The Best of The Dan Patrick Show

Summary

The Dan Patrick Show: "The Best of The Dan Patrick Show"

Date: March 17, 2026
Podcast Network: iHeartPodcasts and Dan Patrick Podcast Network

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Episode Overview

This episode of "The Best of The Dan Patrick Show" delivers Dan Patrick’s signature blend of in-depth sports talk and pop culture humor, featuring A-list guests from the NBA and MLB. The primary focus is March Madness, NBA narratives, and baseball’s international growth, with a strong lineup of candid, entertaining conversations. Guests include Carlos Boozer (ACC Network basketball analyst and NBA vet), John Smoltz (Hall of Famer, MLB analyst), and Reggie Miller (NBA Hall of Famer, broadcaster). Each brings personal stories, game insights, and strong opinions on trending topics in their respective sports.

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Key Segments and Discussion Points

1. Carlos Boozer: NBA Stories, Family, & Coach K (03:00–15:32)

Prince Renting Boozer’s House

• Boozer recalls the infamous story of Prince renting his LA home for a year:
  • Prince transformed Boozer’s house: "I get there and everything is purple... He had his picture everywhere in the house. One of the cool things... he turned my weight room into like a nightclub."
    (Carlos Boozer, 04:01–04:35)
  • Prince returned everything to normal before moving out.
• On memorabilia: Boozer only received a signed photo from Prince, not a guitar.
  (05:17–05:29)

Playing with LeBron James as a Rookie

• Reflects on the hype during LeBron's NBA debut: "There was probably, it seemed like there was 300 cameramen at the baseline... we had a hard time warming up..."
  (Carlos Boozer, 06:15–06:36)
• On LeBron’s longevity: "There's no way I would have believed that. The fact that he's still playing and I retired in 2017... is remarkable."
  (Carlos Boozer, 07:19–07:34)

Basketball Family & Recruiting

• Boozer's sons started receiving college interest in 8th grade. He emphasizes letting them make their own choices:
  • "They have to recruit the boys and the boys have to make that decision for themselves..."
    (Carlos Boozer, 08:17–08:44)

When His Son Surpassed Him

• Boozer stopped playing one-on-one with his kids at age 16–17: "As a dad, your dad is the only person that wants their sons to be better than them."
  (Carlos Boozer, 09:29–09:46)

Life as an Analyst and Duke Bias

• Finds it harder to watch his sons than to play himself: "As a player, you actually get to go get a rebound... But I'm proud of my kids no matter what, though."
  (Carlos Boozer, 10:13–11:06)

Favorite Coach K Story

• Vivid locker room memory: Coach K covered the room in papers saying "attack" and rolled in with a somersault after hip replacements, playing the Braveheart scene to motivate the team.
  (Carlos Boozer, 11:15–12:46)

Growing Up in Alaska

• Discusses hunting, cold weather, and starting in travel ball to find high-level basketball competition.
  (Carlos Boozer, 14:29–15:13)

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2. John Smoltz: World Baseball Classic & MLB’s International Flavor (16:46–25:01)

World Baseball Classic Intensity

• Discusses the high energy and star factor:
  • "The intensity and the passion has gotten more and more... That to me has been single handedly very, very obvious."
    (John Smoltz, 17:10–17:47)
• Notes Latin American fan presence outweighs American fans in Miami.

Team USA Roster Construction

• Explains the challenges: "It starts a year in advance... There's absolutely no upside unless you want to manage in the big leagues. And it starts with a star player buying in."
  (John Smoltz, 18:13–18:53)
• The buy-in from stars like Aaron Judge and Bryce Harper is crucial.

Injury Concerns & Pitching

• Addresses the inevitability of pitcher injuries and defends Paul Skenes’ participation:
  • "Nobody's escaped it... But what I'm more impressed is the mentality of what he's doing and how he's doing it."
    (John Smoltz, 19:25–20:30)

How to Grow the Tournament

• Suggests a midseason break:
  • "You make it bigger when you do it in the middle of the season. Shut it down for a week... you'd have everybody wearing that uniform in midseason form."
    (John Smoltz, 22:01–22:35)

US vs. The World Concept

• Smoltz advocates for an international All-Star format akin to the NBA’s USA vs. The World, arguing baseball’s deep global talent pool could make it compelling:
  (23:19–24:26)

March Madness & Bracket Habits

• Admits he hasn't filled out a bracket due to travel but roots for Michigan State and Tom Izzo.
  (24:29–24:57)

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3. Reggie Miller: March Madness Memories, Fab Five vs. UNLV, NBA Storylines (25:15–42:25)

Reggie’s March Madness Reflections

• Recalls losing to Wyoming’s Fennis Dembo in his senior year at UCLA, a classic March upset:
  • "We overlooked Wyoming, and this was a blockbuster game for them. And Fennis punched his ticket to the NBA from that game."
    (Reggie Miller, 25:29–26:33)

Heartbreak of Tournament Loss

• Reflects on moving past a tough final college loss:
  • "You dust yourself off and move on. But it's one of those losses that you hope you grow from. And sometimes when you have losses like that, that's your best teacher."
    (Reggie Miller, 27:09–27:29)

Fab Five vs. UNLV Debate

• Cultural impact:
  • "Culture wise, I'll go with the Fab Five. But... those Running Rebels teams, they did win a championship."
    (Reggie Miller, 27:40–28:24)
• On raw talent:
  • "More talented would be the Fab Five."
    (Reggie Miller, 28:32–28:35)

Lakers’ Recent Resurgence

• Dissects team dynamics and LeBron’s evolving role:
  • "Let's give Marcus Smart a lot of credit. He's not getting enough... Defensively, he's been unbelievable for them."
    (Reggie Miller, 29:57–30:35)
• Stresses Lakers’ defense as key to playoff success.

SGA & "Foul Baiting" (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander)

• Defends SGA’s playstyle:
  • "I don't understand what foul baiting is. We didn't say this about MJ... James Harden was in that same category."
    (Reggie Miller, 32:07–32:39)
• Encourages players to "learn and adapt," noting inconsistent officiating.
  (33:07–33:19)
• Highlights SGA’s two-way value: "He's been top five in steals, so he does play defense. He is a two way player."
  (Reggie Miller, 34:15–34:24)

SGA vs. DeMar DeRozan Comparison

• Considers the comp "fair," elaborates on their bucket-getter mentality and closing ability.
  (34:15–35:54)

Bam Adebayo’s 83-Point Game

• Celebrates the feat and criticizes the backlash:
  • "You have to at least attempt to go for it by any means necessary... We should be celebrating him like, oh, my God. A guy that never, ever gets the shine..."
    (Reggie Miller, 37:26–39:41)
• Notes how NBA scoring expectations have drastically changed.

Modern NBA Scoring Explosion

• Discusses how 130-point nights are routine—contrasts with 1990s basketball.
  (41:37–42:06)

Closing Remarks

• Well wishes for Reggie’s UCLA Bruins in the tournament.
  (42:06–42:25)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Carlos Boozer on Prince:
  "I come in and he basically turned all the rugs purple and black. He had his picture everywhere in the house. One of the cool things... he turned my weight room into like a nightclub."
  (04:01–04:35)

• Carlos Boozer on LeBron's Longevity:
  "The fact that he's still playing and I retired in 2017 and started my career before him is remarkable."
  (07:19–07:34)

• Reggie Miller on March Madness Upsets:
  "And that's the beauty of March Madness when it doesn't matter what seed you are... Everyone is somewhat equal because of these neutral sites."
  (26:33–27:04)

• Reggie Miller on SGA Criticism:
  "I don't get it. I don't understand what foul baiting is. We didn't say this about MJ... Learn and adapt. That's what you've got to do."
  (32:07–33:19)

• John Smoltz on WBC Growth:
  "You make it bigger when you do it in the middle of the season... you'd have everybody wearing that uniform in midseason form. There'd be no restrictions... You truly get to see the Goliath going against the Goliath."
  (22:01–22:22)

• Reggie Miller on Bam Adebayo’s 83 points:
  "We should be celebrating him like, oh, my God. A guy that never, ever gets the shine... I don't care how he got it. He got it."
  (39:41–40:12)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 03:00 – Carlos Boozer interview begins (Prince story, LeBron as a rookie, raising basketball sons)
• 11:12 – Favorite Coach K story (the “attack” locker room)
• 16:46 – John Smoltz on WBC, USA baseball, building a roster
• 22:01 – Smoltz on mid-season WBC, MLB’s international future
• 25:15 – Reggie Miller March Madness memories
• 27:40 – Fab Five vs. UNLV debate
• 29:57 – Lakers’ recent play, team roles
• 32:07 – SGA “foul baiting” debate and NBA officiating
• 34:15 – SGA vs. DeMar DeRozan comp
• 37:26 – Bam Adebayo’s 83-point game, scoring inflation in the NBA
• 41:37 – Comparing today’s NBA scoring to past decades

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Tone & Style

Dan Patrick brings his signature mix of humor, curiosity, and deep sports knowledge, encouraging guests to share personal stories and strong opinions. The guests are candid, self-effacing, and enthusiastic, providing both nostalgia and sharp present-day analysis on sports culture.

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Recommended for:
Listeners seeking a fast, insightful tour through top sports headlines, nostalgic stories, and real-talk analysis from stars across basketball and baseball.

Transcript

[Dan Patrick]

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[Carlos Boozer]

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[Dan Patrick]

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[Reggie Miller]

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[Dan Patrick]

Okay, Pull up.

[Reggie Miller]

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[John Smoltz]

You are listening to the Dan Patrick show on FOX Sports Radio.

[Dan Patrick]

Carlos Boozer, ACC Network basketball analyst and he joins us on behalf of DraftKings. One of the most exciting places for March Madness. DraftKings has products available for fans nationwide. DraftKings sportsbook predictions, daily fantasy sports. How often does the story about Prince renting your home come up?

[Carlos Boozer]

Dan, how you doing, man? Good morning. It comes up, it comes up often for those that know the story.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah, the one thing that stands out because when you told us the story that you rented your house in LA to Prince and then you came back, how long did he rent that house for?

[Carlos Boozer]

He rented it for a year.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay.

[Carlos Boozer]

He went to for a year.

[John Smoltz]

Yeah.

[Dan Patrick]

And then you come back after a year?

[Carlos Boozer]

No, so he rented it for me for a year. I had tore my hamstring in Utah when I was playing for the Jazz. Came to LA to get physical therapy and I popped in on, I called him a couple times, hadn't heard from him, popped up at the house and it's my first big purchase, by the way, I'm a young 21 year old guy, bought this huge house in Bel Air trying to show off what, you know what, go for it. And then rented out the Prince because I'm not going to be there for eight months, going to be in Utah anyway. And I get there and everything is purple. You know, my wife at the time had decorated the house beautifully. Italian rugs and all this fancy stuff that I have no idea what it is. And then I come in and he basically turned all the rugs purple and black. He had his picture everywhere in the house. One of the cool things that he did that my kids actually liked is he turned my weight room into like a nightclub. He had a DJ booth and like a disco ball. Like my kids kind of thought that was kind of cool. But other than that, I was, I was livid. But he ended up changing it all back before he moved out.

[Dan Patrick]

He doesn't ask for any. He's not saying if he can have permission to do any of this stuff.

[Carlos Boozer]

No, I mean, he was basically paying 95 grand a month and he's Prince. So, you know, he get, he gets, he gets grace when he's Prince when most of, the, most of us Were was born to his music and then he was on Tour doing his 3121 album. So he was kind of hard to reach, but did not ask for permission. But he did change it back, and I appreciated that.

[Dan Patrick]

But did he leave you anything? You got any memorabilia from Prince?

[Carlos Boozer]

I did get a signed photo that him and I took when he signed the. The lease agreement when we met.

[Dan Patrick]

Oh, no. You need a guitar or something like that.

[Carlos Boozer]

That's what I should have got, right?

[Dan Patrick]

Absolutely. Well, thank you for sharing again, because it feels like whenever that story kind of surfaces once a year and I'm like, oh, poor Carlos. You got to tell that story again and again and again. You were there with. So LeBron's rookie year in Cleveland, that was your second year. So that. That's the only year you play with LeBron, right?

[Carlos Boozer]

Correct. Yeah.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay.

[Carlos Boozer]

We also shared some Olympics and All Star Games together.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay, but he. That he makes his debut in Sacramento, right?

[Reggie Miller]

Yep.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah.

[Reggie Miller]

Yeah.

[Dan Patrick]

What do you remember?

[Carlos Boozer]

Fight against the Kings, who were loaded.

[Dan Patrick]

What do you remember about that night? The hype around LeBron making his debut?

[Carlos Boozer]

That was nuts, man. Because I was there in Cleveland the year before we got LeBron and they weren't that excited to have a sense there was probably, it seemed like there was 300 cameraman at the baseline. If you go back to that film and watch the warm ups, like, we. We had a hard time warming up because that arena, the Arco arena, was kind of tight on the baselines. And so we had so much media trying to get every move that he made, every. Every warm up dunk that he was doing between the legs and all these windmills and different things. And it was. It was difficult just to warm up. But I'll tell you, during the game, he was outstanding, man. He played terrific. Obviously we lost to a much better team. Older veteran group with Chris Weber and Stojakovic and Vivak and those guys, Mike Bibby, they were loaded, but he put on a show, man. He had a hell of a game for his first game in the NBA as a true 18 year old. And obviously you guys know the rest is history. Became one of the best players we've ever seen.

[Dan Patrick]

But if I would have told you that night, that guy is still going to be playing and might be playing when your sons go into the NBA.

[Carlos Boozer]

Yeah, there's no way I would have believed that. The fact that he's still playing and I retired in 2017 and started my career before him is remarkable. Like his genes and his work ethic. And I takes care of his body is a testament to his greatness. It's, it's, it's impressive that literally if he decides to come back next year, he'll be, he'll be playing with one of my sons. That's, that's incredible.

[Dan Patrick]

When did your sons get their first recruiting letters?

[Carlos Boozer]

I would say about 8th grade. 7th. 8th grade. They were like 13, 12, 13, 14 years old and started getting some, some notoriety nationwide.

[Dan Patrick]

And how did you and their mom deal with that, getting recruited that early?

[Carlos Boozer]

Yeah, we're excited. Obviously you get excited when you, you realize your kids following their passion and they're, and they're getting recognized by some of the best coaches in the country. Very excited for the, the possibility of what their future might look like.

[Dan Patrick]

But the recruiting of you as opposed to your sons.

[Carlos Boozer]

No, I stay out of it. I told, I told the boys and I told their mom. I was like, I don't want college's recruiting dad. I'm not going to be the one that's going to be there at 6am for workouts. I'm not going to be there at 2 in the morning getting ready for, you know, crashing for an exam. They have to recruit the boys and the boys have to make that decision for themselves to see if they want to go to that school. They like that coach, they like the team and how their make the makeup is, do they have a chance to win a championship, all those kind of things. So I didn't go to any of the recruiting visits. I just, I got all the notes from, from, from the boys when they got back, got the notes from mom when they got back and literally let the boys make their own decision. And they also, you know, to be quite frank, they could have chose a path of going their individual ways if they wanted to. You know, if it was best for Kaden to go somewhere else, if it was best for Cam to go to a different place, we would have welcomed that as well. But they made the choice together, to stay together because it was going to be the last time that they got to choose to play together. Obviously the NBA, you never know what's going to happen down the road. You know, God willing, they get to play together in the NBA, but you know, thinking that this year could be the last year that they actually play together or something that we all had in mind.

[Dan Patrick]

When did Cameron get better than you?

[Carlos Boozer]

That's a good question. I would probably say right around like 16, 17. I stopped playing, playing the kids one on one. I wanted to retire undefeated. I got that goal in mind. But, you know, as a dad. Think about this, though. As a dad, your dad is the only person that wants their sons to be better than them. Every other man wants to be better than the next man. So I'm proud of my kids for being better than me and having more skills and being able to do more with that basketball than I could.

[Dan Patrick]

He's Carlos Boozer, ACC Network basketball analyst, joining us on behalf of DraftKings. How are you as an analyst with the ACC Games? How are you as an analyst with Duke games?

[Carlos Boozer]

Yeah, very different. It's. It's difficult for me because I'm such a dad and I'm obviously always coaching and trying to figure out ways to get my kids better and get them prepared for what lies ahead. So. But, you know, as an analyst, you try to be, you know, unbiased and look, come on, man. You know, I got Duke blood running through my body. I'm rooting for Duke like crazy. This is my. This is my. My most exciting time of the year. Also want to tell the listeners out there, go to DraftKings. They're putting together this super apps. You can go to one location and have all your fun there and be responsible out there. Don't go crazy, but enjoy responsible at DraftKings. For me, I would say it's harder being a dad watching than being a player because you have all this anxiety. You want to get out there and jump in and play with your kids and have them do what you see from the sideline. As a player, you actually get to go get a rebound and go to the screen and go make a basketball. But I'm proud of my kids no matter what, though.

[Dan Patrick]

What was your favorite Mike Shashevsky story?

[Carlos Boozer]

Man, there's so many. I mean, I remember we lost the game, and he felt like we didn't attack that game, that we were too passive and on our heels. And we had a game coming up, and the next game, we go in the locker room and there's a white piece of paper that's covered the locker room all over the place. White pieces of paper everywhere. We can't even sit down in our lockers. On the paper is in. In. In small black letters is the word attack. And then they have. We have a big, you know, TV in the room. They're playing that Braveheart scene. I think it's Mel Gibson. Yeah, it's like riding on the horse, and he's getting the. The guys ready to go into battle. And then Coach K comes somersaulting in and Is like, let's attack. Like, screaming it like that. Now, mind you, let me set the stage. This is Coach K. He's won championships. He's been coach of the year. He's one of the most decorated coaches of all time. He's got two hip replacement surgeries. And he treated, he treated every day like he had something to prove to our group. And I'm 17, 18 years old, I'm a teenager. And seeing the legend that he is do that for us to get us motivated was like, man, if we don't attack this game, then what the hell are we doing? Know what I mean?

[Dan Patrick]

Coach K did a somersault in the locker room.

[Carlos Boozer]

Some somersault with two hip replacements. Unbelievable.

[Dan Patrick]

Is there video of this?

[Carlos Boozer]

I don't. Maybe. I don't know. I didn't have a video out. I was. I was in the moment, but maybe.

[Dan Patrick]

Oh, my God. I remember when I went to a game, Leitner and Hurley were there, and I went to a game, and then somebody said, hey, if you get a chance, go to practice because you're going to change your opinion of Coach K. And I go, what do you mean? They go, if you see him in practice and he is a different. Like, he was. I don't want to say maniacal, but, man, was he on fire. And he demanded. He demanded greatness. And I. It was one of those where you go, wow, they. They're. They're not lying like he is. And he's going after Leitner, he's going after Hurley. He didn't. It didn't matter. He's gonna. He's gonna take you to task.

[John Smoltz]

There's. Yeah.

[Carlos Boozer]

I mean, Coach K, one of the. One of his brilliant abilities is to be able to get the most out of his players. Right? Like, he's able to get guys like I was from Juneau, Alaska. Shane Baddier's from the Michigan, Jay Wilson from Jersey, Donald V's from Oregon. You know, just. Just talk about us. For all of us are the player of the year in our state. We're Gatorade player of the year. We're McDonald's, all Americans. He's able to bring us together and strip us of our individual ego, to build us up to have one collective ego where we need the guy next to us. And that's a rare talent to have, especially going from an era where there's guys that are staying in college for three or four years, like Lakener, Grant and like we did, and then moving into the one and done era that happened for so long and still having the success that he had. It's an incredible ability and it takes, it takes a guy who's had star players like he's coaching us the same way he coached that group and they won back to back championships and went to four final Fours and he's coaching. Every player that's through Duke has left a better player after playing for Coach

[Dan Patrick]

K. You grew up on a military base in Alaska?

[Carlos Boozer]

My dad was in the military, yeah.

[Dan Patrick]

Man. What do you think of the cold weather?

[Carlos Boozer]

I'm used to it. I love Juno, man. I opened my eyes to a different way of life. I snowboard, I go fishing, I go camping and hiking and.

[Dan Patrick]

But what about finding competition in Juneau, Alaska?

[Carlos Boozer]

Yeah, I mean, early on it was a lot of competition when I was young, but as I got older, it was tough. And so travel ball, you know, playing on the, on the circuit, you know, down in, down in California, in New York and, you know, states where they had more competition for me ended up being the right route for me. I played for ebo, Darren Matsubura's travel team and got a chance to play against the best players in the country.

[Dan Patrick]

Well, good luck with the ACC Network and of course, joining us on behalf of DraftKings, one of the most exciting places to experience March Madness. You get the DraftKings sportsbook, a proud sponsor of this program. Predictions, daily, fantasy sports. Thanks again, Carlos. We appreciate it. Great to see you.

[Carlos Boozer]

Appreciate you, Dan. Great to see you, too.

[Dan Patrick]

That's Carlos Boozer.

[John Smoltz]

Be sure to catch the live edition of the Dan Patrick show, weekdays at 9:00am Eastern, 6:00am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.

[Reggie Miller]

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[Dan Patrick]

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[Dan Patrick]

John Smoltz on the call with Joe Davis last night. World Baseball Classic, the semifinals. Venezuela against Italy. Team USA playing for the title tonight on Fox at 8 Eastern against Venezuela. You know, the atmosphere is what surprised me probably the most. John, I don't know if I said, what's the one thing that you were surprised at so far with the Classic is what?

[John Smoltz]

Yeah, I would say first of all, the star factor. Of the amount of players that have bought in and play, especially with Team usa, it's probably the most we've ever had. You know, a lot of guys want to dip their toe in. You got to be all in or not. And that is what I've always seen from the countries that have gathered their stars because that is the most important thing to them. The intensity and the passion has gotten more and more. And the loudness, of course, the where we are in Miami helps because a lot of the people live here that represent those countries. So that to me has been single handedly very, very obvious and very apparent who they're rooting for and how many people. It's out. It outweighs the American fans, that's for sure.

[Dan Patrick]

How do you build a team like this? Not sure who's going to play, Maybe the countries, it's a little bit easier for them to build their team. But for Team usa, how do they go about, you know, putting the roster together in future world baseball classics?

[John Smoltz]

It starts a year in advance. That's the hard part. There's all kinds of restraints and handcuffs. I don't know why you'd want to be a manager. First and foremost, there's absolutely no upside unless you want to manage in the big leagues. And it starts with a star player buying in. I think the more these tournaments have been played, you can dislike a lot of things that come along with it, and I do. But from a tournament standpoint, you don't have the freedom to do whatever you want. So you got to take what you get. So if you get a star like Aaron Judge, who's bought in and he starts talking to players and Bryce Harper, that's how it works. And look what Skeins has done at his age. The stock has gone through the roof. I just can't even imagine when it starts happening like that and you get pitchers to buy in, then all of a sudden you get to showcase what you have. And then the US pressure to win it gets better because they're more equipped to win it with the players they have.

[Dan Patrick]

You kind of sounded Ominous with Paul schemes where the way he throws, how he throws, you know, that it's kind of inevitable. It feels like that he's going to break down at some point. Is that, is that summarizing what your. Your thoughts are with him?

[John Smoltz]

No, I mean, that's the summarization of what we now come to get used to. Nobody's escaped it. He might be an outlier. Shoot, he carries a tank on his back when he's warming up. There's a lot of things I like that he does because he's so big and, and he has such great opportunity to dominate a baseball game. But what I'm more impressed is the mentality of what he's doing and how he's doing it. That in and of itself can get you away from the epidemic of injuries that we're seeing in pitchers because he's different. He's unique. He's 6, 5, 6, 6, whatever. I don't think buying into the narrative that it's going to happen now, we as broadcasters and former players, we report that this is happening at an alarming rate and it's not connected to the World Baseball Classic. I know that's what a lot of people want to say. It's like, well, why would I want to put my player through a World Baseball Classic when the injury rates are what they are? The reason is because we've never even addressed it. So if you don't address it, and I've been banging that drum for years, I'm glad to see players come into this event and say, I'm in. I want to play for my country. I'm going to pitch the way I possibly can to be the best that I can and deal with the mental toughness that you got to have because there's all kinds of noise. Dan, you can buy into a million of theories if you let yourself. And I think when I've seen this, Team usa, they're not doing it and they know they have a mission. They know they need to win because they're expected to.

[Dan Patrick]

He's John Smoltz will be on the call with Joe Davis tonight. It'll be on Fox. Team USA playing for the title against Venezuela. How threatening is Venezuela?

[John Smoltz]

Well, they've got a lot of star power themselves, but they also have a ton of emotion. You can play in a tournament like this with that kind of emotion because it's condensed. You can't do it in the regular season. You'd be wiped out. And so their ability and their belief look to try and do something they've never done. And for this tournament history, it's been kind of dominated by Japan. The US has a chance to get their second. But what it would mean for the country of Venezuela and everything that they've gone through and all the people that live here, you can't help but be infectious about how they are just gravitate towards that emotion. This look about 10, 12 years ago I probably would be bothered by this. Winning of World Baseball Classic is more important than winning a World Series. I get it now though. I get it for the country. I get it for the players that come from that country. Totally understand why their passion and the importance of this weighs a little bit higher than a. An ultimate goal in the in Major League Baseball. Winner, World Series.

[Dan Patrick]

How do you make this bigger?

[John Smoltz]

I think you make it bigger when you do it in the middle of the season. Shut it down for, for a week. I really, I've been, I've been saying that for years. I think it's the perfect spot to showcase the international talent. You'd have everybody wearing that uniform. They'd be in mid season form. There'd be no restrictions. You truly get to see the Goliath going against the Goliath without them coming out and throwing, you know, a million arms. I don't know that we'll ever get there. I hope we do. Hockey did it last year. I didn't miss one second of it. I was blue to. It is the most incredible event that I've ever watched. When you see what those players were doing for that country and it was much more condensed, we could do the same thing. That's how you make it better. You can, you can allow. What this tournament has done has accomplished its goals. Team Italy, baseball is going to be thought of differently there. You've got all other countries that are bringing baseball to the forefront when other sports were really kind of marquee and king. That has worked. Is it the perfect timing? No spring training and all these clubs. Think about managing Team USA. You got 30 bosses. You got 30 bosses telling you what their players can and can't do. It's a very difficult situation. But given the circumstances, this has been an epic year. It's probably the best tournament we've seen in a long time.

[Dan Patrick]

Have you talked to the commissioner about this idea?

[John Smoltz]

Oh yeah, many years, many times. Absolutely. I just think it's a no brainer. But we got the Olympics. We've got other things that are. They're probably getting away right now. But the international flavor in our game is so good. Even if you just did an international world versus usa, you can't come up with a roster that wouldn't be epic either way. And people look, I think our All Star game is still the best All Star game of any sport. It's the only one worth watching. We play it closer to the regular season and everyone's still trying to figure out how to spruce it up. Well, this is how you win.

[Dan Patrick]

That would be great though. Just do like the NBA did with the USA versus the world.

[John Smoltz]

Yep. And you could do two games. If you shut the game down for a week and give everybody the break they need because the season's long, you could, you could do so many things to promote within that week and own that week. Not to mention, and I told you this before in the weekend of that week off, have the hall of Fame so that everybody can be aware of past the present and be connected.

[Dan Patrick]

Did you fill out your bracket yet?

[John Smoltz]

Not yet. I don't even know. I didn't even know today was was St. Patty's Day. Yeah, I didn't even know. I have, I've been on a two week road trip and I haven't even looked at one thing. I do know that the bracket that my team I root for is in the hardest bracket. Go figure. But that's just the way it is.

[Dan Patrick]

But you have supreme confidence in Tom Izzo in Michigan State.

[John Smoltz]

Supreme confidence. I only wish I could go to Buffalo and watch it in person, but I can't get there.

[Dan Patrick]

Have fun tonight, John.

[John Smoltz]

Will do. It's going to be a lot of fun.

[Dan Patrick]

That's John Smoltz.

[John Smoltz]

Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our [e-mail] and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to listen live.

[Dan Patrick]

Let's bring in Reggie Miller. Reggie on the call for the Warriors Knicks on Sunday. Tonight he's got cabs at the Bucks 8 Eastern on NBC. And Peacock, what do you remember about your March Madness experience?

[Reggie Miller]

I think my senior year going against in the first round Dan Marley and I believe it was Central Michigan beating them and then thinking that we were going to have a clear cut sweet 16 birth because we played good old best name finish dimbo in Wyoming thinking okay, we're going to run through them and then we were going to get the matchup that everyone wanted to see because we never played one another. It was Greg Anthony and UNLV and those high octane running Rebels. That was the matchup we overlooked. Finis. He cooked us. He Cooked me. And we lost the Finis Dembo in one and the Cowboys. That's probably what I remember most my senior year.

[Dan Patrick]

But how does that work? Explain that experience that here's Fenis Denbo, who wasn't a good NBA player. You became a Hall of Famer, but on that day, he was a Hall of Fame player against you guys.

[Reggie Miller]

And that's the beauty of March Madness when it doesn't matter what siege you are. Remember, you're playing on neutral sites, you're not playing at home. Everyone is somewhat equal because of these neutral sites. And we overlooked Wyoming, and this was a blockbuster game for them. And finished in. Punched his ticket to the NBA from that game. And it was a disappointing loss for my Bruins.

[Dan Patrick]

How long does it take to get over a loss? Well, that was your last game.

[Reggie Miller]

It was. I fouled out. I didn't play great. It's difficult, but you dust yourself off and move on. But it's one of those losses that you hope you grow from. And sometimes when you have losses like that, that's your best teacher.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah.

[Reggie Miller]

And you learn from it and you move on.

[Dan Patrick]

Better team, in your opinion, more talented Running Rebels or the Fab Five?

[John Smoltz]

Wow.

[Reggie Miller]

Very similar in terms of how they approach the game. Now, are we talking about the one UNLV team that went undefeated and won the championship versus Duke? Because that team was unbelievable. Or Grandmama? Stacy Ogden, Greg Anthony, I mean, they were loaded. But in terms of culture, Right. I mean, you've got to think of the Fab Five. I know they didn't win a championship, but they changed the landscape and how we thought with Juwan Howard, Chris Weber, my boy, Jalen Rose. So culture wise, I'll go with the Fab Five. But I mean, you got to remember those Running Rebels teams, they did win a championship.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay. But more talented. If I go starting five, Fab five against the starting five at unlv, I

[Reggie Miller]

would probably more talented would be the Fab Five.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay. Yeah, I. I would say the same thing. I mean, Larry was great. I thought Stacy was going to be even better.

[Reggie Miller]

He was good. He was good. But because of his length, you thought at six, eight, six, nine. Yeah, he had a seven foot two wingspan. But he was good in the NBA. He wasn't great. He was. He was good. Greg Anthony had a good NBA career. But let's face it, those. That fat five team, Jalen Rose was great. We know about C. Webb. Juwan Howard had a long NBA career now coaching. So yeah, I think career wise, you go with the fat five Talking to

[Dan Patrick]

Reggie Miller, the Hall of Famer, you know, I don't go out of my way to talk about the Lakers, but when they do something and they're winning and they're, you know, a game and a half up on Houston. So now, you know, if they get into the top four now, you know, maybe, maybe there can be a magical run here. But I don't know what's different. In the last, you know, two weeks or so, they won six in a row. And we've seen LeBron almost embrace that third wheel of, you know, I'm going to defer, I'm going to pass, I'm going to let these two guys. Is it that simple? Because they still have to play defense.

[Reggie Miller]

It's that simple. And you're right. At the end of the day, the defense will either do them in or that'll be the defining moment for them. And I think they're starting to understand how the roles will be situated because LeBron was out for those few games. That's when they started this win streak. And between Austin, Reaves and Luka, they were carrying them offensively. Let's give Marcus Smart a lot of credit. He's not getting enough. People aren't talking about what he's doing at both ends of the floor. Defensively, he's been unbelievable for them. And on top of that, because of all the double teaming on Luca and when Reeves drives and penetrates him, knocking down big time three point shots, you know, when he was with Boston and when he was winning defensive player, he's, he almost is reverting back to that Marcus Smart. So I think guys are starting to understand they're getting something out of deandre Ayton in the middle, something that we hadn't seen all season. So guys are starting to figure it out. But at the end of the day, Theodore, the Lakers are going to be judged by their defense and last night, how they played defensively in that win on the road in Houston in a huge game with, you know, there's only a half game, a game separating them. I know they play again on Wednesday, which will be another big time game, but the Lakers are starting. There's always expectations with the Lakers, just like with Boston, there's always going to be expectations to win. And we dissect every single thing they do because one has 18 championships, the other one has 17. That just comes with the territory of playing with one of these blue blood

[Dan Patrick]

NBA franchises, the sga, foul baiting. You know, some players have brought this up as, as a player who did this and, you know, openly admits that he did it. What does the NBA do about the way SGA plays, if anything?

[Reggie Miller]

I don't get it. I don't understand what foul baiting is. We didn't say this about MJ. And MJ went to the line 10 plus times. James Harden was in that same category. Went to the line 10 plus times. Giannis, is he. I don't understand this. You play the game and you try to take advantage of whatever rules or how they're calling the game. Games change from night to night. I know there's a general consensus of. Of how you're supposed to play, but you have different officials each and every game. He is not. Would you call it rage baiting and rage.

[Dan Patrick]

Foul baiting?

[Reggie Miller]

Foul baiting every single night. That's just. He's attacking the defense. Are some calls questionable? Absolutely. But I just don't get it why he gets called out all the time. Last night, Jalen Brown's been, you know, calling this out all the time. He shot 21 free throws last night.

[Dan Patrick]

Well, maybe he's learning from SGA how

[Reggie Miller]

to bait or then. Thank you. Learn and adapt. Learn and adapt. That's what you've got to do.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay, I brought this up and I got some criticism that I thought that maybe SGA is kind of a younger Demar DeRozan. Now, Demar DeRozan has almost 27,000 points.

[Reggie Miller]

Yeah.

[Dan Patrick]

Not exciting.

[John Smoltz]

Yeah.

[Dan Patrick]

Methodical, consistent. Going to get you 20 at least. Which is what SGA gives you and

[Reggie Miller]

future hall of Famer.

[Dan Patrick]

Yes, yes. Now, we don't talk about anything else with SGA except for his scoring. Nobody brings up passing, Nobody brings up defense. Nobody brings up any of that. It's just he is a bucket. He is going to score on anybody. And I thought DeMar DeRozan has been doing this. Now, he hasn't done it for great teams. Maybe not, you know, anywhere near the level of SGA as an MVP, but is that a fair offensive comparison between DeMar DeRozan and SGA?

[Reggie Miller]

It's fair. But I will say this. He's just not a bucket sga. He's been top five in steals, so he does play defense. He is a two way player.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay.

[Reggie Miller]

And he leads his team in assists, so he does distribute the rock. But why is he getting all this hate to me?

[Dan Patrick]

Well, that's not a hate. That's not hate. I'm just saying we always look at a comp. I don't know who the comp is for sga. We do that for all of these players. Now, certain players, there isn't a comp like Joker. There is no comp.

[Reggie Miller]

Right.

[Dan Patrick]

Giannis, There is no comp.

[Reggie Miller]

Well, if, if, if DeMar DeRozan is the comp to SGA, I'll just ask you this. If you flip flop them and you put Demar on that OKC team, do they win a chip? Are they 54 wins right now? If you just flip them right now or even make it a younger demarcus, demar is a little bit older. Are they still winning the chip with demar and is SJA and is Sacramento better?

[Dan Patrick]

Well, they would be better, but they're not winning anything. But if demar was in okc, I think that OKC team is that good that he wouldn't be. You know, another thing is SGA is a great closer. I mean, we haven't seen DeMar DeRozan in games where you go, Jamar DeRozan

[Reggie Miller]

is a great closer to.

[Dan Patrick]

He just hadn't, he hadn't played in big games where we notice it. With sga, we did see it. So maybe it is a. It's meant as a compliment, but it's just because they're mid range, they can get to the hoop. Nothing fancy. Just. It's kind of like they just go

[Reggie Miller]

about their business and both are bucket getters. Don't get me wrong. People need to understand. Remember Demar DeRozan when he was in Toronto? When he was in Toronto, he was a straight bucket gear. And again the whole trade for Kawhi and they went.

[Carlos Boozer]

He.

[Reggie Miller]

He just hasn't been on the national stage long enough for people to understand that. But remember 27000 points in the NBA.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah, I know.

[Reggie Miller]

People need to remember that.

[Dan Patrick]

All right, who surpasses Adebayo? Yeah. Bam out of bios, 83 points.

[Reggie Miller]

Who can.

[Dan Patrick]

Yes. How many players do you think could get 84 points or more?

[Reggie Miller]

I think Luca could. I believe Ant man could. I believe a Jason Tatum could. But things will have to fall into place. And again, I know you and I were probably going to go there on this conversation with Bam. I talked about this Sunday night about Spolstra and Bam, the criticism kind of taken for how they got to the 83. You're a shooter, you were a scorer, Theodore. And I want Paulie as I'm talking to look this up. If you got 31 at the end of one, if you got 43 at halftime, I believe he had six 70 early in the fourth. Am I correct on that?

[Dan Patrick]

It's 64 after three?

[Reggie Miller]

Yeah, it's 64 after three. 70 with like, nine or 10 minutes left in the fourth. Are you kidding me? You. You have to at least attempt to go for it by any means necessary.

[Dan Patrick]

Well, at that point, you can't accidentally get 64. You can't do it in a gimmicky way.

[John Smoltz]

Right.

[Dan Patrick]

He didn't do that.

[Reggie Miller]

And there was no Gimmicks to the 64. So now from 64 to 83, that's where it gets a little murky or muddy, but I do not care. I know in the fourth, he was only like, one of six from the field, and most of those points came from the free throw line, correct?

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah. I have no problem with. You know, the Wizards are the ones who should be embarrassed.

[Reggie Miller]

Thank you.

[Dan Patrick]

Not Bam out of bio. Thank you.

[Reggie Miller]

Thank you.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay, now, I did ask him this. I said, did you think about stopping at 81 because your idol Kobe had 81? He said, no, no, because Kobe would want me to go for. If it was reversed. Kobe's blowing by 81.

[Reggie Miller]

And people think, you know, when I said that, that I was hating on co. I would never hate on Kobe and his accomplishment. It uplifts that performance to me. It uplifts what Kobe did. Him getting 83. I mean, that's unbelievable. For them to be 1, 2. We're not gonna look at Kobe's 81 and forget about. Was two totally different games. Kobe needed every one of those. 81. Yeah. In that performance versus Toronto, BAMS was a little different. But in 5, 10, 15, are we even going to be talking about that? We're just going to look at the stat sheet and say, oh, my God, bam. Adebayo had 83 kudos.

[Dan Patrick]

83. I know.

[John Smoltz]

Come on, man.

[Dan Patrick]

But as he said, he. He goes, look, I didn't fit the agenda because I said, why does it feel like you have to apologize for getting 83? And he said, because you don't expect me to get those numbers. And therefore, people have a problem with it. Like, he had to do it in a gimmicky way.

[Reggie Miller]

Right. And that's why you should almost reverse that. We should be celebrating him like, oh, my God. A guy that never, ever gets the shine. It's been a great defensive player, a great team guy, rebounder, defender, has won gold at the Olympics for our nation. We should be celebrating them like, this is great. I don't care how you got it, Bam, congratulations, because you'll probably never, ever have. His career high was what, 41 time? Once.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah.

[Reggie Miller]

So why can't we celebrate? I don't care how he got it. He got it.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay, but celebrate that too. I always thought if you were going to beat Kobe's, you had to be able to shoot the three. You had to be ball dominant. You had to be able to create your shot and the game had to be close, had to be competitive. And so I see Luca as a guy who could go for that. Yeah. I mean, he's got the talent to do it.

[Reggie Miller]

And like Tatum, Tatum shoots enough threes.

[Dan Patrick]

Like. But you have to want to do that. You have to have a coach who lets you do that. You don't go out on the floor and go, I'm putting up 70 tonight. You just get into a rhythm where you go, all right, I got a good game going, look.

[Reggie Miller]

And also too, And I saw this, you know, Kobe at one time had a 60 point through three and was up big and he sat out. Sat out.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah.

[Reggie Miller]

Clay Thompson had the same thing. He had 60 through three and was sat out. I think a young Stephen Curry, a 28 year old Stephen Curry, not 38. I think a 28 year old Stephen Curry in today's game, the way everyone's shooting, you know how he, the way he approached the game, could get 84.

[Dan Patrick]

It's just crazy.

[Reggie Miller]

It is crazy. It's, it's, it's crazy.

[Dan Patrick]

But you look at the point totals, reg. Teams get 1:30 and lose.

[Reggie Miller]

Do you remember in the 90s and early 2000s, coaches saying, we can't give up 30 point quarters. 30 point quarters. That's. You got four minutes left in the first.

[Dan Patrick]

That's standard practice now.

[Reggie Miller]

Standard now.

[Dan Patrick]

Well, for a while was first team to 100 or first team to 90?

[Reggie Miller]

Lawler's law. Right. First to 100.

[Dan Patrick]

That was, that was bad.

[Reggie Miller]

Now it's nothing.

[Dan Patrick]

It's a nightly basis. Cavs and the Bucks, 8 Eastern on NBC. And Peacock, thank you, Reggie. Good luck to your UCLA Bruins in the tournament.

[Reggie Miller]

Let's go. Men's and women's and women for the Bruins. Men's and women. All right, let's do it.

[Dan Patrick]

That's Reggie Miller, the Hall of Famer.

[Reggie Miller]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Dan Patrick]

Guaranteed Human.