring cam footage? Right? Ah, that sound. Yeah, just listen first. But if she. So why would she leak the ring cam? It all seems pretty contrived. Like it. And then. So this is where Pablo kept doing some digging.

[Billy Corben]

Kept doing some digging. And guess what, guys? He done dug. Let's let him tell it. Not that, Doug.

[Chris Cote]

Okay, I'm about to say Jeremy exclusively.

[Dan Le Batard]

For the first time is the other video.

[Billy Corben]

Oh, my God.

[Dan Le Batard]

Oh, he has a satchel.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah, it's got a little merse orc bag, right?

[Dan Le Batard]

He is very shirtless.

[Billy Corben]

Let's go into this. He has, like a leather satchel, isn't it?

[Dan Le Batard]

Okay, so he's still topless. Absolutely.

[Billy Corben]

Yum, yum.

[Dan Le Batard]

Delish.

[Billy Corben]

Great. A bag with a leather strap that he's clearly not figured out how to tighten because it's looped in a way you definitely wouldn't be choosing at this point.

[Dan Le Batard]

I decided to take a trip. You went to the town.

[Billy Corben]

Shut up, Pablo.

[Dan Le Batard]

You've been to this house. If you show me a ring cam video with you.

[Chris Cote]

No.

[Billy Corben]

Pablo, what the.

[Stugotz]

Pablo at the house.

[Dan Le Batard]

Pablo, what the. This is crazy. This is crazy. I don't understand what this is.

[Billy Corben]

This is the craziest part, right?

[Dan Le Batard]

I don't understand.

[Chris Cote]

What podcast.

[Amin Elhassan]

Oh, my God.

[Billy Corben]

Where are we? What's going on?

[Stugotz]

Recreation of the Bella Check ring video.

[Billy Corben]

What's going on?

[Dan Le Batard]

But he's wearing clothes.

[Stugotz]

Yeah, unfortunately.

[Jeremy Tache]

He should have done a shirtless coward.

[Dan Le Batard]

This is why he has an Emmy.

[Chris Cote]

He should have committed.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's a crazy person.

[Billy Corben]

That's insane level of pain.

[Dan Le Batard]

I was never in on this story. It bothered the hell out of me because it's just like, man, why do we need to go inside these personal lives of these folks, regardless of how many generations of gap there is between them, but Pablo got me into it. And I don't know if it was just the little detail of he's the highest paid public employee in the state of North Carolina, which, by the way.

[Billy Corben]

That'S standard in most states, that the highest paid employee is the populoc.

[Dan Le Batard]

But don't tell me he wouldn't be as intrigued if he was still working for the private New England Patriots and had this situation. But then the idea of this person that we've known for so long as the do your job guy, the no distractions guy, is bringing a heck of a distraction with him to unc. And then on top of everything else, despite the fact that she is doing all these things, like basically controlling all of his interviews, she's still denying things that are being reported, still sort of mocking Pablo because he retweeted somebody who said that Pablo needs to get a hobby when Pablo reported that she's been around the Patriots since 2021. And so when they're denying all this stuff, trying to mock him, you think that's going to make Pablo want to do more reporting or less reporting?

[Stugotz]

If you think that this story is interesting, you have to listen to this episode of Pablo.

[Dan Le Batard]

I don't want to give too much because he hucks.

[Billy Corben]

He.

[Stugotz]

He goes. Obvious just saw. He goes to this Airbnb, he talks to the owners, he interviews them about Belichick and Jordan being there. It's just very interesting. They didn't even recognize Belichick at first. They were like, is this.

[Dan Le Batard]

He's got a couple of gotcha moments where they sort of deny something? And he's just like, nope, there's evidence.

[Chris Cote]

This is true violation of hipaa, basically.

[Stugotz]

I mean, maybe they didn't. They weren't revealed like it was. They did it anonymously.

[Billy Corben]

So.

[Jeremy Tache]

So what's the HIPAA law on what we're looking at?

[Chris Cote]

We don't have Airbnb, HIPAA laws.

[Dan Le Batard]

They said to their.

[Billy Corben]

The.

[Dan Le Batard]

The owners, in the description, there is a line that says there are ring cams outside. So you're aware, so you will be recorded in that situation.

[Billy Corben]

This is my thing about this whole thing, right? Like, if we were dealing with a case of, like, pick someone else, right? Like, pick anyone else who doesn't have a public nature of their relationship, right? Then it's different, right? Like, then it's like, hey, man, you guys. But they invite, they open the doors, they come, come.

[Dan Le Batard]

Bel goes from the most private person ever to doing weird photo shoots and putting that out on social.

[Stugotz]

And you're thinking, how did Pablo figure out where the Airbnb was?

[Billy Corben]

Where?

[Stugotz]

Like, there must have been some insight.

[Dan Le Batard]

They.

[Stugotz]

They essentially found it. Maybe I'm giving away too much. Go watch the episode. But they found it from the comments. Like, she gave a review of the Airbnb.

[Mike Ryan]

They.

[Stugotz]

That's how they found where the ABNB was. By just like, oh, someone named Jordan on this date wrote, great spot. Very, you know, here's the deal.

[Billy Corben]

Like, they, you kind of are doing courting this, right? They court it, they look for it. And this is where it's found. You know what it's like? It's like when Britney Spears, I watched that Britney Spears documentary and she was complaining about like, man, I went to Starbucks. And then I got, I'm like, baby girl, you can't go to Starbucks anymore. Did you, did it not tell you that? Like, you've reached a point where going to Starbucks, someone goes to Starbucks for you. You don't go in the drive thru anymore. Same thing here.

[Dan Le Batard]

It's like, you gotta call him Baby boy.

[Billy Corben]

Yeah, Baby boy. Hey, baby. Baby boy.

[Amin Elhassan]

Well, and the difference here is like, these are grown adults, right? So like Britney Spears, she was a young girl. Well, no. By the time that happened, sure. But she was a young girl by the time she was granted. Celebrity never got the chance to make the decision. She never got a chance to make the decision. These are two people who have actively made the decision in their adult lives. This is what we want to bring on. We want to bring on this public spotlight and people are going to have questions and go down a rabbit hole. Particularly if you have a complicated relationship.

[Billy Corben]

Like, it's not that it's complicated to me. Like, the age is like the least of it. It's at Belichick. It's the least of it.

[Amin Elhassan]

It's where it started.

[Billy Corben]

It's at Belichick.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yes.

[Dan Le Batard]

The least of it.

[Billy Corben]

It's the least of it. To me.

[Chris Cote]

To me, 19 and 6.

[Dan Le Batard]

Here's where. To me, this is where. This is where the question marks come in. Any relationship.

[Chris Cote]

She was.

[Billy Corben]

Okay, she was 19 in 20, 21.

[Dan Le Batard]

Any relationship you have. What are the first questions? One of the first couple questions, hey, how'd you guys meet? And of course, you tell what's very seriously, right? When you shut that down immediately, we're not going to talk about that. It sounds sketchy.

[Billy Corben]

This is, this is why I think it's particularly weird. It's because Belichick has always been this fortress. You can't get to know this dude at all, right? We hear stories like, oh, he's actually really funny. We don't know that his players know it because he's always been inside. So now all of a sudden, the most secretive man in the sport, I'm seeing his whole life. Of course, that, that begs questions. The other Part of it is when you get. This is what I've learned, man. When you get caught, just like, hey, man, you got me. The protesting and, oh, you don't know what you're talking about. Turns out we do know what we're talking about. That's the part where you ask the question. You think that's gonna make Pablo report more, report less?

[Chris Cote]

I think it's.

[Billy Corben]

It's one thing to be like, yeah, man, but this is kind of an invasion of privacy. In which case I think Pablo will probably get shamed and back off. But when you say you're wrong, that ain't true, Pablo, you don't think it's true. Oh, you wanna see this? Like that?

[Stugotz]

I'm gonna go recreate the video.

[Billy Corben]

Exactly.

[Stugotz]

He should have been shirtless. We all agree, right?

[Billy Corben]

Can we agree that Toba's a dick?

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah.

[Stugotz]

Oh, for sure.

[Billy Corben]

That is a good journalist.

[Chris Cote]

Great journalist.

[Billy Corben]

Most journalists are great journalists. But yes, he's a dick.

[Stugotz]

Just so, like, smug. Walking through that house like the turn.

[Chris Cote]

And wait till this drop.

[Billy Corben]

Turn and wait. Exactly.

[Stugotz]

So that's.

[Billy Corben]

I can't wait for this shit to.

[Chris Cote]

Wait till we transition from the BTS view right to the ring. I can't.

[Dan Le Batard]

I don't want to give away too much. I want to say, I feel like this isn't even the most insane level of research he did for this episode.

[Stugotz]

Yeah, it's great.

[Dan Le Batard]

There's another level of something that he did that'll just make you say, this dude's crazy. Because taking a trip to a nice little spoiler alert beach town in Boston, you know, not that difficult. Especially when you know you're going to get that right. It's a. So when you do the other thing.

[Stugotz]

That he did later, a really small Airbnb, by the way.

[Chris Cote]

That's not like. That's not the area I would expect Bill Belichick to be in.

[Billy Corben]

There's so much of this that's just.

[Stugotz]

Outside of Boston, apparently.

[Billy Corben]

There's so much of this whole thing that always screams to me, small time, trying to do big time things.

[Chris Cote]

Well, I think she's young. And I'm not trying to.

[Stugotz]

Leaving reviews with your name like Taz.

[Billy Corben]

I'm trying to do big time things. You don't.

[Chris Cote]

You're. You're not. You don't know the game. And so it's like, okay, Bill Belichick. And she's convinced this older gentleman. And I don't want to make it sound like Bill Belichick's a victim. That's not What I'm insinuating. But she's like, okay, no, in this world, you have to have a public image. You need to be using this. This is how you get the opportunities this is. And so now he's like, all right, I'm gonna give it to the expert. But the expert is 24. So when she eggs on Pablo, you don't realize it's like a kid. Like when they're lying and they're like.

[Jeremy Tache]

Doubling down on the line, this will get over.

[Chris Cote]

And they're 12. And you're like, I've been 12.

[Amin Elhassan]

That's in the strategy.

[Chris Cote]

This is easy to see through. And here's why. Because I've done this a million times. Pablo and her. Oh, you don't think I can go get more information? Watch, let me show you.

[Billy Corben]

This is why I say it's small time trying to do big time things. Because the mentality, the strategy through all of this is kind of like what Instagram influencer, I've got 300,000 followers would do. But she doesn't understand or doesn't or refuses to understand that, like, he has something that's bigger. And that's what a lot of what I find. Younger generations right now, they can't imagine, right? Like, it's the type of people who say, like, something like, oh, you know, Sabrina Carpenter is the biggest star there's ever been. I'm like, dog, you haven't seen Michael Jackson. When I tell you, like, yo, people were fainting. They were fainting at his shows and crying and ripping their clothes off. And like, you don't know what that looks like. Because your metric for fame is you got a bunch of likes and follows and all that. And it's like, so that's the kind of thing. She's approaching it from a very, like, Instagram famous thing, which is like, yes, you do leave a comment on. On the thing, because that's how that you gain the. The cloud. Like, ooh. But you don't understand. No, no, no, man. We don't leave paper trails around here. We don't wear Jordans from the finish line. Like Rack or.

[Chris Cote]

I've been searching your Jordans for the last 10 minutes and have not found them.

[Billy Corben]

Can't find them.

[Chris Cote]

Mosquito Valentine ones SP1. Nothing showed up. I think you're lying.

[Billy Corben]

I'm not lying. Hold on.

[Chris Cote]

All right, well, no, you keep the show going, don't I?

[Billy Corben]

I wanted someone.

[Chris Cote]

You're in the main chair.

[Billy Corben]

We got. So to all of that, I say, look, man, when they got the easiest Play for her from the beginning was, this is a gross invasion of our privacy. Like, look, we're private citizens. We're allowed to post on Instagram. We're allowed to, like, any different from you or whatever. This part where you dig into my life, it's kind of uncomfortable. Yeah, that's the way you do it. Not, ah, that shit ain't true. Because then of course you gonna catch.

[Stugotz]

We're not talking about this.

[Jeremy Tache]

But if you're trying to be famous, right? Like, she's doing all the things that she's doing to try and get famous. You le a review on an Airbnb website when you don't think you're going to be famous five years from now. And then all of a sudden, five years from now, people are looking back and saying, oh, this is the Airbnb because you said this and this and that.

[Dan Le Batard]

The idea of just like, what's the point of lying? Never mind that. Like, okay, you don't want to talk about it because they met when she was 19. And it might be a little weird, but you're going to get exposed if you lie about it. Because I'll say, look, I'm just going to say it. I'm sorry, Pablo, he went. There's actually cameras, fan cams at every. At these Gillette Stadium, where if you put in your seat number for a game and a date, you can get a high res image of you. And so that means that there are cameras everywhere you go. Everywhere. And that's sort of what got her busted as being associated with the, with the, the Patriots from 2021. So it's not even about you.

[Chris Cote]

Pablo finds out now that you stepped on his episode, I can't imagine what he's going to do in his next episode.

[Dan Le Batard]

But yeah, look, it doesn't even matter so much what you do to expose yourself. Like even that review, if you're doing things that are wrong or are inconsistent with the truth, it's going to come out. If you're a public figure because of people like Pablo.

[Billy Corben]

Yeah, they're the MA2s, not SP1's mother.

[Chris Cote]

Okay. Yes.

[Dan Le Batard]

That was so different.

[Chris Cote]

So in the nose.

[Dan Le Batard]

Entirely different number, different number, different letters.

[Chris Cote]

You have no idea who Michael Jordan is.

[Dan Le Batard]

These are the what? The MA2s.

[Billy Corben]

MA2s, the mask, MA2s, man, y' all ain't up on it so good.

[Chris Cote]

You. You ain't up on it and they're up on you.

[Dan Le Batard]

It's ridiculous.

[Billy Corben]

What else we got pretty.

[Chris Cote]

You're pretty good on that strategy of how you, you know, put a scandal under the carpet. I was going to let him just talk. I was starting to like, oh, is he incriminating himself right now? Who, what big name person have you worked with to know that strategy so well?

[Billy Corben]

I'm a big name person. What you talking about?

[Chris Cote]

Oh, okay.

[Billy Corben]

Come on, man. This is all firsthand. Firsthand experience.

[Mike Ryan]

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[Dan Le Batard]

Don Le Sugar Daddies.

[Stugotz]

These things. I'm telling you, I love sugar daddies.

[Amin Elhassan]

Stuck in your teeth like you can't chew them.

[Stugotz]

They're like impossible to chew.

[Amin Elhassan]

They are impossible.

[Dan Le Batard]

That is every day.

[Billy Corben]

St.

[Chris Cote]

This is the D? Ler show with the st.

[Dan Le Batard]

Hey, I don't know about you, but there's something that I watched yesterday. A clip and.

[Billy Corben]

Was it the conference finals?

[Stugotz]

You're doing too much watching.

[Dan Le Batard]

I'm not supposed to be watching anything.

[Billy Corben]

Whoa. Don't look now. Oh, my gosh, that was good.

[Stugotz]

Don't look now. Presented by Smirnoff, the world's number one. Vodka, please drink. Response.

[Jeremy Tache]

Boys, if you're looking, don't. Okay, I got a couple NFL subjects, a couple NFL topics I'm going to turn around for the team.

[Billy Corben]

All right.

[Jeremy Tache]

Hawk Lions defensive end Aiden Hutchinson cleared for full return after his broken leg.

[Billy Corben]

Wow.

[Jeremy Tache]

What do you think about that?

[Chris Cote]

I'm excited about it, man. I was hoping he played in the Super Bowl. There was no way he was going to be able to do it, but it was a motivating, rallying cry for his teammates to try to get a little bit of a umph out of him.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yo, those look like glasses that actually go with your outfit. You could see through those. You look like Jodeci. In the future, though.

[Jeremy Tache]

You're looking like.

[Chris Cote]

No, of course not.

[Stugotz]

The coolest Star Trek character ever.

[Chris Cote]

I can't see anything. I don't know.

[Jeremy Tache]

Looking like what I need you to be.

[Dan Le Batard]

With my eyes closed. I'm just envisioning things.

[Chris Cote]

No eye time right now.

[Stugotz]

2025. Star Trek is what you look like.

[Chris Cote]

How do you know?

[Stugotz]

Chris Shrek.

[Billy Corben]

Yeah.

[Chris Cote]

Trek.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah.

[Jeremy Tache]

All right. The Tush Push lives. Proposal to ban the NFL play fails. Yeah, the Tush Push lives.

[Billy Corben]

You know what? You know what I. You know what I read Tony before I could not look.

[Stugotz]

You listen to it on a podcast.

[Billy Corben]

There you go. Was that someone said, you know, they play the Packers. I want to say week 10, they need to tush push. Like, the entire first quarter. Just every place.

[Jeremy Tache]

Rugby scrum, the entire way down the field.

[Stugotz]

I love how Amin thinks just looking in a different direction is not looking.

[Billy Corben]

Not looking. Not looking.

[Stugotz]

Like your eyes are clearly open.

[Chris Cote]

You said don't look. You didn't say don't see.

[Billy Corben]

Yeah, exactly.

[Mike Ryan]

Don't look at Stephen A. Smith right now.

[Jeremy Tache]

All right, last one now.

[Stugotz]

I want to bring us. I'm. I'm grabbing the steering. Steering wheel.

[Jeremy Tache]

Oh, I couldn't see you there.

[Dan Le Batard]

My bad.

[Stugotz]

I want to do a visual thing here for don't look now is Will Levis picking his nose in this video of Cam Ward.

[Chris Cote]

Man, there's Izzy. You look, there's a whole studio of people. Cam Ward, Tony's daughter, who can't see the screen.

[Stugotz]

Cam Ward working out. And in the background, Will Levis look.

[Dan Le Batard]

I'm gonna have to. Everyone look Tony Reali slash Jerry Seinfeld and say, not a pig, Izzy.

[Stugotz]

Is Will Levis kicking his nose in the background.

[Billy Corben]

Hold on. You have Will Levis scratching the outside of his nose.

[Dan Le Batard]

It could be anything. I put my finger to my nose all the time. Not sure what you're thinking, but I put my finger in my nose. Like, if I'm thinking or something.

[Billy Corben]

I know that form better than anybody.

[Dan Le Batard]

He did, like, straighten out here.

[Chris Cote]

It was coming down. It was on a. It was like, not a golden.

[Billy Corben]

No.

[Dan Le Batard]

What if he was doing a gold thing? Because it was like, it was on.

[Chris Cote]

The way down before you saw upward.

[Dan Le Batard]

Scratch, like, at the end.

[Billy Corben]

No. You know why? Because this is how I scratch my nose. Like this?

[Amin Elhassan]

Yep.

[Stugotz]

With your wrist, maybe.

[Chris Cote]

Maybe he was signaling for someone to take out Cam Ward's knee.

[Stugotz]

I got three of you in there. I need it, pick or no pick.

[Chris Cote]

Not a pick.

[Stugotz]

Not a pick for Izzy.

[Billy Corben]

Pick.

[Chris Cote]

No pick. Wow. To me, this is a pick.

[Billy Corben]

Jordy laforce.

[Jeremy Tache]

Last one here on. Don't look now. I hope nobody's looking. Brock Purdy happy about his new deal with the 49ers.

[Chris Cote]

Yeah.

[Billy Corben]

Burton looking mofo.

[Chris Cote]

I'd be happy.

[Billy Corben]

Top 10 now, right? Top 10. Paid in the. In the position ever, I guess everyone's always, ever.

[Stugotz]

And now you can look.

[Billy Corben]

All right. One thing I did look at.

[Dan Le Batard]

Hawk is black.

[Chris Cote]

Yeah. We got a Walter shirt. I wanna do we find one? I need a shirt. There it is. Hello, my name is Walter. If we can get that sent asap, I will wear it at whatever next big event.

[Dan Le Batard]

You hear that T shirt?

[Billy Corben]

How about the retreat?

[Chris Cote]

I wear it to the SBJ 40 under 40 retreat, which is gonna be very confusing to people if I wear that shirt, but whatever.

[Billy Corben]

Hey, Walter. My name's Andrew.

[Chris Cote]

His name's actually Andrew.

[Dan Le Batard]

You know who I sort of turned on a little bit the other day was Nick Wright. And this is. So he went on this whole rant about SGA and how he is the foul baiter and how specifically the way OKC is allowed to play defense. People who defend SGA are not allowed to play defense because, you know, he flails and all of a sudden gets the call.

[Billy Corben]

That sounds real familiar. Where do you think Nick Wright got that from?

[Dan Le Batard]

Was it me?

[Billy Corben]

No, it was from. Well, number one. Yes. Always. It's always stolen off someone. Number two is from Chris Finch. We played that on oddball the other day. Well, back in February.

[Stugotz]

Going to lie for a second there.

[Dan Le Batard]

I was like, did I say this?

[Stugotz]

It's going to be awesome.

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, the annoying part is like the clips that they showed were of SGA driving to the rim and had people contacting him and him. Yes, him then falling and other people just sort of against a standing Anthony Edwards sort of taking hacks at him. That's a. That's a different level of fouls, right? You're going to the rim. Of course you're going to get more credit for being fouled because you're attempting a shot or at least attempting a drive. If you're just standing there with the ball, you're probably going to get hacked a couple of times and they'll let you get away with that. But the most important thing about it, I immediately thought back to 2006 and Mike, who's not here. Thank you for not being here. I don't want to get into it. But him saying that the 2006 finals were rigged. And I'm pretty sure he's, like, combining memories because he said there was a ref there that was, like, clearly on the take. And I'm like, no, it wasn't. It was just Mark Cuban saying a bunch of shit because Dwyane Wade was getting fouled all the time, and I don't like him. And Nick did a great job, as he always does, of sort of telling his story, making his. Giving his take and setting his narrative. If I'm an Oklahoma City Thunder fan and my team wins a championship, get that conversation the hell out of. Away from my team. My star. Like, this dude is the MVP of the league. And 10 years from now, new fans are going to be like, he was just a foul baiter, wasn't very good. And I'm just like, we need to slow down with that.

[Billy Corben]

No, they won't, because no one will remember this. No one will remember this.

[Dan Le Batard]

But it's a main conversation. That's what Mike remembers from the 2006 Finals of Dwyane Wade, and that's not what really happened. So I do think people are going to remember that, especially if he goes to the finals and gets, like, 16 free throws a game.

[Chris Cote]

The losing team always has a reason why they lost, right? Like, it's like their fan. Like, it always is. Like, oh, this is why we. Not because we got beat. There's always a specific conspiracy against the things that happened to them.

[Billy Corben]

You know what I think about when I think about the 2006 NBA Finals? I think about them being up 2.0and they blew it. That's what they bought.

[Dan Le Batard]

Dallas being up 2.

[Billy Corben]

0, Dallas being up 2. 0 and blew it. I think about Avery Johnson midway through the series, deciding they need to stay in, like, in Aventura or wherever they move. The.

[Dan Le Batard]

The informed basketball person remembers those things, but the person who might not be informed and they look up SGA and all they're flooded with is O foul merchant. And these phrases that just came out of nowhere that people just want to attach to these guys. It's just. Look, does he. I mean, do people remember that strictly about Paul Pierce? Because if you go back and look at the footage, it's him like, no, they think of that 2008 team as one of the greatest teams ever. Yeah, Right. And so people didn't talk about that enough with Paul Pierce then. Now it's people are talking about sga. See, I'll take that.

[Amin Elhassan]

I appreciate you bringing it here, though, Izzy, because I Made the comparison to Dwyane Wade the other day, where it's like, this is a guy who. Who's capable of splitting double teams and driving to the hoop like no one else in the NBA. And his ability to hesitate. Like, there was a call last night against Rudy Gobert where Gobert was called for a foul against SGA and everybody lost their minds. But it was because what SGA was able to do was get into the lane, slow himself down enough to get Gobert to bite for a second. Then he speeds immediately back up and puts the ball low to the ground. So what does Gobert do? He reaches there, and SGA is able.

[Dan Le Batard]

To show me that's a foul. He's not getting fouled. That's what I say about Dwight Dwyane Wade. Show me the clips from 2006 finals where he wasn't fouled.

[Amin Elhassan]

Right.

[Dan Le Batard]

I'll wait.

[Amin Elhassan]

And that's the. That's the part that I think is frustrating, is people are conflating the art of what it is that he's doing with what they think a narrative is supposed to be. I watched the game without Twitter last night, and it was incredible because I got to just watch the game through the perspective of how is this game going? And not being worried about what the narratives were online. And when I finished it, I was like, well, this was. This was an evenly refereed game. This is a guy who's getting the line. Anthony Edwards also got to the line. And then I turn around and I go to Twitter. And all of a sudden, the entire narrative that I see on Twitter is just people saying he's a foul merchant. I really. It's. It's so frustrating. I wish people would take a second to just watch these games without worrying about the group think that's on social media because it makes the sport that much better. It allows you to appreciate the crime that you're watching.

[Chris Cote]

Oh, my gosh, bro.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's so strange.

[Chris Cote]

That is such a great take.

[Amin Elhassan]

Powering through to this is so difficult.

[Dan Le Batard]

You look like Shannon Sharp.

[Chris Cote]

I am crying because the fact you.

[Dan Le Batard]

Look exactly like Doug Bunny.

[Chris Cote]

You look like Doug Bunny growing up and became a media personality. Man, mustache, a little more hair. And the fact they keep playing that music, it really like, damn, Doug, it's good to see you've done well in life. Yeah.

[Mike Ryan]

This whole.

[Amin Elhassan]

This whole show has made me realize that my. My success that I have had is. Is a miracle.

[Mike Ryan]

And he married Patty.

[Dan Le Batard]

Congratulations.

[Chris Cote]

Oh, my God.

[Dan Le Batard]

Tears are wild, aren't they? You were just really happy and all Of a sudden, salty water started dripping out of your eyes.

[Chris Cote]

What the hell is that? It's just.

[Billy Corben]

But what's the deal with tears when you're laughing?

[Amin Elhassan]

I can make another comparison here with sga. That is sort of like him getting calls all the time. It's sort of like a great starting pitcher in baseball, earning the corner. So if you can consistently hit the corner over and over and over and over again and always be hitting your spot as a pitcher, the further the game goes on, you might get an extra inch or two off the plate, called a strike. And it's because you've shown that you're capable of. If you're SGA and you're capable of drawing legitimate fouls.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah.

[Amin Elhassan]

There are gonna be the occasional moments where you get a foul called on you. That man, the blurred picture of me and Doug at the same time. I'm trying to power through, but this is becoming increasingly difficult.

[Billy Corben]

Jeremy, to your point, there's two things. Number one is the reason why people can't fathom it is because sga, like Luka Doncic, like James Harden, like a lot like Jalen Brunson, they're all great at something I don't think people are used to thinking about, which is deceleration. Everyone always thinks about first step being fast, being explosive, Their ability to stop while you keep moving and using your momentum against you. It's almost like jujitsu.

[Amin Elhassan]

It's artful.

[Billy Corben]

That's what people don't understand.

[Dan Le Batard]

James Harden probably the first person to really perfect it.

[Billy Corben]

And just like deceleration like that. Yeah. The other part of it is what you're talking about, owning the corner.

[Chris Cote]

The.

[Billy Corben]

To me, that's Oklahoma City Thunder defense. Yes, they're physical as hell. Yes, they get away with things. You know who else does? Every other great defense in the history of the NBA.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's right.

[Billy Corben]

They talk about that constantly. There's never been a great defense. You know what I like about them? They do it clean. They do it right. Everyone who plays great defense in our league has a benefit of the doubt with the referees and are allowed to be more physical like that. And like Hawk said, you know who complains about it the most? The losers. Yeah, the losers are the one who complain about it the most.

[Jeremy Tache]

I mean, you have a great, you know, working knowledge of NBA history and stuff. Have you ever seen a collection of such good individual defensive players in a collective? Like the Thunder?

[Billy Corben]

Yeah. I mean, I would say, like the 0405 pistons that, like, era of the Chauncey, Everyone Defended. That was what made them so, so terrifying was that like Rip was probably their worst defensive player and he wasn't bad. Right.

[Dan Le Batard]

So he was annoying.

[Billy Corben]

The part that makes them different is that everyone's an offensive threat. Not only are they all great defensively, they're all offensive threats.

[Stugotz]

Sound like you're talking about the Panthers.

[Dan Le Batard]

Isn't that the evolution of the game though? Because I thought about this the other day with like Aaron Neesmith, like it, it used to be if you wanted that kind of crazy comeback, like it's got to be all on Tracy McGrady. Hey, Tracy, you're amazingly talented. You go now it could be any of these guys because you can't really have a deficiency without it being exposed when you're out there, right? So not only do you have to be a good defender, but you gotta be able to shoot because otherwise they're just gonna leave you in the corner. It just ruins everything when you have an obvious shortcoming. Like even, you know the Miami Heat, where the Cleveland Cavaliers say, oh, just pick on Tyler Herro. It bleeping works because he's not a, you know, two way player. And so the game just evolves and evolves and evolves. And then you have so many of these guys who don't have any holes in their game and they're all on the Thunder and a few are on the Pacers.

[Billy Corben]

This is what I would say, much like what people say, oh, you know what's in now? Big threes. Well, you know what's out now because like people thought like, oh, because they had a big three, everyone wanted big three.

[Dan Le Batard]

I thought you meant like big three Pointers.

[Billy Corben]

Okay, sorry. So. And then when they say that, I say, no, that's not a thing that's in now. We've always wanted as many great players as we can. It's just, it's really hard to do that same thing here. Yeah, I don't think this is an evolution so much as, yeah, we always want it, but it's like it's really hard to field an entire roster like that. To your point that the guy who would do what Niecemith did back in the day, well, if it wasn't Tracy McGregor, it'd be someone like Eddie Howes. Meaning like this guy can catch fire any moment, but also Eddie's not going to be able to lock up the best player.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's what I mean by the evolution. There's just more of them that you can literally fill an entire roster of players like that and still have more for the other league or for the other teams in the league?

[Chris Cote]

I mean, forgive me because I'm obviously the novice NBA fan, but isn't like the Oklahoma. Oklahoma City Thunder roster composition in large part because of the Paul George trade?

[Dan Le Batard]

A million trades, Good trades that they made.

[Billy Corben]

Yeah, yeah. It's been a while.

[Jeremy Tache]

Good drafting team.

[Billy Corben]

There's a lot of stuff. Yeah, there's. So the Paul. Yes. The short answer is yes. The longer answer is yeah, but it took a lot of steps.

[Chris Cote]

So was it like, did they have. You know, because in football it's like you build a roster, it's either you draft like great or you have a bunch of draft picks and it's like, yeah. And your ability to. Did they have the increased draft picks or like.

[Billy Corben]

So the way it happened, they traded Paul George for Sabonis and Victor Oladipo and then Sabonis was then traded for Tyrese Halliburton.

[Dan Le Batard]

They also got picks from that Russell Westbrook trade.

[Billy Corben]

So there's a lot of stuff Indiana did over time to get us to where we are here.

[Chris Cote]

Right.

[Billy Corben]

But yes, you could point to Paul George. Like them trading Paul George was the start of what got us here. But that was again, that was what, eight years ago?

[Dan Le Batard]

But they also had the luxury of being like in the NFL. You're not saying, hey, we'll take these guys, we'll see if they work out. We're gonna be terrible for a couple years. That's fine. They were pretty bad for a little bit and then sort of. I picked out. They did make good picks. Cuz they weren't all like strikeouts and only a few of them worked out. So they make more good picks than they didn't. But it was all about just having the options.

[Amin Elhassan]

Hold on a minute. Were we just talking about the Paul George trade with Indiana or the Paul George trade with Oklahoma City? Because you brought up Sabonis.

[Billy Corben]

He's asking me how Indiana got here.

[Amin Elhassan]

I thought he was talking about how Thunder got here. Both teams traded Paul George and it made both of them better.

[Chris Cote]

It was confusing.

[Jeremy Tache]

Me and Jeremy back here were like the Sabonus on the Thunder.

[Billy Corben]

I don't remember. That bonus was on the Thunder.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, Halliburton.

[Billy Corben]

But yeah. Okay, so. So to go back.

[Chris Cote]

Okc.

[Billy Corben]

Yeah, okc. Yes, absolutely. The Paul George thing set it off because Paul George first of all gave him sga. Let's just start there. Yeah, that's how they got sga. But then they got a zillion picks, which, by the way, not done yet.

[Jeremy Tache]

We're still Getting picks, five first rounders.

[Chris Cote]

Yeah.

[Billy Corben]

And. And so they. It's absolutely helped them.

[Chris Cote]

And they probably hit on both of them. Right? Like great draft picks and more draft picks.

[Billy Corben]

It's crazy that they have draft picks that they hit on that aren't there anymore.

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, they won the Paul George trade, both by. You're saying by the draft picks and the player.

[Chris Cote]

Right. Because sga, and that's the rare one where it's like we traded for a better player.

[Amin Elhassan]

They hit on so many good draft picks that they were able to trade Josh Giddey, who's a really good and productive player, for a role player, and Alex Caruso because they knew they could just fill out the rest of their roster. Fits even better on the Fits even. That's why they made the move. But that's what I think part of the reason why people are so frustrated with Oklahoma City and SGA and the whole thing is it not only feels like, man, they didn't really have to like, suffer through the postseason, they had to suffer as a franchise because they were horrible for years, but this specific group of players hasn't really had to like, suffer, suffer in the postseason. And we know that they've got all these future picks too. So they're going to be good for all of these years in the future. And I think there's a lot of fans looking at it that might be whether you're the Knicks, whether you're Minnesota and you're looking at your team and you're going, man, we got a lot of guys in their prime. Like, we're only going to be good.

[Dan Le Batard]

Where's his theme music?

[Amin Elhassan]

Where are they going to go?

[Chris Cote]

So I was going to say his takes. His takes hit a lot harder when there's no Doug theme music playing over top of them.

[Billy Corben]

Yeah, they also. They also get a lot less tolerable. I realized I was like, I'm just trying to cut you off.

[Chris Cote]

You don't want to sit in it as long.

[Billy Corben]

But if the music was playing, I would have let you stop forever. I was ready to go. But. But like, I think so, for instance, I'll give you exactly what they got for him, right? They got Danilo Gallinari that they then flipped somewhere else. They got Shay. They got a first round pick that turned into Trey Mann, who's really good for Charlotte now. They got a first round pick that turned into Jalen Williams, all star. They got a first round pick that turned into Jaime Hakaz, who's in Miami now. They still. They still. Oh, they And a first round pay turned into Dylan Jones who in a couple of years is going to be good. And then they still have the option to flip flop picks this year and then they also have a first round pick next year coming from that.

[Dan Le Batard]

You know I asked a meme this yesterday on Oddball Monday through Thursday. Would Oklahoma City Thunder fans rather right now obviously their favorites for the next two rounds are this is the best position they've been in to win a championship maybe since 2012. You could argue they were favored going into those finals or not. Or go in a time machine to 2016. And KD never leaves because the projection being they're probably going to win a championship or two if he stays. Maybe that's a more fun team to watch. You got still got Russell and KD and there's no guarantee you win it this year, you're just going to be favored. Do you think Thunder fans would stick with what they have now or go back to then? Because me, as a fan of that basketball, I'd 100% go back to KD.

[Jeremy Tache]

I think, I think they keep this iteration.

[Billy Corben]

Really.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's what it means.

[Jeremy Tache]

I think kd, Westbrook and Harden was the sacrificial lamb to get momentum to where they are now.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's almost exactly what it means.

[Jeremy Tache]

Said because you look at what they have going up in the future too and the players that they already have kind of underneath in the, in the program. It's like why, why would you go back and keep KD for what reason?

[Billy Corben]

There was already a lot of tension in 2016. What I talked about, like it's already was starting to feel like, man, I don't know if this is ever going to work because of that collection.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah but those Thunder fans would say if you give me anything, my choice, let me keep kd. Take everybody else. We'll build around kd. Go, go ahead Russell Westbrook, Go ahead Billy Donovan. I got another 15 years of maybe the most talented SC ever. That guy's got to win a title.

[Billy Corben]

I also think KD's evolution personality wise over the years versus what we see SGA now they're like, I think I like this guy better if you're Oklahoma. If you're Oklahoma, just from a personality like this is a guy who's Oklahoma.

[Dan Le Batard]

Fans are still NBA fans. They love drama, man. I think, I think they'd love. They love drama.

[Billy Corben]

They all wear the same shirt. You think they love drama. I hate that they all wear the same damn shirt.

[Chris Cote]

You think they would rather have a Canadian or an American in Oklahoma.

[Amin Elhassan]

I think we know the answer.

[Dan Le Batard]

So there you go.

[Billy Corben]

At least I know I'm free. I don't know.

[Dan Le Batard]

I think you guys have the break.

[Billy Corben]

The show anytime you'd like to please.

[Jeremy Tache]

The Dan LeBatard show with Stugots is sponsored by Better Help. Mental awareness is growing and that's a good thing. But there's still work to do. In a recent survey, 26% of Americans say they've avoided seeking support out of their fear of being judged and the hesitation. It doesn't just affect the individual, it ripples out to families, workplaces and entire communities. This Mental Health Awareness month, let's break the stigma together. Because when people are healthy and happy, we all thrive. Therapy isn't just for major trauma. It can help with setting boundaries, learning positive coping skills, and simply becoming the best version of you. BetterHelp has over a decade of experience connecting people with licensed therapists who fit their needs. With over 30,000 professionals and 5 million users worldwide, it's therapy that fits your life. It's completely online, flexible, and you can switch therapists at any time for no extra cost. We're all better with help. Visit betterhelp.com DLB to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp. H-E-L-P.com DLB.

[Mike Ryan]

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