The Best Of Covino & Rich

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Herd with Colin Cowherd – "The Best Of Covino & Rich"

Release Date: December 19, 2024

---

Introduction

In this episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd, hosts Covino and Rich delve into the current state of the NBA, focusing primarily on the newly introduced All-Star mini tournament. The discussion is a blend of critical analysis, fan perspectives, and expert opinions, aiming to dissect why the NBA is facing declining ratings and what might be done to rejuvenate interest in the league.

---

1. The NBA All-Star Mini Tournament: A Mixed Reception

Covino initiates the conversation by expressing skepticism about the NBA's decision to introduce a mini-tournament format for the All-Star Game. He likens the complexity of the new format to being off-putting for traditional American sports fans.

• Covino [03:27]: "I want to talk about the NBA and my first reaction. And who cares about my first reaction, right?"

Rich concurs, highlighting how even prominent players like Kevin Durant share his reservations.

• Rich [14:20]: "I hate it."

Hoda Kotb expands on this sentiment, arguing that the NBA's attempts at innovation might be self-sabotaging.

• Hoda Kotb [04:06]: "The NBA is doing nothing to help their own cause."

Notable Quote:

• Covino [05:17]: "I'm not mad at the NBA for trying out new things, but we discussed why are ratings down?"

---

2. Comparing the NBA to Other Sports

The hosts draw comparisons between the NBA and other major American sports leagues like the NFL, emphasizing how the latter manage to maintain high excitement and fan engagement without constantly overhauling formats.

• Hoda Kotb [09:08]: "Everything about the NBA is a self-criticism."

Covino argues that the NBA's approach contrasts sharply with how the NFL promotes its stars and games, which fosters a more positive and engaging environment.

• Covino [07:09]: "A broadcaster is supposed to be honest, but you're also supposed to hype things up to get people excited."

Notable Quote:

• Hoda Kotb [21:26]: "The NFL is like bro, Unicorns, Rainbow, sunshine, NFL."

---

3. The Role of League Ambassadors and Marketing

A significant portion of the discussion centers on the responsibility of NBA ambassadors, such as Charles Barkley, Shaquille O'Neal, and Kenny Smith, to promote the league positively. The hosts critique these figures for often focusing on the negatives rather than celebrating the sport.

• Covino [07:21]: "You're giving them reason to tune in, reason to watch."

Hoda emphasizes that lacking positive promotion from key personalities only magnifies existing issues within the NBA's narrative.

• Hoda Kotb [14:27]: "If Barkley, Shaq, and the main faces of the broadcast are talking smack about the sport, it does nothing to help."

Notable Quote:

• Hoda Kotb [20:49]: "We're not asking. And we've been accusing our video producer, Spot of not being the best salesman of shows like Spot."

---

4. Rating Declines and Fan Engagement

The hosts discuss the steep decline in NBA ratings since the retirement of Michael Jordan and how current star players are not resonating with fans as effectively. They touch upon quarterback-like discussions, drawing parallels to the NFL's star management.

• Covino [18:12]: "They can't compete with the NFL. No professional sport really can."

Notable Quote:

• Covino [18:51]: "The new mini tournament for the All-Star Game... we don't like it."

---

5. Potential Solutions and Future Directions

Covino and Rich brainstorm potential strategies the NBA could employ to regain its footing. Suggestions include reverting to traditional All-Star formats, introducing more fan-centric events, and leveraging nostalgia by involving legends like Michael Jordan to re-energize the fan base.

• Covino [27:06]: "We want to be pumped about it... the big stars are doing a bad job of selling it now."

Hoda proposes innovative scoring systems to make games more exciting, such as awarding more points for dunks to encourage aggressive play.

• Hoda Kotb [38:17]: "Any dunk, 4 points to encourage people."

Notable Quote:

• Covino [36:09]: "The faces of the NBA are not doing a good job selling this stuff."

---

6. Broader Sports Discussions: NFL and Beyond

While the primary focus remains on the NBA, the hosts also touch upon other sports topics, including quarterback contracts in the NFL, the performance of players like Brock Purdy, and the financial implications of high-profile signings.

• Hoda Kotb [45:50]: "We shouldn't continue to reset the quarterback market on Brock Purdy."

Notable Quote:

• Covino [48:22]: "He's not better than Burrow or anyone you mentioned. And that's not how... we have to stop."

---

7. Listener Interactions and Solutions

Throughout the episode, Covino and Rich engage with listener feedback, offering practical suggestions and responding to fan queries about the state of the NBA and potential improvements.

• Isaac Lowencron [27:50]: "There is no one, because I'm trying to think in music, sports, entertainment, no one is as universally like almost sickeningly, like sickeningly."

Notable Quote:

• Hoda Kotb [55:39]: "But Tom Brady would always take a little less money. I think the other layer is..."

---

Conclusion

Covino and Rich conclude the episode by reiterating the need for the NBA to adopt more fan-friendly approaches and to ensure that its leaders and ambassadors promote the league positively. They emphasize that without decisive and engaging changes, the NBA risks continuing its downward trajectory in viewership and fan enthusiasm.

Final Notable Quote:

• Hoda Kotb [56:07]: "But isn't there in anything in life, isn't there, like, the point where it's like. Well, that's too much. Like you're taking your daughter nothing."

---

Key Takeaways

• The NBA's introduction of a mini-tournament for the All-Star Game has been met with significant criticism from hosts and listeners alike.

• There is a perceived lack of positive promotion from NBA ambassadors, contributing to declining ratings and fan disengagement.

• The hosts suggest reverting to traditional formats and introducing innovative scoring to reinvigorate interest.

• Comparisons to other sports leagues, particularly the NFL, highlight potential areas for the NBA to improve its marketing and fan engagement strategies.

• Broader discussions on player contracts and the financial management within teams point to systemic issues that may be affecting the league's popularity.

---

Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Covino [05:17]: "I'm not mad at the NBA for trying out new things, but we discussed why are ratings down?"

• Hoda Kotb [09:08]: "Everything about the NBA is a self-criticism."

• Covino [07:21]: "You're giving them reason to tune in, reason to watch."

• Hoda Kotb [20:49]: "We're not asking. And we've been accusing our video producer, Spot of not being the best salesman of shows like Spot."

• Covino [18:51]: "The new mini tournament for the All-Star Game... we don't like it."

• Hoda Kotb [38:17]: "Any dunk, 4 points to encourage people."

• Hoda Kotb [55:39]: "But Tom Brady would always take a little less money. I think the other layer is..."

---

This episode offers a candid and critical look into the challenges facing the NBA, with Covino and Rich providing insightful commentary and potential pathways for revitalizing the league's appeal.

Transcript

[Savannah Guthrie]

Holiday magic is in the air and DSW's got all the shoes to make your season extra merry. Believe you've got parties to attend and.

[Hoda Kotb]

List to check twice.

[Savannah Guthrie]

So DSW is taking care of the details like gifts to make their eyes.

[Hoda Kotb]

All aglow, styles that bring joy to your world, brands everyone wants like Ugg.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Nike, Birkenstock and more and deals to make your budget bright. Find the perfect shoes for you and yours at a DSW store near you or dsw.com hi everyone, it's Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotney from the Today Show. Nobody does the holidays like Today.

[Hoda Kotb]

From festive performances and great gift ideas.

[Savannah Guthrie]

To tips for the perfect holiday feast.

[Covino]

Join us every morning on NBC and.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Make TODAY your home for the holidays.

[Rich]

What does Kaskali mean for Lisa, who has HR positive HER2 negative metastatic breast cancer?

[Savannah Guthrie]

I started taking Cascali in 2020 and I intend to keep taking it as long as it keeps working for me. I have much going on in my life. I'm a legal assistant, a minister, a grandmother. I love doing all these things and it's very important that I'm able to keep going.

[Rich]

Individual results may vary. Kiskali ribociclib 200mg tablets is a proven prescription medicine used to treat adults with hormone receptor positive human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 negative breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Metastatic in combination with an aromatase inhibitor as the first endocrine based therapy, Gascoli can cause lung problems or an abnormal heartbeat which can lead to death. It can cause serious skin reactions, liver problems and low white blood cell counts that may result in severe infections. Avoid grapefruit during treatment. Tell your doctor right away if you have new or worsening symptoms including breathing problems, cough, chest pain, a change in your heartbeat, dizziness, yellowing of the skin or eyes, dark urine, tiredness, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, bleeding, bruising, fever, chills or other symptoms of an infection, a severe or worsening rash are or plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding. These are not the possible side effects. Kiskali is available by prescription only. Talk with your doctor and visit kiskali.com for more information for patients and providers, including full important safety information and patient prescribing information. That's K I S Q A L.

[Covino]

I.com hey it's Covino and Rich. You know our trusted partner Tirerack.com for their fast free shipping, free road hazard protection, convenient installation options and their great selection of the best tires like the.

[Hoda Kotb]

Highly consumer rated Bridgestone Weatherpeak. But did you know they sell other automotive products, wheels, brakes and suspension, just to name a few. Everything you need to elevate your drive.

[Covino]

Go to tirerack.com sports that's tirerack.com sports tirerack.com the way tire buying should be Winter weather could be unpredictable, but with Rapid Radios Walkie Talkies, you'll always be prepared. Whether it's for road trips, ice storms, power outages, these walkie talkies offer reliable communication when you need it most.

[Hoda Kotb]

Keep in touch with your loved ones during winter adventures, adventures or emergencies with ease. Rapid Radios provide a dependable line of communication ensuring you're never out of reach. Visit rapidradios.com and receive up to 60% off and an additional 5% off using the code Radio Rapid Radios, your reliable companion through all seasons. Hey, thanks for listening to the Best of Cavino and Rich podcast. Be sure to catch us live every day from 5 to 7pm Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific on Fox Sports Radio.

[Covino]

Find your local station for Cavino and [e-mail] or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching FSR. I want to talk about the NBA and my first reaction. And who cares about my first reaction, right? Okay, but Kevin Durant's first reaction and all the smack talk that's been surrounding basketball. It's a great conversation to have today because yesterday was a big night. Anyone tune in? I bet you more people watched Aaron Rodgers new documentary on Netflix than watched the Emirates cup last night.

[Hoda Kotb]

Oh, when you were saying champions last night, I thought you meant my men's softball team champions.

[Covino]

By the way, congratulations. Yes, bring it back to Rich.

[Danny G]

Even there at the T Mobile arena, my brother in law went to the game because he was in Vegas for the Raiders Monday night football game. He stayed in town, went to the game, the cup game last night. Lots of empty seats.

[Covino]

See, that's sad. And I'll focus on the positive. The positive is you gotta give it to new ideas. Right? I'm not mad at the NBA for trying out new things, but we discussed why are ratings down? There's so many reasons why there was no excitement for this cup last night when there should have been.

[Hoda Kotb]

I mean, we're the show that embraces new ideas. In fact, who's the idiot that said, oh, the golden at bat? I'm not against it. That was me.

[Covino]

That was you?

[Hoda Kotb]

I mean, listen, I'm fine and Michael K. I'm, I'm fine with Rob Manfred.

[Covino]

I was okay with it too.

[Hoda Kotb]

I'm fine with innovation. It's just the NBA has hit this roadblock and I think if I was Sam, if you want to queue up the Beastie Boys. Sabotage. I feel like the NBA is doing a little self sabotaging. And I'll explain.

[Covino]

Well, they also announced this week in the world of innovating. Right. That they're going to do their first ever mini tournament for the all star game. Four teams competing in three games. Teams will race to reach 40 points to win each game, culminating in a championship match. And each team is drafted live on TNT by Charles Barkley, Shaq and Kenny Smith. So the new All Star format is going to be this little mini tournament. And look, I'm no NBA guru or insider. I'm just a fan who grew up watching, just like you guys. I'm just the guy who likes to shoot the basket around and tune in to the big games. My first reaction, and I'm open to new ideas. I like the gold net bat. My first reaction was, this is terrible. Yeah, well, I sounded too, like convoluted and complex. I was like, why not just a regular game?

[Danny G]

Yeah, that's the word. Tedious.

[Hoda Kotb]

Yeah.

[Danny G]

I didn't like, in America, we like one big game.

[Covino]

I didn't like the sound of this little mini tournament. Drafted by Shaq and like, get out of here with that.

[Hoda Kotb]

Well, I think what's. What's going on in the NBA is very clear.

[Covino]

Listen, y'all, it's a sabotage.

[Hoda Kotb]

The Beastie Boy said it best, like 40 years ago. Sabotage?

[Covino]

What do you mean sabotage? You think they're self sabotaging? The NBA is doing bad moves.

[Hoda Kotb]

The NBA is doing nothing to help their own cause. Let me explain. When you think of other sports, you watch the NFL, every announcer stroking Mahomes, Josh Allen, generational talent. I've never seen a player like Jamar Chase. Yo. Saquon Barkley, he's hopping over people doing, you know, backwards flips. And they sweat the players and they prop up the game.

[Covino]

Well, I always look at it this way. A broadcaster, which we Dabble in, Rich. 20 years of this, right? Yep. Is supposed to be honest, but you're supposed to hype stuff up to get people excited about certain things.

[Hoda Kotb]

It's your job.

[Covino]

You're giving them reason to tune in, reason to watch. That's how I feel about it. If things suck, they suck. You call it as you see it, but it's also your job to enhance the good things. Otherwise, you as the listener, the viewer you're like, well, why am I listening? Why am I watching? If you're not making it exciting or you're not enticing me to be involved or get involved, then you're just boring me.

[Hoda Kotb]

I mean, imagine if we were to do a live event and we're going to do one in 2025 to celebrate 20 years together.

[Covino]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

Big party in Vegas.

[Covino]

I think big party at the Spearmint Rhino. Whoa.

[Hoda Kotb]

I imagine we will hype this up. Imagine if we're like, yeah, it's not going to be that great, but you know, if you want to go. But it won't be that fun.

[Covino]

Yeah, it's like telling your buddy, hey man, you want to watch this movie with me? Is it any good? It's. I mean, it's alright. If that's your reaction to it, then I don't want to watch the movie. You know, I want to watch a movie with you. When you say, dude, wait till you see this movie, man. Wait till you watch it. Oh man, you're gonna love it. I mean, if you're downplaying it, then why are you wasting my time?

[Hoda Kotb]

I have certain buddies that are really good at selling me on a show or a movie. Like, dude, are you watching this new, this new show on Netflix? Are you watching Yo Apple tv? You gotta be watching Silo.

[Covino]

It's all how someone sells it to you.

[Hoda Kotb]

And we've been.

[Covino]

And who's selling it? That matters to them.

[Hoda Kotb]

And we've accused our video producer, Spot of not being the best salesman of shows like Spot.

[Covino]

Damn. He just said you were boring as hell, Spot.

[Hoda Kotb]

No, I said sometimes, Paul, there you go.

[Covino]

I think you should watch Yellowstone.

[Hoda Kotb]

I mean, it's okay. Like sometimes you just don't do a good job of selling it.

[Covino]

And what you're saying is you think some people are not doing a good job of also selling the NBA?

[Spot]

No comment.

[Covino]

I think that's what Rich, I think spots the NBA.

[Hoda Kotb]

Let me explain. Oh, okay. Let me explain all the other sports. I said NFL, look at baseball. You're pickleball, a Rod Jeter, big Poppy, you know, rest in peace. Pete Rose, Frank Thomas, all these guys would talk highly of the game. Kb, Kevin Burkhart, these guys elevate the sport.

[Covino]

They talk about the sport they're essentially kind of working for.

[Hoda Kotb]

Everything about the NBA is a self criticism. Exhibit A. This morning on the Dan Patrick Show, Charles Barkley is talking about how the game stinks.

[Danny G]

I watched the warriors, played the Mavericks. It was one of the worst games.

[Hoda Kotb]

I've seen they just went up and.

[Danny G]

Down the court and shot threes. And I was like, man, this is awful to watch. If you just don't have a three point shooting contest every night, the most important thing of the game is the fan.

[Hoda Kotb]

Yeah.

[Danny G]

And if they're not watching, you can't keep your head in the sand. You got to say, what are we doing wrong? And like I say, it's frustrating for.

[Hoda Kotb]

Me because all it is now is.

[Danny G]

A three point shooting contest and a free throw contest.

[Hoda Kotb]

I don't like it if Charles Barkley doesn't like it. How are you supposed to like it if every who is the. I heard Jason McIntyre talk about this a little bit on the Herd, but I had already been thinking this myself. If every night or a couple days a week, you're tuning into the NBA and everyone's fired up, People love to say, what's the best pregame, postgame show? Barkley, Shaq, Kenny. When they're only talking negatively about the sport that you're trying to elevate. Barkley and Shaq just talk about how the game's not as good as when they were there. You know, it's not as tough and you know, players aren't as physical. They're just shooting up threes.

[Covino]

He is also being honest. I don't want to pat ourselves on the back like Barry Horowitz, but the minute the ratings came out and the story of the ratings dropped and 28% came out, we here on this show that they were saying, well, let's figure out why. There's a multitude of reasons as to why. But we're also saying for as much as Steph Curry has done for the game, essentially he sort of ruined the game because you got a bunch of people throwing up three point shots and they're not Steph Curry. So it's taken away from the game, the physicality of it and the rivalry of it, not to mention maybe too many politics involved in the NBA and people were tired of all that stuff. So we also speculated. So you can't expect Charles Barkley to get out there and lie either. But there's also that sense of he has to take a positive approach if he wants to sell this sport to other people. Because when he's talking about it and when they're talking about and they're talking down about their own sport, it's just magnifying what everyone's seeing already anyway.

[Danny G]

Yeah. And it also felt like in the line of questioning to Barkley, he's just basically giving his take on what the hot topic is the past few days because Adam Sandler, the Adam Sandler, that's what he has been a joke.

[Hoda Kotb]

Oh, yes. Oh, yeah. Kenny James. Oh, can't wait for Happy Gilmore too.

[Covino]

Sandman knows his basketball.

[Danny G]

Adam Silver, he has kind of been a clown lately. This, this European style tournament for the in season which is now the NBA Emirates Cup. Yeah, we weren't, we weren't too fond of it last season, but we all said, hey, we'll be open minded, we'll give it a chance, we'll give it a shot. Then the Lakers wanted it. Everybody made fun of them because there was a banner. And I was like, okay, well this is not pointing in the right direction. And now last night the Bucks didn't really want to pop champagne because they were feeling the same way. Like, hey, this is great, but this is not an NBA title. So we were all as Americans, we're all kind of confused by that aspect of it because we're into championships at the end of a full season, not these in season tournaments. And now he makes that. Silver makes this announcement that the NBA All Star Game is also going to be a soccer like tournament.

[Covino]

Danny G. You nailed it, man. We have a different way of thinking here in America. It's as simple as that. And you're absolutely right. We just want that one big game. When you start breaking it down into these little tournaments, Americans are tuned out.

[Danny G]

That's not how we have the patience.

[Covino]

We don't have the patience for it. We don't absorb sports that way.

[Hoda Kotb]

We have an equation. The equation is you play halfway through the sport. There's like the best players play All Star Game and then at the end we get a champion. Yes, we are we simple. We consume and compute sports in that fashion.

[Covino]

We want that with some burgers and beer. Simple.

[Hoda Kotb]

We're dummies, essentially.

[Covino]

Yeah, don't come the old way. Went perfect with our beer, helmets and face paint. You start adding all this other stuff, it starts getting confusing. We're not into it. And I'll be honest, I saw Kevin Durant's reaction to it. And again, it's the same line of thinking. Rich. When Kevin Durant reacted to the new All Star proposal, his reaction was my reaction. But I thought the same thing you thought. Meaning? Well, that's not what you want the faces of your league to be saying about your new ideas.

[Hoda Kotb]

So if Barkley, Shaq and the main faces of the broadcast are talking smack about the sport and one of the faces of the actual league, Kevin Durant, is saying this.

[Danny G]

I hate it.

[Hoda Kotb]

Absolutely hate it. I hate it. All Star Game 4, Mass. Changing all the formats. Terrible. In my opinion, we should just go.

[Covino]

Back to east west, just play a game.

[Danny G]

I think, I think we've been trying.

[Covino]

To, you know, bring that flair back somehow with the All Star weekend, but I think we just keep it traditional. We'll see how this one works. You never know, I might be wrong. I'm just another guy with another opinion.

[Hoda Kotb]

And listen, that's the opposite of getting.

[Covino]

Me tuned in, right? I only want to go watch a movie. When you tell me how good that movie is, you're telling me you hate it. Guess what? You're making me hate it. I don't care about the All Star Game. I didn't care about the cup last night. NBA's bad. They're throwing up threes. Ratings are down. You're not selling the sport. I don't know how it's been getting such bad pr, but now it's become the narrative of the NBA and they need to do something really major that's not European style tournaments to fix the problem.

[Hoda Kotb]

Listen, you could admit it or lie to yourself. We are all influenced. I'm not saying we're all influenced by influencers on social media, but you could try to ignore it. But friends, family, coworkers, they do influence you. Example, I'm figuring out what holiday movie to watch with the wife when the kids go to sleep. And I had heard so many people say Red One with the Rock, which is now on Amazon. It was in the theater one too many people like, yeah, I don't know, dude, it sort of stinks. I started watching it and in my head was like, yeah, stink. This does stink.

[Covino]

Does stink. You're just noticing all the stink.

[Hoda Kotb]

You're jaded going into it.

[Covino]

Like, this stinks. It stinks. This stunks.

[Hoda Kotb]

I hate it. So all we're saying is the NBA is not doing themselves any favors by adding to the narrative of the stink.

[Covino]

From the most prominent people in the sport. From the Shaqs, from the Barclays, from the Kevin Durant says, you heard there. And if this dude doesn't like the format, he does go on to say, hey, look, that's my first reaction to it. Maybe I'm wrong. He goes, maybe I'm just a guy with an opinion, you know? Yeah, I'm just the guy on opinion. Maybe it's something that's gonna work. I'm just telling you what I think.

[Danny G]

But that's exactly what you guys said when the in season. Tournament came out last season.

[Covino]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

And it was fun.

[Danny G]

Okay. Open minded to it. But maybe this is going to sting.

[Covino]

It was fun. Maybe because the Lakers were involved. We're here in la, right? But there was no buzz this year. And I really think that narrative of the ratings are down. The NBA is boring. I think that narrative has really gotten all of our psyches, all of our brains, and that's what we're seeing now. Like, yeah, this sucks. Like, like the awareness is out there now.

[Hoda Kotb]

The glass is broken.

[Covino]

If there's a girl, like, yeah, the NBA stinks.

[Hoda Kotb]

I'll make a dumb analogy. If there's. And she's hot, she's got a little bit of a big nose. And some guy points out like, yeah, she's hot, but look at her nose. And then someone else goes, yeah, she does. She is hopping on now she's the.

[Covino]

Girl with the big nose.

[Hoda Kotb]

And now eventually it's like she went.

[Covino]

From the girl with the hot bod to the girl with the big nose.

[Hoda Kotb]

And the NBA has become the girl with the big nose. So many people have pointed out the NBA went from the hot chick to like, yeah, she's topping, got a big nose. Now everyone's like, she's got a big nose.

[Covino]

It's a narrative they need to squash. I don't know how to look. I don't get paid the big bucks to fix it.

[Danny G]

You know who doesn't care about big noses? The rest of the world. Ephraim Salaam was on the network yesterday evening as a guest on the Odd Couple. He made a great point. He said, you look at the past, I think it's five or six NBA MVPs in the MVP race last season. European players. The league has softened European style.

[Covino]

That's part of the problem, though. For as great as they are at the energy, we don't care about them, their names, and they don't want to be the face of the league.

[Danny G]

Right. And the NBA marketing has gone worldwide and has focused on other countries, not ours. Let's be honest. They can't compete with the NFL. No professional sport really can. So.

[Covino]

Yeah, but the NBA was doing a great job of marketing their, their stars and the storylines for such a long time. All of these things happened and it left a bad taste in everybody's mouth. Colin Cowherd made a great point too over the past few days. He said something about how ratings dropped like 50% once Jordan retired. Right. And we're seeing a drop off now that LeBron's on the tail End of things. And the stars that they're marketing aren't stars that necessarily want to be marketed and stars that we gravitate toward, like. Like a Giannis or a Jokic or anybody like that. They don't want to be the face of the NBA. They're really not great faces and ambassadors for the NBA.

[Danny G]

Well, this has been going on now since 2012 because the TV ratings since 2012 are down 48%.

[Covino]

That's ridiculous. And I'll tell you what. To make this one full conversation, the new rules for the NBA All Star Game, this little mini tournament is not it. It's not it. We don't like it. Kevin Durant doesn't like it. I don't like it. And again, the faces of the league, when they're talking down about it, does nothing to help. Hey, bud, they really need to have. I'm not saying they need to lie. Right. But they need to lift their sport.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

I mean, all right. It's. When you work for a company, it doesn't even need to be a sports league. You are an ambassador to that company. You are essentially speaking on behalf of them, many times publicly. Your job is to elevate, not, you know, put down exactly the company you work for. That's part of good business. Like Derek Jeter. Do I really believe he drives. What was it? The Edge? What was that car he drove?

[Covino]

Jeter's got the Edge. Yeah. Ford Edge.

[Hoda Kotb]

Do you think. I really think Jeter drives a Ford Edge in his prime. Get the hell out of here. I wouldn't even drive a Ford Edge if they give it to me for free.

[Covino]

I would. Hey, if anyone. If anyone from Ford's listening, you know what?

[Hoda Kotb]

He's a sellout.

[Covino]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

I'm not driving a Ford Edge, but Derek Jeter made you think Jeter's got the. I got the edge. Ford Edge. Do I really think Shaq drives in that little car and has general insurance? No, it's a sale. It's a. It's like selling a call in sports. He got.

[Covino]

Yeah, you got to sell this, man. That's why the NBA is paying you guys the big bucks.

[Danny G]

He does eat, like, 10 Papa John pizzas at a time.

[Covino]

I believe that, and I get it. You know, you might not like how the game's being played right now. You have to find a way to still be positive or focus on the positives without putting down the sport, because that's all we're seeing.

[Hoda Kotb]

As much as we criticize the NFL at times, because we, you know, people Just love to criticize everything. The NFL. Every time there's a rule change or a head injury or something that you could very much construe as negative, they don't harp on it. They try to move along quickly. And sometimes the criticism is that a player could do some, you know, something bad, and they move along too quickly because they. The NFL is like bro, Unicorns, Rainbow, sunshine, NFL. They're not. Do you think any announcers and analysts will. Would. Would spend an extended period of time talking negatively about the National Football League?

[Covino]

No.

[Hoda Kotb]

Meanwhile, Shaq and plus the Barclay fell.

[Covino]

Would put a Kai Bosh to it.

[Hoda Kotb]

Shaq and Barkley, who I love watching because they are entertaining. There are a couple old heads that are fun as hell, but all they're doing really is subconsciously telling you that it stinks now compared to when they were playing.

[Covino]

Right? Watch this movie. It stinks. No, thanks. No. Hey, want to taste this steak? It sucks. No, I'm good. You know, you're not selling me on it, so no, thanks. I don't want it. And that's what we're getting.

[Hoda Kotb]

Somebody goes, oh, smell this.

[Covino]

Yeah. Hey, this song stinks. You want to hear it? Nope. That's really what we're getting from the NBA. Now I want to focus on your first reaction of this All Star mini tournament. Are we overreacting? Because again, we're saying we're open to new ideas, but not like European ideas. That's not how it works for us. You want to Americanize it? Throw some hot women in there or something. I don't know. Free pizza for everybody. You know, this little mini tournament. Not cutting it.

[Hoda Kotb]

Your feedback next at 87799 on Fox. What does the NBA do?

[Covino]

I like the new ideas you're throwing out there, but that doesn't mean you have to stick with them. They're not all going to work. Yeah, I commend new ideas, but let's go to J.D.

[Hoda Kotb]

In North Carolina. What's up, buddy? Covino and Rich.

[Isaac Lowencron]

Hey, guys. I got two words.

[Hoda Kotb]

You're gonna have to repeat those two words. I got two words. And then your phone went out. Say it again.

[Danny G]

Phone is as bad as the new All Star format. Yeah, Hang on the line, J.D. we'll see if we get a better connection.

[Covino]

Joan Lee Donley, call back.

[Hoda Kotb]

I really wonder what his two words are. Now I know we're never gonna know. TJ in Riverside.

[Isaac Lowencron]

Hey, how you doing, guys? Love the show.

[Hoda Kotb]

Thanks, man.

[Isaac Lowencron]

Now, my. My thing has always been, I think the college. It starts in their College. I don't know any of those stars. No more WNBA stars that are in college right now.

[Hoda Kotb]

If you would have told me, if you would have told me, Cavino, Danny G, anyone that we would have known more female collegiate players last year than male, I would have told you you were on drugs. No. Like the fact that you can name five to 10 women college basketball players that went to the WNBA and you could name maybe a couple in the NBA. That's problematic.

[Covino]

That's high, dramatic.

[Hoda Kotb]

So let's go to Eric and Cincy. What's up, Eric?

[Isaac Lowencron]

Hey, how's it going, guys? So, you know, we, you guys were talking a little bit. You know, the ratings have dropped off since Jordan left and I don't know if Jordan would be interested, but why not do something similar that they did a few years ago where they do a draft Jordan and say like a Larry Bird or a Magic Johnson or like the temporary head coaches. I think everybody would be interested to see if Jordan was like a coach, you know, first time coach. I know I would tune in.

[Hoda Kotb]

Let me tell you. Can I tell you this? There is no one, because I'm trying to think in music, sports, entertainment, no one is as universally like almost sickeningly, like sickening. Sickeningly. Is that a word? Sickeningly Loved more than Michael Jordan. He is invincible. Everyone thinks he was perfect. If Michael Jordan somehow like wanted to give his love to the NBA and come forward and be like, yeah, I'm going to be part of the positive change.

[Danny G]

Let's do Jordan vs. Isaiah Thomas for the All Star Game.

[Hoda Kotb]

But I'm saying Michael Jordan is so loved that if he's like, even if it was smoke and mirrors and Adam Silver's like, you know what I've decided to do? I've acquired the, the Michael Jordan think tank and he's part of all the. Even if you said this is Michael Jordan's idea, there'd be like, oh, it's a great idea. It's a great idea. How long will going nostalgia, like how long will bringing back these guys from the past, the great years, like actually help the NBA? Michael Jordan can do no wrong. Okay, like half. I know, but that's not a sustainable answer. Like at some point the stars of today need to be the guys that.

[Danny G]

Are the most popular.

[Hoda Kotb]

That is true. But it's like, you know, for a while, what does wrestling do? They know when to bring back Hulk Hogan or the Rock or Stone cold Jesse Ventura. Jesse the body. They know when to do this. Michael Jordan. It's time Kavino, you don't think it's time to be like Mike? Just come on.

[Covino]

Mike saves the NBA again. Seriously.

[Hoda Kotb]

He stays out of the limelight on purpose, though.

[Covino]

They need to change his mind.

[Hoda Kotb]

He's hard to get to come to.

[Covino]

I know. I. If I were him, I wouldn't want to.

[Hoda Kotb]

He's got money he doesn't need. You know, it's like buying real estate or stock when it's a little low. Michael Jordan can come in now and be like, all right, listen, I love this game too much to see it go in the wrong direction. I'm here to help Adam Silver change it. My goodness. 30 to 60 year old guys eating out of their. The palm of their hands.

[Covino]

And by the way, we're not here to dump on it, guys. We're not here to do that at all. We're actually calling out the people we're expecting to hype. I consider myself a fan, okay? I'm calling out guys like Barkley and Durant, whose job in my mind is to hype things up. Like, hype it up so that I could hype it up. Yeah, get me excited about it. Because no one was excited about the game last night. No one was excited about the Cup. Even Darvin Ham wasn't excited about it. No one was excited about it.

[Danny G]

We pointed out last week that it's going to be what we're left with after the super bowl, and we want it to be a good product.

[Covino]

Exactly. Yeah. I want to make that clear, too. Like, we want to be pumped about it. And when we see. When I see if I'm wrong about the mini tournament, All Star Game tournament. My job, I view it as my job, Rich, is to get you hyped up. Listening. Hey, man, you're missing out. This is great. This is cool. You're missing out on the game. The big stars are doing a bad job of selling it now.

[Hoda Kotb]

I want it to be great.

[Covino]

We all do. I just want to make that clear. I don't want people to think we're. We're not hating. We're just stating.

[Hoda Kotb]

If anything, you could accuse me of being too positive. Yeah, I'm a pretty, like, annoyingly positive guy. To the point where, like, I don't.

[Covino]

Even think Rich wrapped his head around the mini tournament until today, because it does. It sounds confusing. Wait, so Shaq, Barkley and Kenny, they're gonna. They're all gonna pick teams and blah, blah, blah. Is that it? Just sounds corny, dude.

[Hoda Kotb]

Eric, you have one more thought, and then we'll take A few more phone calls, we'll go to Isaac for an update. What's up, man?

[Isaac Lowencron]

Yeah, so the guy, one of the announcers was saying, could Jordan bring it back? I mean, if you look when like Covid hit and that docu series of Jordan came, everybody was tuned in. I think it would be the exact same way if he did a coaching debut like versus Isaiah Thomas. I think that's a great idea. Maybe they would shake hands after the game.

[Hoda Kotb]

I just think. I know it's. You could say it's a cheap trick. One of your favorite bands of the 80s. You could say it's a rich Nielsen style. You could say it's a cheap trick.

[Covino]

Robin Zander.

[Hoda Kotb]

But Danny, do you agree with me that the fact that Michael Jordan could do no wrong in the eyes of every man and woman, like 30 to 60, like just involving him, even if it's smoke and mirrors as a solution, like we're bringing in Michael Jordan to help with the process.

[Danny G]

Well, we definitely need to bring back that good feeling of the 80s and 90s that the NBA and us as NBA fans had.

[Covino]

The NBA really needs to find a way to say, I want you to want me.

[Hoda Kotb]

Cheap trick. I. I'm telling you, he's right. Last dance got everyone fired up. Smoke and mirrors, dude. I. Sean and Sacramento wrapped us up, bud.

[Isaac Lowencron]

Yeah, bros, man, first of all, I don't. I. I really want to get to my question, but real quick, I've been dying to know, Rich, did you win your softball game for the championship, brother?

[Hoda Kotb]

Dude, I will let you know coming up. So I know you're gonna listen, Sean, but let's just say I'm a happy guy. But I got.

[Covino]

I heard more people tune into that than the Bucks Thunder last night.

[Danny G]

They did.

[Hoda Kotb]

They did. Richest softball, no mercy beat majority dads last night. Oh, wow.

[Covino]

You're going to hear all about it, I'm going to tell you. Are you at least feeling us though?

[Isaac Lowencron]

You tease the radio listeners. But real quick, man, I got three quick solutions to this NBA problem. Number one, go old school like the mlb, make the winner of the all star game. Make it back east and west, first of all. But make the winner the proud owner of home field advantage for the finals. Force these guys to care because at this point, it's just a terrible exhibition game. At this point. The other one, get rid of the stupid eterney. Whatever it's called, E Cup, whatever it is. Instead, after playoff spots are decided, make the bottom 16 teams have a tournament for the number one pick. Whichever way you fall in the bottom. If you finish first, then you get the first pick, second, second pick and so on, all the way down to 16. And the final fix makes make the ball red, white and blue. Like the ABA days, man. Let's get back to having fun.

[Hoda Kotb]

I like all your suggestions.

[Danny G]

Mandatory afros.

[Hoda Kotb]

Mandatory Afros. I like that, too. Thank you, Sean.

[Covino]

Colin was saying, Cal Herd was saying take the three point line all the way to the end. Like no side shots. No shots. Too easy. You know, the three point thing is a big part of it. People are bored with that now. Yeah, so we talked about that. But again, it's fresh on our minds with the new all Star rules and this cup last night. And we'll take the rest of your feedback next. Plus, midweek major and more. Rich's softball tournament. We got lots of guests. We got Isaac Lowencrum.

[Hoda Kotb]

Let's go to Ilo. What's up, buddy? All right, fellows. Our top story continues to be as it has been all day. Covino and Rich celebrate 20 years on air together. Thank you, Isaac.

[Covino]

Thank you, Isaac.

[Hoda Kotb]

Among the many congratulatory messages the duo has received today, this one quote, Congratulations on 20 years. Unfortunately, we have found the 21st year is the hardest. Sincerely, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. That was thoughtful. Speaking of quarterbacks, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was a full participant in practice today for the second straight day despite injuring his ankle in last Sunday's win at Cleveland.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Listen up, folks. Time could be running out to lock in a historic [e-mail] as of September 23, 2024, you can lock in a 6% or higher yield with a bond account. But here's the thing. The Federal Reserve just announced a big rate cut, and the plan is for more rate cuts this year and in 2025 as well. That's good news if you're looking to buy a home, but it might not be so good for the interest you earn on your cash. So if you want to lock in a 6% or higher yield with a diversified portfolio of high yield and investment grade bonds, you might want to act fast. The good news? It only takes a couple of minutes to sign [e-mail] and once you lock in your yield, you can earn regular interest payments even as rates decline. Lock in a 6% or higher yield with a bond [e-mail] but hurry. Your yield is not locked in until you invest. Brought to you by Public Investing member Finrant sipc. Yield to worst is not guaranteed. Not an investment recommendation. All investing involves risk. Visit public.com disclosures for more info.

[Rich]

What does Kaskali mean for Lisa, who has HR positive HER2 negative metastatic breast cancer?

[Savannah Guthrie]

I started taking Cascali in 2020 and I intend to keep taking it as.

[Rich]

Long as it keeps working for me.

[Savannah Guthrie]

I have so much going on in my life. I'm a legal assistant, a minister, a grandmother. I love doing all these things and it's very important that I'm able to keep going.

[Rich]

Individual results may vary. Kiskali ribociclib 200mg tablets is a proven prescription medicine used to treat adults with hormone receptor positive human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 negative breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Metastatic in combination with an aromatase inhibitor as the first endocrine based therapy, Giscoli can cause lung problems or an abnormal heartbeat which can lead to death. It can cause serious skin reactions, liver problems and low white blood cell counts that may result in severe infections. Avoid grapefruit during treatment. Tell your doctor right away if you have new or worsening symptoms including breathing problems, cough, chest pain, a change in your heartbeat, dizziness, yellowing of the skin or eyes, dark urine, tiredness, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, bleeding, bruising, fever, chills or other symptoms of an infection, a severe or worsening rash are or plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding. These are not all the possible side effects. Kiskali is available by prescription only. Talk with your doctor and visit kiskali.com for more information for patients and providers, including full important safety information and patient prescribing information. That's K I S Q A L I.com.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Hi everyone, it's Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb from the Today Show. We love this time of year.

[Covino]

There's so much to celebrate.

[Hoda Kotb]

That's right, nobody does the holidays quite.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Like today all season long. Join us for special performances with the brightest stars. Plus festive recipes to whip up the perfect holiday feast and great deals on the hottest toys and gifts for everyone on your list.

[Hoda Kotb]

So join us every morning on NBC.

[Savannah Guthrie]

To make today your home for the holidays. Life comes at you fast, which is why it's important to find time to relax a little. You time Enter Chumba Casino with no download required, you can jump on anytime, anywhere for the chance to redeem some serious prizes. So treat yourself with Chumba Casino and play over 100 online casino style games, all for free. Go to Chumbacasino.com to collect your free welcome bonus Sponsored by Chumba Casino. No purchase necessary. VGW Group void where prohibited by law, 18 terms and conditions apply. It's the most wonderful time of the year. Minky Couture's holiday season is here. Wrap your loved ones in the gift of luxury with our softest, coziest blankets ever. Perfect for movie nights, chilly mornings, or those magical Christmas Eve moments. From kids to grandparents, there's a Minky for everyone. Shop our exclusive holiday collection now in store or [e-mail] but hurry. Santa's favorites won't last long. Minky Couture. Making your holidays merry, bright and oh so cozy.

[Covino]

I really think there's so many reasons as to why the NBA is getting dumped on. There's so many reasons. We know that. But when they announced this new All Star mini tournament, the new format for 2025 NBA All Star Game, I started reading it Rich, right? And like mini tournament, four teams competing in three games.

[Hoda Kotb]

Words, words, words, words.

[Danny G]

Complicated.

[Hoda Kotb]

Complicated.

[Covino]

Words, words, words, words. And I'm not trying to downplay we're stupid Americans. No. We're just preoccupied and we like things simple. And that's the truth.

[Danny G]

Right?

[Covino]

You know what? We want one awesome game where maybe there's something on the line, right?

[Hoda Kotb]

We're okay with a rule change. We're okay with an iPhone update. We're okay with some things. But when you try to change what I call the American sports equation season midway through, the best players play All Star game. End of the year championship. That is the blueprint.

[Covino]

The 24 All Stars will be chosen through the traditional voting process is led by honorary GM Candace Parker. The teams are picked by Barkley, Shaq and Kenny. It's like, oh, my God, there's so much involved. My reaction as a fan was the same as Kevin Durant's.

[Hoda Kotb]

Hate it.

[Covino]

I hate it. But you gotta be open to new ideas. I do commend them for trying. These are just not the right ones.

[Danny G]

The end new ideas, but less. How about less involved? How about quicker? You know, better, Bigger. Better. Like what the MLB is trying, has been trying to do the past few seasons. Did they let the pitchers take longer on the mound or did they come up with a clock?

[Covino]

That's it. And that's coming from Danny G's, our most hardcore resident NBA fan, right? So he's acknowledging too that there's a problem. And I think we're really hitting on something. Rich, I give you the credit. You want the faces of the NBA to be ambassadors to the sport. They're not doing a good job selling this stuff. And they're just not. And we're the fans and to you, maybe we're the guy selling it, but there's not a whole lot to sell. There was a Emirates cup last night. No one cared. What do you want from me? Congratulations to the Bucks. They didn't even celebrate.

[Danny G]

Rich, would you watch more if we got back to nasty dunks?

[Covino]

Yes.

[Danny G]

Really good defense. Yeah.

[Covino]

The world, Americans especially wants nasty dunks. Don't fake the funk on a nasty dunk as much. Slamming, jamming, rip roaring and ramming, that's what we want.

[Danny G]

I love it. I love it. When Anthony Edwards, a young star in the NBA, goes to the hoop. I was watching the starting five special on Netflix. He looked at the camera and he's like, to be honest, I hate dunking.

[Covino]

Really?

[Danny G]

Yeah. And he chucks up a lot of threes right now. He's, he's been working on his three point game like a lot of the league. I like Dan Byers idea to go inside out for the all star game. So if you shoot from outside, it's not worth three. It's a two to, to get a three pointer you have to drive to the basket. And how about this? Any dunk, 4 points to encourage people.

[Covino]

To drive to the basket. And you know who else went on a rant about this? Credit to Dan Byer for sure. Right? He was the first on our show to bring that up, you know, because people are scrambling like what's the issue? We love the NBA. What happened? What's going on? Dane Cook went on a rant. Comedian Dane Cook, he was like in the face. He basically was like, I got the resolution. And he sort of, you know, ad libbed with Dan Byer said on our show, just change the point system but give it a shot during the All Star game like you said.

[Danny G]

I would love to see that. If there was incentive for the players to drive to the hoop, I think all of us would be all about that.

[Hoda Kotb]

I mean you've seen all the things like I heard Colin or someone say take away the three point line completely. Like just everything's two points.

[Danny G]

Why did we all fall in love with LeBron's game when he first came into the league? Was it because he was a good three point shooter? Hell no, he wasn't. He was a bad three point shooter.

[Hoda Kotb]

He was aggressive. You're right. He went to the basket.

[Danny G]

He still does in his 2020 first season. He still can put the team on his back at times and drive to the hoop when they need a foul or a bucket.

[Hoda Kotb]

You can't take away the value of a three pointer. But what if you made a dunk? Three points.

[Danny G]

Yeah, that's what I was saying. Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

No, meaning. Meaning not. Not a, not a mid range jumper or a layup. I'm talking a dunk. Like a dunk is three points.

[Covino]

Oh, that would be. I get it. Yeah. So now you're enticing people to get to the basketball.

[Hoda Kotb]

Not only get to the basket, but finish.

[Covino]

I like it. I like it. Something needs to be done.

[Hoda Kotb]

I got to start. Can we. How about this again?

[Covino]

This is a positive conversation. We're not dumping on the NBA before every game.

[Hoda Kotb]

A round ball rock. Sing along.

[Covino]

Oh, like live John Tesh basketball every day. I think John Tesh always equals ratings.

[Hoda Kotb]

Live John Tesh at the all star game.

[Covino]

So come on your thoughts. Celebrating the 20 years Covino and Rich at Covino Rich on social media now.

[Danny G]

Next hour, Rich sounds like spotty singing.

[Covino]

Sign me up. Rich is going to talk about his 49ers and Brock Purdy, we're going to talk about Devin Williams of the Yankees. And midweek Major. The biggest stories in the world of sports and pop culture.

[Hoda Kotb]

Can't wait. And a really interesting NHL game that's coming up there. There's a hockey game that's worth noting and I'll explain why I saw. I saw this on social media and maybe less. I'll share with you. There's a game of note, January 15th in the NHL. They're calling it the Diddy game. I think he did because it's the. It's wild Oilers. It's the Minnesota Wild versus the Edmonton Oils. And they're saying, oh, is that diddy night? And then someone else said, well, they haven't. They're not playing anymore this year. But what about the Predators? Oilers?

[Covino]

Oh.

[Hoda Kotb]

Did he not take note of that? All right, I know. So dumb. I got it.

[Danny G]

And finally NHL gets on the show.

[Hoda Kotb]

But that's how my first hockey mention of the year. All right, so Brock Purdy. I've done nothing but defend this guy. I've done nothing but give him a bro hug and accost him in a hallway at a VIP section. Danny, you were there.

[Danny G]

Yeah, I feel. I feel a butt coming.

[Hoda Kotb]

I gave him a little bro hug. I met Brock Purdy. Nice guy. Didn't you like weird him out? Danny costed him. Danny thinks that I think he loved me. He looks like a scared puppy dog anyway. And you probably freaked him out.

[Danny G]

He had a nickname for Rich. Security.

[Hoda Kotb]

You know what? I'm going to post a picture at Covinon Rich and you tell me, I think it's the face of a man that just met another, you know, a new friend. So I've supported Brock Purdy. It tough shoes to fill because I thought Jimmy G was a solid dude, maybe not a great quarterback. You know me, Niners fan. So this may not come as a surprise or a surprise that I think it is preposterous. It is insanity. It is like almost like fool's talk when I'm hearing the numbers being thrown around for a Brock Purdy contract. Like, I don't know what guy are you watching? Yo, he's quicker than you think of the pocket. He makes good decisions. Not all the time. His arm strength is a little suspect, a little sus. Can't throw the ball downfield. He's. He doesn't have the cannon of a Josh Allen or, you know, he. He lacks certain things. Probably shouldn't have been Mr. Irrelevant. I was. Sam, you pointed that out. He had a bad senior year, so his stock plummeted in the draft very well. Could have been a second round. His numbers were good, but the team lost a lot of close games, like 7 and 6.

[Covino]

So he doesn't have any superstar qualities. That's what really sets him back. But overall, he's a solid quarterback.

[Hoda Kotb]

He's a solid quarterback. In fact, when we've done our. And we won't do it again, when we've said where does he rank among the 32 quarterbacks in the NFL? We all agreed in the top third. You know, definitely a top half. Maybe the top third. Right.

[Danny G]

Even his TV commercials for Cowboy boots are average.

[Hoda Kotb]

Yeah, I mean, like. I mean, personality wise, he's. He's average. But I would say of 32 NFL teams, I think we all agreed he's between 10 and 15. Right?

[Covino]

He's.

[Hoda Kotb]

He's top.

[Danny G]

Probably around 12, 15, 12.

[Hoda Kotb]

What about last year, though? He was like, people were talking about MVP that whole year. That whole. Listen, Brock Purdy struggles are just a microcosm of the struggles of the Niners. I mean, that is true.

[Danny G]

Not Everybody was talking MVP. Remember all the stuff we saw in FS1 right in front of our faces? Rich.

[Hoda Kotb]

Nick Young is salivates at this.

[Danny G]

Because last season, last season, a lot of the narrative was it's because of who's around him, it's not because of him. So he wasn't getting enough credit last season.

[Covino]

It felt like Nick Wright was hating on him every day.

[Hoda Kotb]

Yeah, but he's still forced to debate Brock Purdy. Because he does. He'll have games where he has three touchdowns, 350 yards, no picks.

[Isaac Lowencron]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

And, like, an almost perfect passer rating. I think Brock Purdy is a really good NFL quarterback. Really good. He does everything they ask him to do when they have the guys, when. When the team is healthy. And if they do come back healthy next year, Iuk McCaffrey, Debo Kittle, Trent Williams, they might be aged. It might be a. You know, everyone gets older. But I still think next year, the 49ers will be back to the playoff, super bowl hunt like they were the past five years. However, I see the number 60, $65 million a year. Are you on cocaine? Are you snorting lines?

[Savannah Guthrie]

Are you. Are you.

[Hoda Kotb]

What are you doing? Are you shooting heroin in the hallway? What is going on? You think brock Purdy deserves $65 million a year?

[Covino]

There's a lot of older people. You got to say, quaalud.

[Hoda Kotb]

What are you on?

[Covino]

Quaaludes.

[Hoda Kotb]

What is going on? Valium. What on earth is going on? I love Brock Purdy. I've supported him. I've backed him up through all the hate and criticism over the years. But when you look at the Highest.

[Covino]

Paid quarterbacks, 65 million for Purdy sets the team back for sure.

[Hoda Kotb]

It not only sets the team back, but when you look Cavino at the highest paid quarterbacks in the NFL. Dak Prescott, I'm talking about average per year, 60 mil. Burrow, 55. Jordan Love, 55. Trevor Lawrence, 55. 2 of 53. Golf 53. Herbert, 52. Then you go Lamar Jackson. Jalen hurts.

[Covino]

Inflation's more than I thought it was. You know, if he's 65 and barrel's 50, 55, what?

[Hoda Kotb]

And then.

[Danny G]

And then we've talked about it endlessly, Rich. How it's always been the next QB in line, the next guy in line.

[Hoda Kotb]

But that's got to stop. Dating.

[Danny G]

It does need to stop. And Bill Barnwell, he's the one that was talking about 65 million a year. He wrote, I suggested over the summer that a Purdy deal would come in at five years, 325, or 65 million per year. That's still the number that he and his agents are likely targeting.

[Covino]

Well, could it be? And I'm just playing devil's advocate here, okay?

[Hoda Kotb]

Are people smoking the crack rock?

[Covino]

I'm just playing devil's advocate. Do you think. Do you think that there's a stigma that still stands with him? Because if you take away Mr. Irrelevant and the surprise that Brock Purdy Was. And you just focus on what he's actually done in the NFL and where he actually ranks. Like you said, Danny G. 12th. Maybe it's really where he's at and it's the fact that we think, we have this idea that he should be grateful to be on a team with these superstars. He's Mr. Irrelevant. Maybe he's earned that Kavino. Right. And maybe it's the stigma that comes with him that makes you think that he's not worthy and he should snap back to reality. Whoops, there goes gravity Kavito back to life.

[Hoda Kotb]

I'm going to give you three quarterbacks.

[Covino]

That I agree he's not better than Burrow or anyone you mentioned. I'm going to. But he's up there with the best, and it's always that next guy.

[Hoda Kotb]

I'm going to give you three elite quarterbacks that signed deals a couple years ago, perhaps prematurely based on the market now, okay? Averaging 40 mil a year. Matthew Mother F and Stafford, 40 mil. Josh Allen, 43 million. Patrick Mahomes, 45 million. I understand Joe Burrow getting 55. I could even argue Jordan Love at 55. The potential is there. He has glimmers where you're like, yo, this is the guy.

[Covino]

See, here's the difference.

[Hoda Kotb]

Why don't you tell me that?

[Covino]

What was Josh Allen at? 43?

[Hoda Kotb]

43.

[Covino]

And he's a guy that could make a difference and change a game. Right? He's a difference maker, a game changer, as Cam Newton would say. Right? That's what he was. That's what Josh Allen is Brock Purdy. Isn't that so I get where you're coming from. I do. He's not that guy. He needs that team around him to win. So it's not that.

[Hoda Kotb]

That guy, pal.

[Danny G]

Trust me.

[Covino]

It's not that guy. It's a negotiation, right? So like any negotiation, they have to go high and find a middle ground.

[Hoda Kotb]

The art of the deal.

[Covino]

It's the art of the deal, right? So just like Pawn Stars or any other goofy show, you're shooting high because, you know, you know, Mike Wolf from American Pickers is always going to go somewhere in the middle. So best I could, he's going to say 65. And, you know, he's probably gonna get somewhere around the Joe burrow area of 50. 55. Listen, and then that seems fair, doesn't it?

[Hoda Kotb]

No.

[Covino]

Well, in a. In a market that's always going up.

[Hoda Kotb]

That's.

[Covino]

You think he's less than that?

[Hoda Kotb]

Yes.

[Covino]

Like how much? All right, not everyone that you mentioned is a difference maker.

[Hoda Kotb]

We're not asking. And listen, this all started by me saying I admire, I respect, and I really enjoy watching Brock Purdy. I'm not asking this dude to get on the breadline like it's a Soviet Union in the 80s.

[Covino]

What did Daniel Jones get again?

[Hoda Kotb]

I'm talking about giving this guy 45 to 50 mil. Seems fair for the team what he brings. And I'm going to go back to something my grandfather always taught me. Oh, Richie. I'd be like, Grandpa Ken Griffey Jr. Card is worth 80 bucks. And my grandfather would say, well, buddy, worth 80 bucks. If I see someone tell you, here's 80 bucks, give me the card. It's only worth what someone's willing to give you.

[Covino]

So my biggest said that you don't know s from shinola.

[Hoda Kotb]

That was his favorite phrase. Why is that old people's favorite phrase?

[Danny G]

So you know Daniel Jones got a signing bonus, guaranteed 36 million and an average annual salary of 40 million.

[Covino]

Okay, yeah, that's what I thought it was. 40.

[Hoda Kotb]

I mean, it's quarterback inflation.

[Covino]

He got 40. He did diddly squat in the NFL. At least Brock Purdy's won some games. I. He hasn't won any. You know, anything major that's going to make you cheer that hard. He's an NFC champion.

[Hoda Kotb]

Your star that you and Colin Coward sweat. Baker Mayfield stars are star, star stars. Baker makes what I call the most reasonable, awesome salary stars. The fact that Baker Mayfield makes roughly 35mil a year to me, is great for that team. It's great for the salary cap. It's great for Baker. Let's not make it seem like giving a guy $35 million a year chump change. I'm telling you, Brock Purdy, in my estimation, is a $45 million a year quarterback. When guys like Burrow are getting 55, and. And guys that signed a little too early before the QB inflation are getting in the 40s. Brock Purdy. If you said 4 year 185, year 220, give this guy 40 something, he'll be happy. The team could keep winning. Tom Brady. Tom Brady would always take a little less money. I think the other layer of this to go back to the lesson my grandfather taught me. Only if someone's willing to give it, right? If the 49ers say, Yo, Brock, we love that you saved us from the Trey Lance disaster. Because people forget about the Trey Lance fail. Because Brock Purdy was the little gem at the last pick.

[Danny G]

Who?

[Hoda Kotb]

Exactly. If they said Brock 45, 48 a year. Dude, we'll get like pretty practically 200 plus million dollars over five years. That's a mega millions Powerball jackpot. He'd have just enough to put food on the table.

[Covino]

I mean, I think it sounds fair, but this is not the business of fair. Right? This is the business of trying to get the most you can. It's the agents. They're trying to get the most they can for their cl. As any agent.

[Hoda Kotb]

And all his, you know, mediocre Toyota commercials, whatever Brock party's doing, probably, how would you feel?

[Covino]

Boot company or something, you know, when it comes contract time for us, are you going to want what's fair or the most your agent could get for you?

[Hoda Kotb]

I hope our agent's listening. I hope he tells his agent I'll settle for less. I'm telling my age right now. Ask for the most anyway. But.

[Covino]

So that's really what's going on. It's not like Purdy's the bad guy.

[Hoda Kotb]

Make it a bad talk show host. No, if Purdy tells his agent I don't need to take a max deal, then maybe they can. They can stop this quarterback inflation. Let's bring up one other layer and then we'll move on.

[Covino]

I think it's a. It's a fair discussion, Rich, but I think there's some unfairness because Brock Purdy doesn't come with that superstar flair about him.

[Hoda Kotb]

Guess what?

[Covino]

I think you're holding that against him.

[Hoda Kotb]

Guess what? Not everyone does. And whatever you do for a living, my final point, I think is the best point of all. I should have maybe led with it.

[Covino]

No, save the best for last man. You like Vanessa Williams.

[Hoda Kotb]

Danny G. I know Dan Buyer gave me a couple teams the other day that would want Brock Purdy, but give me an NFL team that would want Brock Purdy at $65 million. There's teams that would take Brock Purdy.

[Danny G]

Could answer that question. Yeah, I was gonna say quickly.

[Covino]

There.

[Hoda Kotb]

There are teams that would take Brock Purdy. No diggity, no doubt, but tell me a team that would take Brock purdy with a $65 million price tag. You would take Purdy at 45. If you're. If you're the Giants or, you know, some of the teams he named the Saints. There's teams that would take Brock Purdy for the right price, but no one. No one on God's green earth.

[Covino]

Well, I knew that was coming.

[Hoda Kotb]

I knew it would pay Brock Purdy $65 million a year.

[Danny G]

Yeah, you. And you've been arguing about 45. You could make an argument for 50 million a year, but he is not worth resetting the market for the position.

[Covino]

Danny, what do you think? Danny G. Where do you put him? You're not basing him on the market. You're basing him on the skill level compared to what these other stars are making. And that's not how.

[Hoda Kotb]

Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow. Some of the stars that signed contracts recently are in the 50s. You're right. We should not. I love what you said. Danny G. Nailed it. We shouldn't be even. We shouldn't continue to reset the quarterback market on Brock Purdy.

[Covino]

And that's coming from a 49ers.

[Hoda Kotb]

Now, listen, if he won the super bowl last year in Kansas City. I'm sorry. In Vegas against Kansas City. And if Purdy was the reason, fourth quarter, big play. And this year the Niners were playoff bound again. Now you're talking. But he lost a Super bowl without his star players around them. Under 500, value is down.

[Covino]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

So you can't. I mean. I mean a little bit under different circumstances. Had the Niners won the World Series. Jesus, I'm losing my mind. Had the Niners won the super bowl last year and the 49ers were 12 and two, like the Vikings or Lions, and the Niners were headed back to the playoffs, then you'd say, man, Purdy. But right now, I'll take Sam Darnold for 40. Sam Darnold's playing for 10 right now. 10 mil. I'll take Sam Darnold.

[Covino]

That's a steal, huh?

[Hoda Kotb]

I'll take Sam Darnold. No.

[Covino]

Guess what? You had Sam Darnold for five. Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

We can move on. Brock Purdy, not worth 65 million, but a great guy, great quarterback, great role model for kids, great everything. I think 45 is fine. 65. You out of your mind?

[Covino]

20 million off the. Off the mark. That's a lot. So good luck negotiating.

[Hoda Kotb]

But isn't there in anything in life, isn't there, like, the point where it's like. Well, that's too much. Like you're taking your daughter nothing. You know, put your business out there, but you're taking your daughter to a Broadway show when you go to New York, right?

[Covino]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

You paid a lot for tickets.

[Covino]

It was a surprise until you mentioned it on national radio.

[Hoda Kotb]

Good thing she doesn't care about anything dad does.

[Covino]

Good thing she's not listening.

[Hoda Kotb]

But you're going to take her to a nice Broadway show in New York City.

[Covino]

Yeah.

[Hoda Kotb]

Tickets were not cheap. No. If tickets were thousands, you would have been like, yeah, sorry, we're not going. Because everyone has a point where they're like, yeah, I'm just not going to pay that.

[Covino]

Everyone has a limit.

[Hoda Kotb]

Yeah, everyone has a limit. I don't know how. It's not the limit. 65 million. Get out of here. The end.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Listen up folks. Time could be running out to lock in a historic [e-mail] as of September 23, 2024, you can lock in a 6% or higher yield with a bond account. But here's the thing. The Federal Reserve just announced a big rate cut and the plan is for more rate cuts this year and in 2025 as well. That's good, good news if you're looking to buy a home, but it might not be so good for the interest you earn on your cash. So if you want to lock in a 6% or higher yield with a diversified portfolio of high yield and investment grade bonds, you might want to act fast. The good news? It only takes a couple of minutes to sign [e-mail] and once you lock in your yield, you can earn regular interest payments even as rates decline. Lock in a 6% or higher yield with a bond [e-mail] but hurry. Your yield is not locked in until you invest. Brought to you by Public Investing member Finren sipc. Yield to worst is not guaranteed. Not an investment recommendation. All investing involves risk. Visit public.com disclosures for more info.

[Rich]

What does Kaskali mean for Lisa, who has HR positive HER2 negative metastatic breast.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Cancer I started taking Cascali in 2020 and I intend to keep taking it.

[Rich]

As long as it keeps working for me.

[Savannah Guthrie]

I have so much going on in my life. I'm a legal assistant, a minister, a grandmother. I love doing all these things and it's very important that I'm able to keep going.

[Rich]

Individual results may vary. Kiskali ribociclib 200 milligram tablets is a proven prescription medicine used to treat adults with hormone receptor positive human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 negative breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Metastatic in combination with an aromatase inhibitor as the first endocrine based therapy, Gascoli can cause lung problems or an abnormal heartbeat, which can lead to death. It can cause serious skin reactions, liver problems and low white blood cell counts that may result in severe infections. Avoid grapefruit during treatment. Tell your doctor right away if you have new or worsening symptoms, including breathing problems, cough, chest pain, a change in your heartbeat, dizziness, yellowing of the skin or eyes dark urine tight loss of appetite, abdominal pain, bleeding, bruising, fever, chills or other symptoms of an infection, a severe or worsening rash are or plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding. These are not all the possible side effects. Kiskali is available by prescription only. Talk with your doctor and visit Qiscali.com for more information for patients and providers, including full important safety information and patient prescribing information. That's K I S Q A L I.

[Covino]

Hi everyone.

[Savannah Guthrie]

It's Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb from the Today Show. We love this time of year.

[Covino]

There's so much to celebrate.

[Hoda Kotb]

That's right.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Nobody does the holidays quite like today all season long. Join us for special performances with the brightest stars. Plus festive recipes to whip up the perfect holiday feast and great deals on the hottest toys and gifts for everyone on your list.

[Hoda Kotb]

So join us every morning on NBC.

[Savannah Guthrie]

To make TODAY your home for the holidays. Looking for excitement? Jumba Casino is here. Play anytime.

[Hoda Kotb]

Play anywhere.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Play on the train. Play at the store.

[Danny G]

Play at home.

[Hoda Kotb]

Play when you're bored.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Play today for your chance to win and get daily bonuses when you log in.

[Hoda Kotb]

So what are you waiting for?

[Savannah Guthrie]

Don't delay. Chumba Casino is free to play. Experience social gameplay like never before. Go to Chumba Casino right now to play hundreds of games including online slots, bingo, Slingo and more. Live the chumba [e-mail] VGW Group no purchase necessary Void.

[Hoda Kotb]

We're prohibited by law.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Seek terms and conditions. Time is precious and so are our pets. So time with our pets is extra precious. That's why we started Dutch. Dutch provides 24. 7 access to licensed vets with unlimited virtual visits and follow ups for up to five pets.

[Danny G]

You can message a vet at any time and schedule a video visit the same day.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Day. Our vets can even prescribe medication for.

[Danny G]

Many ailments and shipping is always free with Dutch.

[Savannah Guthrie]

You'll get more time with your pets and year round peace of mind when it comes to their vet care.

[Hoda Kotb]

What if the 49ers draft a quarterback, pick up the end deal at a discount on Kirk Cousins and you have Cousins for a year or so with a rookie quarterback in the Shanahan system and you avoid having to pay Brock Purdy $65 million. I'm convinced that Kirk Cousins in the right system is not totally done. You're not done like that, are you?

[Danny G]

No. But you would need for him to get his confidence back.

[Hoda Kotb]

You're kicking the can down the road But I'm just saying like what made the 49ers better than Kirk Cousins? But what made the 49ers so competitive over the last five plus years? The fact that they health and they had to pay the quarterback next to nothing. Right, right. You know Garoppolo. Garoppolo was sort of on the cheap and Purdy was on the cheap. Right.

[Danny G]

Not to mention your coaching staff and your O line.

[Hoda Kotb]

You run the ball very well. So with Kirk Cousins and a drafted quarterback, you're saving 25 to 30 million dollars. Just a thought. Haven't heard anyone say it. Kirk Cousins, we saw that. That meme. Danny G. Where the what dead money the Falcons have to absorb whether he's traded or released.

[Covino]

People forget that Brock Purdy took you to the super bowl. Dude.

[Hoda Kotb]

No.

[Danny G]

Yeah. The the Falcons, if they release cousins, 65 million in dead money. If they trade cousins 38 million in.

[Hoda Kotb]

So they're going to be itching. They're going to be itching for a trade. So hey, think about it. Let's get to midweek Major with Spotty, boys.

[Danny G]

Kavino and Rich gets you over the middle of the week with mid week major.

[Hoda Kotb]

Major. Oh, I love that.

[Danny G]

We throw sports and pop culture headlines.

[Covino]

And topics at the fellas.

[Danny G]

And it's like the kids say, that's.

[Hoda Kotb]

So mid week definitely major.

[Danny G]

CNR scoring midweek major. I gotta go quick here so Spotty can get a full 8 minutes. Alright. When you hear the horns, you know you've made it to the middle of the week. And we like to roll the big red love dice over there in the main studio to see who gets first.

[Covino]

Take the horns. Mean we're having a horny hump night. And I just rolled an eight.

[Hoda Kotb]

Six again.

[Covino]

Yeah. No. Hey, that means I win. Danny G. All right.

[Danny G]

Kavino's gonna go first. And now ladies and gentlemen, the most famous person besides Judy Bloom from Scotch Plains, New Jersey. Spotty boy.

[Spot]

Since Kavito's going first, I'll lead with this story. Dodgers fans had the joy of celebrating. Celebrating their World Series win as they pummeled the Yankees. The weaned and pummeled the Yankees. Well, the great city of Los Angeles decided to enjoy a parade. But it wasn't so good on their wallet. The, the numbers have been released as to how much it cost. And this is just in support of police and fire alone over $2 million. So your tax dollars came out of your tax dollars. But the Dodgers have to pay that back to the city of LA. But I just thought it was crazy. That $2 million price tag on just supporting the parade. Not even the parade itself.

[Covino]

Midweek or major mid. Thank you. Worth every penny. I mean, giving the. The fans a reason to celebrate. Celebrating your heroes, you know, it's just the moment you need to embrace. It's so much fun. I. I went in 96 when the Yankees won it, and I'll never forget, I went, you know, several times after that, but. And again and again.

[Hoda Kotb]

No.

[Covino]

And then I went again. But no. It's a way to thank the fans, and it just puts LA on the map. It's just great. So 2 million. To me, they got off cheap.

[Hoda Kotb]

What is 2 million? One inning of Ohtani.

[Covino]

Seriously, it's.

[Hoda Kotb]

It's great.

[Covino]

Listen.

[Hoda Kotb]

$2 million, one at bat. You know, it's like when. When people say, aren't you mad? Are you mad? This is like me. This is me. It's like when people say, are you mad the Mets overpaid for Soto? I'm like, if Soto helps them win one World Series, that pays for itself.

[Danny G]

It kind of was like two parades in one. Also because they didn't get the COVID one.

[Covino]

In other words, I don't think any Dodgers fans or LA is sad or mad about paying $2 million for that victory.

[Hoda Kotb]

And also go over the spreadsheet of what taxpayers pay for. I think a parade would not be towards the top of their hatred list.

[Spot]

All right, speaking of celebrations, continuing with the conversation we had at the top of the show, Danny, you alluded to this as well. As the Bucks won their Emirates cup championship after the win to the Thunder, they decided to forego the traditional locker room celebration of spraying beer and champagne, which they actually had laid out on ice. Apparently. Doc Rivers said after speaking with former Lakers coach Darvin Ham his experience after last season, they decided to forego the celebration of drinking and going crazy to focus on the rest of the season. So that's why they delayed it. They're. They're actually back at it this Friday against the Cavs midweek or may Major.

[Covino]

Everything about this is mid. That's so mid. The tournament was mid. The cup was mid. The game was mid. The game was what, 97, 81. Yeah. Thunder scored 81 points in a big game. Everything about it they didn't celebrate. I think super mid. But then again, they did mention last year. Didn't trying to win this take some steam out of the Lakers last year? Wasn't that part of the. The reasoning? They said they ran out of gas.

[Danny G]

Yeah, there. There was some arguing about Whether or not that's what affected LeBron's longevity for the season, as far as his legs.

[Covino]

And everything, and even the story of Darvin Ham being 2. 0 with the cup, everything about it was mid, unfortunately.

[Hoda Kotb]

I love how we're talking about a silly tournament In December effect LeBron's May playoff runs anyway.

[Danny G]

But he didn't rest like he didn't load manage like all the other players.

[Hoda Kotb]

But I think this is the weakest story ever. Listen, if you're. If you're going to have a tournament and you're trying to make anyone care about it, if you're trying to give the fans like this again, go to everything that's wrong with the NBA. You're trying to give the fans a reason to celebrate. And the players aren't even going to pop a bottle of champagne, then who cares? If they don't care, why should we care?

[Covino]

Yeah, I'm with Rich.

[Hoda Kotb]

Don't pop the celebrity. The celebratory champagne. Hey, guys. Dame got his championship. Okay. He got his championship finally. All right. That's what he walks away with at the end. Oh, so. Said that would suck.

[Spot]

Fresh off her time athlete of the year honor, University of Iowa has announced. Announced it will be retiring Caitlin Clark's number 22 in honor of her amazing career with the college. The Hawkeyes made the announcement today. Ceremony will take place on February 2, Groundhog Day, as the Hawkeyes take on USC. Clark commented how it means the world to receive this honor and celebrate with her friends, family and alumni midweek. Or major.

[Covino]

I think it's major, but I think she needs to embrace. Embrace this and say, hey, I've earned this. And everybody that doesn't like it, this is my victory here. Retirement number. I'm proud of it. The end.

[Hoda Kotb]

I think. I think this is major.

[Covino]

Yeah, it's major.

[Hoda Kotb]

She is the face of a sport, and I find it eye rolling when like Angel Reese tries to dig in for a little credit like we did. We.

[Danny G]

We.

[Hoda Kotb]

You're not French.

[Covino]

Everybody.

[Hoda Kotb]

Clark, stop it. And she. She's a recipient of so much jealous jealousy in women's sports.

[Covino]

Who said this? It wasn't a Snoop Dogg. When he won an award, he's like, I wanna. I wanna thank me. I want to thank me. I want to thank me. She needs a moment where she just thanks herself.

[Hoda Kotb]

Oh, Conor McGregor.

[Covino]

Remember, Conor McGregor said, I. I want to apologize to absolutely nobody.

[Hoda Kotb]

Yeah, that's.

[Covino]

That's what he said. What about Snoop Dogg won an award and said, I'd like to thank me. Thank Me?

[Hoda Kotb]

What about the. Who do you think you are? I am.

[Covino]

I love that.

[Hoda Kotb]

So I'm just saying, like, listen, you know me. I'm not a huge WNBA guy, but Caitlin Clark has done something miraculous in college, though. Come on, man.

[Covino]

Who is a bigger name than her? She needs to embrace this moment.

[Hoda Kotb]

All right.

[Danny G]

All right.

[Spot]

Well, excuse me, one more. UFC star Colby Covington suffered a loss to Joaquin Buckley this past weekend, and the reason he cites was that he was too busy campaigning for now President elect Donald Trump. Saturday's fight in Tampa was stopped in the third round, two to a cut over Covington's eye. While he disagreed with the decision, he admitted he wasn't at his best, saying that his training suffered, making him ill prepared for the fight. He said he came off the couch like two and with the two and a half weeks notice. So looking forward to his next fight, which hasn't been announced yet. Midweek or Major.

[Covino]

I think this is mid. Everything about it was mid. He said he thought it was an even fight until the cut happened, but he was getting pummeled the whole time. But it was the fanfare in the hoopla leading up to his entrance. He had the Hulkster there, right? Hulk Hogan's there. He's the real American. He's Covington, and he gets his ass whooped. So, yeah, I think it's mid, the whole thing.

[Hoda Kotb]

It's very. It's very mid. In fact, that's so mid. Maybe it might be Major. I'll tell you what, definitely major. What a real American. He sacrificed his own career for the betterment of his support of Donald Trump. What a real American. China. Let's say China. One more quickie spot. No, guys.

[Danny G]

Sure.

[Spot]

A few more details have emerged over the Joe Burrow burglary saga. It's actually been confirmed, according to. Well, confirmed in quotes to an inside source that Olivia Ponton, the woman who called in the burglary, they've actually been hooking up for months, and it's now been announced. Yeah. And. And we have no updates on his actual longtime girlfriend, but apparently she's kind of faded into the background. Seems like they're no longer together.

[Covino]

Her name was also Olivia.

[Spot]

Olivia.

[Covino]

Did he do that? Just avoid confusion.

[Hoda Kotb]

Oh, yeah.

[Covino]

You know Olivia.

[Spot]

So, yeah, apparently it's. We speculated, but apparently it has been a thing that they were hooking up for months.

[Covino]

Midweaker, Major. You know, I asked Joe Burrow, you still hooking up with Olivia? And he said, yeah, see? So now it makes sense. It's a different Olivia Newton John I.

[Hoda Kotb]

Think every Olivia out there is hot. Livy Dunn. It's a hot name.

[Covino]

It's a mid story because we sort of all knew was happening. That's so mid. And did he actually say hooking up for months? Is that the quote?

[Danny G]

That's.

[Spot]

I mean, not directly from him, but an inside source.

[Covino]

Yes.

[Spot]

Hooking up for months.

[Covino]

Okay. So, yeah, it's sort of mid. That was so obvious. We all, we all knew that she wasn't one working for him.

[Hoda Kotb]

Yeah, I mean, it's. It's, you know, it's mid because I think we also knew this. But good confirmation and great midweek. Major spotty.

[Covino]

Thank you, Spotty boy.

[Hoda Kotb]

It was pretty major. Let's get. Let's get Isaac for an update. Isaac, what's doing, buddy? All right, fellas. Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was a full participant in practice today for the second straight day, despite injuring his ankle in last Sunday's win at Cleveland. One other note, by the way, today Mahomes presented the following Christmas gifts to each of his offensive linemen. A Rolex watch, cowboy boots, sunglasses, and air compression pants.

[Covino]

Wait, they all got that?

[Hoda Kotb]

Damn, all of them got all those things.

[Covino]

Wow, that's a lot.

[Hoda Kotb]

Among the comments, Brian responding, quote, and they gave him a bum ankle. And Pire 1872 commented, quote, what did he get for the refs? Anyway, how do you feel when you switch to Geico and save on your car insurance? It's like getting right out of bed, late for work, yet your hair looks immaculate. No blow dryer, no comb, no sculpting gel. Just a flawless look as if you walked out of your house and straight onto the COVID of a men's fashion magazine.

[Savannah Guthrie]

Good morning, Steven.

[Covino]

Oh, have you done something new with your hair?

[Savannah Guthrie]

It looks amazing.

[Hoda Kotb]

Amazing. They don't have the slightest clue. You were half asleep drooling on your pillow not ten minutes ago. Yep, switching and saving with Geico feels just like that. Get more with Geico. What's up, everybody? Adnan Burke here to tell you about a new podcast. It's NHL Unscripted with Verkin Demers. Jason Immers here.

[Savannah Guthrie]

And after playing 700 NHL games, I.

[Hoda Kotb]

Got a lot of dirty laundry to air out. Hey, I got a lot to say here, too, okay? Each week we'll get together to chat about the sport that we love. Tons of guests are going to join in, too. But we're not just going to be talking hockey, folks. We're talking movies, we're talking TV food, and Adnan's favorite wrestling.

[Savannah Guthrie]

It's all on le table.

[Hoda Kotb]

Listen to NHL Unscripted with Vir and Demers, the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? It's Justin Penic from John Boy Media, the host of the Football Today podcast with Bobby Skinner and Chris Rose. We roll three times a week on Monday, on Wednesdays, on Fridays. Breaking down everything you need to know about the NFL. We're gearing up for the NFL playoffs. I hope you can join us. Join in with us three times a week. Listen to Football Today on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast and you will be glad you did.