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- [00:00]
Ryan Rosillo
You're listening to the Ryan Marcillo podcast presented by FanDuel. America's number one sportsbook is the best place to bet on the NBA because Not only does FanDuel have all of your favorite player props, but now you can even check out stats and recent performance trends right in the app before you make your picks. Just download the FanDuel sportsbook app today to get in on the action. The ringer is committed to responsible gaming. Please visit rg-help.com to learn more about the resources and helplines available and listen to the end of the episode for additional details. Must be 21 plus and present in select states. Gambling problem. Call 1-800- GAMBLER or visit rg-help.com A massive NBA playoff preview. I'll go through the series that I want to go into depth on and then pick those. And we have Frank Isola, so we'll talk playoffs with him. We'll probably talk about few other headlines, even a sneaky Knicks offseason transaction. And we've got full Wargon Life advice. This episode is brought to you by State Farm. State Farm helps you score an affordable price when you choose to bundle home and auto insurance with the personal price plan, you can choose the insurance coverage that fits your needs at a price you can afford. Talk to a State Farm agent today to learn how you can bundle and save with a personal price plan. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. Prices are based on rating plans that vary by state. Coverage options are selected by the customer, availability, amount of discounts and savings and eligibility vary by state. A lot to get to with the playoffs upon us here in the NBA. So I'll go through the series that I want to go through. I have all sorts of notes in the play and stuff that I'm probably not going to get to any of it now because last night's games were disgusting and I'm not going to do a breakdown of Golden State Memphis two days later. So look, I did not like when the plan was announced because I just don't think teams certainly this year you have teams that are south of 40 wins getting another chance at this. But then when the games are really good it's like, hey, the game's really good. So it seemed like people like to play in games when they're good. It seems like people don't like playing games when they're not good games. Crazy concept. As I've said the entire time. If it's a great game, I'm going to enjoy a great game. I may not like the system. Same thing with college football expansion. It doesn't mean I don't love some of these home venues or just the overhead shot of the shoe going, wow, those Tennessee dudes look cold. All right. It's just. It's just the principle of these things that a team like Dallas or Sacramento still has an outside chance of being able to get in. We also could start calling the play in when Atlanta plays. But let's talk about the teams that are in the playoffs. Let's do that right now. All right, I'm going to run through this series. I'm going to give you a pick at the end of them. Random thoughts. Try to get this done before Saturday. Milwaukee Pacers. It's the better team versus the much better player, certainly that. You don't need me for that one. The Pacers, at one point, 35 and 28, finished on a 15. Four close. Got the 50 wins. So you can look at some of the teams. There's a lot of teams that seem to end with really nice records. It's like they're peaking at the right time, like, or their schedule was really easy. Especially if you look at some of the teams in the east and half the conference deciding to kind of shut it down. But the Pacers have nice wins in there. They got Milwaukee twice, they got Minnesota twice. They had the one point loss to the Lakers and LeBron made that shot. They beat Denver, Cleveland, those are wins. But Cleveland was sitting people in those. So there's at least some good stuff to look at there. After the all star break, the fifth best record at 20 and 9. Oklahoma City 24. 4. Boston 22 and 5. Cleveland 28. Golden State 8, 20 and 7. So Pacers, you know, kind of in a nice group there. So this is now 29 games after the all star break with the 8th best defense in the. In the. In the NBA. He stuttered. The Pacers again, we're talking about The Pacers, the 8th best defense in the NBA after the all Star break. That is a little surprising, oddly, 13th best offense, where Milwaukee finished the season, also kind of under the radar. 19 and 10 close. But they're much better on offense. Milwaukee is. Than they are on defense. Milwaukee also the best shooting team in the NBA if you look at true shooting stuff post the All Star break. So they figured some stuff out. And I also think Bobby Portis coming back only playing three games, but just plug and play 16 and nine is being undersold in all of this. Giannis, by the way, if you look at his matchup against the Pacers. He does well against them. The Pacers don't really have much of a chance of shoot slowing him down at all. He's 65% from the floor against them. But they did limit his free throw attempts 8 a game in the regular season. Matchups against Indiana. Whereas, like, okay, what, what are some of the bad ones? Giannis averaged 17 free throws game against Atlanta. I may need to double check that because I, I look, I think I looked at it twice there. Giannis, by the way, closing the season at 30, 12, six and a half. He's the first player in the NBA in its history to put together three different 30, 10 and five seasons. So look, the Siakam numbers against Giannis are bad. The Turner numbers when he's matched up against Giannis are even worse. This team can shoot it really well. They're going to run everything through. Giannis, as we understand, his playmaking has been terrific. He doesn't take threes, which has made him even more efficient. But one through seven, one through eight, I like the Pacers better. Pacers and seven Clippers at Denver. So the Clippers at one point were 32 and 29. They finished on an 18 and three close. So they got to 50 wins, 25 and 11 with Kawhi. The shooting numbers for Kawhi are consistently spectacular since he's been a regular guy and playing multiple minutes, meaning more minutes, you know, not just like on a minutes restriction. The advanced up, they'll tell you that he's not, um, he is not the guy. And you know, maybe it's a little unfair to be like, are you comparing to Pete Kawhi? Like that guy was in the belt conversation as best basketball player in the world. But they are down significantly from the run of, of where he was with some of the other stuff. Jokic, three games against the Clippers, 28, 10 and 6, taken 20 shots a game. His shooting splits are insane. Against the Clippers this year, 54 from the floor, 52% from three. So, you know, I've toyed with the idea of like at least Zubots is somebody who will physically hold up against Jokic, but again, Jokic maybe depending on how he wants to set up the offense, because he basically decides like, oh, you're going to do this. Well, now I'm going to do this. If he wants to bring Zoo all the way out to the three point line, which I imagine he will do multiple times throughout this series, does that mean guys are just cutting like crazy off of him? Are they going to play him straight up with zoom. They're probably going to try all sorts of different things because that's what you're going to have to do against a player that's this good. But at least over the course of a series, over the course of a 40 minute plus night, fighting for rebounds, right, Handling all the screening that Zoo does, all of the stuff that is beyond just the box score. Dealing with somebody in that physicality like that at times could be far more taxing than it would be in some of the other potential Western Conference matchups. So I think it's important. It's a bit like the Cat thing, where it's not like Cat stops Jokic in that series that Minnesota wins last year. But as you watch the games play out, Cat at least because he wasn't dealing with some super quick guard with the ball in his hands, getting crossed up 30ft away and looking like he has no chance on a closeout. He knew that the target was always going to be right in front of him. And as long as he at least try to make it harder on the easy stuff Jokic could do around the rim, maybe Zoo can do some of those same things. And then it's really up to everybody else deciding to stay with their man and all the off ball cuts if they're playing him, if they double him, obviously more likely that he would be getting it to other guys. The thing that I keep coming back to with this is the wing matchup defensively against the Wings for the Clippers. Now look, Kawhi hasn't played in any of these games during the regular season. The Nuggets did a really good job with Harden. His shooting splits against the Nuggets year not very good. 39 and 32% norm has gone off in these games. But if you're looking at, I mean the last time they played was January 8th. I think Jokic was out of that one as well. So there's really nothing regular season here to go off of. But I just don't think as I looked at the assignments of the last time that Jokic did play. In this one you had Brown unharden, Michael Porter Jr. On batum who started Jokic with Zubots. And then you've got Murray maybe freelancing off a Dunn a little bit and they actually had Gordon on Powell. So maybe it's Gordon on Kawhi, Brown on Harden. And then when they bring in Norm, like is it, is it Peyton Watson or obviously say Picket a little bit more. And I think you also have to Worry about the Westbrook revenge minutes where there's some really nice moments in a regular season, but if he gets emotional and gets super fired up and remind us of why the Clippers couldn't wait to get him out of the building last year after that MAV series, that's not going to work in Denver's favor. So don't love this one, but I got Clippers in six, Minnesota and the Lakers. So when the Lakers had that 18 and three stretch from mid January to the beginning of March through the first week in March, and I remember doing the Sunday pod with Bill and I was like, have you guys looked at. Well, I should just say one person, but in general, I wanted everybody to pay attention to this. The splits on where the Lakers were defensively because during that 18 and three stretch, they were the number one defense in the NBA. That made zero sense to me. And yes, pieces moving in and out. I talked about the coaching in their, I think more adaptable strategy based on the opponent. Night in and night out, they do a really good job of preparing their guys. Hey, these are the rules tonight. These are the rules. You, you know they're going to be completely different a couple nights later. I also think it was worth mentioning that not having D'Angelo Russell out there for 30 minutes is just going to help your defense by default. And looking at how the rotation was a little bit different. Connect was out of the rotation. Cause he was just a disaster defensively. Bringing in Dorian Finney Smith is a plus. Vando being out there just hacked the shit out of dudes. And then depending on where you were on the LeBron defensive effort pendulum, him playing better over that stretch is a big part of it too. So I think we have to just kind of give LeBron the benefit of the doubt that he's going to be a lot more locked in because it's the playoffs and some of the stuff that he's, you know, the regular season cheating on defense is probably not something we're going to see all that much. But it still didn't make a ton of sense to me that that was the best over 21 games. Like they're the best defense. So on the season they're 17th. The on the season number is probably not as relevant. But after the All Star break, guess where the lakers are defensively? 17th again. So did we fall in love with the idea that they're capable of that and that's who they're going to be in this series against Minnesota, or is that just a fluky 21 game sample where it's like, well, they're not. They might be better, but they're not going to be that good. I don't know the answer, but I think I may know where I'm leaning with that one. They were splitting the regular season to two. Three of the games were before mid December, so not a lot to go on in that. I went to the Minnesota at LA game where Ant was ejected. The Lakers took 46 free throws. I'll be honest with you, I thought the Timberwolves were fouling the shit out of them. So, you know, it got out of hand. Ant splits against them four games, 40% from the four, 32% from three, and only three and a half field goal attempts per game. So they've done a really good job of containing him. So if I'm picking them, why is that happening? Look, there's two things that I think are really important here. Randall's effectiveness off of the double teams, where I think that you're going to see the Lakers more often than not. If you're using a screen with Anthony, you're just going to be seeing two defenders in his face the entire time like we saw throughout much of the regular season. So it's going to be up to Randall. It's also going to be, you know, you hope Jaden can just be baseline from three and not have disastrous nights. And speaking to Jada McDaniels, who we all love defensively, I had him on my all second team defense. Look, he's not going to be able to hold up physically against Luca. And we saw some of that last year in the playoffs and Luca in that series, 32, 10 and 8, 47 and 43% shooting splits on 11, three points attempts per game when he was with Dallas last year and they took out the Timberwolves. I also think there's a Rudy versus small conversation here. But look, even though there's going to be some moments, maybe even a night where it looks pretty bad for Rudy as he's getting worked maybe on a Luca switch or a LeBron switch, the Times, where is he going to close on? Rui Hachimura, who hasn't taken a ton of threes against Minnesota in the regular season, hasn't made any of them either. But does that change or they're like, we want you shooting that immediately. Sometimes you can be a little bit more tuned up when you're like, part of the game plan is we want you shooting those threes. So get more attempts up than you did in the regular season. Because look, that late February game when they played against each other, ruining only played 18 minutes in that game because he left. So look, I think Rudy's whenever those moments look bad and guys like me that haven't always loved him, you're not going to see for me, like, hey, you probably have to get him out of there. Because then the Nas Reed Randall combo against enormous players in Luca and LeBron driving, because you're going to see more drives for LeBron as the playoffs certainly matter more. And then Reeves in his craftiness of just getting himself free and getting a defender leaning one way. And it's not like an Iverson crossover, but that go right around the back thing, bring it back to the other side. He's just brilliant at it. So even in those moments where it looks like Rudy's a little lost and asked to do a ton, you just see even in a down Rudy year, defensively, teams when he's out, they're like, all right, it's go time. I have Minnesota in seven. Little zag there. Golden State, Houston. All right, so after the Amend Curry spotlight game against Curry where Curry went 1:10, I still think Butler should have taken more than seven shots if that's what they're going to do. Because it wasn't just Thompson. It was hard doubling. It was running Curry into a second defender. Even with the men staying on him primarily there. That's part of the thought process of which way I'm going to go with this. Because that part, if you're on the Golden State side of things, you're like, is that just going to happen? But I, you know, look, even with defensive matchups, like, hey, I like this option better. We all know these dudes are going to get their points. Then when I look at the Ed part of the Golden State matchup from the play in the other night, you know, Edie, you could get on his case for a bunch of things in that game, but you also have to give it to him that when he was in there, it changed the way Golden State thought about their attacks at the rim. And even more importantly, he was terrific on the boards. And over the course of a game like, that's just asking a lot of Draymond, even though they went with some loony minutes in there. And then Quinton Post, obviously hitting some shots as well. But Post, it's not like he's just in there to bang bodies all night long. I think more than anything, it's his spacing and hoping to pull his defender away. But they went with Ed On Butler, which burned him a little bit and in the first half and kind of got Butler going as he had a great night. So the reason I'm even bringing up any of that stuff from two nights ago is that Will Houston sacrifice offensive spacing to think over the course of seven games, the best chance for them to win is Shangoon playing his 30 plus minutes a night. And then even more from Adams is it feels like they've ramped up this option specifically for the playoffs. So they've played five games. Golden State has done a great job against the backcourt here for Houston. It's actually so terrible, these numbers for Green and Van Vliet that I don't even know that these are repeatable here again, but Green's 12 a game, 12 and a half a game against Golden State. In the five games, his shooting splits 32 and 25% from three. Van Vliet's even worse in his four games, nine a game, his shooting splits 22 overall, 22% from three. I, I think that's so bad. It's actually not repeatable here. Adams was out played 18 minutes out, 6 minutes, 17 minutes rebounding edge over the five games, you're like, well, will Houston be a little too big for Golden State? Over the five games, Houston's only a plus three in total rebounds. So Golden State held up enough with one game that they were really good. The other games were all pretty even. Then one game, Houston was plus 10. So I do wonder if this is about hoping there's a little Curry magic left. I'm certainly guilty of that. Cause I'm a huge step fan and just wanted to see a little bit more, just one more run which may be expiring in the second round of this. So that's probably, you know, being a little like, hey, this is what I want to see out of this. And then I think there's still some hesitation on me on what Houston's going to be like with that closing group and what they'll look like. I mean, the funny thing is, if you look at clutch wins, Cleveland has the most in the NBA with Houston, right? They both have 26 wins. Houston is 26 and 18. Golden State's third in wins at 25 and 20. Not outrageous to only be five games over.500 with somebody like Steph. But the net rating for both of these teams is like negative one point. So the record is not a reflection of maybe how they've played and how you felt about them at times. Golden State against good teams this year 500 or better in the expanded standings, 22 and 19. That's better than the Lakers. That's better than Denver. That's better than the Clippers. That's better than Minnesota. So that's in there a little bit. So it may just be that. Look, if Houston wins this series, they slow down. Curry Butler has a couple nights where he's just not as engaged as you need him to be, which is not normally the case for him in the playoffs. So maybe we shouldn't expect that and that Houston finds something they feel really good about closing with offensively. So I don't think it's crazy to pick Houston this one, but I'm going Golden State. The Warriors in six. Okay. Detroit at New York Pistons have won the last three. That April 10th game where Cade went off was terrific, but again, no Hart or OG Anunoby in that one. Brunson since his return. So post All Star break, let's do a little that. Detroit's 15 and 12, New York's 15 and 13 in those 28 games. Brunson's played in 12 of them. So Brunson's right back to his 25 a game. Knicks actually have had the slightly better defense than Detroit Post All Star it's pretty similar and Cade just was incredible in that April 10th game. But again, what do we really put into that other than we know Cade is really good and New York had two less perimeter options in dealing with him. His regular season numbers against the Knicks, he's been lighting these dudes up 35 and eight shooting splits 56 and 52%. I also like that Detroit has let him get engaged off the ball a little bit. I know it's the simplest thing, but sometimes when you're telling the defense, hey, I'm bringing the ball up to core and this is what the first thing is going to be. And you've already seen a middle middle a million times. Excuse me, just having somebody be like, hey, have Schroeder bring it up, have Cade come off of something and now this is how we want to get into our offense. It's so simple. But sometimes it is needed. And it's crazy to me how often teams are like, oh, I guess we're just going to get stuck doing this over and over and over again. Now having said that, when the ball ends up back with Cade, I worry about the second on ball creator. I think for any team that has any kind of playoff aspirations, I'm not talking about Detroit winning the east, but going up against a tough Knicks team here that is fully formed again, like, who's the second guy with the ball that I'm like, okay, when Cade gets bottled up, it's a bit like the Randall Minnesota thing. Like you really do. Randall with the ball closing out playoff games in a huge spot. Maybe, maybe. But Detroit, like, who is it? Because if you look at the drive chart for this, Cade clearly leads Detroit and drives for game 17 a game. Ivy was second. He's not around anymore. Dennis Schroeder, eight and a half. All right, well, that's not terrible because if you look at the Knicks chart, Brunson's 18 drives a game, Cats like at 8. So what's the difference, Ron? Well, the difference is Cat's also one of the best three point shooters in the entire league and has been his entire career. So even with those drives that I think are clunky, that seem to work more than I would ever expect them to, they also have bridges. So the numbers may not play it out here. You know, that og, if he knows what he's doing on the drive as opposed to freelancing, he's so powerful and he gets close to the rim. He's pretty good on some of that stuff. And I think Hart moves the ball right and even Miles, that second guy when Kate gets stuck, what is it? Is it a Beasley 3? There'll be a lot of that. But is there somebody on the ball that can create when things get really messy for Detroit? I don't think they're going to have enough with that. And that's why I am picking the Knicks in six. Anything else I missed? Oh, yeah. Orlando at Boston Sultan 5. I think we're good. And as I said at the top, you can't do the documentary on the playing game without spending a lot of time filming in Atlanta. Look, this is pretty clear that Miami has a standard that they were not going to go into that Chicago game. But that was an alarming, alarming effort from Chicago defensively, but levels to this. So as much as that was a pick them, Miami's now plus one in Atlanta. So it feels a bit like you're setting yourself up for being wrong for the wrong reasons and then going the other way and then being wrong all over again. Welcome to trying to figure this stuff out. Hero went off in that. So we were close to getting the 45 pointer. If the game had been closer, that guy hero might have had 50 in that game. So on the other side of things, Atlanta not super impressive in that Orlando matchup. So what do we have here we have Miami actually getting a point at Atlanta, which makes no sense based on the momentum and how both these teams looked the last time they played. So because it makes no sense, you almost want to go with Atlanta with the spot, but I'm just not going to. So we'll go Miami plus one or go Tyler Herro two or more made threes plus 116 the Ryan Rosilla podcast is brought to you by FanDuel. The NBA playing tournament gives some teams one last shot at making the playoffs, but FanDuel is giving all new customers a shot at $250 in bonus bets. Join FanDuel today. You'll get started with $250 in bonus bets if your first $5 bet wins. From three pointers to steals to assist, FanDuel has so many ways to bet your favorite player Props. Plus after the game tips off, you can even combine live prop bets into a same game parlay. For a chance to win big. Just visit FanDuel.com Ryan R Y E N to get in on all the NBA playing tournament action. That's FanDuel.com Ryan for your shot at $250 in bonus bets. Make every moment more with FanDuel. Official sports betting partner of the NBA must be 21 and older in present in select states or 18 plus in present in D.C. first online real money wager only $5 first deposit required. Bonus issued is non withdrawable bonus bets which expire seven days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See terms@sportsbook.fanduel.com Gambling problem. Call 1-800- gambler or visit rg-help.com.
- [23:42]
Ceruti
Always.
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Ryan Rosillo
Happy when you get Frank Isola on the podcast. He is a busy man. You can listen to him every morning on SiriusXM of course. Also on ESPN and Nets pre and post where I know I'm locked in learning about rotations. Yes, in April. Yeah. What's up man?
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Frank Isola
What's up? I like that introduction. You know, you've sounded like you had to give the always happy to have and that means that you probably called some other guests. They couldn't make it. So here I am.
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Ryan Rosillo
I'm ready to go sometimes. That's definitely true. But you're with your schedule, you're actually a tougher book. And whenever we hear like Ceruti goes hey, what about I sol? I go yeah, absolutely. It almost feels like an annual thing. I have Yan even more man.
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Frank Isola
And hang on a second. Is he the one that got you involved in soccer? I saw you throw out A tweet. Was that on Sunday? Maybe you had, like, a Bayern. That was it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, the Bayern Dortmund came. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That was a good one.
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Ryan Rosillo
Yeah.
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Frank Isola
Really was. Really was.
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Ryan Rosillo
It was a terrific match. There was nothing on, and it was on really early. So I was kind of starting my day, throwing it on in the background. You know what I've realized as I've become more international the last few years.
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Frank Isola
Yes.
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Ryan Rosillo
Is between soccer and F1, like, you just realize, like, what a great viewing experience because the emotion is never turned off where. Whether it's the NBA or the NFL or certainly the NCAA tournament, which it should be illegal to have a timeout, one possession and then another commercial timeout where there's a disruption. And with our attention spans being what they are now. Like, as much as I love basketball, when I'm disrupted that much, like, I'll lose that kind of. That tension, that anxiety that you have when you've spent two hours watching something. And with soccer, it's incredible because you're never really told. Like, there's. There's never a moment where you feel like, okay, well, now I'm going to screw around on my phone because now I'm waiting for. I. Granted, I know there's reviews, but the lack of disruption in soccer makes it a more appealing watch than ever before for me.
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Frank Isola
All right, so during the. The Houston Duke game, I. I taped it and then I rewatched it. Then at the end, with 127 to go, Houston was at the free throw line. They made, I think, two free throws, and Kelvin Sampson called timeouts. So from that point until the end of the game, the final 87 seconds included four timeouts, three replay reviews, and it took 25 minutes. It was. It was insanity, I think. I think that is a big problem. Certainly the NBA has it as well. One quick soccer thing, which you'll appreciate. So, last year, a buddy of mine who lives in London tells me that Harry Wilson, who's from Wales and plays for Fulham, is a huge NBA fan. He said he's going to be over there once the season is over, and that'll be during the Eastern Conference finals. And he thinks there's a chance either the Knicks or the Celtics could be in the conference finals. Could you get him tickets? So, of course, I always, like, promise things, which I know I really can't deliver. So I was like, oh, yeah, I could get him tickets. So, sure enough, he ends up coming over, and by then, Boston had been in it. So who am I going to call for tickets and I'm willing to buy them. I call up your good buddy Brian Scalabrini. Brian says, yeah, how big of a player is is he? I said, I think he's pretty big. So Brian gets his seats where? Third row on the baseline, right behind, a couple of rows behind Donnie Wahlberg. It's game one of the conference finals. What happens? Jaylen Brown hits the big shot at the end of regulation. Game goes into overtime. Indiana blew that game. Obviously Boston wins it. The guy, Harry Wilson, he's over the moon. So he becomes friendly with Brian. I'm become more friendly with him. We actually had him on radio after he had scored two late goals. He came in as a sub, scored it, they tied the matchup and then won it late. Like in the 95th minute, we have him on radio. Huge NBA fan. Think about this. And for the NBA, they have to love stuff like this. The kids from Wales, he's playing in the Liverpool Academy. He's living in somebody's house who doesn't really even know. They're just housing them. He is able to through the Internet. He becomes in love with the NBA. He loves Oklahoma City, the teams with Kevin Durant and those guys. So I actually told him, I said, why don't you do this since you love the NBA, incorporate a basketball theme kind of goal celebration. I kid you not, Ryan. That weekend they're playing, I have the video, scores a goal and I'm like, he's not going to do it. He runs into the corner, does that thing where they slide. So I said, grenade.
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Ryan Rosillo
I'm sorry, a grenade. And then hands over the years, he.
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Frank Isola
Did the two guns to the grenade. He runs and slides. Two minutes later, he scores again. And he runs to the corner and he does like a James Harden dribbling between the legs and shoots like a jumper. And guess what? The goal ends up getting called back. But what do I care? I tape. I'm now rewinding it. I tape it off of TV and I posted on Twitter and within five minutes, you know, copyright with NBC. My account gets suspended. I got to like, you know, agree to that. I made a mistake and did all this stuff and my account got re established. But how about that? I almost created a goal celebration in the Premier League. I'm helping out the NBA making even more of a global sport.
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Ryan Rosillo
That is fantastic. I still can't believe Myron ended up even with Dortmund in that one. I mean, just if you think about possession shots on goal and then maybe we just bring Ceruti in Here. Who's my guy? Is it Serge Nab? He was sub gabby.
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Ceruti
Former Arsenal guy. Yeah.
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Ryan Rosillo
Wow. Like, look, again, not seasoned, but as soon as I saw him come in, I'm like, game changer.
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Frank Isola
Well, all right, so let me ask both of you guys this, and it goes back to the Michael Malone thing. It's so Arsenal, which is owned by the Kroenke family, they're about to play the biggest game that they've played in years. That was that home game last week against Arsenal, and that day they fired Michael Malone. Like, they have so much going. Like, how did they decide that? That was the day when later in the day, one of the other teams they own is about to have, like, a big game. It was like worlds were colliding. So the Kroenkes, which, you know, they've won a championship. What, in football? American football, with the Rams and obviously the Avalanche have done well. The Nuggets won a couple of years ago. Now they're about what, you know, three wins or at least getting to a Champions League final and maybe winning. So the Kronkies are doing it right for themselves.
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Ceruti
I think about this too, Frank. It was, you know, when the Celtics were up for sale, it felt like every fan that was like a Liverpool fan would be like, hey, we don't want them to buy the Celtics. They've done a terrible job with the Red Sox. They've done a terrible job with Liverpool. Please don't buy the Celtics. And it's like, wow, they just won Liverpool a title for the first time in. However, in the Premier League era just a couple of years ago, and it soured fast.
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Frank Isola
Yeah, it's weird, too, I definitely think. And, you know, there's going to be more international owners of NBA teams coming pretty soon, especially, like, you know, from the Middle east, maybe Saudi Arabia, that. That could eventually happen. But there definitely is a bias towards these American owners that own these teams, especially the teams in England. It's pretty interesting how that always plays out.
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Ryan Rosillo
Wow, this was good. If we had a listening session at ESPN Radio, they would have been like, hey, maybe you guys should get to the playoffs a little bit sooner. But it's a podcast. You've already made a decision here. All right, so let's. I did love that game. All right. Before the season started, what was your Finals pick?
- [31:11]
Frank Isola
I think before the season, I had Denver and Boston, so I still. That still could happen. Obviously, a lot's going to have to happen for that for it to be Denver, but come on, man. You know, it's what hap. What helps is they're relatively healthy the season. You know, the playoffs get stretched out, you're not playing every other night and they still got the best player in the league. Did you. You like that prediction? Who'd you have?
- [31:34]
Ryan Rosillo
I had OKC over Boston just because I think it's so hard to repeat in his dynamic or dominant as Boston was last year. It ended up being, you know, you get through the east. It was like, who have they actually played here with all the injuries? And it's always a good reminder as we get ready for this part of the season is there's going to be two, maybe three guys that are going to be out. They completely change the dynamic of what these results are. I mean, it's basically the norm. It's just, you're not going to sit here and predict any of this stuff. I feel like the Clippers are. Even if you want to just hit me back with the Kawhi health track record, which is fair. And then Harden's resume and what he looks like in playoff series. I just think they're a really good basketball team right now. So I'm not really looking. This seating, I'm not looking at it as Denver having the home court part of it where, you know, Even with the 50 wins in Jokic, like something's clearly wrong with this Denver team. So why would I pick them against a team that's looked like other than okc, the best team in the NBA in the last two months?
- [32:36]
Frank Isola
What are they going with? Eight straight wins. And you know, it's funny. So when the season began and I've known Jeff and I think you and I went over this once before. You know, I, I was there when he first got the Knick job. So I've remained close to him and he's done. He was great, like kind of educating all the writers on just, you know, basketball and the NBA. But we were always joking around radio at the start of the year, I kept referring to the. The Clippers Big three as. Because Kawhi wasn't playing yet. I said it was Harden, Ty Liu and Jeff Van Gundy. That's. That's the Big three of the Clippers and Jeff has done a great job with them defensively. So a few weeks ago they came to Brooklyn and I was, you know, I, I said this before during our pre production meeting about three hours ago, I had like the NBA equivalent of Haley's comment. I got to see Anthony Davis play on a Monday, which was his first game back in 18 games. And then Kawhi Leonard played on a Friday, and Kawhi that night scored 25 in the first half, and he absolutely dominated the game on the defensive end. I was like, you know, everyone knows that he's a great player, but when you see it and you see it in person, it just strikes you differently. And I texted Scalabrini, who I think was in Memphis with the Celtics that night, and I just said, kawhi is an absolute stud. And Brian said, you know, you can make the case sometimes when you watch him play that he's the best player in the league. And believe me, that was one of the best performances for a half that I had seen in a long time. 25 points with ease and Ryan on the defensive end, guys were bouncing off him and he's like a ball hawk out there. I mean, it was amazing the job that he was doing defensively, and that's why the schedule works for him. But come on, it's hard to go all in on the Clippers because we've seen it before. You like, you know, the last time he got hurt, he dominated the game against Phoenix. And then he gets hurt and then he's done. And then you don't see him forever. If he's healthy, they're going to be a tough team to beat. But that's always the question mark.
- [34:29]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, it's a totally, like, fair reason, but I guess I'm just saying, like, based on what I've seen 18:3 to close the season, the fact that they've been the number one offense, number one defense again, I didn't readjust it after the Golden State stuff, but going into that game, and that was a really, really tough win. And Harden was brilliant. Zoo was terrific. It was a great matchup for him against Golden State. So it's a little more challenging going up against Jokic. But one of the things I thought was interesting is how they had to put Draymond on Kawhi because Butler just couldn't deal with it. And that's something where you think, okay, all right, so if that one seems straightforward, then we are. I guess I should ask it this way. We're already with Golden State Houston.
- [35:09]
Frank Isola
You know what? I think that one is going to get a little spicy. First of all, you have a coach in Imeidoka who knows the Warriors. Remember a couple years ago, in fact, I could have taken a 31 lead against the. Against the warriors during the NBA finals until Steph became Steph in the fourth quarter of that game four. What I like about IME. I mean, over the last couple of years, he's mixed it up with both LeBron and Steph Curry. I mean, which is, you know, most people don't. Most players don't go after guys like that. You have the coach of Houston. I think it's going to be a really physical series, number one, because I think that's the way Houston is going to play. You got Dylan Brooks, you got Draymond Green. I still think the experience of the warriors, plus the fact, you know, winning on a Tuesday and then having this time off before they have to play game one is important, but I think what's going to be something that could factor into this series especially, but certainly the playoffs, you know, with Joe Dumars leaving, you know, the head of basketball operations at the NBA, the one that, you know, hands out the punishment when things happen, and all these coaches call up after every game complaining Joe's not there, and they haven't named the successor behind the scenes. What's going on at the NBA is going to be real interesting how this plays out in the playoffs, because we know Ryan, at some point during the playoffs, whether, you know, Draymond Green stomping on Sabonis, things happen that could impact the series. And I wonder if for Houston, will they be the team that crosses that line? Because they have a lot of young guys. You do have Dylan Brooks, and you know that he's going to get really emotional. Draymond's going to try to stir it up. So I still think that Golden State their experience, and you got to. You got to respect the fact that Jimmy Butler, the way that he played the other night, I don't like the way that he handled his divorce from Miami, but, man, his first, let's face it, his first real important game that do put up 38 points.
- [36:54]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, there's a lot of history, obviously, with Draymond, Steven Adams. Adams is actually a real part of the rotation. You're right about ime, and Steve was already kind of planting the seeds and talking about how Steph is officiated or not officiated because, look, he's not wrong about this. We have more clips to look at because Steph is involved in so much and because he's played so long. But, like, looking back at even the Memphis matchup and the stuff that Scottie Pippen Jr. Is doing against him. And by the way, Blake Pippen Jr. Memphis nailed it. Like he's going to be a player for a long time. Yeah, he's really good at finishing as A smaller player. But some of the off ball stuff like that. When I watch Steph, it's like, if Houston's gonna get away with that, that in itself could be the series because you might as well try it, Right. It's the old Dick Harder thing. I remember when he was with the Pacers and he came to Boston with Jim O'Brien and it was like, they can't call all of them, right?
- [37:45]
Frank Isola
Yep.
- [37:46]
Ryan Rosillo
So just keep fouling and then whatever, whatever you think kind of trouble. Maybe they get into the bonus a little bit earlier, but at least Houston has so many bodies that you can throw at this. And then I think it's kind of a lasting impression. The last matchup not that long ago, where it looked like they held. Held him in check. I mean, he was one of 10. So they, they absolutely did. But it was a team effort on top of just a. Men taking on the on ball assignment too.
- [38:09]
Frank Isola
Yeah. So I got to see Houston in person twice this year. One, I was in Houston for a game, I was actually doing it on radio. And that was the game where Fred Van Vliet got hurt early in the game. And the one thing about. I was there for the Nets Rockets game. And the one thing about the Nets, they play hard. And the Nets took it to the Rockets and ime, I mean, he called a bunch of early timeouts and he was just laying into his players. The younger you were and the bigger name you were, he was getting into it with them. And then they came to Brooklyn like a few days later and they lost on like a last second shot where they completely melted down. But the one thing about him, about Imeidoka, he's been through it before as an assistant coach. He's done it. And now as a head coach, getting to the finals with the Boston Celtics, he's going to have that team ready to play. There's not going to be anything that the warriors do that's. That's going to surprise him. I just thought for the Warriors, I mean, I don't know. You tell me how you feel, you know, because when they made that trade and Draymond said, we're. We're a championship contender now with, with this trade. That's why I thought that game they played the other night was so huge for them. I mean, I'm not saying they can't go on the road. I mean, they couldn't have won on Friday, gone on the road to have to play game one. Could they beat Oklahoma City? I just think the path for them, which isn't ideal. You're still playing the Rockets. You don't have home court. Whoever you play in the next round, you're not going to have home court, you know, whether it's the Lakers or Minnesota. But I kind of feel like winning that game on Tuesday night, like they did, that at least puts them in a position where I think they have a chance. I don't think if they, they were playing tomorrow night or I should say Friday night and then having to play on Sunday, I'm not so sure they're winning anything.
- [39:45]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. And I'm still not sure right now. I feel like the Lakers, Minnesota series is kind of a toss up. I guess I feel a little bit stronger about the Clippers than others do. And then I feel like Golden State, Houston is the same thing. Because even with that win against Memphis, you can sit there and say, well, they blew the 20 point lead, which is, you know, you'd rather them just carry it out. But even Edie, who I think had some really nice moments and also some terrible moments in that game because of the things that he's good at and the limitations that he seems to have, he also gets swarmed like, like the one like I just think of like National Geographic footage where it's like one animal has the meat and the rest of his supposed friends are also interested in his dinner. And it's like whenever Edie has the ball, all I can think of is just six arms swinging at him the entire time.
- [40:39]
Frank Isola
Yeah.
- [40:39]
Ryan Rosillo
And he's going to have to figure out like just a way to be stronger with the basketball and.
- [40:43]
Frank Isola
And I think he will. I think, you know, for point guards and for centers coming into the NBA, there's definitely an adjustment period. I think the thing for him, I just think everything has to happen like a split second quicker. Whether it's getting the ball, getting rid of it or going into his move, there just seems to be a little bit of a delay. I think he's done really well this season, especially for a guy who the year before, remember he was projected to be a second round pick. He goes back to Purdue, they go to the national championship game and he ends up going high in the draft. What's your take on everything though, with Kaminga? I mean, let's think about it. Ryan, they play the Clippers, so that's a huge game. That's a game to get into the top six. He does not play. Then you play an overtime game to, you know, this, to avoid having to play in the 8, 9 game on a Friday night. He doesn't play there. So those are the two biggest games of the season and the guy doesn't play one second. And what. And kerr played what, 10 guys the other night? That's pretty telling, isn't it?
- [41:40]
Ryan Rosillo
I think it's very telling, but I also think it's confirmation of, like, what this Kaminga story has been with Golden State is. We get excited about some of the bright moments. You know, remember last year I was like, this guy's hinting at, you know, if you guys are going to extend me or, you know, whatever, maybe it's time to move on. And I'm like, has there ever been a player with such a lacking resume to start suggesting, like, I need, I need some things to start breaking my way? But it's clearly just a trust thing. I mean, how many years would you sit here and look at the physical profile and his athleticism? And it's funny because after that happened, he actually came back and had like a really nice stretch. You're like, okay, maybe the, the, the moment has happened for him. Something's gone off in his head where it's going to make some sense. But look, I think Pajemski was terrible. I thought he was terrible in the Memphis game too, or they were closing with him and it was like, okay, look, he missed a couple of shots, he had a couple screw ups. Now he's like hesitant. And a hesitant Pajemski's way worse than a super confident Pajemski like he was last year.
- [42:36]
Frank Isola
Yeah, he, he, he started to get much better this season. You know, the other funny thing about Kaminga is, and I know that Draymond, after the game came out and advocated for him and said, no, no, I think he's going to help us in the playoffs. But, you know, Steve, Steve Kerr is not playing him. And you got three veteran players. And obviously Steph and Draymond are a different situation with Steve Kerr because they've been there for a long time. But you can include Jimmy Butler, like, if, if Steve, if Steph Curry was saying to Steve, steve, we got to. I mean, Jonathan's got to be in there. You got to be playing Jonathan Kaminga, you know that he's playing. So I know it's on the coach, but something tells me, like, the core group of that team, the veteran players, are probably in lock and step with the, with the head coach on the, on those decisions in the two biggest.
- [43:17]
Ryan Rosillo
Games of the season, Moody becoming a better defender, I think has helped to. Or a, I shouldn't say it Helps Kaminga, but I've just been more impressed with him defensively through this. This stretch. You know, you could sit there and maybe it's a little too simple and say, body type wise, like, hey, would Kaminga get out there and guard a Jabari Smith or whatever? I'm just like the Ed part that I'm even bringing up because I didn't expect to be breaking him down necessarily as you prepare for this series. But that part of his control of the boards and then, you know, the hesitation on drives, you know, not trying to say that he's a Keem, but you're just thinking differently when you have that big of a presence around the rim on drives. And so thinking about Houston, whether they want to go the double big, Adams is clearly a significant part of what they've wanted to do. In the beginning, I kind of didn't really understand the point, but as they closed the season, I was like, all right, you know, like, he's gotten better. It seems like it makes a little bit more sense. But I went over it this morning, and I brought it up in the open on the five games. Houston's only plus three in the rebounding edge over the five games. And look, Adams didn't play in two. Played six minutes and another one. So will IME look at the Memphis game, and I think, you know, the cool part about the playoffs, especially for a team like Houston, we feel like they're still going to be experimenting with some of this stuff. Will he say, hey, we'll give up. We'll give up some of the spacing and have these two big guys try to beat them up on the boards if they're really going to try to run Draymond out there the entire time at center. And now Looney's ahead of Jackson Davis, and has been for a while in the rotation. Like, I'm just kind of curious, like, how the. The big part of this, if Houston's just going to go. As bad as it may look at times, we want to, over the course of this, run the football and keep these big guys in there.
- [44:55]
Frank Isola
And if you. And if you go back to that Clipper game, you know, I think it was 25 rebounds that the warriors had, and that's. And that's a big issue. And if you're not grabbing offensive rebounds, because, let's face it, how many of these big shots and how many of Steph's big shots happen off of scramble plays where you miss and then, you know, you think you know where Steph is at all times and next thing you know, someone's getting offensive rebound and steps wide open for a three. And that's why I thought it was interesting too. There were times when like late in that game, Kawhi was just face guarding Steph and you could tell he was told probably from Jeff Van Gun, he was in charge of the defense. Do not leave Steph. No matter what happens, the ball goes up, just stay with him. Because Jeff's lived through, you know, Reggie Miller hitting some big threes over the years in New York where you got to stay home on them. But the rebounding is big. And that's, that's the one thing that's got to concern Steve Kirk is they tend to get smashed on the boards.
- [45:47]
Ryan Rosillo
So are you, did you give us.
- [45:49]
Frank Isola
A pick there just because of the experience? I'm going to go with the wars. I do like the fact that they had a little time to rest and Prepare for game one as well.
- [46:01]
Ryan Rosillo
This episode is brought to you by LinkedIn Ads. If you're in B2B marketing, you want to make sure you're not wasting your ads on the wrong people. I remember when I was younger and I would watch games on television and I thought, man, a lot of ads about retirement, who's this for? And then I got older and I understood it. I was like, oh, now it makes sense. So when you want to reach the right professionals, use LinkedIn ads. LinkedIn has grown to a network of over 1 billion professionals and 130 million decision makers. And that's where it stands apart from the other ad buys. You can target your buyers based on job title, industry, company role, seniority skills, company revenue, all the professionals you need to reach in one place. Stop wasting budget on the wrong audience and start targeting the right professionals only on LinkedIn ads. LinkedIn will even give you a hundred dollar credit on your next campaign so you can try it out yourself. Just go to LinkedIn.com rrs that's LinkedIn.com rrs Terms and conditions apply only on LinkedIn ads. This episode is brought to you by Whole Foods Market. The weather is warming up so it's time to enjoy brunch with friends and family all spring long with great everyday prices from Whole Foods Market. The yellow low price signs help you save money every day without compromising the quality you expect at Whole Foods Market. Like low price, responsibly farmed Atlantic salmon or no antibiotics ever, ground beef or boneless skinless chicken breast. Plus much more throughout the store. Wherever you see yellow at Whole Foods Market, you know you're saving money. Save on the best of spring with great everyday prices at Whole Foods Market. Minnesota Lakers.
- [47:34]
Frank Isola
I I just envision every single play. LeBron and Nicole. Yeah, Luka Doncic surrounding the referees complaining. I just think they're going to get so many favorable whistles. I spoke to Chris Fitch the other day and I brought that up. I said, you know, there's a chance you might not have calls go your way. Will your team be prepared for that? I love Anthony Edwards. I love the way that Minnesota has played down the stretch. They've been great. Something tells me the Lakers will still find a way. I'm not so sure it'll be LeBron hitting the clutch shots. It'll be, it'll be Luka. But now you know, you know this. Are they. Will Minnesota try to attack Luka the way the teams were trying last year in the playoffs and certainly the Celtics were successful with it during the NBA Finals. I think that'll be a big thing. It also and I think another part will be how well Austin Reaves plays because Austin Reaves had a terrific season. You know, there were times when, you know they were going to him late in the game. Like when they when they lost to Chicago on the half court shot from Josh Giddey. The play right before that with Luke and LeBron on the court. They got the ball to Austin Reaves and somehow Chicago gave up a layup at the rim. Then Giddy hit the half court shot to win it. I think Austin Reeves, depending on how well he plays, could go a long way to determining. But I still think the lakers because of LeBron and because of Luka Doncic.
- [48:55]
Ryan Rosillo
I said in the open. I think Randall off the ball because even if they want to attack certain switches with ant, they're just going to keep two with the ball the entire time. Yeah, they're just going to go fine if Jaden hits threes. Maybe DiVincenzo has has a game where he can pull it Minnesota's way in the fourth quarter. But I think a lot of it's going to be Randall off of the doubles left to create on his own. How do you feel about that?
- [49:20]
Frank Isola
That'll be interesting because if you look at the statistics from Julius Reyna, he never played in a playoff game until he came to the Knicks and he really struggled. Now they did win a playoff series with him. That would have been the Cleveland series. A couple of years the Cleveland series.
- [49:34]
Ryan Rosillo
And then the Miami series was abysmal for. I know he had the ankle thing but my, I Know, I did almost. I think I did 15 minutes on just Randall in one of those games, because I just couldn't. As I was watching it, I was like, this doesn't really matter what the score is. It's just. And I call him those in between moments.
- [49:51]
Frank Isola
Yeah.
- [49:52]
Ryan Rosillo
Where he is somebody that puts up these numbers, but it's like, okay, how. How engaged are you? And all the other stuff that you actually need to do that contributes to winning? And he was not one of my favorites when it came to that. So it. I picked Minnesota because I'm just zagging against everybody else.
- [50:06]
Frank Isola
Yeah.
- [50:07]
Ryan Rosillo
I don't. I don't think anybody's picked me. I haven't seen anybody pick Minnesota, at least nationally. And I know I'm horrified thinking, like, you're putting a lot on Randall being efficient, making the right decisions. I mean, you know, he's going to score in the passing is going to be there. It's just like, is the 20 and 7 and 5 a productive 20 and 7 5, or is it just a box score 27 and 5?
- [50:28]
Frank Isola
Yeah. Well, most of the national media is picking the Lakers because they're all afraid of LeBron, so they don't want to face that wrath of him. I like how you said you spent 15 minutes talking about Julius Randall. That's you, you know, with the, you know, the. The ocean in the background. Everything is peaceful. How many minutes do you think they spent on Julius Randall in New York when he was disappearing in the playoffs? He was getting crushed. But you know what? He has said the right things. He sounds pretty motivated, and it took a while for it to kind of work there in Minnesota. But Chris Finch is a good coach. And that's the other thing like, you know, we are talking about. And I think JJ Redick had a terrific season. Here's like a rookie head coach going into his first playoff series against a guy who coached a team that came back from 20 down in a game seven against Denver last year for crying a lot. Chris Finch is pretty good at what he does, but I think JJ Redick has proved himself. The thing that I worry about the most is just. I just think the Lakers with LeBron, you know, LeBron knows how to work it, and he knows how to make plays on both ends of the court when it matters. I just think they're going to work the refs like it's nobody's business. I know they complain that they don't get enough free throws. Give me a break. I just think a lot of things will. Will go in their favor in this series.
- [51:36]
Ryan Rosillo
Speaking of LeBron, it was just kind of funny. You were like, the media doesn't want to pick against him. Rich Paul was on with McAfee, and he had said, you know, if you really think about Miami, when LeBron was there, it wasn't really a big three. And I'm paraphrasing a bit, but, like, Bosch was good. So now that we have this new information that Bosch was a steady role player and not. Not an All Star, not technically a Big Three qualifier, does that change the goat conversation?
- [52:05]
Frank Isola
Absolutely. Everything I've said about Michael Jordan, I've completely changed my mind now that I knew that Chris Bosh was just basically, you know, a glorified Josh Hart on the. On the Miami Heat. He did make the All Star team every year. Look at his numbers a year before he got to Miami, what he did, I think he finished 12th in the MVP voting his last year in Toronto. And if you mean that when he got to Miami, he was willing to take a lesser role in terms of scoring, absolutely. But the guy was still a stud. And let's remember on the biggest shot probably of LeBron's career, the three that Ray Allen hits from the corner, I'm pretty sure that was Chris Bosh that got the rebound and did the play. So, you know, sees Ray Allen backpedal in the corner and shovels the ball to him. Chris Bosh, look at the numbers he put up in Miami. Look at how good Chris Bosh was. I. Maybe he meant that he just took on a lesser role, but who was not thinking at that time how young all three of those guys were weighted or had come off, had already won a championship. He already had one in his back pocket. But come on now, Chris Bosh, that was a Big Three. There ain't no question about that.
- [53:11]
Ryan Rosillo
When I saw the quote making the rounds, and I remember, like, Rich Paul did a long sit down with you, I believe before it was, like, during the off season. Right? Because, you know, it was talk about Bronnie and everything. And I don't feel like going back over all that stuff, because there's a part of the Rich Paul story in Clutch that I actually respect. Like, I always thought it was kind of funny in the beginning where it's like, you guys thought at ca, we were just going to come in here and be your recruiters, and you guys are going to make all the money. Like, no, we're going to come in here, learn how it's done, and then we're fucking out of here. And we're going to do our own thing. And I, I, when I heard about it, I was like, yeah, for those guys, like, I admired it a little bit, like, whatever you think those rules are. And so I think whenever you're an agent, you, you probably see things only through that lens. And it's kind of a bigger theme that I've always talked about is how we really seem to only pay attention to the BIA that are impacting us directly. But Rich has talked a lot about, like, oh well, you know, there's a bit of a persecution complex about Clutch and everything else. It's like, look, I don't remember baseball fans going like, you know what? I love that my best player has Scott Boris. I love that Boris is my center fielder's agent. And that, you know, my guy's not going to report to spring training. Like, it's just, there's a, whatever that negativity is, is being on the representation, representation side of things. Like, it's just natural. It's a natural course of things because people aren't really going to love it. But the part that I've never quite understood is I just feel like some of these ideas are workshopped and it's all chasing this Jordan ghost.
- [54:45]
Frank Isola
Yeah.
- [54:46]
Ryan Rosillo
And I remember when LeBron like debuted the I've won the two toughest NBA finals in NBA history. I'll give him 2016 against a Warriors team that might be the single toughest ever.
- [54:57]
Frank Isola
100% right.
- [54:58]
Ryan Rosillo
Like I think it is. Personally, you can probably make some other arguments, but he's not wrong on that one. But then when he threw in the bubble one, because it was the bubble, it was like. And then you just realize, you're like, did you guys just sit around and brainstorm this stuff with like a whiteboard up? And then you go, this could shift the conversation. What I'd say to them in non critical ways, all of this is a waste of time. Stop workshopping this and then presenting it to the world as if the basketball world's going to go, you know what? Bosch wasn't that good. And I've been a Jordan guy for 30 years. But now I got to start asking myself some serious questions. And that's the part that I don't think they understand. Like, hey, it's always a loss when you do this because there's never anything to be gained.
- [55:38]
Frank Isola
Yeah. And I think you bring up so many great points. And number one, the whole thing about the bubble, A, you didn't travel. There was no travel. There were no fans. So you never played a road game.
- [55:49]
Ryan Rosillo
And the Miami team, like, you know, they were all right, but.
- [55:53]
Frank Isola
Yeah, but in, you know, I think, you know, LeBron, you had like your personal chef with you there. Like what? Oh, no, his personal chef couldn't be there. That was it. That's why I was thinking. He said it was the most difficult one.
- [56:03]
Ryan Rosillo
Maybe it was then.
- [56:04]
Frank Isola
But. But Ryan, he diminishes what he did against. Against the Golden State warriors. That was the 73 win. Golden State warriors, that was a great team. They were up three one. And LeBron. And I said this at the time, I was at that game when he did it. And everyone was killing LeBron for suckering Draymond into getting the technical foul, which meant he reached that threshold, he would be suspended. I said, if Michael Jordan had done that, we'd all be saying, that's Michael Jordan doing anything it takes to win. That's Michael Jordan outsmarting the competition. So I wasn't going to kill LeBron on that. But for them to win game five, they came home and won game six, which is impressive, but not as impressive winning game five. And LeBron, I think he and Kyrie both had 41 in that game. You go to game seven, I mean, you have the block, which is really his signature moment of his career. Kyrie hit the biggest shot in the history of the Cleveland Cavaliers. You won a Game seven on the road against a team that was never losing at home. They never lost at home during the regular season. You beat them in a game five and a Game seven. You're going to compare that to winning in Orlando in the bubble? Are you kidding me? So it was, as a lot of people have said, it kind of was the summer league title that they won. It was. The whole thing was wacky, good for them, that they want it. That does not compare to what he did with Cleveland. And you're right, it's a way to kind of elevate himself. But I'm one of these people, and I got to see Michael Jordan's last three championships. I think that Jordan is better. I think the fact that LeBron's even being mentioned in the same conversation is all you need to know. To me, that tells me that the guy's an all time player, that people are actually putting you in the same category as Michael Jordan.
- [57:39]
Ryan Rosillo
Okay, let's keep it moving because I think we covered all of that stuff. New York and Detroit. I'm picking New York because I think it's. It's just going to be a bit of a Like, I've used this phrase a lot lately here, but just playoff seasoning, where this is going to be Detroit's playoff seasoning. And then, you know, we see where we go from here. But, you know, Brunson being back and he was scoring a ton of points. We know defense was an issue. You know, who is New York now? Like pre Brunson, injury to post Brunson. Like, there's some numbers that tell me that they're exact same team. There's some other numbers that tell you that a little bit different or they better defensively during that stretch because Brunson has only played like half the game since the All Star break. I don't know if. If you feel like, is there anything that's now different about them as they head into the playoffs, or is it just a team that had a break and they're right back to who we thought they were before, even with Mitchell back?
- [58:33]
Frank Isola
Yeah, I think they went 11 and 6 without Brunson that. That stretch of games, and that was a tough part of their schedule. So actually came through that with flying colors. I think Bridges has done a little bit better. I think the biggest issue with this team is you look at Hartenstein gone and Dante DiVincenzo, I think they lost a lot of that physical mental toughness that they had. And I think, you know, will there be a time and Tom Thibodeau's kind of hinted at it. Would. Would they put Mitchell Robinson out there with Karl Anthony Towns? Because that's something that could give Detroit trouble. And especially the fact that Towns spreads the floor because his ability to shoot the ball. I think there's going to be a lot of pressure on Towns after that big celebrated trade. I think there's going to be a lot of pressure on Mikel Bridges with the big trade they made for him and all the draft picks that they gave up. Ultimately, it'll be Tom Thibodeau who's under the most pressure, because even though he's won 50 games back to back, and no Nick coach has done that over 30 years, so for some reason, everybody wants to run him out of town, but I think he'll have this team ready to play. And I do believe that, you know, the Brunson and Towns having been through it before, and, you know, you said it like, for Kate Cunningham, the guy's been great. I love the way the guy plays. But you just wonder if that moment and it's going to get emotional at times. And we've seen, you know, Detroit with Isaiah Stewart can kind of walk that line and sometimes cross it. I wonder how much that could factor into. I know Detroit did really well against the Knicks during the regular season. Again though, I just like the more experienced team and I want to see if they do go with Mitchell Robinson and Carl Anthony Towns along the front line.
- [60:06]
Ryan Rosillo
I just wonder if they'll have to because there's not really anything like, as much as I like Duran, he's really more of like a rim running threat. I don't think he's, he's beating you up in the paint. I mean nobody's going to throw it down there anyway. You know, that was kind of back to the E thing. It's like cool post up moves but, but you know, it's, it's also kind of funny. I think there's nights where there's just way too much three point shooting, but I also don't miss Mark Jackson post ups that took 17 seconds either.
- [60:36]
Frank Isola
You know, like yelling with the palming the ball.
- [60:40]
Ryan Rosillo
So sometimes when I wonder like what are you actually saying that you miss. But yeah, there's some nights where the three point shooting is just so egregious. It's just like, I can't believe that guy was shooting that. So I don't know if they'll have to do a Mitchell, you know, protection over Cat because maybe Cat just gets put in the switches, but he's already used to that. I mean, Cat's getting put in every single switch by any dominant on ball scorer anyway. But it, yeah, it just feels like a lot to ask for a Detroit team to win four of these games against a Knicks team that's, that's fully formed again, even though I've liked it.
- [61:16]
Frank Isola
The one thing that actually in a weird way I think helps out Detroit, I'll give you an example. Like Milwaukee plays Saturday at 1 and then they don't play again till Tuesday night. So they have off Saturday night, Sunday night, Monday night. So giannis playing like 44 minutes, for example, that's plenty of time off between game one and two for Detroit. The game will be 6:00 on a Saturday and then they play Monday night. That's a quick, I think that's the quickest turnaround, I believe, out of all the teams playing games one and two. So the fact that they're not going to be in New York that long could help. The fact that, you know, no matter what happens in game one, they can kind of turn around and get ready to play game two. I think sometimes those little intangibles could be a factor. But I, I think for the Knicks, the good thing for them, everyone, all the key players are relatively healthy. I mean, obviously a lot of guys are carrying knocks at this time of the year. But getting Brunson back healthy, the fact that he was able to play some games before the playoffs started was huge, because I had heard when he first got hurt, maybe a week later, I heard there were some concerns that he wouldn't, he wouldn't be right for playoff time. Now if the kid could go out there and he's limping, he's going to play because he's as tough as they come. He's got, you know, he's got an old school mentality, you know, with his crazy dad, who I've known forever. The kid, you know, Jalen is going to be out there. But I just. There's something about this Knick team where it hasn't captured kind of the imagination of the fans. I think the fans really like last year's team. I think they identified a little bit more with that team. But all it's going to take is one, like, little pushing and shoving match and the Knicks winning a game late, showing some toughness, and then all of a sudden everything changes in a positive direction.
- [62:53]
Ryan Rosillo
Would you trade OG And Anobi for Durant?
- [62:56]
Frank Isola
Trade Mikhail Bridges for him?
- [62:57]
Ryan Rosillo
Can I do that instead of OG you'd rather, you'd rather keep OG than.
- [63:02]
Frank Isola
I do think this. I do think, let's say the Knicks, realistic scenario, they get to the second round, they lose to Boston, let's say it's five or six games, whatever it is, not four. Hopefully for them, it's five or six. Like, you know, you look at Towns and the way that he, you know, runs and, you know, he's dealt with injury before, and you look at Jalen Brunson, who I think is going to be 30 pretty soon, I'm almost looking at it as like a two year window. And you haven't won the title since 1973. I would go for it. That's why I understood the move that they made to get Bridges. They, they were going for. I don't think it's worked out yet the way that they thought it would, but I definitely would take a run at Kevin Durant. I think Kevin Durant, two more years where he could go for it and, and, and win. And I think if I'm the Knicks, it's been since 73, they haven't been to the final since 99. I don't think they've Been to the conference final in 2000. That's a quarter of a century ago. I'm, I'm going for it. If I'm the Knicks, I'm gonna, I'm gonna make a trade like that if I can get Kevin Durant.
- [64:03]
Ryan Rosillo
Okay. Last one that I want to focus on and then I'll ask you an OKC question. So, two more thoughts here. The Pacers Bucks thing is pretty straightforward. I mean, can Giannis carry a team here? I think the Portis thing is easy to, maybe to lose and just the traffic of all the stuff they're paying attention to and he's been really good coming back. But this Pacers team is good. They're not special, but they're good. I think last year's playoff run, if you really dig through it and who they went through, you know, it's, it's a nice Eastern Conference finals appearance, but I didn't go into this year thinking they were one of the four best teams in the NBA or anything. So it's, it's the better team versus the best player. And I picked the Pacers and I think it's a seven game series.
- [64:45]
Frank Isola
So, you know, it's, it's interesting too, with the way Indiana to me had an underrated 50 win season. They kind of floated under the radar with, with, with, with that whole thing with what they did. And I like the fact that Rick Carlisle, you know, maybe tend to be a little rigid over the years, but he's got this team and they just go up and down the court and they're, they're a lot of fun to watch. Now they did lose the season series and the one game they won, that was that Halliburton crazy four point play that he had late in the game. I don't think enough is enough. People, though, have focused on Giannis because, you know, we talk so much about Kawhi missing games. Last year Jimmy Butler didn't play in the playoffs. Well, neither did Giannis. And the year before, what was it? He only played in three of the games. In fact, I think they lost every game that he had played against Miami the year before. So Giannis hasn't won a playoff game in three years. And the fact that now with Lillard out, he's getting more touches, but his shots are about the same. You know, they're basically, you know, he's initiating all the offense and it's worked out really well and they finished their season winning eight games in a row. So I, I know a lot of the Knick fans Said I'd rather play the Bucks than Detroit because, you know, of. You know, I just think, you know, Detroit worries me. I'd be worried about Giannis. You know, I agree. I think. I agree. From this standpoint, he's going to be the best player in the series. I think he's going to find a way to get it done. And we listen, we don't, you know, they got great shooting around him, and maybe, who knows, maybe Lillard comes back by game five. That would still give him essentially another two weeks off. I get. You know, I know he's working toward that, so maybe we'll even see him, and maybe they'll bring him back where he's coming off the bench to kind of slowly get him back into things. So I think Milwaukee will find a way to prevail.
- [66:22]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, you're right about that. The last playoff game Giannis has been in and they won was 5-11-22, game five, and they went up 3, 2 on Boston.
- [66:31]
Frank Isola
Unbelievable.
- [66:32]
Ryan Rosillo
You know, Middleton was struggling, and, you know, this Milwaukee health story has. Has been the story for them now for a bunch of playoffs. And then with Dame, kind of a tbd, That's. That's another part of it as well. Okay.
- [66:46]
Frank Isola
And real quickly, though, that's why I love, like, well, if they don't get out, Giannis should want to be traded. How about Giannis playing a playoff game before we start feeling sorry for him? You know, he's got a whole. I love the guy. He's got to hold up his end of the bargain playing a playoff game and maybe win one. That would help.
- [67:00]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, I love the honest point because it's an easy thing to forget. And then I know Bucks fans, and I don't blame him for going crazy anytime any national guys, like, oh, he could be the next guy. He'd be the next guy that asks out or anything. And it's. It's starting to feel a little bit like the Garnett part part where it's like, I don't really want to do this to these people, but that maybe that's even an unfair comparison. All right, final thought. OkC. It is strange that they are this good and they are this good, and they can play a bunch of different ways. They could have won 70 games if they actually cared about it. They were actually taking their foot off the gas and still close to the ridiculous record in the last 15. Are you in the group? And I know you're not a former NBA player with a podcast with seven buddies in hoodies. Agreeing with you every five minutes. But are you in this? Maybe. Where are you? Where are you on the dismissive OKC range? Because I am. I am not on the range at all. I'm not even eligible for. I think they're that good, and I'm picking them to win the whole thing.
- [67:58]
Frank Isola
I. I've been to that place in. In Oklahoma City for playoff games. That's like as intense of an environment as you get. And they go so deep and shigilous. Alexander has been in big games. I think the fact that they lost last year in the second round to Dallas, I think, you know, you talked about the seasoning. I do think that helps. So this year, remember, they lost that game to Minnesota, which was a wacky game, where they weren't they up 16 with like under four minutes to go. And they came back. Minnesota came back and won the game. Oklahoma City's very next game was in Brooklyn. And you could tell they were going through the motions and they were down big. They might have been down.
- [68:31]
Ryan Rosillo
They gave up 70 to that nets team in the first half.
- [68:34]
Frank Isola
I think it was 73 or 74. It was something crazy.
- [68:37]
Ryan Rosillo
So in the fourth quarter, we're being pretty technical. Yeah.
- [68:40]
Frank Isola
So in the fourth quarter, they. Shay's on the bench, and then, you know, Casen, Wallace, Wiggins, it was. It was like the. The switch was flipped on and they said, all right, we gotta defend. And it was unbelievable what that team did. Defense that was with Shay on the bench, I think they went on something like an 180 run. But they went from being a team like, all right, we just lost. We blew a game against Minnesota. We want to hang out in New York. This game doesn't mean anything against Brooklyn. We're not even really trying. Then all of a sudden, what they did defensively, and you know how it works. Come on, Ryan. If you can defend her in the regular season, you can defend during the playoffs. And people will say, well, who's going to be their second scorer? That's something that still has to be determined. But they didn't have Chet Holmgren last year in the playoffs. They didn't have Isaiah Hartenstein in the playoffs. That was their biggest issue. They have anything along the front line. They got both those guys now. So Oklahoma, I would be. I'm going to be very surprised if they're not playing for the NBA championship in June.
- [69:37]
Ryan Rosillo
And something that killed them last year, the giddy minutes, because as you see how a series evolves, game one and two, and then all of a sudden it's hey, whatever we're doing, we're helping off of him. We're never closing out. You can ignore him on. On certain things. If he's out, just let him stay out there. And then you could see his minutes decline. And those are those moments in a playoff series where you see, okay, a team is absolutely selling out in this way. And if you looked at his minutes, like, it really hurt them last year. Not to say that Giddy isn't a good player, because it's clear with a different role where he can be on the ball more with Chicago and all that kind of stuff. Despite their terrible effort last night against a Heat team where I was starting to doubt the culture a little bit, but. But they showed up last night in a big way. Thanks so much, man. I know I kept you long. You can check out Frank Isola. The Nets on yes, one of the best broadcast teams in the NBA. Of course, SiriusXM every morning and of course, CSPM.
- [70:31]
Frank Isola
Thanks, Ryan.
- [70:34]
Ryan Rosillo
This episode is brought to you by UberEats. Summer is almost here, and you can now get almost anything you need for your sunny days delivered with UberEats. What do we mean by almost? Well, you can't get a well groomed lawn delivered, but you can get a chicken parmesan delivered. A cabana, that's a no. But a banana, that's a yes. A nice tan? Sorry, no. But a box fan? Happily, yes. A day of sunshine? No. A box of fine wines, yes. Uber Eats can definitely get you that. Get almost, almost anything delivered with UberEats. Order now. Alcohol and select markets. Product availability may vary by region. See app for details.
- [71:13]
Ceruti
You want details?
- [71:14]
Frank Isola
Bye. I drive a Ferrari 355 Cabriolet. What's up?
- [71:20]
Ceruti
I have a ridiculous house in the South Fork.
- [71:22]
Frank Isola
I have every toy you can possibly imagine.
- [71:25]
Ceruti
And best of all, kids, I am liquid.
- [71:28]
Frank Isola
So now you know what's possible.
- [71:30]
Ryan Rosillo
Let me tell you what's required. Life advice. The email address lifeadvice rrmail.com Ceruti Potentially Wargon. You know what? Let's just get Wargon in. Yeah. I mean, who are we kidding?
- [71:43]
Ceruti
After last week's performance or last episode's performance, I think it's, you know, he's a starter for now. We'll see.
- [71:50]
Ryan Rosillo
I don't know, though. He just. He didn't say his intro line, which I'm now upset about.
- [71:54]
Wargon
My fault. Hey, guys.
- [71:56]
Ceruti
What's up, dude?
- [71:57]
Wargon
Better late than never.
- [71:59]
Ryan Rosillo
Hey, can you cut up when your dad has this realization of like, this guy might not have it, can you Cut that up. Can that be our new goodbye at the end of every pod? And I'd like it to go on for a couple years, to be honest with you. But if we get sick of it after six months, we can take it out. So instead of the harden thing, where we lost the harden. I'm not a system player. I am the system. We lost it in just. It really was a staffing issue. It wasn't a creative decision.
- [72:28]
Ceruti
We had it for weeks. Maybe I'm wrong.
- [72:30]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. So, Oregon, if you could just use your own quote from that. I would like that to be our goodbye, our kill, our Craig Kilborn moment of sense.
- [72:39]
Wargon
Sure.
- [72:40]
Ryan Rosillo
All right, thanks. Thanks a lot. Okay, we'll start with Wargon content. I thought about it, but our. Our friend is asking if. If Kyle's getting Wally Pipped here. Oh, man, no War gone.
- [72:54]
Wargon
No way.
- [72:56]
Ceruti
I think everyone has a role, man, you know? Yeah, I feel like. I know my lane work on's got a good lane carved out. Kyle. You know, Kyle's kind of the heartbeat of some of this stuff here. He's less of a wild card than I think he used to be, which I think some people are. I think. I think it's good for Kyle overall. But I think, you know, maybe. Maybe it's not a good.
- [73:14]
Ryan Rosillo
It's good for him. Yeah, it's not great for the segment. I would say that, like his per Is, you know, the rebound rates start to go down a few less blocks here and there. It's not going to the free throw line as much as he said he's.
- [73:27]
Ceruti
Got stuff to lose now, so, you know, it's hard to. It's hard to be. I wouldn't say anything that I don't think he would say himself.
- [73:33]
Ryan Rosillo
I'm glad he's in a better place. I'm glad he's a better contributor to society. But yeah, I mean, you. You miss some of the wild card stuff, but yeah, I think s. Nailed it. Yeah. So that's come up. We don't need to read all these. What else do we have?
- [73:53]
Ceruti
No, because I'm going to be. Here's the thing is I'm going to be taking some time too with the kid in a couple weeks here. And Kyle will be back. Wargon will be. You know, people say the same thing about me, so it's fun.
- [74:02]
Ryan Rosillo
Michael Jordan Worgon is my hero. I'm in literal tears at work listening to the Wargon name story. Please give him a show. We the people need this. I don't know if this guy's email or I think this guy's from Nike.
- [74:16]
Ceruti
We get some, like, signature Worgon gear.
- [74:21]
Wargon
Jump, man.
- [74:21]
Ceruti
It's just me, Jordan Wargon brand.
- [74:25]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. What would it be? It would just be this silhouette right here.
- [74:27]
Frank Isola
Yeah.
- [74:27]
Ceruti
Just him holding the mic.
- [74:28]
Wargon
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [74:30]
Ceruti
Little bubble. Hey, guys.
- [74:33]
Wargon
Make it happen. Nike.
- [74:36]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Who knows? If he's in pr, then we're probably not gonna have it happen. There was one other one that I'm trying to find here, so. I'm getting married the same day as Wargon. 31, 57, 155 pickup comp. Tyler Ulis. Love Tyler's game. I was listening to a recent life advice. When Oregon mentioned he's getting married July 12, that stopped me in my tracks because it's the same day I'm tying the knot with my girlfriend. Fiance of almost nine years. We met on the day of game five of the 2016 NBA finals. Wow. A strategic day in the shift of NBA narratives. In a coffee shop while I was on my way to a bar to watch the game. We've always joked that the butterfly effect of our relationship caused the Cavs 31 comeback Wargon. Congratulations. Best wishes, Kyle Serdi. Any advice for us soon to be newlyweds? LeBron? You're welcome. If LeBron's listening today, he'll appreciate that.
- [75:32]
Ceruti
I don't. I mean, there's really. There's really no advice. I. You know, I. When I got married, nothing really changed. We had already lived together. I'm not sure your situation were gone. I think Kyle was kind of the same. So like, all that kind of. If it's just like you. You have official paperwork from the government. If. If you're like moving somewhere or things are drastically changing, it's part of your relationship with you getting married, then that's a whole different ball game. But nothing really changed for me. So I'm kind of bad at this question. I will say I hope you don't get this Worgon, but I had a couple people who, like, you know, a month into marriage be like, oh, man, how's it going? You know, the old ball and chain? And it's like, actually, no, it's fine, dude. Like, I know you may.
- [76:07]
Wargon
I kind of still like her.
- [76:07]
Ceruti
So you may miserable. Yeah, you may be miserable. I'm good. Like, I married her for a reason. Like the. The guys that, like, want to root for, like, you getting married and your life sucking, those guys kind of suck. So hopefully you don't have a lot of those in your Life. But I did have a few.
- [76:20]
Ryan Rosillo
I know I still. I can tell every now and then if I'm not super close with a guy, because if it's super close to the guy, he's not going to say it to me, but it's like a fringe guy. And I can just tell he's had a few, and he'll reach out and be like, you haven't figured out, brother. Yeah. Like, oh, man, this guy's. This guy's super bummed out. Yeah, we're not even that close. Like, what's your wife's name again?
- [76:44]
Ceruti
You've also admitted, too, that the lifestyle is not for everyone. You know, people think that they want the resila lifestyle, but it's not. You know, you are literally built different in that way.
- [76:54]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. If I didn't have games, like, okay, it's five now. What do you do? You know, if I just had a normal nine to five and I didn't like sports Wizards.
- [77:08]
Wargon
Hornets isn't even on. What are you gonna do?
- [77:12]
Ryan Rosillo
Full disclosure, I. I stopped watching some Hornets games this year, so the Hornets joke is. Is now alive.
- [77:20]
Ceruti
I'm happy for you. That's a. That's a. That's a win, I think, in your life, to be honest with you.
- [77:25]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Because even the playing schedule the last couple nights, I was like, this is all I have to do. But anyway, it looks like Siri has something to say, because we should probably.
- [77:33]
Ceruti
No, I was just gonna say, quick aside. Worgon's got a bachelor party coming up next weekend, so.
- [77:37]
Ryan Rosillo
Who. Where are you going, dude?
- [77:39]
Wargon
Atlantic City.
- [77:43]
Ryan Rosillo
What's on the close the agenda?
- [77:47]
Wargon
I think just like, a lot of drinking at the house. Probably go to, like, the casinos a few nights. Little Hell's Kitchen. We got a reservation. Excited about that?
- [77:55]
Ryan Rosillo
Nice. From the Gordon Ramsay television of the Gordon Ramsay fame. Atlantic City. Gordon Ramsay. Who set this up?
- [78:07]
Wargon
My buddy. My best man, Jared.
- [78:10]
Ceruti
How many guys?
- [78:13]
Wargon
I think we're. We're over 10.
- [78:15]
Ceruti
That's a good number.
- [78:16]
Wargon
Yeah.
- [78:16]
Ceruti
Damn, it's a lot of friends for a dude.
- [78:18]
Wargon
Yeah, my friend group does, like the whole wedding party and then like, all the high school friends also get invited. So.
- [78:24]
Ryan Rosillo
Any issues?
- [78:25]
Ceruti
Are you worried about anything? Everybody get along?
- [78:27]
Frank Isola
No.
- [78:27]
Wargon
Yeah, everyone. Everyone gets along pretty much.
- [78:30]
Ceruti
That's good.
- [78:33]
Ryan Rosillo
I don't want to do this to your guy. Atlantic City sucks.
- [78:36]
Wargon
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, it sucks.
- [78:39]
Ceruti
Yeah, but like, in a good way.
- [78:40]
Wargon
It was my call.
- [78:42]
Ceruti
In a good way.
- [78:43]
Wargon
No, it just sucks. Have you not been?
- [78:45]
Ryan Rosillo
I can't.
- [78:46]
Ceruti
I can't beat this guy, it was my call.
- [78:50]
Ryan Rosillo
He's got me. He's one move ahead of me every time. I. I couldn't sit here blindly and allow this to happen. And then he's like, no, I wanted to go.
- [79:00]
Wargon
So the Strip, there's, like, two casinos, hotels open. Everything else is, like, shuttered. You get, like, one block away.
- [79:08]
Ceruti
It's.
- [79:09]
Wargon
It's not a great place to be in the middle of the day.
- [79:12]
Ryan Rosillo
I said, drop me off in the bad part, because I just want to see how bad this is. And the guy was like, no. He goes, you're either going back to the casino or we're going to the boardwalk. He's like, you can't. He's like, I will not drop. No. It was the middle of the day. I was like, how. You know, whatever. I walked around Trenton, got lost, lunch.
- [79:31]
Ceruti
So wait, we're gone.
- [79:32]
Ryan Rosillo
Why?
- [79:33]
Ceruti
So then what? You know, it's. You know, it's not awesome. Why did you want to go there?
- [79:36]
Wargon
I wanted somewhere close by to everyone. I've done a lot of, like, traveling for bachelor parties, and it's just, like, kind of sucks making everyone spend all that money.
- [79:43]
Ceruti
It's a middle point. Yeah.
- [79:44]
Wargon
So, like, we're renting a house. We're gonna drink a bunch at the house. We'll go to the sports book. We'll gamble a bunch. I think I'll still be a good time, but also, like, pretty close.
- [79:53]
Ceruti
See, I. Ryan's got this look on his face like he's disappointed. I actually totally get it. So we've done. We've did. We've done the Vegas thing with the friend group. We have done Maine multiple times. Middle of nowhere. We've done Vermont. I forget what this other one was. But the best ones are just, like. It doesn't really matter, the location. You're just with your guys, and you're just hanging out. Like, I'm not a big. Like what? Because I feel like. And this is. You know, bachelorette parties are different. Like, they have every minute planned out. Everyone has to, like, be super cheery. And guys are like, let's just sit around and watch UFC this week. Weekend and bet on some sports.
- [80:22]
Wargon
We're gonna be drinking in the house. The majority.
- [80:24]
Ceruti
Exactly. That's all you need to do. That's awesome. Guys don't get to do that all the time, especially with 10 guys at a time. So, honestly, I kind of think the location, Ryan, is irrelevant. Like, this is just a good long weekend to hang out and drink with your boys. And, you know, you maybe Go to the casino a little bit. Like, it's not like, you know, it's cool if you go to like the Bahamas or Mexico and you're at the beach and whatever, like, that's cool. But at the end of the day, just the 10 guys hanging out, playing some beer pong, maybe some cards, betting on sports.
- [80:48]
Wargon
N64 set up.
- [80:49]
Ceruti
Yeah, play some Mario Kart. We brought MVP05 back in the day.
- [80:52]
Wargon
It was awesome.
- [80:53]
Ceruti
So I'm with you, Oregon. I'm excited for you, dude.
- [80:57]
Ryan Rosillo
Was Bridgeport booked? Was it like a convention?
- [81:01]
Wargon
I'm not gonna lie, I don't even know where that is.
- [81:03]
Ceruti
You know where Bridgeport is? No.
- [81:05]
Wargon
Is that Connecticut? I gotta imagine.
- [81:06]
Ceruti
Yeah. Yeah. Come on, dude. The most populated city in Connecticut. Come on. We don't go there, but yeah.
- [81:14]
Ryan Rosillo
Emails. Is my wife a dick? Hello. No gym stats, but loves to talk or. Excuse me, God. No gym stats. Loves to walk while golfing. Makes more sense. When I go to dinner with my wife, she will sometimes be torn between two dishes. At the time of placing our order with the waitstaff. She will sometimes ask which dish she should get. After the wait staff gives their feedback, she will promptly pick the other dish that they did not choose. I've told her it's a very strange thing to do, but she doesn't think she's doing anything wrong. Is my wife a dick? Thanks.
- [81:49]
Ceruti
Oh, why is she asking intel she's advanced anyone?
- [82:00]
Ryan Rosillo
I would say women are more likely to ask questions to. To the waitstaff about potential menu options. I did it. It was a bit like directions. Oh, you did it. Hey, we did too.
- [82:10]
Ceruti
Yeah, I was at the airport. We were flying one of our live shows and flight got delayed, so I needed to get like an actual meal. So I went to, you know, whatever the, like the sit down place was, and I ordered something. I think it was like a buffalo chicken Mac and cheese. And the waitress straight up was like, you don't want that. And I was like, really? And she goes, yeah, you don't want that. And I was like, oh, what should I get? Pointed me to chicken sandwich.
- [82:30]
Ryan Rosillo
Got.
- [82:30]
Ceruti
That was delicious. And I was like, thank you. Because I. Otherwise I would have gotten this probably crappy Mac and cheese situation. And. Yeah. So I take their feedback. I feel like to. If you don't want their feedback, why are you asking the question in the first place? The answer I. Unless there's any other context, it does seem like your wife is just being an asshole here.
- [82:48]
Wargon
I'll do it more like the bar. Like if I go Somewhere. And there's, like, a bunch of new beers I've ever had. I'll just ask them, like, hey, what's your favorite? I'll get that. But, like, if you ask, I feel like you have to take their advice. Otherwise, what's the point of asking?
- [83:01]
Ceruti
I would agree.
- [83:02]
Ryan Rosillo
Do you love IPAs, Oregon?
- [83:04]
Wargon
No. But if someone suggests it, like, I'm gonna have it.
- [83:08]
Ceruti
What's your go to beer Organ?
- [83:10]
Ryan Rosillo
So easy to get along with.
- [83:11]
Wargon
I'm normally just drinking, like, Bud Light or something. Something easy.
- [83:15]
Ceruti
Nice.
- [83:16]
Ryan Rosillo
They always have it, right?
- [83:17]
Wargon
Yeah.
- [83:18]
Ryan Rosillo
You get a little Anheuser Busch product up there in the background right now. Because you can't be a Yankees fan unless you like Bud.
- [83:24]
Wargon
There you go.
- [83:26]
Ryan Rosillo
Okay.
- [83:27]
Frank Isola
Yeah.
- [83:27]
Wargon
Moving right along. Yeah.
- [83:30]
Ryan Rosillo
I just. Every day now that we're doing this, I just have a thousand Worgon questions in my head and I can't. I want to save. I don't want to do. Maybe I'll just do. If we have a slow day, some teams get eliminated earlier. Maybe I just Interview Worgon for 90 minutes.
- [83:42]
Ceruti
Do a YouTube only of Ask Wargon. We just have people mail in questions for him.
- [83:46]
Ryan Rosillo
But then I don't want it to be like, I don't want to treat it like Tebow content at espn where it's like, I think this is over out, you guys. You burnt the candle a little too hard. So I think we're just going to do like, micro doses of Oregon along the way. Let's stick up for the wife here. Is there any chance that she's almost like a poker player here and she's so good at reading the weight staff and the way they talk about things, despite recommending one dish and her going the other way. Maybe that's just all she's doing. And it's not that complicated. But I think there are times when you ask someone a question where it's not what the answer is, it's how they answer. And so maybe somewhere with her ability to decipher the true information, like, she's picking up on something that mere mortals would normally struggle with. She might have. Probably not.
- [84:41]
Ceruti
That's unlikely. Like, yeah, once or twice. Be like, oh, yeah, she's never told you on the stake. That sucks bucks. Yeah.
- [84:48]
Ryan Rosillo
She's like, I don't like how he touched his collar when he talked about the chimichurri. Yeah. But don't you think there is something to that where you'll ask? Because a lot of wait staff will just never dump on any. Oh, it's all Good. And you're like, oh, here we go. You know, like, you're supposed to be on my side here a little bit. But then I can also understand you want to be sitting.
- [85:07]
Wargon
That's why you got to give them two options. You can't say what's good. You got to be like, what do you like between this and this?
- [85:12]
Ceruti
And that's what she's doing, right?
- [85:13]
Wargon
Exactly.
- [85:14]
Ryan Rosillo
She's always picking the one they don't pick.
- [85:16]
Ceruti
Here's the thing. If it's always the more expensive option and she goes with the less expensive one, maybe she. Again, she's just. Maybe just thinks they're up charging her.
- [85:23]
Ryan Rosillo
But I. I think he would have included.
- [85:25]
Ceruti
That seems unlikely.
- [85:26]
Wargon
But then also, like, if you're always going to do that, why ask?
- [85:31]
Ceruti
Good point.
- [85:31]
Wargon
I don't think she's. I don't think this makes her a dick. I think it's just, like, a little quirky.
- [85:35]
Ceruti
Well, it's. It's a little bit. It's a little bit of a dick move. Like, if you are. If you have a predetermined answer to the question and you're asking just to basically take the option opposite side, what's the point? You're wasting everyone's time.
- [85:47]
Wargon
Yeah.
- [85:50]
Ceruti
And now everyone's uncomfortable. It's like, yeah, what should I get? Should I get the Mac and cheese or the chicken? And they're like, oh, the Mac and cheese is really good here. And you're like, cool, I have the chicken.
- [85:57]
Wargon
Thanks. I'll have the chicken.
- [85:58]
Ceruti
Yeah, maybe the. Maybe she tips well and doesn't matter.
- [86:02]
Ryan Rosillo
But there might just be something in the way. You know, maybe she's just advanced on figuring out the delivery, the cadence, something from the staff. Maybe you should ask her and be like, are you picking up on something when they tell you that it's this? And then she's like, yeah, I was embarrassed that you wouldn't understand because you're not smart enough. What if she said that?
- [86:23]
Ceruti
Yeah, she's like Benet Jeserit. Little Dune reference for you there.
- [86:28]
Ryan Rosillo
Thanks. Thanks for that. Okay. Accidentally stayed with my girlfriend. Hello, Ryan and Wargon. Nothing on Ceruti here. Maybe he thought you were going to be gone already. Basketball comp wizards. Kyle Kuzma. Stats 2263, 150A 1738 5K, which is a personal record. Local 5K champion. Well, looks like we got a celebrity on our hands. Background. I've been dating my current girlfriend for two years. I've enjoyed dating her, but I do not think I want to spend the rest of my life with her. I've been planning on a breakup for over a little while now. There have been no significant issues in our relationship. It is just time for the relationship to end. Issue. My girlfriend came over last week and she said she was considering breaking up with me. This was excellent news for me as I didn't have to be the villain by dumping her with no warning. By the way, you guys out there winning about your 1 loss record over time. When I was younger, it's like, you know, when you meet somebody's like, I've never been dumped. Like, cool. When are you going to the hall of fame? You know, New Jersey, retired somewhere. No, you're not. I don't believe there's a hall of fame for these kinds of things. As you get older, getting dumped is the move. It's the best.
- [87:40]
Ceruti
Why?
- [87:41]
Ryan Rosillo
Just because it's not. It's just, it's a transaction that you can't understand when you're younger. You know, your ego gets involved and all that kind of stuff. And then of course, if you really are in love and you wanted to spend the rest of your life with somebody, that could be somewhat devastating. I could see how that could bum a few dudes out. But if you're of a certain age, I think south of, of 30, and there's like a friend group dynamic and you have a softball league that's co ed somewhere in some cool part of.
- [88:12]
Ceruti
Chicago and all right, you're saying, you're saying getting dumped if you don't actually like the girl is cool. Not getting dumped if you're emotionally invested is not fun.
- [88:21]
Ryan Rosillo
No, that's definitely, yeah, dudes have had a hard time with that one. But I would say in like a more casual range of, of. I'm not super into this or I'm kind of, you know, hit or miss every day. I'm not sure where I want to be. And then it's like, should I break up with this person? Getting to date at the last 30 to 60 days without caring at all, hoping that you get dumped. And then when you do is incredible because then it really isn't on you. And then if the friend group rolls through, I mean, there's nothing funnier than when the friend group rolls through and be like, I can't believe she did that to you. And you're like, yeah, dude, it's just.
- [88:59]
Ceruti
Like quiet quitting relationships just so they can get broken up with so they don't have to deal with the consequences.
- [89:03]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, like, you know, I thought we had a chance. Meanwhile, like, you know, you're totally full of shit. It is. Don't worry about your one loss record out there, boys. That's what I'm telling you. Especially when you're on the fence. Now, look, if engagement ring and you walk in, she's banging a guy from a fantasy league. That's not what I'm saying here. But, like, he's so good on the waiver wire, though. You understand? Okay, so the issue she came over, Excellent news. I tried to soften the blow as much as possible and be as compassionate as possible. Apparently, I was too nice. After we were done talking, I thought we had broken up, but she didn't leave my apartment. She just acted like we were still together. I was so thrown off that I just went along with it to make things more complicated. A week after this conversation, she left to go to Italy for a month. Question. How do I proceed? I feel like a bad guy if I break up with her now, but is it worse to keep stringing her along? I don't know if I should end things now or let them ride for a month or two before I try to break up with her again. All right, first of all, you're 22. Don't worry. You're definitely going to break up.
- [90:05]
Frank Isola
Up.
- [90:05]
Ryan Rosillo
Even if you're in this headspace right now. Let her enjoy Italy, man. Let her enjoy Italy. So even though you thought you did, and this is kind of like the reverse Costanza, where it would be like, he shows up while he's hired thinking he was fired, because that's kind of what you're doing here. Let her enjoy Europe. Italy's great. She's there in a less busy time. She's gonna have a lot of time of reflection. She doesn't need to be thinking about this. And then you're going to be getting, like, calls the whole time, because now the power dynamic is shifted. Where she thought she was dumping you, but then apparently, you were so nice in the potential breakup that she realized that she cares about you, wants to stay with you. Then you're signing yourself up for, like, a monthly subscription of here of calls when she's in some weird hotel and I don't know who she's with, obviously, but maybe that's other research you should do. So let this ride out. You're going to break up anyway, and then when she comes back, you can. You can break up again. I don't know if you need to bring up, like, hey, I thought we were broken up. Because then if you say that, and then she'll be like, wait a minute. Were you messing around while I was gone in Italy? You know, that could open up a whole nother can of worms. So I would just say, hey, do what you need to do. And then when she comes back, you can have that much tougher conversation. And maybe you could even say, like, weren't you, like, dumping me? And then you just sort of hung out and then you went to Italy. So I think there's a bunch of stuff in a neutral corner where they'd be like, yeah, that was a little weird. Like, the timeline of all of those events. So I think you're totally fine, but let her enjoy it a little. I think that's. This isn't about you right now. It's about her pursuit. Daily pizzas, you know, couple Peroni, which no one really likes.
- [91:42]
Ceruti
Yeah, it is disgusting. Yeah, I would agree.
- [91:45]
Ryan Rosillo
I tried. I tried to get. I was going to be. I'm going to be a Campari guy. That lasted about a week.
- [91:50]
Ceruti
It looks cool. It's got a good color. Yeah, I still have it.
- [91:53]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah.
- [91:54]
Ceruti
I think there's nothing really to add off of what you said. Like, this is a good situation for you. I mean, wouldn't you want to, though, break. Maybe just break it before she goes there. That way maybe she just could enjoy herself. I don't know. Like, why would you want any when she's abroad? I don't know.
- [92:09]
Ryan Rosillo
Well, I think she's already gone, though, right?
- [92:11]
Ceruti
Oh, all right, then I guess you got to wait it out anyway.
- [92:13]
Ryan Rosillo
But I, I. Yeah, she left. She left to go to Italy for a month. She. Yeah. I mean, that'll be awesome if she's like, I could have.
- [92:19]
Ceruti
So you're single.
- [92:20]
Ryan Rosillo
So many dudes with mopeds.
- [92:22]
Ceruti
Chances are, if this is going on and she's half breaking up with you, that it might be on the table for hand to leave. But you don't care because you want to break up with her anyway, so why don't you. If I were you, I would just act like, you know, you got, like, this little, you know, middle period here where you can kind of do whatever you want and then finalize it when you get back. And if she kind of gives you shit being like, well, I want to get back together, yada, yada. You're like, well, you're the one that, like, half broke up with me. What am I supposed to. How am I supposed to feel about that? You know, you have the upper leg here. If you even, like, because she's probably. I don't know, like, she could come back and, you know, love is in the air in Europe and just kind of feel like, I want to get back together. I want to make this work. And you can just. You have the. The instant out of. You basically broke up with me before we left. Like, I'm supposed to just get back to you now. What am I, like, a loser? So I think you're good.
- [93:02]
Wargon
I would agree.
- [93:03]
Ryan Rosillo
I think she also could be. Yeah, yeah.
- [93:06]
Wargon
Like, she broke up with you. It doesn't matter that she stayed afterwards. Like, the conversation took place and you guys are, for all intents purposes, broken up. Unless they, like, it doesn't sound like our guy said they reconciled, right. That she just stayed the night.
- [93:18]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah.
- [93:19]
Ceruti
Well, that's what's weird, too, is she said, you know, oh, you're. He was so nice that I want to make this work. It's like, are you not normally nice? Like, that's kind of strange.
- [93:28]
Ryan Rosillo
He was so nice because he wanted to break up with you. He didn't get mad.
- [93:33]
Ceruti
He was so understanding.
- [93:34]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Like, no, you're right. This is the right call.
- [93:38]
Ceruti
Yeah.
- [93:39]
Ryan Rosillo
That's the stupid thing about the mental gymnastics. And I certainly think this is on the younger side of things, because you're not. You just haven't gone through this enough or anything. And it's. It's like, you know, like, I remember there was a breakup, and then the girl was like, no, this is. This is what we're doing now. And I'm like, what the does that mean? I was like, it's the same exact thing as being together without the title, but I'm still going to get all this and held to the standard. Like, that's insane. I want to be broken up. I prefer that than a new way to label. It's like, you know, so I'm still.
- [94:18]
Ceruti
Sensitive to you, but also, I can't really do anything on my own.
- [94:22]
Ryan Rosillo
Like, so what they do is they take this loan and they put it with this loan, and it's a whole new product.
- [94:29]
Ceruti
It's a prime mortgage right there.
- [94:30]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Wait, I thought. I don't want to be in a triple B relationship.
- [94:38]
Ceruti
Triple B's, though?
- [94:40]
Ryan Rosillo
Hey, look, I mean, you could be honest. Triple B's would have been way too high of a Moody's rating for some of the stuff that I've been through. All right, so, yeah, man, you're good. You're totally good. But are we all on the same page about the Italy thing? I think you're an absolute lunatic. If you think. Think he should be calling her up, being like, just to confirm here.
- [95:03]
Ceruti
Haven't done anything yet, but no.
- [95:05]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, yeah.
- [95:06]
Ceruti
She's already there, I guess.
- [95:07]
Ryan Rosillo
Whatever.
- [95:07]
Ceruti
But I. I don't know. I would be distant. I wouldn't be. I wouldn't be, like, reaching out to her a ton. I would make it kind of clear where it's headed. And if she gets.
- [95:15]
Ryan Rosillo
She sounds like she wanted to break up with him before she went to Italy and started just meeting a ton of dudes with mustaches.
- [95:21]
Ceruti
Yeah. Never had sign guys. Guys with Vespas, you know, they're dangerous in that. In that. In that world.
- [95:30]
Wargon
Yeah. We've seen Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. We know what happens.
- [95:33]
Ceruti
Have we?
- [95:34]
Wargon
We have.
- [95:37]
Ryan Rosillo
Which one's better? That or Eat Prey? Love, Oregon.
- [95:40]
Wargon
That one I've never seen.
- [95:44]
Ceruti
Is that Blake Lively?
- [95:46]
Wargon
Blake Lively.
- [95:46]
Ceruti
Okay. I haven't seen it, but I know. Yeah. Okay. There you go, Priscilla.
- [95:49]
Ryan Rosillo
Who's that?
- [95:50]
Ceruti
Be interested, then.
- [95:51]
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Give us a quick synopsis. I'm interested.
- [95:58]
Wargon
Oh, boy. Lake Lively's at soccer camp. America Ferreira, Mexico. I want to say I could be botching this whole thing. We're getting those about this. America Ferreira is visiting her stepdad, who is remarrying. That's a problem. I don't know any of the other actresses, so this is going to be. Going to be tough. One of them goes to Italy, though. Falls in love. There's like, a Romeo and Juliet family drama there where, like, her grandparents don't like the guy that she's dating because of his family.
- [96:30]
Ceruti
What's the Traveling Pants part?
- [96:32]
Wargon
It's like a pair of magical pants where, like, good things happen when you wear the pants. So, like, Blake Lively wears them for, like, a month, then ships them out.
- [96:40]
Ryan Rosillo
You know, I don't think all these girls would fit into the same pair of pants. I'm just going to say that right now.
- [96:44]
Wargon
So the pants change size. You're missing. Keep key plot points if you're not going to watch the movie.
- [96:49]
Ceruti
Okay.
- [96:50]
Wargon
They can't believe it fits them all in the changing room.
- [96:53]
Ryan Rosillo
They do go to Mexico, but then the other girl's family's from Greece. And then Carmen and Tibby State.
- [96:59]
Wargon
That's right. It was Greece. I don't know why I said Italy.
- [97:01]
Ryan Rosillo
No matter where they are, they're connected by a pair of jeans. They take turns sharing pants that fit all four girls and exemplify their tight bond.
- [97:09]
Ceruti
Oh, the Gilmore Girls chick is in this. Okay, I know some of the people here.
- [97:14]
Ryan Rosillo
Give it a watch.
- [97:16]
Ceruti
Take your word for it.
- [97:18]
Wargon
That makes more sense. Yeah.
- [97:20]
Ryan Rosillo
What kind of scores are we talking here?
- [97:22]
Ceruti
6.5 IMDb.
- [97:25]
Ryan Rosillo
Okay. Doable.
- [97:26]
Ceruti
Not bad.
- [97:27]
Ryan Rosillo
Okay, that'll do it for the show today. Thanks to Cerutty. Thanks to Oregon, thanks to Jonathan Frius. Make sure you check out our podcast, which is a video pod on the Spotify app, and of course, our YouTube page, which we would love a subscription on that. And of course, always check out our pod. We're back next Tuesday, Thursday, gearing up for the draft. Apparently, I've signed up for this draft thing with McShay Tuesday, Friday next week.
- [97:50]
Ceruti
Tuesday, Friday.
- [97:51]
Ryan Rosillo
Oh, Tuesday, Friday next week. Right. That's after the draft. And then I'm doing Saturday with McShay Saturday morning. Right. So he asked me if we could do something in my house. I was like, yeah, sort of. No problem. And then of course, be headed to fish at the Hollywood Bowl Friday before that. So probably not going to do acid that night. All right, that'll do it. For the show, Ryan was still a podcast. Bring your Spotify.
- [98:19]
Wargon
They were gonna name me Michael Jordan. My dad was like, I don't think he can live up to it. So they named me Michael. Jared.
- [98:33]
Ryan Rosillo
Foreign must be 21 and older president. Select states for Kansas in affiliation with Kansas Star Casino or 18+ and present in D.C. gambling problem. Call 1-800- gambler or visit rg-help.com, call 888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut it or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit gamblinghelplinema. Org or call 800-327-5050 for 24. 7 Support Massachusetts or call 1-877-8-HOPE NY or text HOPE NY in New York.