What’s Wright - Nick Wright REACTS to Lakers MASSIVE Rockets win, Cade Cunningham INJURY, Giannis DONE with Bucks?

Summary

Podcast Summary: "What’s Wright – Nick Wright REACTS to Lakers MASSIVE Rockets win, Cade Cunningham INJURY, Giannis DONE with Bucks?"

The Herd with Colin Cowherd
Aired: March 21, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the biggest NBA stories of the week, featuring Nick Wright and co-host Damanze. The focus is on the Lakers’ pivotal win over the Rockets, Cade Cunningham's significant injury and its impact on postseason honors, the status of Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee, and shifting MVP narratives—particularly around Luka Dončić. Nick and Damanze also touch on player mentality, team dynamics, and notable NBA news beyond the box score. Throughout, the episode keeps its characteristic energetic, insightful, and candid tone, blending statistical analysis, hot takes, and the occasional storytelling detour for sports fans.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. NCAA Tournament, TV Timing, and Openers

[03:34]

• Nick notes the challenge of producing sports content during March Madness, humorously suggesting, “If there was ever a day to make a grievous error on the show, today is the day.”
• Quick promo for the Volume Bracket Challenge.

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2. Cade Cunningham Injury & All-NBA Consequences

[04:00 – 12:00]

• Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons diagnosed with a collapsed lung. Uncertainty about return timeline—possibly out for the rest of the season.
• Nick clarifies the difference between public perception and medical seriousness:

  “It seems like this type of collapsed lung is an injury that sounds more grave and life threatening than it actually is. … Blood clot sounds less scary than it actually is.” (Nick, 06:25)

• Implications for Detroit: They slide as a one-seed contender; their offense struggles in Cade’s absence.
• Major point: Eligibility rules require 65 games for All-NBA candidacy. If Cade can’t return, he’ll be ineligible despite both his value to the Pistons and lack of load management.

  “That's a damn shame and I think it's a good impetus for Adam Silver to potentially tweak it.” (Nick, 10:20)

• The rule probably isn’t needed for MVP since voters rarely select players with so few games, but the All-NBA impact is pronounced.

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3. Lakers’ Pivotal Win Over Rockets & LeBron’s Legacy

[12:03 – 19:50]

• Damanze highlights LeBron’s greatness: 30 points on efficient shooting, including dunk sequences reminiscent of his prime.
• LeBron soon to tie Robert Parish for most regular-season games played in NBA history, and already holds the record for combined regular/postseason games.
• Underappreciated milestone: LeBron passing Kareem for most baskets in NBA history got little attention.

  “LeBron breaks the record for just baskets. And they're just like, all right, ball in, keep it going.” (Nick, 15:25)

• The oldest player in the league yet still leading in fast break points and open-court dominance.

  “He's simultaneously the oldest player in the league and still the biggest open court threat in basketball since Giannis is having a tough season.” (Nick, 18:12)

• LeBron’s new role as a “third option” scorer is a bonus, not a necessity, making the Lakers a genuine threat.

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4. Lakers’ New Rotation: Team Dynamics & Intangibles

[21:02]

• Positive chemistry from the Lakers’ “Luka, Austin, Braun, Marcus Smart, and either Rui or Ayton” groupings.
• Deandre Ayton’s commitment to focus, inspired in part by LeBron's relentless effort:

  “When you have the goat in year 23 on your team and he is going all out… I think it resonates with Deandre Ayton.” (Nick, 21:05)

• JJ Redick credited for getting LeBron’s buy-in on his evolving role.

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5. The Luka Dončić MVP Case

[29:08 – 41:28]

• Luka’s rise underappreciated during the season; strong winning streak and eye-popping stats.
• Updated MVP rankings (as of before Cade injury):
  1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Shea)
  2. Luka Dončić/Wembanyama (interchangeable spots)
  3. Nikola Jokic
  4. Cade Cunningham (pending eligibility)
• Luka’s historic output: top-10 scoring season this century, along with 8 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game, on a 50-win pace.

  “This is a top 10 scoring season. … The only people to average more points per game in a season than Luka this year—Embiid, Harden twice, and Kobe.” (Nick, 33:07)

• Luka’s emotional fire is best channeled at fans and opponents, not referees:

  “Luka is at his greatest when he is turning the vitriol and I think deep personal and intense hatred he has for the officials to the fans and other players.” (Nick, 37:14)

• Discussion of the psychology of technical fouls, and how being one tech from suspension has made Luka more focused and less likely to lose composure.

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6. Western Conference Playoff Picture

[41:30 – 44:20]

• Lakers likely to secure the 3-seed, based on tiebreakers and remaining schedule.
• Anticipated Lakers-Spurs Round 2 series:

  “There’s a non-zero chance that Wimby’s first ever series defeat and LeBron’s final series win are the same moment.” (Nick, 41:54)

• Lakers’ strong position for playoff run, but the Western Conference remains tough.

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7. LeBron’s Future: Ownership News

[44:22 – 47:58]

• Fenway Sports Group not pursuing an NBA expansion team; LeBron, when directly asked, says he’s “not at all” interested in owning a team now—a surprising reversal.

  “LeBron has been adamant for years that he wants to own a team. And for him to just be like, no…” (Nick, 44:34)

• Nick commits to tracking down more information on what changed.

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8. Giannis Antetokounmpo & The Bucks’ Next Chapter

[53:00 – 58:15]

• Bucks are struggling. Internal push to shut Giannis down (with injury), but Giannis wants to finish season, possibly to have a “goodbye” home game.
• Nick is convinced this is a sign Giannis is leaving Milwaukee:

  “If he's leaving, I think Giannis wants to have an unofficial goodbye to the fans, a final home game that he plays, you understand?” (Nick, 53:42)

• Bucks’ series of all-in moves (Dame trade, coach changes) have not panned out; Giannis heavily involved in all decisions but now likely done with the franchise.

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9. Max Crosby Trade Ordeal & Baltimore Ravens’ Odd Behavior

[61:18 – 66:41]

• Discussion of the failed Max Crosby trade:
  • Odd details: Not greeted by GM or head coach, flown commercial rather than private, awkward onboarding.
  • Raises suspicions Baltimore used the physical as an excuse to back out after second thoughts.

  “Were they having second thoughts before he even got there and then used the physical as an out?” (Nick, 65:45)

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10. NFL Rule Proposal – Long-Term Pick Trading

[67:54]

• Cleveland Browns propose allowing teams to trade draft picks up to five years in the future.
• Nick's analogy: compares it to reckless personal finance; NFL's three-year limit is a needed guardrail to prevent teams from mortgaging the future.

  “It's your buddy who… works 18 hours a week and all of a sudden they pull up to your house in a three series BMW… you get a nine-year car loan. The reason the NFL doesn't allow you to trade draft picks more than three years in the future is to save teams from themselves.” (Nick, 68:01)

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11. Media Sidebar – WNBA CBA Leak

[70:30]

• Nick critiques whoever leaked WNBA CBA details to reporter Shams Charania over longtime women’s basketball reporters.

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Notable Quotes, Moments & Timestamps

• On injury optics:
  “Collapsed lung is an injury that sounds more grave and life threatening than it actually is.”
  (Nick, 06:25)

• On LeBron’s overlooked milestones:
  “LeBron breaks the record for just baskets. And they're just like, all right, ball in, keep it going.”
  (Nick, 15:25)

• On Luka’s impact:
  “This is a top 10 scoring season. Kobe had a season where he scored more, Harden had a season or two where he scored more, and that might be the list.”
  (Nick, 33:07)

• On Lakers’ chemistry and leadership:
  “When you have the goat in year 23 on your team and he is going all out... I think it resonates with Deandre Ayton.”
  (Nick, 21:05)

• On Giannis’s potential move:
  “If he's leaving, I think Giannis wants to have an unofficial goodbye to the fans, a final home game that he plays.”
  (Nick, 53:42)

• On Browns’ rule proposal:
  “It's your buddy who… works 18 hours a week and all of a sudden they pull up to your house in a three series BMW… you get a nine-year car loan. The reason the NFL doesn't allow you to trade draft picks more than three years in the future is to save teams from themselves.”
  (Nick, 68:01)

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Important Segment Timestamps

• Cade Cunningham injury and NBA eligibility woes: 04:00–12:00
• Lakers’ win over Rockets & LeBron milestone talk: 12:03–19:50
• Lakers rotation chemistry/leadership impact: 21:02–23:14
• Luka Dončić MVP and playoff debate: 29:08–41:28
• Lakers playoff path and Round 2 potential vs. Spurs: 41:30–44:20
• LeBron’s sudden change on ownership desire: 44:22–47:58
• Giannis’s injury, future in Milwaukee: 53:00–58:15
• Max Crosby/Baltimore trade confusion: 61:18–66:41
• Browns draft pick rule change analogy: 67:54–70:30

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Podcast Tone & Feel

• Engaging, passionate, and candid. Nick Wright freely mixes data, strong opinions, and cultural analogies.
• Co-host Damanze shifts between straight-man, challenger, and fan, keeping the conversation lively.
• Frequent rhetorical asides and real-life metaphors punctuate the discussion, making the show accessible for all sports enthusiasts, not just NBA diehards.

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Conclusion

This episode of "What’s Wright" offers fast-paced, smart, and fresh takes on the evolving NBA landscape heading into the playoffs. Nick and Damanze offer valuable context, pointed analysis, and a distinctly energetic perspective on big stories—from player health and league awards to locker-room culture, media etiquette, and front office maneuvering. If you missed the episode, this summary captures the substance, flavor, and memorable moments, offering a comprehensive window into the conversation.

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Transcript

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[Nick Wright]

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[Nick Wright]

Welcome in what's right with Nick Ride. Episode 434. Happy NCAA tournament day. And a reminder for everyone to join the volumes bracket challenge with our friends at hard rock bet. The website for that is bracket.the volume.com. i got that right off the top of my head. I believe it's free to enter. I'll tell you more details on that later, but that one time's a wasting. And you better be watching us live. Really? Because if you're watching this after the fact, tournaments probably already tipped off. So do that as soon as possible if you can to join our volume bracket challenge with our friends at Hard Rock bet. By the way, this episode as always is brought to you by by our friends at Boost Mobile. Damanze. Good morning. Good to see you.

[Damanze]

Morning. How's it going?

[Nick Wright]

Just full disclosure here. This is a weird day to do sports TV because no one will be watching. Like being doing morning sports TV, which I used to do, obviously pretty 2022, our show was on. First thing in the morning is a great day. But once, you know, noon eastern hits, not a lot of sports fans that are like, you know what, forget the tournament. I gotta. I gotta. We gotta see what a lot of track wild you're saying about these Stefan Diggs rumors. Like just I. So you know, if there was ever a day to make a grievous error on the show, today is the day. Today and tomorrow are the days. And to be totally honest, now that I think about it, I probably should have planned that Japan trip a little better. I probably should have done it this week instead of last week when I knew Thursday and Friday nobody would be watching. But people watch. This tournament hasn't tipped off and this is on demand. Uh, let's go straight to voicemail. Brought to you by our friends at Boost Mobile. Alex Caruso uses his shoe to block a shot and then seems stunned that that's not allowed. The eagle sign, Hollywood Brown. And then some real news that we're going to spend a minute on. Cade Cunningham, diagnosed with a collapsed lung. Now, obviously this could knock him out until next season. It would appear the doctors on the Internet are saying it also might only knock him out for two or three weeks like the rest of the regular season. Two major takeaways on that. Other than the obvious, which is you hope Cade's okay. Collapsed lung. I don't want to get myself in trouble here, but it seems to be. I like when I say that the producers immediately take Damanze off the screen. They're like, we don't know what Nick's about to say. Let's just make sure the Monze is protected. I'm not gonna but, but I'm not. I'm not gonna say anything egregious here I hope but it does. From reading what the doctors say, it seems like this type of collapsed lung is an injury that sounds more grave and life threatening than it actually is. Does that like I think blood clot is an injury that goes in the other direction. Blood clot sounds less scary than it actually is. Like blood clots are major, major medical events that can have real long term consequences. Maybe that's how it sounds. Okay. So all right, well then I think it should collapse lung. I think in this context pro athlete who got hit, they, you know, was monitored. They saw it. I don't think there is real long term, real life health implications but there are obviously immediate, immediate health implications and I think there is real implications to once he does return to court how long it takes his fitness and endurance level to get back. Which makes obviously makes a ton of sense. And so the two things that come to mind are one, the Pistons already Damanze were on shaky ish ground. They had cooled off from you know, not that long ago. They had the best record not in the east in the entire league. They had passed OKC briefly. That that has, you know that is no longer the case. And they already were I think going to be a very unpopular 1 seed pick to make the finals. As far as you know, the how, how much belief teams people typically have in the one seat of a conference. I think they were going to be on the lower end already. This now only exacerbates that. Now this also this stretch of time is going to remind folks how hard it is for the Pistons offense to operate without Cade.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

When and which brings me to my other point. If he is knocked out for the remainder of the regular season or even Mo he's only played 60 games. So unless he plays five more, which at this point I think is a big underdog, he's not going to be all NBA eligible. And that's a shame and that's a flaw in the new rules. Cade has been there. Cade has not been load managing. Cade's been awesome. Right. Led the team. They're still probably, probably not definitely but probably going to be the 1 seed if the all NBA team is supposed to be something of a snapshot showing the best players from that season, Cade Cunningham not being on that team this year. So damn shame and I think it's a good it impetus for Adam Silver to potentially tweak it. Now I don't think, I don't think the 65 game rule was ever going to be really necessary when it came to MVP because MVPs always play like more. You didn't need a rule for people to say if you only play 60 games we're probably not voting for you for league MVP. But this will cost Cade a spot on the ballot. Which makes it I think there four spots now on the MVP ballot are basically in stone. If Kate is not going to be eligible, Shea, Luca Wimby and Joker are going to be on there and then honestly I think the last two spots will probably come down to two Jalen's Brown and Brunson as a fight for that last spot I would lean Brown heavily and maybe Anthony Edwards could say something about that. But the other thing about the Cade injury is this Boston alive for the one seed now Boston's four losses behind Detroit. Let me see real quick, who has the tiebreaker there? So Boston 1 and 1. 1 and 2. Okay, so Detroit has the tiebreaker so that's going to be hard. So there are four losses back and Detroit has the tiebreaker. So Detroit would really have to go into a swoon. But they are alive for it. So those are my immediate takeaways from the Cade Cunningham news. That obviously is an Eastern Conference story. Most mostly we're going to get to the Western Conference here in just a second. But first a reminder like rate, subscribe, review. Also a reminder we're back to three shows a week. We're gonna alternate or vacillate between gambling shows and mailbag shows. So keeps again I know I tell folks sending questions, comments then at the end of the show we don't always get to them. We are culling those and creating kind of a nice archive of them to do on our mailbag shows. But tomorrow's episode will actually be a very early AFC over unders as Hard Rock has dropped the over unders looking for next season post free agency and again you'll get an update when that posts if you are subscribed to the Pod Damante. Let's get to the game last night.

[Damanze]

Yeah. So earlier this week JJ said the best thing for the team is LeBron being the third highest used player and then he went out scored 30 on 13 of 14 shooting. And now the Lakers have that tiebreaker with the Rockets and alone in the three seed.

[Nick Wright]

So, so, so a bunch here. One is LeBron went 13 of 13. Did you see his one missed shot?

[Damanze]

It was. It was like a block or like an early steal kind of.

[Nick Wright]

Well, I mean, he jumped, got hit by three guys, lost the ball out of bounds.

[Damanze]

Didn't really.

[Nick Wright]

I thought he got fouled. If it wasn't a foul, it was a turnover. Instead, they called it a missed shot. Yeah, but it was also the second straight game against the Rockets when LeBron is dunking like it's. Yeah, 2010. I mean, one of these alley oops that he caught three feet behind his head. Yeah, just bananas.

[Damanze]

He's different.

[Nick Wright]

I mean, as far. I mean, he's the oldest player in the. His next game demand say he ties Robert Parish for the most games regular season games in fl. In NFL In NBA history.

[Damanze]

Which is honestly kind of surprising to me that he's.

[Nick Wright]

That he doesn't have it already.

[Damanze]

Yeah, exactly.

[Nick Wright]

Well, he. He has the most combined regular season and playoff games. He's had that for a while. He has the most playoff games ever. The most combined regular season and playoff games ever. But Robert Parish, who was obviously before way before your time, demons a healthy. He played. He played 21 years. And until his final year, which was 97, when he played 43 games his first 20 years. Damanze the fewest games he played in a season was 74. So he went 20 years of somewhere from 74 to 82 games. And then his final year, he played 43. I mean, he. He played. He's one of the only guys in league history to play older than LeBron. He played until he was 43 years old, which is just unbelievable.

[Damanze]

Seems like.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah.

[Damanze]

For LeBron.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah. And he should. He said he would go to the game. And so I have a bunch to say here. And we'll get to the Lakers piece of it in a segment. I want to talk about LeBron for a second. And the biggest story with the Lakers is actually not LeBron, it's Luca. But I was out of town when LeBron passed Kareem for most baskets in NBA history. They didn't even stop the game for a second. Like, they didn't even acknowledge it. You're laughing at me, but like it's the most baskets. It's.

[Damanze]

And we're playing basketball.

[Nick Wright]

Seems kind of like might be like, okay, just for a second here, let's just stop. Give him the basket. He doesn't have to do a whole ceremony, but as I remind folks, was that we had.

[Damanze]

Was that in LA or was that.

[Nick Wright]

I don't even remember.

[Damanze]

I don't know.

[Nick Wright]

I just know what happened. But we had a nationwide countdown ticker when Steph Curry was about to get the most three point baskets. LeBron breaks the record for just baskets. And they're just like, all right, ball in, keep it going.

[Damanze]

Tired of stopping the game for Braun, man.

[Nick Wright]

And he is about to break the record for most games. And I don't know if, if anybody. I, I think 10% of the audience knows that.

[Damanze]

I mean that if Robert Parrish pulls up to the game, then they probably, I mean, I imagine they'd stop it.

[Nick Wright]

But that. Well, that is a weird one. When do you stop it? Just as soon as the balls tip stop. Like that's what sets the record like that. So that is a weird one. Maybe you do something pre game in the ceremony.

[Damanze]

Yeah, yeah.

[Nick Wright]

But LeBron, we are numb to things like we saw last night. The. This was the last night was the hold on when the LeBron dunk on Jason Terry. Hold on was either 13 years ago or 15 years ago. I just got it. Oh, sorry. Okay, 13. So the LeBron famous Jason Terry dunk was the reason I'm bringing that up. That was 13 years ago, yesterday to the day. So at that moment, LeBron was in year 11. He was in. Or year 10. Pardon me. He was 10 years into his career and has that historic. Not historic, but memorable dunk on Jason Terry. Thirteen years later, he is putting on a dunk show in a critical game late in the season against Kevin Durant, the Rockets, who they just beat on the road, and we're like, okay, yeah, I mean it was a really good LeBron game. But about sounds right. It's just in. He is, you know, he leads the NBA in fast break points. He is still. He's simultaneously the oldest player in the league. Days from becoming.

[Damanze]

You gotta cherry pick a little bit when you get older.

[Nick Wright]

Well, sure, but it's, it's not, it's not a ton of cherry picking. It's a lot of full steam ahead. He's simultaneously the oldest player in the league and still the biggest open court threat in basketball since Giannis is having a tough season. It's just, it's.

[Damanze]

Well, it's unprecedented.

[Nick Wright]

Impossible to put into words. And this is what I was saying the other day to get to your point about. About third highest usage, him being the third option, big scoring nights from LeBron being a bonus instead of a prerequisite for the Lakers winning makes them really scary. Yeah.

[Damanze]

Is it like if they win the finals this year, is it still like Sayonara LeBron to Cleveland like at the end of the year? Like how do you.

[Nick Wright]

Oh, if they win the title.

[Damanze]

On the title.

[Nick Wright]

Oh, if they won the title. No, I think that ch. Well, I don't know. I think that probably changes things, but maybe not. Maybe it would just be like he's perfect.

[Damanze]

I was just considering like, yeah. The time of his career. Like if you are going to go back to Cleveland. But.

[Nick Wright]

But the. So there is Ed. Right. The Lakers have. And we're going to. I'm going to disregard the rundown a bit. I apologize. We're going to stay. We're stay here and then we'll probably do some Luca MVP stuff. But the. The Lakers right now are in a real groove that is sustainable now. Does it mean they're guaranteed to even make it out of round one? Not guaranteed. West is hard. Does it mean they'll be favored in round two? No, they're not favored. They're not. They're going to be significant underdogs in round two. But it does mean that it's no longer farcical to discuss them as a conference finals team. And the. If the five man group of. Well really the four man group of Luca, Austin Braun and Marcus Smart, plus either Rui or Ayton, those. Those two lineups legitimately work. And did you see deandre Ayton's quote the other day yesterday?

[Damanze]

Kind of haven't had an epiphany.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah. Where he's like, I've got to lock in. I was the guy who wasn't locked in and now I'm locked in. Good for him. And hopefully you can stay that way. What I. And so again, people are going to roll their eyes and get annoyed with me. I don't care. I believe it and I know I'm right. This is where the things like people talk about justifiably the tax of having the greatest player of all time when he's no longer even the best player on his own team. How it can screw with certain parts of the team. Luca deferring to him late, like what. You know, who has what role, those things. And that is a real thing. Okay. That is a real tax of having the goat in year 23 on your team. The flip side of that tax is when you have the goat in year 23 on your team and he is going all out, full horizontal. Dennis Rodman Dive for a loose ball. I think it resonates with deandre Ayton like shit man. Bronze not playing in the exact role he wants to play. He doesn't want to be standing in the corner not. You know what I mean, watching Luke and Austin Cook and he's. And LeBron James is doing that. I can, I, I can try to thrive in my role. I really believe that they also started

[Damanze]

capella like the few days ago when they, when they played the Rockets. I don't think they usually start them.

[Nick Wright]

Who the, the, the Rockets.

[Damanze]

The Lakers played the Rockets and the other. In the first game and they started capella in that game. Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

Oh, I didn't even notice that. Oh, that's the. I was watching at the beginning of that game. I was still watching the World Baseball Classic. Yeah.

[Damanze]

Was also hurt which played into that.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah, but, but, but good friend.

[Damanze]

I like that.

[Nick Wright]

The. No and this is the. I.

[Damanze]

It's been like the one thing they're missing.

[Nick Wright]

It's like a solid and I have to listen. I also, I've got to give JJ Redick credit too. Like the team is locked in more on defense and it took someone with a relationship with LeBron that JJ has, I think for LeBron to be cool with this third option Swiss army knife role. And it makes him a scary team man. Now the real reason they're scary right now or the reason they're scariest is Luca. And so we will get to that in just a second. But first, today's show is brought to you by our presenting sponsor Hard Rock BET Florida Sportsbook. It is tourney time. As I told you guys earlier, everyone's favorite thing to do this time of year is fill out brackets. So as I said off the top of the show join me in the volume bracket contest presented by Hard Rock BET grand prize winner gets a two night stay at the Guitar Hotel Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and casino in Hollywood, Florida. Plus 000 in bonus bets to use on the Hard Rock BET app. All you have to do is head to bracket.thevolume.com and fill out your bracket. That's bracket.thevolume.com to make your picks and once your brackets locked in time to hit the hardwood on the Hard Rock BET app. All tournament long Hard Rock BET is rolling out daily dance and boost featuring a live profit boost parlay profit boost every single day. That's more ways to shoot your shot and cash in with boosted odds and you know those heart stopping zero on the clock moments. Now they pay. Hard Rock BET is giving out $25 in bonus bets throughout the tournament if a team you bet to win or cover hits a buzzer beater. If you haven't joined Hard Rock Bet yet, now's the time to check in the game. New signups can double their winnings on their first 10 bets. Max $50. That means if you would have won a hundred bucks on your bet, now it's 200. That's how you start March hot, so don't sit on the bench. Download the Hard Rock Bet app and let's get the party started. Payable and bonus bets Not a cash offer Offered by the Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida Offered by Seminole Hard Rock Digital LLC in all other states. Must be 21 plus and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia to play Terms and conditions apply. Concerned about gambling in Florida? Call 1833 play wise in Indiana. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem wants help, call 1-800-9 with it gambling problem, call 1-800- gambler Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio,

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[Nick Wright]

All right, we're going to let's do this Damanze. Let's talk LUCA here and then we can go Back to the LeBron ownership news. But let's talk Luca.

[Damanze]

So after Luca dropped 40 against the Rockets, you updated your MVP ladder. How does your top five look now?

[Nick Wright]

Well, and I did this before the Cade news. So as of this moment, here's what it would be. But it looks like Cade unfortunately is going to fall out of eligibility. Right now the MVP of the league is Shea. And it would. If Shea hits the 65 game mark, which I think he's seven games away from, he's going to be league MVP. And I'm. I want to be clear. I'm totally fine with that. What are you laughing about? Tell me.

[Damanze]

No, no, I. Tessier is never. I don't really like the guy. Like, I don't like, dislike him personally, but his basket, like, I'm, I'm cool off of that.

[Nick Wright]

You're not a. You're not a fan of his style. I want to let you know I the. I haven't checked in on you on this in a while. Are you. Are you bothered by mean comments on the Internet?

[Damanze]

Am I bothered by them? No.

[Nick Wright]

Like, you get flooded with mentions like, will it mess with you up your day?

[Damanze]

Oh, no, no, no, no. Not. I've seen like, people have come to me a couple times. I've seen it.

[Nick Wright]

Okay, well, you say that you have underestimated the venom and the vitriol of OKC basketball fans. I think it's because it's the only pro sports team there's. And they're very, very protective. So I just want everybody to know. Bird with a Y. And so listen, Shea, they have the best record in basketball. He scores 20 literally every night, but average is 30. And I don't think anyone else on his team this year any other individual guy has been exceptional. Yeah, J Dub has been injured a bunch chat is great defensively, but is, you know, and is very. Chet's a very good player, but hasn't like ascended the way people maybe thought he would. Now let me make it clear. They have an unbelievable roster. They have the best, even to basketball. They held the Nets to 24 points in the first half yesterday. 24 in the half?

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

That was 60 to 24 and half. So I'm not acting like he doesn't have an awesome team, but best record in the league, 30 plus points, efficient, good defensively. That's a deserving back to back mvp. Okay. After Shay, it's either. At this point, if we are being fair, it is either Luca or Wimy. Joker has fallen. Joker is four. And I would have Cade five, but again, Cade's probably not going to be eligible. And the Luca everyone knows the WIM B MVP case and it's a great case. He's the best defensive player in the league. He's a very good offensive player. They have the second best record in the west and the second best record in all of basketball. It's a great case. And if you want to say Wimby is too, so be it. The case for Luca though has been understated all year. Luka is averaging one of the 10 most points per game this season of anyone this century. Post Jordan. This is a top 10 scoring season. Kobe had a season where he scored more. Harden had a season or two where he scored more. And that might be the list. Like hold on, I'm gonna. And Luke obviously does more than just score. But I'm going to. You know what, I'm going to check this real quick. I should have done this before but 33 points per game. Here are. Here is the full list of seasons this century. Or I'll just do Post Jordan where someone scored more than Luca this year. Embiid by a tenth of a point three years ago and then oh Luca himself two years ago, Harden as I mentioned six years ago, Kobe in 06, Harden in 19. And that's your list. So the this Post Jordan, the only people to average more points per game in a season than Luke is averaging right now is Embiid, Harden twice and Kobe one time. When you add to that that he's giving you eight rebounds, eight and a half assists. The Lakers are the three seed. He's shooting 48 from the floor and 37 from three. They're going to win 50 games. And he has these moment these games like last night where he just rips people's throats out like the the behind his back through traffic lob to Ayton followed by splitting another double team lob to Braun followed by the reverse pivot step back three followed by the absolute dagger double step back three to end the game. He's just unbelievable. And all year the most of the conversation was about what's wrong with him about why he might not win a title ever. Not forget this year ever. And he is just a legendary offensive player who as of late has cleaned up the defense a bit. And I mean on this winning streak. Demons A let me go to it. So they've won seven in a row including games against really good teams. And here is Lucas stat lines on the winning streak. 44, 9 and 5, 35, 8 and 4, 3111 and 11, 51, 10 and 9, 30, 11 and 13, 36, 6 and 4. And then last night 49 and 10 they have beaten on this winning streak. The Knicks, the Wolves, the Nuggets, the Rockets, the Rockets plus Pacers, Bulls.

[Damanze]

Yeah,

[Nick Wright]

he has a legitimate and again two weeks ago I think people thought he wasn't even first team all NBA. And here is what I will say about Lucas attitude because last night he was mother effing the fans.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

It. Luca is at his greatest when he is turning the vitriol and I think deep personal and intense hatred he has for the officials to the fans and other players.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

When he pivots it from I'm being persecuted to I'm gonna make you cry and just does like what he did to Devin Booker in that series against the Suns.

[Damanze]

No, because when he. He's in a bad headspace when he's arguing with the refs, it's like, I don't he. Some players, you know, it's cool when they're angry, but I don't think it works for him when he's into it with the refs. He's not having a good game.

[Nick Wright]

I agree with you. And I'll say something else that I really think has helped him. Being one tech away from a suspension.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

Real.

[Damanze]

That'll probably do it.

[Nick Wright]

He knows he doesn't. Like he's at 15 now. I honestly think just so it kind of reset the clock a bit. It would have been kind of smart if with like 30 seconds left last night, he would have walked up to a ref and just been like, fu you f and f to get. Because he's gonna sit tonight no matter what. I think he's gonna sit either on a back to back in Miami. They got there at 5 in the morning, just be like, you know, hey, I'm not gonna play, so just. I'll just take my suspension here. But that's, you know, 5D chess. I'm wanting him to play.

[Damanze]

Has anybody ever got check for screaming at the fans?

[Nick Wright]

Screaming at the fans. You know, I think I feel like that happened recently and somebody talked about it. Hold on. Technical for screaming at fans. NBA.

[Damanze]

Oh is still.

[Nick Wright]

Remember. Hold on. Remember last year against okc at the very end of the regular season? In the fourth quarter, Luca screamed at a fan and the ref thought he was screaming at him and threw him out.

[Damanze]

Oh, okay.

[Nick Wright]

They ejected him. Like that was the.

[Damanze]

Did it get resolved or he just stayed ejected?

[Nick Wright]

No. Yeah, it just stayed ejected and it was like a tie game with six minutes left. I feel like that might have been Easter Sunday for some reason. I was. I feel like I. I was at. Let me see if that was Easter Sunday because I feel like I was at my mom's house when this happened.

[Damanze]

Easter Sunday last year. Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

When was Easter Sunday? Easter Sunday last year. No way to tell. April 20th. This looks like it happened April 8th so I'm not even close to right.

[Damanze]

Luca MVP.

[Nick Wright]

What? Listen, I don't think he's going to win MVP and I'm being fair right now. I wouldn't vote for him for mvp. But he's got to be first team all NBA. He's got to be top three on your ballot and Lakers Spurs Round two here's the awesome thing about a potential lakers Spurs Round 2 series from Wimby's perspective. Either way it's an amazing. Opening ish chapter in the story of Victor when Benyama's playoff career. Yeah either and this is more about the LeBron piece than the Luca piece but either in his first ever playoff run he runs into 40 plus year old goat and beats him and it's a passing of the torch.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

Or the first guy ever to beat him in a playoff series is maybe like there is there's a non zero chance that Wimby's first ever series defeat and LeBron's final series win are the same moment.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

Like that. And there's a non zero chance that right. That LeBron's finals playoff series defeat comes at the hands of Wimby. Either way it's awesome. Like either way it's a really cool potential moment and it looks like that's the round two we're going to get because and this is the point I was trying to make on Twitter but I'll just make again here quickly. It now would be stunning demands a if the Lakers don't get the three seed so they now have the tiebreaker with Minnesota, Houston and Denver. They also are at 25 losses while Minnesota and Houston are at 27. Denver is at 28. They also have five games remaining against tankers in Brooklyn, Utah, Indiana, Dallas and what's the one other team I'm forgetting? Washington. Washington. So if they win those five games against tankers that puts them at 49 wins. They then in their remaining eight games which is Miami tonight they're going to lose Orlando, Detroit with no Cade, Cleveland, OKC, OKC again, Golden State, Phoenix in those eight games demon if they just go 2 and 6 they're at 51 wins again 2 and 6 which they should be able to do better. But say they just go 2 and 6 they're at 51 wins which would mean Minnesota has to go 9. And what would that be? 9 and 3 the rest of the way and Anthony Edwards is out a couple weeks. Houston would have to go 11 and three the rest of the way and Denver would have to go 10 and 2 the rest of the way, it's just not happening. And so, yeah, I mean, you have to like their position in that regard. All right, let's talk a little LeBron ownership stuff quickly before we move on to other things.

[Damanze]

So the Athletic reported that Fenway Sports Group is not chasing an NBA expansion team. But why is it in the NBA's best interest, in your opinion, that LeBron ends up owning one?

[Nick Wright]

Well, so here's the thing. I. It was. It's not just that Fenway Sports Group said they're not pursuing an NBA, an expansion team. It's that Braun was asked directly last night, are you still interested? And he said, the real news came late last night in the locker room. LeBron was asked about this. Are you still interested? And he said, no, not at all. And the reporters seem shocked. And that was all he said on it. I'm stunned by this, if I'm being totally honest. This is probably something that I should run down. What's happening here? I'm not a reporter, but this is a story that I could probably get more info on, and so I will. I will briefly put on my reporting hat over the next few weeks and try to bring you guys real info on what has changed. Because LeBron has been adamant for years that he wants to own a team. And for him to just be like, no, say it again.

[Damanze]

Is that the price tag? Maybe

[Nick Wright]

the price tag can't help, but. I think he would be able to come up with the money. Not himself, but, like, you know what I mean, that he could get involved with a group that has it. So I. I think this is stunning, and I think that this is real news, and I think that it's not. It's not that The NBA needs LeBron to own a team. Pardon me, when he's done it is that it would be very good for the league if LeBron owned a team. And I think that it's in Adam Silver's interest to see if there's a way to get LeBron to change his mind on this. It is, and I couldn't. I saw the news that Fenway Sports Group's not pursuing an NBA expansion team. And that was noteworthy. But the real noteworthy piece of this to me is LeBron flatly saying, not at all when asked if he's still interested. And. I. I will do my best to figure out what changed here and get. But, like, again, I saw this when I woke up this morning. I didn't watch the. Oh, you did. You'll talk to your guys, too.

[Damanze]

Talk to my guys.

[Nick Wright]

Okay, good. I. I appreciate that. Yeah. You made some connections at that clutch party. Yeah. Yeah. Worth the phones, buddy. We can have a race.

[Damanze]

All right.

[Nick Wright]

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[Nick Wright]

All right, pal, let's talk Giannis here.

[Damanze]

So we know the state of the Bucks right now. They are not doing too great, and they want to shut Giannis down, but Giannis not want to be shut down. He wants to finish out the season. Do you think this is the move of somebody that wants to stay or somebody that wants to leave? Maybe buff the value a little bit?

[Nick Wright]

I actually think this is a sign that he's leaving. And the reason for that is twofold. One is, if he's leaving, he doesn't really care. Like, oh, if we lose one more game, we have 2% better chance of improving our lottery odds. Right? That's. What does it matter to him?

[Damanze]

Right?

[Nick Wright]

But more. More importantly is this. If he's leaving, I think Giannis wants to have an unofficial goodbye to the fans, a final home game that he plays, you understand? I mean, not just like, oh, he shut down for the year, and that's that, you know, was playing in the game against the Pacers, got hurt, and now he's done. And they have. They have home games remaining against the Spurs, Clippers, Mavs. They're then on the road in Houston. They then are home against Boston, home against Memphis, and then one of the saddest games on the NBA calendar, Game 81. The Bucks, who want to tank against the Brooklyn Nets, who just scored 24 points in the first half. So I. Giannis should get at least one more home game against the whomever, but in Milwaukee as a salute and as a goodbye. And I think that that would. I think that's why he wants to play. I don't know that. But I also demand, say, think at this point, it's just as over as anything could be. Like, that's got. This has to be the end. Go ahead.

[Damanze]

Yeah, I mean, I def. I don't think he's playing in Milwaukee next year. But you think if Milwaukee keeps beefing with Giannis, he'll request a trade or demand a destination and that possibly hurt his trade value?

[Nick Wright]

Well, if he demands a specific destination, that Certainly hurts his trade value. They obviously don't have to do that. And I, this is. The Bucks did everything. They, they, they put chips into the middle of the table to win a title with Giannis and it worked. They then pushed more chips in the middle of the table to try to extend that window with the Dame trade. They then to continue torturing this metaphor after going bust on. So let me, I feel like say it again.

[Damanze]

Giannis co signed all those moves though.

[Nick Wright]

Oh yeah.

[Damanze]

This is like respons responsible for where they're at right now. But what I mean there's obviously. Yeah, he can't make a move himself.

[Nick Wright]

No, no. But he, he co signed it for sure. But they also, you know, Dame doors Achilles like there's someone, there's some bad luck. They, they didn't want to admit it was over. And the la. You know, they, I glossed over some of the stuff. So they trade for Drew Holiday. They win a title. They then are the favorites to win the title again. Middleton gets hurt. They then are right there supposed to be in the mix. Giannis gets hurt or you know, or falls on his back early in that series and it's okay. And so now they fired Bud, they bring in Adrian Griffin. Adrian, they're 30 and 13 with Adrian Griffin. They fire him. They bring in Doc, they trade for Dame. Dame tears his Achilles. They then stretch Dame and sign Miles Turner, which if I was going to continue the going all in analogy, that's where you see the guy at the poker table who has bought in three times and lost. And all of a sudden you're like, is he taking his shoe off? And the guy takes his boot off, reaches into his sock and there's a sweaty hundred dollar bill in there. Puts that on the table. Yeah, that's the Dame stretch, which by the way, we've all seen at a card table done. And you're like, that was that guy's gas money. And by the way, when I say we've all seen it done hand up. I've done that. I've, I've had, I've had the, the, the, my case money in a sock that I reached into at the table and got. I've had my case money locked in my car that was like a 15 minute walk from the poker room that I'm like, all right, I'm leaving it here.

[Damanze]

Get you to.

[Nick Wright]

Nah, man, nah. I mean, listen, it's. There is an unbelievable, unbelievable gambling story that Bobby Baldwin told me of a guy who just lost and lost and lost thousands and thousands like, real money. And then was had $100 left and didn't live in Vegas. Was like visiting this, you know, 50 years ago, though. And that hundred dollars was how he was going to drive back to wherever he was going. And I don't know if it was Bobby himself or someone else was like, all right, I'll walk you to your car. And as they get to the car, he's the. The guy who walked this lo. This poor lose guy who lost all his money. All he had left was 100 bucks to his car. Said to him, like, hey, man, you know, rough night. I'll bet you your hundred bucks I can throw this ace, this playing card across the street, like, give you an easy win. And that's an impossibility anybody that's ever seen, you know, it's just gonna flutter in the wind or whatever. And the guy's like, okay, sure, I guess. The guy grabs the ace, flicks it like a Frisbee, because it was actually a weighted fake card that was metal across street, takes the guy's last 100 bucks, leaves him parking lot, and everybody's like, what? He comes back into the poker room. The guy's like, what you. He tells story, and guys are like, why did you do that? He's like, listen, man, that guy planned to lose all his money, wanted to lose all his money, and I was making sure he lost all his money. Real brutal stuff, man. Ter, it's really terrible. It's really, truly terrible. Like, that he might have ruined that guy's life. And he has. Correct. And he told that story when Bobby told that story. Dying laughing. Bobby's probably got $100 million and is dying laughing about taking this guy's last hundred bucks forty years ago. So bad. All right, let's talk a little Max Crosby here quickly.

[Damanze]

Yeah, so some weird stuff with my team and Max Crosby. It seems like when he went in for the physical, the GM and the head coach weren't even in the building. This. The situation just keeps seeming fishier and fishier.

[Nick Wright]

So here's the deal. I think the Max Crosby trade would have been bad business. I would rather have Trey Hendrickson and two first round picks than Max Crosby. I also, when the news initially broke, I believed the Ravens, they saw something very scary on that physical, and they said, we can't do this. And I believed that. I'm not going to say I no longer believe it, but I'm starting to have doubts. I cannot believe that Eric D. Costa and Jesse Mentor did not greet Max Crosby at the door. When he got to the Ravens facility. That is stunning to me. I'm a little surprised. Demons A they didn't fly him private. First of all. Right, so here's. Here is what I have gathered about the flight of Vegas to Baltimore. There are two airlines that fly nonstop Vegas to Baltimore, Spirit and Southwest. No disrespect to either of those airlines. I used to fly Southwest Louisiana to Houston every weekend. Right. And while I haven't flown much on Spirit, I've certainly bought plenty of plane tickets for my children to fly on Spirit. And it seems like it's a fine operation. However, they don't. Neither of those airlines has a first class.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

And so if you want to fly nonstop Vegas to Baltimore, there's no first class option. So again, the assumption would be that the rave the Ravens would spend the 30 grand to charter a private plane. Again, 30 grand is a ton of money for a person.

[Damanze]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

It shouldn't be for a professional football team. The Chiefs flew a lowy Gilman private to come from Baltimore to KC to come or wherever he was to come sign. The Ravens chose not to do that. So they flew him first class to DC and then drove him two hours.

[Damanze]

Oh my goodness.

[Nick Wright]

Okay.

[Damanze]

Oh my goodness.

[Nick Wright]

So think about this. You have just traded two first round picks for a player who's about to become the second highest paid player in the history of your team. You know he had knee surgery two months ago. You fly him. You don't fly in private. You fly him when you then know he's going to. Then after a five hour flight gonna have a two hour car ride and then you don't meet him at the door. When I, when I went to LA NBA All Star weekend and came on the Fox lot to do Coward show my boss Whit met me at the door. Me, I've worked there not 10 years. I'm just not there that often like it is. So that, that all of that was to me noteworthy. Well, it just made me wonder to Monze were they. And the most important part of that that I left out, he had not yet had his physical. So it makes me wonder were they having second thoughts before he even got

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there

[Nick Wright]

and then used the physical as an out. I'm not accusing them of that. I don't even know if I, if I'm right now at 51%. I think that's what happened. More likely than not. But it is weird that the head coach, who's a new head coach defensive guy. This is your big acquisition and the gm, it's the biggest trade you've ever made aren't there to greet him and don't see him for hours. He's in the facility for hours. He's like asking the, like the secretary, he's like, hey, what's the code to the bathroom? Like, what do I do? Like, it's just. And that's weird, man.

[Damanze]

Coach, you feel like you probably want to do your best to, you know, make, make that.

[Nick Wright]

But so. Oh, this is a good point by Daniel. Daniel adds that the Ravens did a really good job on that NFLPA report card thing.

[Damanze]

Yep.

[Nick Wright]

They are considered a first class organization, which makes this even more odd. All right, not a first class organization. The Browns. We'll get to them in a second. But first, Boost Mobile is proving you don't have to overpay for great wireless unlock the savings with 20amonth forever unlimited plan permanent price with no contracts and no price hikes. You can keep your phone and your number, but you save up to $600 a year compared to the major carrier. Stop overpaying and switch to a fair price@boost mobile.com based on average annual single line payment of AT&T Verizon and T Mobile customers compared to 12 months on the Boost Mobile Unlimited plan as of January 2026. For full offers for full offer details, pardon me, visit Boost Mobile all right, demonte, real quick, let's get to this. Browns rule change proposal.

[Damanze]

Rule change proposal from the Browns. They want to be able to trade draft picks up to five years in the future.

[Nick Wright]

Of course, coming from Cleveland, this, this is your buddy who has filed for bankruptcy over payday loans and now pays for door dash, Chipotle on Klarna or whatever. Those, those, the little loans, micro loans you can get. Right. In Stockport. Right? That guy saying, you know, the government's banking regulations are far too onerous on us consumers. Like, no, bro, they're guardrails. Because you're right now you're on Amazon buying a video game and clicking the button to pay for it over the next 18 months. It's your buddy who, you know, works 18 hours a week and all of a sudden they pull up to your house in a three series BMW and you're like, huh? And they're like, you're not going to believe it. I'm only paying $280 a month. You're like, really? How many months? And at first they don't know. And then they're like, let me check. And they're like 108 months. Is that a lot? Like you get a nine year car loan. The reason the NFL doesn't allow you to trade draft picks more than three years in the future is to save teams from themselves. And teams need to be saved from themselves. And so I do not support this rule change. In theory, it's very Darwinian. Let those fittest survive. But pro sports are a bit of a communistic enterprise anyway, or socialistic enterprise anyway and we don't need teams being able to take second and third mortgages out particularly. Go ahead.

[Damanze]

No, I'm sorry, go ahead.

[Nick Wright]

I just. It is now you can say ownership can veto trades, I get that. But GMs if a GM is on the hot seat, the hell does he care about what five years from now looks like? Like you should be able to in less than half a decade dig yourself out of a hole of a horrible general manager. So I do not. I do not like this tra this rule change idea at all. Also, last note, little sports media note, whoever leaked the WNBA CBA details to Shams instead of to some of the women who were out there every day reporting on that story. Shame on you. Have have some professional courtesy for the people that were grinding on that beat and let one of them break the story they deserve to break rather than curry a small favor with Shams. I don't blame Shams. Listen, it's not He's a reporter. He got the story. You know, maybe in a perfect world he would have then fed it to one of his colleagues who had been covering it. But that's probably asking too much. I I didn't love that. All right, we're going to save questions for the mailbag. We have some great ones coming in and we appreciate that. Reminder everybody like rate subscribe review to the show. Also a reminder tomorrow we will have the AFC ve way too early, not in stone unofficial over under liens coming up. So that'll be you know, in your feeds tomorrow if you are subscribed Huge thanks to Hard Rock BET Boost and Ethos Huge thanks to the volume and the Blue Duck Sign up if you got a few minutes more, sign up for the volumes bracket contest bracket. The volume.com with hard rock bet. Talk to you guys tomorrow.

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