Origin Story of Brian Scalabrine’s “White Mamba” Nickname, Rory’s Masters Moment & NIL Drama

Summary

Podcast Summary: Throwbacks with Matt Leinart & Jerry Ferrara Episode: Origin Story of Brian Scalabrine’s “White Mamba” Nickname, Rory’s Masters Moment & NIL Drama
Release Date: April 17, 2025

In this engaging episode of "Throwbacks with Matt Leinart & Jerry Ferrara," hosts Matt Leinart and Jerry Ferrara delve deep into a mix of nostalgic sports tales, current NBA playoff insights, memorable moments from golf's Masters Tournament, and the evolving landscape of NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) in college sports. Featuring a special guest appearance by former NBA player Brian Scalabrine, the conversation weaves through personal anecdotes, professional analyses, and heartfelt reflections.

---

1. Origin Story of Brian Scalabrine’s “White Mamba” Nickname

(00:42 – 05:06)

The episode kicks off with a candid discussion about Brian Scalabrine's unique nickname, the "White Mamba." Brian shares his experiences balancing family life with his passion for basketball, highlighting the challenges of limited personal space and the blend of his home life with his professional identity.

Brian Scalabrini:
"I don’t have a lot of, you know, quiet places in my house... I'm becoming my wife a little bit."
(00:42)

Jerry Ferrara:
"You need some space. You need some space of your own."
(02:15)

The nickname's origin is humorously dissected, with Brian and Jerry reminiscing about his on-court persona and the playful moniker bestowed upon him during his college and professional days.

---

2. NBA Playoffs Predictions and Insights

(05:06 – 39:30)

Transitioning to the heated NBA playoffs, Matt, Jerry, and Brian offer their takes on current matchups, team performances, and standout players. The conversation underscores Brian Scalabrine's deep understanding of the game, drawing parallels between strategic plays in basketball and competitive sports dynamics.

Brian Scalabrini:
"I think when Boston’s healthy and motivated, they are significantly better than just about every team."
(08:20)

Matt Leinart:
"The game is becoming a more skill game. This is a more physical game."
(33:17)

They analyze key teams like the Celtics, Knicks, Warriors, and the Western Conference's unpredictability, providing listeners with expert forecasts and blending humor with insightful commentary.

---

3. Rory’s Masters Moment

(69:07 – 78:36)

The discussion shifts to Rory McIlroy's dramatic moment at the Masters Tournament. Jerry and Brian recount the emotional rollercoaster of Rory's final holes, reflecting on the mental fortitude required in high-stakes golf and the community's unwavering support for the champion.

Brian Scalabrini:
"Can you think of some other times... like Josh Allen and Lamar."
(70:38)

Jerry Ferrara:
"I have to say, you're awesome calling the games... there's no negative Knicks talk on the Knicks broadcasts."
(75:19)

The hosts celebrate Rory's achievements while empathizing with his near-miss, highlighting the thin margins that separate victory from defeat in professional sports.

---

4. NIL Drama and Its Implications

(79:00 – 88:24)

Addressing the pressing issue of NIL in college sports, Brian takes a heartfelt turn to discuss a listener's question about a quarterback leaving due to NIL disputes. The conversation navigates the complexities of financial incentives, the lack of governing bodies, and the potential long-term impacts on athletes' careers and personal lives.

Brian Scalabrini:
"College athletics needs a commissioner. They need somebody to put rules in place."
(80:11)

Jerry Ferrara:
"Part of my question almost is like, now, how is this also so public?"
(84:18)

Drawing from personal experiences as a parent and a sports journalist, Brian emphasizes the importance of informed decision-making for young athletes amidst the evolving landscape of collegiate sports and media influence.

---

5. Personal Anecdotes and Memories

(60:11 – 78:10)

The trio shares fond memories from their college days at USC, highlighting the camaraderie, the hustle of fundraising for the Galen Center, and the vibrant campus life. These stories provide a nostalgic backdrop, emphasizing the bonds formed through sports and shared experiences.

Matt Leinart:
"I probably raised, like, a hundred million dollars of that. They weren’t sending anybody else. They were sending me."
(60:11)

Jerry Ferrara:
"If you're both in LA at the same time, you guys need to meet up for a beer."
(65:39)

These moments not only humanize the hosts but also enrich the conversation with relatable experiences that resonate with listeners who cherish their own athletic and academic journeys.

---

6. Closing Thoughts and Future Predictions

(88:26 – End)

As the episode nears its end, Matt, Jerry, and Brian reflect on the future of basketball strategies, the importance of mental preparedness in playoffs, and the continuing evolution of sports management and athlete representation.

Matt Leinart:
"The game is becoming more skill-focused and these players are more professional."
(33:17)

Brian Scalabrini:
"These are grown people making decisions, and they’re not always the right ones. I hope it all works out."
(83:11)

The hosts conclude with optimistic yet realistic outlooks on upcoming sports seasons, emphasizing growth, adaptability, and the enduring spirit of competition.

---

Notable Quotes Highlights

• Brian Scalabrini:
  "I don't have a lot of, you know, quiet places in my house... I'm becoming my wife a little bit."
  (00:42)

• Jerry Ferrara:
  "You need some space. You need some space of your own."
  (02:15)

• Brian Scalabrini:
  "I think when Boston’s healthy and motivated, they are significantly better than just about every team."
  (08:20)

• Matt Leinart:
  "The game is becoming a more skill game. This is a more physical game."
  (33:17)

• Brian Scalabrini:
  "College athletics needs a commissioner. They need somebody to put rules in place."
  (80:11)

• Matt Leinart:
  "I probably raised, like, a hundred million dollars of that. They weren’t sending anybody else. They were sending me."
  (60:11)

These quotes encapsulate the essence of the episode, blending personal insights with professional perspectives.

---

Conclusion

This episode of "Throwbacks with Matt Leinart & Jerry Ferrara" offers a rich tapestry of stories and analyses that cater to sports enthusiasts and casual listeners alike. From the heartfelt origins of a unique nickname to the intense discussions on playoff strategies and the intricate world of NIL in college sports, Matt, Jerry, and Brian provide a comprehensive and entertaining narrative that underscores the multifaceted nature of modern athletics.

Transcript

[Matt Leinart]

I don't know what it was like for you, but, man, I had a job and I got, like, paid a thousand bucks, dude. I thought I was the richest dude in the world. Can you imagine having a million dollars and going to college? What is that even like?

[Jerry Ferrara]

All right, welcome to another episode of Throwbacks. Please if you can follow us at Throwback show, email us. Feedback throwbackshow.com don't forget to subscribe to all our YouTube channels. Everything's just Throwback Show. You should know at this point. Matty. Ice. How's it, buddy today, bro?

[Brian Scalabrini]

Well. Well, I gotta be honest with you. My neck is killing my neck the last couple weeks. I would, well pull the calf muscle last week playing hoops with you when you were in town. Still knotted up. Feeling better. My neck has been bothering me for whatever reason, so I've been trying. I saw a chiropractor for that last week. I'm sitting here, I'm just gonna vent a little bit, and all my guys out there listening are gonna understand this. I. I don't have a lot of, you know, quiet places in my house, obviously. Right. Like, I have dogs. I have four kids, which is fine. You know, I don't have my own office. My wife has the office. Um, you know, so you've seen my setup, right? Right? My pod and kind of my. My space. I. I'm looking around this room right now, dude, and it's just. Honestly, it's starting to piss me off a little bit because I know that I. Maybe you can't relate because you got a 9, 000 square foot house in Ohio and you got so much space. But the. But my guys out there, like, my. My. My garage has turned into my wife's storage space, and I always knew that. But, like, I have a couch. I have a tv, I have a peloton. I have all sorts. Here are my golf clubs that I'm looking at that have been used once in a year. But now I have. I have literally a stack of outdoor furniture chairs right in front of me. I have my wife's middle of her van, by the way. Yes. She has a minivan. The middle seat of Josie goes minivan. Oh, dude. Kia Carnival. Shout out. Kia Carnival. Hey. Black on black. It's actually. Wow.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Wow, dude.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I'm just. I'm. You know, I don't know what I am. I'm a little.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You need some space. You need some. A space of your own.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I. I enjoy it a little bit because it's, like, cluttery and it's like kind of dirty. I walk in here barefoot, my feet turn black. You know that type. It's like my spot. But it's just becoming like I'm get. I'm. I'm becoming my wife a little bit. And I know you're like this in the fact that like I do like a little. I do, I do like things to be a little neater, you know what I mean? Like in my workplace, I like to come out here, have a little coffee, turn on the tv, get ready to do throwbacks with you, maybe rip some games and it just doesn't feel like my space.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You're a man without a country right now. I've been there. You got. Remember I. I lived in New York.

[Brian Scalabrini]

So I don't have my. What do I do?

[Jerry Ferrara]

You have a couple of options. Option one is you just. It's spring. Spring clean the out. Like just, just take a day and say, I'm not working out today. I'm not doing anything today. But I am just getting this garage and an order that I could see fit. Or option two, sell the house. Sell the whole thing. Start over, bro.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Sell the whole thing.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Sell the whole thing. Start over. That's so funny. But listen, first off, how.

[Brian Scalabrini]

By the way, I'm good.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You are good. That this is the. Honestly, everyone listening now. I know Matt, pretty much almost a year at this point. No. Yeah, no, over a year now. And this is probably the most heated for a non sports thing I've ever heard.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I don't get. I don't, you know. Yeah, I don't.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You're calm.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I'm very calm. I'm very west coast personal. It does, it fits me. I'm not heated. I'm not. I'm just, I'm getting to the point where like, you know this, like you wake up your. My, my neck doesn't feel good. It's kind of pissing me off my calf. Like, I start my rec league here in a couple weeks and I need to be 100%.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You gotta go.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And I'm just looking. And this was my spot. Like I put a lot, put a lot of effort into making this spot. And now I'm just, I'm battling, dude, I'm battling the. I'm battling just all of that just, you know, coming my way, dude. Like, there's just a lot of stuff that I can't control and pack up.

[Jerry Ferrara]

And move to the Midwest. You could own probably your own city.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I'd rather sleep in the fleas in my house than move to the Midwest.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So you, you said you have rec league starting up. You know who? After you brought Shout out Jason.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Shout out Jason McIntyre.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Yeah, after you brought me to play. Do you know who. And I'm so happy for our guest today because this is someone I would want to go into a rec league war with. Like if we were picking up a former athlete who still wants to compete. Our guest today, now, I don't know what I'm going to say his name and then you got to help me. What, what do we call him? Brian Scalabrini, everybody. The white Mamba.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I can't wait to talk white basketball players with him.

[Jerry Ferrara]

What are you gonna call him? Because you guys have like the whole USC connection. You call him scowl, you can call mom.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I think I'm gonna call him Brian.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Brian.

[Brian Scalabrini]

No, exactly, that's why we're gonna call him Brian and see if he responds.

[Jerry Ferrara]

If those of you who might call.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Him I might call him Mamba.

[Jerry Ferrara]

His one on one content against George the Messiah, West Fort street in New York City was a one top of the line. You must watch.

[Brian Scalabrini]

By the way, is that guy any good? No, I mean like he throws like those hook. Like I see him all over. Like obviously I get that, I get what they're trying to do. Like it's show.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Like is he good enough to beat Brian Scalabrine? No. Is he going to beat you? No. Can he? Maybe because he's got about £40 or can we bet can he back me down and hit a hook shot? Probably.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I've played with guys like that that just back you down and they just throw the, the behind the.

[Jerry Ferrara]

But he's a really great personality and he's built something really cool. He called out scout because I feel like anytime any YouTube creator or any pickup player thinks hey, what NBA player could you have gotten after they picked Brian Scalabrini and he had to go, he had to go stand up for himself and boy did he, he did he.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I love, he talked too. I love him obviously. I mean Celtics, NBA, there's a lot of stuff going on right now this week, a lot of playing games, playoffs kicking off, starting some great matchups. Scowl went to Scott, he was a part of a couple really great USC basketball teams right before I got there also. Just, yeah, I mean just he, he's got great stories. I think the guy is awesome. He played on a couple NBA finals teams, played with some hall of famers. Yeah, we'll get some playoffs, man, I.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Can'T play a preview stuff with him too. And then I wanna, I Wanna tell you my proud moment because you know, my, my almost six year old super into Knicks basketball. I think he now can talk about eight players. Pretty much the whole Thibodeau rotation.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Crazy.

[Jerry Ferrara]

He gets mad when campaign game. He's, he's starting to get it. And while I was leaving LA and then once I got home he was like, dad. So I was teaching him all about the playoffs and he's like, so when did the Knicks play? And they announced it and I said Saturday, 6pm and he's like, I don't really know when that is because he doesn't, there's like he loses concept of days and times. Like, could you put it in our family calendar? Because I cannot miss that game. We're watching it, right? And like one lone tier.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Oh, absolutely.

[Jerry Ferrara]

In the corner of my eye.

[Brian Scalabrini]

You're doing your job as a father, Bri.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Bri was like, you don't put anything in the family calendar ever. You always try to just memorize it. And this is the one thing you put with alerts. I have, I have 15 minute countdown alerts in our family calendar because the playoffs are starting.

[Brian Scalabrini]

That kid's going to be the general manager of the New York Knicks one day and you're going to be, you're going to be, you're going to be leaving voicemails like your mom leaves you to him.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well, it's funny because I took him to the game and I called.

[Brian Scalabrini]

That's awesome.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I said it was like a work trip. So he thinks I work for the Knicks. He thinks throwbacks is like the number one Knicks podcast. And we, you. I feel like no one even lets me really talk about the Knicks in the way we talk.

[Brian Scalabrini]

We talk about the Knicks during the World Series. We talk about the Knicks in the off season. We talk, we'll talk about the Knicks when they go on vacation after the first round. I mean, that's what we're going to do.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Whoa, is that a pick? Are you picking the Pistons?

[Brian Scalabrini]

No, I'm not picking them Pistons, but they're gonna, I mean they play Boston round two, bro. They're gonna get, they're gonna get smoked.

[Jerry Ferrara]

We're gonna ask the white mamba.

[Brian Scalabrini]

You can't sit here and tell me right now if, if you get through Detroit, which I, I, I, you made.

[Jerry Ferrara]

That a very big if just now.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I'm just saying, like there's sound like.

[Jerry Ferrara]

It'S a big if for you.

[Brian Scalabrini]

There's no guarantee if you get through Detroit. There's no way in hell you believe that your New York Knicks are getting through the Boston Celtics. And it's really not an indictment on the Knicks. It's just, I think that's how good the Celtics are.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Here's what I'll give you and then we'll leave.

[Brian Scalabrini]

You're gonna give us fight?

[Jerry Ferrara]

You're gonna give us gal. Yeah, I, I don't think there's any team. I feel good about going into a series against Boston. I don't feel good about Cleveland if it's the Finals, even if it's OKC or even your Lakers. I really don't feel. I, I think when Boston's healthy and motivated, they are significantly better than just about every team. And then maybe it gets a little smaller when you start talking like Thunder, Lakers, Cavs.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah.

[Brian Scalabrini]

So the west, the west is wild. The West, I think one. I mean, gosh. I mean the, the, the warriors clinched right. The seven seed.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So Warriors Rockets will be.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I mean the warriors can make a run. I don't think they'll make a run. But like the west one through seven because you have to include Steph and the warriors in there I think are all teams that can get to a Finals.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I'm saving it all for Scal because I'm also going to try to see if I could bait Scal into giving the Knicks a compliment. I'm going to see because you know.

[Brian Scalabrini]

He works for the Celtics. He's going to. On your team.

[Jerry Ferrara]

We'll see. I, I'm going to play some mental warfare early with Scalabri. I already talked to everyone in my Knicks group chat. We're going to play a little mental warfare if the Knicks even get to the second round. According to Matt. Matt said if. Big if. All right.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I like the Knicks, man. I'm rooting for you guys.

[Jerry Ferrara]

That's fair. I'll take that. That's a big compliment coming from you. I'll take that.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Shout out to, to the boys, man. What? You're raising them right. It's awesome.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Raising them right. Tear in the eye. And we're going to do something real fast. We're gonna do our all time adventures driven by Nissan. Take adventure to new heights in the all new 2025 Nissan Armada. Go to nissanusa.com armada to learn more. We always tell a. A story and a unique adventure that we got going on. You already talked about the garage. Well, you already talked about the garage. Matt. What is going on in your life now?

[Brian Scalabrini]

I mean, I want to preface this by just saying shout out to the wife who just, just fucking holds it down. With the, with the baby and the kids. And I travel all the time, especially in the fall. She left yesterday. She's at Oklahoma doing some nil presentations, being a boss. She's presenting from the football team, all the international athletes. So she's. She's crushing it. She's doing great. But that means that I'm solo with the kids. And I'm saying all four because Cole's 18. He's in and out, but he's here. I had to wake up this week with him and get him ready for school at 6am while I was up feeding at 4, 4:30 with the baby.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I'm.

[Brian Scalabrini]

My adventure is just. I'm just. I'm in. I'm against the ropes. I'm in the trenches. I'm 41. I'm an old dad and a young dad at the same time. I. I approached this week, in these last couple days like I would approach a football game. I'm just mentally locked in, bro. I'm mentally locked in. I. I forgot. I forgot how to swaddle a baby. Because. Because, Because Joe's. Because Josie. Josie has. I made notes, dude, for everybody that can't watch this. I made notes about my feeds, bro. I'm all feeded up. You can't. Is it. That's a little glare, okay?

[Jerry Ferrara]

Reminders of your feedings and how to.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Swap feeding, how to swaddle, videotape. I'm just like. I feel like I'm preparing for the super bowl. And I've been preparing. So, you know, the adventure this week is just solo, solo dadding it right now. The wife just. She crushes life in general. But, you know, every once in a while I gotta hold it down. I'm holding it down. Donuts in the morning for the kids. Cuz I'm not making food. I'm just. It's just, it's no holds bar.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You're going donuts, Matt, you can't make an egg. Come on, dude. Make an egg, dude.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I can't make an egg when I'm holding the baby. I got two psychopaths. I'm also getting my oldest one. I'm getting ready to work. I'm doing. It's hard, bro. It's hard. It's hard.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Don't. Well, you know what? I guess now that's a quick route for you to become like, oh, Mom's away. Dad's watching us donuts for breakfast. Like, your kids are gonna love that because that's the only time. It's just, you know what? They're allowed not for breakfast.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, there's not. There's not a way. There's no other way to approach this other than you just. You approach it head on, dude. And you just. You ride it. You just go. You're gonna get through it. It's, you know, 48 hours and, you know, we're on our way.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well, I will say too, if you could fit it in, figure out a time, just do some. Have something nice waiting for Josie when she gets home, because you're going to be welcoming her back like. Like Luca coming. You know what you should do?

[Brian Scalabrini]

Like, you know, you know what's waiting for her? Me.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You should play a thank you video like they did for Luca when she comes home. Show all Josie highlights with the baby. You should do like a welcome home video. That's really funny. We should do that for social. Good idea.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Anyway, when she gets home, she's. She's getting. She's getting all 6, 5, 220 pounds. I'm about 220 right now. I also gained a couple pounds this week.

[Jerry Ferrara]

All right, Donuts for breakfast. We'll do that. All right. Than you Nissan again. Go to nissanusa.comamarta to learn more. Bring on the white Mamba. Treat time is now in session at Wendy's with the iconic Frosty in chocolate and vanilla. Wendy's delicious Frosty is everyone's fave sweet treat.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Clock in for sweet treat time with Wendy's classic Frosty. When you want an iconic treat, it's got to be Wendy's.

[Jerry Ferrara]

With the classic Wendy's Frosty coming in both chocolate and vanilla, there's no wrong time to head to the drive thru. So grab a spoon and enjoy everyone's fave creamy treat today.

[Brian Scalabrini]

When it's time for sweet treat time, you have to go with the classic Wendy's Frosty in chocolate and vanilla. Enjoy Frosty time with a rich, creamy Wendy's Frosty. When it's time for frosty time, it's got to be Wendy's.

[Jerry Ferrara]

It's one of the best times of year for sports fans around the country. Tournament time. You got the games on all throughout the day. You're keeping track of your office pools. All the close finishes have you on the edge of your seat. It's the best.

[Brian Scalabrini]

But regardless of who makes it to the final game in the tourney, one thing's for certain. It takes the most talented people working together to help these teams play at this level. If you're hiring, you want the most talented people on your team to help your business. Go to the next level. How do you find them? ZipRecruiter and right now you can try ZipRecruiter for free at ZipRecruiter.com throwbacks ZipRecruiter.

[Jerry Ferrara]

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[Brian Scalabrini]

Pick ZipRecruiter to help you build a winning team. See why 4 out of 5 employers who post on ZipRecruiter get a quality candidate within the first day. Just go to this exclusive web address right now to try ZipRecruiter for free. ZipRecruiter.com throwbacks again that's ZipRecruiter.com T H R O W B A C K S ZipRecruiter the smartest way to hire.

[Matt Leinart]

The wrongs we must right. The fights we must win. The future we must secure together for our nation. This is what's in front of us. This determines who, what's next for all of us. We are marines. We were made for this.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Do you really think European, like European basketball players think American, like white basketball players are soft?

[Matt Leinart]

I mean I think that's pro, like I think the, like things are changing now, right? But seven years ago, yeah, yeah, probably they do.

[Jerry Ferrara]

It's hard for me. So like from the creators of the Euro step, you know, even though Ginobili, who really kind of mastered the Euro.

[Matt Leinart]

Man, those dudes are tough. I'll tell you right now. Like those guys when they were like 15. Now the ones that make it, those guys when they're like 15 years old are playing against 25 year old men. You put any, any elite player in that environment where you, where mommy and daddy is not there to save you or anything like that, them dudes that come out of there, they're going to grow up to be pretty savage. And it would be the same thing here if we did it, but we don't like you know, 15 plays. 15, matter of fact, sometimes there's like some 18 year olds playing in U15, right?

[Brian Scalabrini]

Like the double hold back.

[Matt Leinart]

The double hold back, it's over there. It's like survival of the fittest, man. I remember when I went during the lockout and I was playing on Wednesdays, the junior team would come practice with us. So I've been in the league 10 years at the time and there'd be like some 15 year old guarding me. And it was on every win. And those and coaches were not soft on them. So things have, I think they have a mentality that, you know, if they had the numbers that we had, they had the athletes that we have, they believe that they're better at coaching basketball than we are.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Well, we're, we're talking Europeans and we're talking white dudes in the NBA and I just, I. Because I'm a Laker fan. Okay. And well, I love you. We're Trojans and we just missed each other by one year, I think. I think you had left. But Austin Reeves had this quote and he said, you know, as a white guy in the NBA, I sometimes look at white players and I'm like, they're not very good. So. So it's a stigma that I think is real. What are thoughts on that?

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, I mean, it's just like this. If you're, if you're white, you got to prove yourself. And it's not. It just doesn't start in the NBA. It starts when you're 12 years old and you know, like, if you're gonna play against the best of the best, then you're probably going to be like one out of every 10 white guys compared to, you know, like nine black guys in the gym, you know, and that's just the way it's going to be. But the ones that do and want to live in that environment, those are, those are the guys that, you know, they're going to be a little bit tapped. Like the. Austin Reeves is tapped. Tyler hero, Peyton Pritchard, my boy Cooper flag up in Maine. Like. And I think there's a big shift happening because the game is becoming a more skill game. This is a more physical game. But. Yeah, but no, no doubt. And like Austin Reeves, he's a dog man before. Yeah, he doesn't move like a white guy. He's like shifty and stuff like that. He doesn't watch him. Like, he's like, he's got like, like a herky jerky to him that you just don't see. And you don't see that with a lot of black players, but like, you definitely don't see that with white players. And, and I think, I think he's nasty. I can't believe he was undrafted or whatever. How, how did that.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Crazy.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Yeah. You know, you guys got me thinking too. I'm trying to think because I've been watching the NBA since I was 8 years old. The Trent Tucker games. The first game I ever watched where I was like, whoa, this is a cool sport. Trying to remember, like, the first foreign player that I saw that I was like, wow, this guy's unbelievable. I think it was Petrovic. I think it was Drazen Petrovic and then Sabonis's dad. The. Not your vetus.

[Matt Leinart]

You don't remember, like Tony Ku, coach. You don't remember?

[Jerry Ferrara]

I do, but I think, I think cuckoo. I think Drossing was before. I remember, like Marcelo Onus on the Warriors.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jerry Ferrara]

There was a lefty. And so, you know, I don't know if you've told this story much publicly about how you actually got the white mamba nicknames that in Chicago. Is that when you were in Chicago?

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah.

[Jerry Ferrara]

And their fans.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, yeah.

[Matt Leinart]

You know, like, I just was like, I was like a spoof. Like, I was totally fine with, you know, I know who I am. I don't care what people think. Right. So, you know, I always tell people, yeah, you know, we know for sure. At the end of games, the ball is going to Kobe, the black Mamba, and the ball is going to me, the white Mamba. Now, we might be up by 20 when that happens, but everybody knows where the ball is going now. You just got to try to stop it. It's one thing to know. It's another thing to try to stop it. So I, like, I didn't embrace any of the going in at the end of the game when I was in Boston. I felt like, well, that's so disrespectful to the guys who, who built the lead now in Chicago. Hell no, man. I used to love Thibodeau, man. Hey, thibodeau, we're up 20. You know, first of all, I'm not going to blow the lead. And second of all, you got to give these people what they want. They don't want to see Derrick Rose right now. They want to see me.

[Jerry Ferrara]

God. Yeah, dude, I was not doling out those minutes easily to anybody.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Hey, I was, I was. I was talking to my boy. I said. I said, hey, we're having Scalabrini on. He goes, dude, I. Please tell me if this is a true story. He goes, I used to see him working out at the Equinox in Westwood all the time wearing his Chicago Bulls outfit. He said, he said he saw you there a couple times rocking your whole Chicago Bulls, like, warm up suit. That's not true.

[Matt Leinart]

I don't. I'm.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Hey, maybe it was.

[Matt Leinart]

I can tell you One thing right now, I am not a uni. I don't do the uni thing. Like. And when you see a kid come to basketball camp, I pull him and his parents to the side and I talk to him, I say, bro, let me help you out. First of all, the glasses. Gotta go get some contact lenses. And then second, second, this is the most important thing I'm going to tell you. You can't show up wearing Tatum shoes, Celtic shorts, and Tatum's jersey. You're never going to get any respect like this. Right? I know you like Tatum, but it just doesn't work like that. Go buy some the kid some white T shirts and get them random mesh shorts because I want the best for the kid. This is the best advice you'll ever get. Don't be a uni. So I can guarantee you I've never been a uni. I can guarantee.

[Brian Scalabrini]

But you did, but you did work it out. The Equinox in Westwood.

[Matt Leinart]

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah, that's, that's, that's a good place to be working. I would work out there. One time I worked out with like, I didn't even know the guy. It was Justin Bieber. He was in Beverly Hills and it's amazing. Matt, you ain't gonna believe this. After every set, after every set, he had three guys with him. And every time he would give full on dap, like, full on like, Rob.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Yeah, we did it. We did it. We're here.

[Matt Leinart]

And the next one, way to go. You look swole. And he go to the next one. I'm thinking workout definitely over. You know, like, you know, I get it. Like at the end of a workout. Hey, man, good work today, right, dude?

[Brian Scalabrini]

Every set, 135.

[Matt Leinart]

Just every set. Like you went to do shoulders, you came back and it was full embrace every time. Come on, man, what is going on here? But I enjoyed my time. I was working a little bit with Fox and enjoyed my time out in la.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I got benched for Justin Bieber. I played once in the NBA celebrity game in la and I, I take that stuff way too serious. I love pickup and all that stuff. I'm like the only one who really tries in those games. And I already have my starting spot ready. Bieber was not slated to be there. So we're putting on our, you know, our jerseys, getting sued up and I hear a bunch of women yelling in like the tunnel. So I'm like, what the hell is that? And Bieber just like, it was a pickup game. Walked into the televised ESPN game, was like, do you guys mind if I run? Of course. And who do you think gets bumped out of the starting lineup for Justin Bieber?

[Matt Leinart]

You.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Me.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I played three minutes that game. And Bieber would. No, he didn't even have a jersey. He didn't even have a jersey on.

[Brian Scalabrini]

He's not bad, though, I think, right?

[Jerry Ferrara]

He's all right. He could. He's. He's. He's not your first, if you're playing pickup.

[Matt Leinart]

Isn't like Brian McKnight nasty or something like that?

[Jerry Ferrara]

Right? Brian McKnight, notoriously nasty. You know who else was always, oh, what was that dude's name? It'll come to me. There's someone else. I'm another actor. I'm thinking of that. And by the way, Denzel famously could ball and got the bucket on Ray Allen, and he got game.

[Matt Leinart]

That was true.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I think he kind of rope a doped him and was like, all right, let's do a rehearsal up and see I'm gone. And he laid it in.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Jesus Shuttlesworth.

[Matt Leinart]

Here's what I don't understand. Listen, I can't act and I can't play football. Why does common people think that they can hoop? What is the deal with that?

[Brian Scalabrini]

I don't want.

[Matt Leinart]

I don't. I never want to grab a football and tell some linebacker, yo, I'll run your ass over. I don't why. I would never want to be in a featured film. Like, out there, I'd be like, I'm not an actor. I'm not good. But why is it about basket? What is it about basketball?

[Jerry Ferrara]

I could tell you it's the only sport.

[Brian Scalabrini]

It's the only sport that you can kind of pick up and go play with your boys. And you.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I think it's because, yeah, you could literally, especially in, like, New York, there's hoops on every corner. I could wake up at 8am with a ball. That's all I need. And I could hit maybe 10 collegiate threes in a row and be like, yo, I can fudge it. Do this. I could play with these guys. Like, like, our guy. Listen, your stuff with George the Messiah is that. That was unbelievable. Because I know it's like a bit. And he's like, but still, like, you showed up. You didn't just say, oh, I'll smoke you. You went like, how? At what point did you realize, like, I got to just go there and just shut this dude up and just blank.

[Matt Leinart]

If you sprinkle in enough of that stuff every couple years just to remind everybody, you know? Yeah, I Love to tell everybody, you know, like, listen, if there's 5, 000 NBA players, if I'm 4, 000, it's not a big deal. But if I'm 5, 000, the last best player in the NBA, the worst player in NBA history, I will go show and smoke you guys. But yeah, everyone wants to challenge me. I just don't get it. I just don't.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Because you're white, dude.

[Jerry Ferrara]

That's why.

[Matt Leinart]

I understand. But just think about it this way. Like, like, you could be soft in the league and, and, but if you're white and you play 11 years and your teammates kind of like you, there's no way you're tapped. There's no way you're, you can't be soft. You can't. Like, if Garnett is stamping me, you think he's ever going to stamp some soft ass white kid? There's never no way. So there's. I try to stay away from being like that. But. And you know, obviously Matt, you must have seen some crazy people that come across and they're in sports is full of people who can function that are nuts, right? Like, yeah, that's true. You have to be a little bit nuts to do this. And, and so he, he challenged me and I was in New York. We were playing the Brooklyn Nets. You know, I do the. Yeah, yeah, Celtics and dude, West 4th street was a mile down the road. I was like, all right, let's go, let's go.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Those videos. Well, first I think you could, I think you're onto something. I think you could really like, like remember the professor on and one. Like, I think you could, I think you could do something and like market and make some money doing that because it's, it's awesome. I was telling, I was telling, I told Jerry this story. So you, I mean you're probably boys of Luke Walton because you guys were played at least against each other in college and the pro whatever and Luke, South Bay, dude. So we retired the same year in 2013. So we would like, we would go to the Equinox in Manhattan beach all the time. We were like, what do we do with our life? So we're like, he's like, maddie, let's play in a rec league. So we played in a rec league. And so it kind of goes to your point. So Luke was, and Luke would always tell me, he's like, Luke played what, 10, 12 years. Roleplayer was perfect. Like, Phil loved him, Lakers, all that stuff and had a great career. But he Always knew, like, his role we play in this league scout, and like, it was legit. Like, it's a couple of kids, like, would come from the Drew League and play. Like, it was good. It was a good league. He probably averaged 35 a game. And he was hitting. Oh, he wasn't even trying. And he was hitting. The. The thing was, he was hitting like eight threes a game. And I'm like, I didn't know. He's like. He's like, Maddie. He's like, dude, just because I don't shoot in the NBA, like, doesn't mean I can't shoot. Like, I couldn't shoot when there was a 6, 8 guy guarding me, obviously, because I wasn't going around. But in this, he's like, dude, it kind of goes to your point of, like, I think you had the. The famous quote, like, I'm closer to LeBron than, you know, whatever than you are to me, or something like that. And Luke reminded. He's like, dude, he's like. He's like, that's the difference between NBA and a lot of these other guys that don't make it.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well.

[Matt Leinart]

I mean, so it's all processing, right? And you play the sport, which is. I think that as for. From a team sports standpoint, the highest processor, you have to be across the board, higher than a point guard, higher than anybody is a quarterback. Right? So when you. If you mess around and play flag football, by the time that ball is like, height, you already know what you're doing and you kind of, you know, I'm going to pretend I'm doing this, this, and this, but I knew I'm always doing that, right? That's just the way it is. And for Luke, it's the same thing. I always tell people. You ever watch that movie Sherlock Holmes, where he's in that fight and he like, yeah, is everything before it happens. And then he's like, talking you through it. Like, when I play against, like, commoners, that's what basketball is like. But when I'm playing against, like, Derrick Rose or Russell Westbrook, I'm like, living on an edge. Twitch and trying to guess. Right. Right. But when you play just a dude out there, everything that they do is like, what should I have for dinner tonight? As you cut them off and you take the ball, then you outlet. It's like they. They move so slow compared to, like, what. So it is. Think about, like, when you're. Get behind the center. I mean, let's think about what you have to know going into that, right? Compared to playing flag football, you know.

[Brian Scalabrini]

He had like, eight threes in a row. One game. I'm like, I didn't know you could shoot. He just smirked at me. I was like, no doubt.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Listen, I've always been someone who knew. I even. I just played recently with Matt in a pickup game, and this dude was like, testing him and said to Matt, like, you don't ball. It's like, the dude's wearing like. Like, he didn't know scowl.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Dude, I. I pulled a. My wife. I pulled a. You would. You'll appreciate this. So we're playing. We're playing at Bay Club, right? We're playing Tuesday night. Good, good games, right? Even, like. Like, actually a little too young for me. Shows up. Mozgov lives in the neighborhood. Like, good, good players. High school. Like, it's a good runs. Like, you would. You would be. You might not get tested, but it's like, legit. Legit, dude. So. And my oldest son's playing. He's good. He's 18. Like, his boys are high school Hoopers. There's this dude, and I'm not. I don't talk a lot of on the court because, like, I can't. Like, I got two new hips. But, like, I'm an athlete. I'm competitive. And so this big dude's like 6, 5, 2, 40, kind of athletic, and would just go straight to the rack every time. But every time he went to the rack, he'd call a foul.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Every soft.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Oh. And he would flop to the ground. It's a look like a linebacker. And after. And. And the whole, like, the crowd, all the guys waiting to pay, the next game is like, oh, yeah. He saw. Like, it was the whole. The whole gym knew. So, like, after the fourth time, he flops. But one after that, there was like a phantom steal that he called foul. He wasn't even in the play. So I started getting pissed.

[Jerry Ferrara]

At this point, I don't ever see Matt flip the switch.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I was just like. I was so. Because, like, you know, you lose, you're off the court for like, an hour. So, like, sure. So then he starts talking. And I did pull. Like, I did pull.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Like, this was great.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I'm an athlete. So, like, I was wearing my old Houston Texans, like, sweater thing that he.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Got from the team.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, it was like, I still have it. Yeah, it was team gear, dude. And he's like. He's like, man, you. You're not a Hooper. And I'm like, no, man, but I played in the league for eight years. I Was like saying all of this shit. I was so hot. And Jerry told the story to my wife and she's like, really? You pulled that card? I go, I go, please, you were not there. And then the last part of the game, the last part of the game, he ties it up. This is after Jerry shoots an airball, but we won't get into that point. He ties it up and I, he. I go. He pulls like a Draymond Green where I go to get the ball out of bounds and he's kind of blocking and he's like, puts his elbows in my, like, won't let me get the ball. And he elbow me in the mouth. And I almost like. I mean, I wasn't going to fight him, but like, I almost fought him. Dude. This was last week, dude.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, that's. Yeah. I mean, it's. The whole thing is strange, but once again, always the one. Like, everyone thinks that they can hoop. It's the funniest thing. It is really the funniest thing.

[Brian Scalabrini]

What. What is? Just speaking of soft and all that, and. And I'm curious because I. I love, like, I love basketball. I love. I love all these pods or all these guys are like just talking, right. And. And lately. And you kind of, you. I would say you fit into the old head, right? You played with, you saw all the kg, all those guys, but you cover the game now. So you see all the youngsters. What. What is like, what's your thought on this generation? Like, you see guys like Tim Hardaway coming out and talking smack and all these old school guys who you respect. What are your thoughts on just the game itself now? And these players?

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, I think, I think if we do this pod, and I'm just gonna gas up the. These players, they're amazing. Their skill level is off the charts. Whatever. Yeah, this won't go viral, but if I said something stupid, like we would beat this team by 100.

[Brian Scalabrini]

No. Yeah.

[Matt Leinart]

And then that's gonna go out and everyone will have a comment about it. But I think, for the most part, I think a lot of old heads, like, respect the skill level of these guys. I don't know if it's like that in football. Like, as the skill level, like this is like 10x compared to when we played. Right. I'll give you an example. Like a dribble handoff to a hand handoff to a three. That would happen like three guys in the league could do that.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Could do that.

[Matt Leinart]

There's like eight guys on every team.

[Brian Scalabrini]

There's centers are doing that.

[Matt Leinart]

That come and get a ball off a handbag and let it fly. And so when you add skill to the mix, it makes defenses a lot harder. It makes everything more difficult. Now I understand what this generation is saying. Like, you know, everything is protected now. You don't want players going to the basket getting hurt. I get all that. But like, I don't think anybody can ever argue. Just like you could take our generation like 2000 to 2010, right? That's when I played. I'm sure we're more skilled than they were in the 80s or 70s, but these guys are more skilled than we are and I think maybe in 20 years they'll be more skilled in this group. Right? We're just going to keep on seeing more and more of it. And I, I think, and people ask me all the time, will this current Celtic team beat your 08 team? And I think they'd smoke us. Right? Like, I just think we've, we were seeing players at such a ridiculous level and, and I think I see your Mamba mentality thing in the back. It started all with like the Kobe Bryant and the stuff that he did has now like pushed through to this generation. Individual workouts at 6am you know, making 500 shots a day. And you know, Steph Curry is like a product of that and we're going to start seeing more and more of that. These guys love the workout. They, they train, they're, they're, they're more professional, they take care of their bodies. It's just, it's a very different generation and I think they're just a lot better than we ever were. That's just.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Yeah.

[Brian Scalabrini]

So real quick, Jerry, do you, do you. I do miss the, like the center, right? Like going through the post and like, you don't get that, like, do you miss that brand of basketball? Because now like I, I do think like you mentioned Kobe, but I think Steph, Steph, like, I think Steph changed the game. It's a lot like I always, I was compared to like Patrick Mahomes, like Patrick Mahomes changed the game, changed the way the quarterbacks play because all the off script stuff and just like, like literally my oldest son practices, which I don't necessarily agree, but he'll practice the sidearm throw, which is bananas. I'm like, dude, we like, we were always like, you know, perfect, you know, perfect mechanics and this and that. I do think Steph changed the way like the game is played. Do, do you, do you see it.

[Matt Leinart]

Ever going back, ask you the question, what's harder to guard. If you were. Is it harder to guard a guy in the pocket? Is it harder to guard like a guy scrambling around and making it up on the fly?

[Brian Scalabrini]

No. Yeah, I mean, you're right. No, it's hard. It's. When a guy can do both, it makes. It makes virtually impossible, which a lot of these kids can do too. I. It just like you. There's not.

[Matt Leinart]

It's.

[Brian Scalabrini]

It's. It's actually a great comparison because you saw like Tyler Hero last week, right? He pulled up on a wide open layup. I'm sure you saw it. And again, the circumstance are down five, I think, whatever. And he tr. And he hit a three instead of taking a layup. And like, hey, let's foul, whatever. But like that mentality, a lot of people are like, well, that's the mentality now. It's like, hey, let's. Like a three is a high percentage shot for a lot of these guys. Quarterbacks. It's just taught differently, you know, like. Like there. Everything that's taught, it used to be taught from the feet up. Now it's like mechanics are out the window. It's like, hey, how can you get the ball through these windows? No, look like it's like legitimately taught that way, which is crazy. So I just. I love basketball. I love watching. I love the evolution of it. I think that's also goes into like. I don't think these players are soft by any means. I think it's just the game has changed so much. The game. Like you said, you have one through five. Like, you had true centers, power forwards now like centers like Jokic, like, like, it's. It's crazy what these guys can do.

[Matt Leinart]

So it. I think if you look at it this way, I think it'll be a little bit easier to like, digest instead of thin slicing it. Everyone's trying to get a dunk, right? And the best way to get a dunk is to have a bunch of shooters on the floor. Because that dunk, that space will open up with guys that are on the perimeter, right? We use this term like gravity. Like who, what players have gravity now? The Lakers sign got Luca and they got LeBron and Luca, like both those guys command two players to them. Now it's just a matter of finding the open player. I don't know, like, if you had a receiver that drove a double team every time, like. Like that guy might get two catches, but the rest of the people are the ones that are benefiting from it. Or if you had a nasty Running back. Then all of a sudden they got to put eight in the box. And all of a sudden you're just like, this is great, man. I, I, I can deal with this all day. So it's all about gravity. And I think, like skilled players or big men that can shoot the ball, create gravity, create space. And Jerry, like, if you want to know if the Knicks are going to win their series, Carl Towns has to make shots. And if he's not dominant, they're going to lose to Detroit because that's a hard thing to guard. It's that one, that, that one five pick and roll with Brunson. If Towns is dominant, they're going to have a good run. If Towns is getting scoring 18, they're not. Because now all of a sudden the defense doesn't have to over commit, which doesn't open up lanes. Right. But it still comes down to if someone decided we're not going to leave Carlton Towns, well, the Knicks are going to get a bunch of layups because of it. So you have to start with the origin. The origin is get a layup, and then from there, how do we get the best amount of layups? Yeah, if you have guys that could shoot, you're going to have more space, and it's going to be a lot easier at the rim to make those decisions.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well, I wasn't gonna say anything. I was gonna wait for someone else to say the magic word. Nicks, you said it. So let's, let's get into a little.

[Matt Leinart]

I already broke down the series. You don't need to know anymore.

[Brian Scalabrini]

No, no, let's break down this, let's break down when they play the Celtics the second round.

[Matt Leinart]

No, no, you better beat Detroit first.

[Jerry Ferrara]

In all seriousness, in all seriousness, Matt and I were talking about this the other day, too. It feels like for me, again, someone who's been watching basketball intensely for years and years, we've had such a run where it's like you always first. You know, it was like, all right, well, it's probably either going to be LeBron or the Warriors. Like we had these years and years where you could kind of at least pencil in one team into the finals, if not two. You really had a good fit. Regardless of even what seed. This feels like the first time in a long time. The number one seeds are not everyone's first choice for the fight. Obviously, Boston finished two. To me, Boston is the team to beat. I think they're a nightmare for every team. Like, you could talk, oh, Boston's gonna smoke the Knicks. I'M like, who is the Celtics not gonna smoke if they're healthy and motivated. But when you look at the one seeds, OKC, Cleveland, they get their respect. They won 60 something games each. But everyone I talk to, no one's talking about the, the Thunder Cavs finals matchup that's coming.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, that's going to be hard to happen. But I don't, I, I look at the Thunder and I think they're like flawless. I know everyone wants to point up, point out. Hey, they don't have any experience. I'm like, right, I don't hate that argument. What about when Casey Wallace is coming off the bench or Lou Dort is coming off the bench? I don't even talked about their offense yet and they're guarding people. Experience does not matter at that point. And so I just think that like they are so physical on the perimeter. They got rim protection, they can rebound. Like, dude, those guys are so good. So when you look at all the other teams out west, the only other team that I think is nasty and no one's talking about is the Clippers. Man, that's why Leonard gonna be healthy. I watch Kawhi Leonard play and like I can make an argument against anybody in the world that he's the best player in the NBA. The problem is he never plays through an entire playoff series. But there's a. If you see Kawhi Leonard on the floor and he's standing on the right side of the wing. Defensively, you cannot attack in that 15 foot area. You have to run different kinds of offenses. Like you literally cannot go anywhere he's at. And then let's let alone talk about the offense. James Harden, who's you think like he should be washed by now. Dude's playing like great, great basketball right now. Yeah, if that team is healthy, they'll be good. You know, I don't know what to make of the Lakers on paper. They're not supposed to be a good defensive team. Somehow JJ Reddick got him playing great defense with trade. I don't get that one. Denver's a mess, but they got the best player in the world. So the west is crazy, incredible. So every series, you know, and Minnesota is not no slouch. Like look at their record. I think they're 18 and 4 over their last 22 and they got to go against the Lakers. They got a young guy that's pretty cocky and confident. Talking about random dudes that are confident. Anthony Edwards believes he's the greatest player to ever walk on the pitch.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I love That I love that.

[Matt Leinart]

It's like, flip a coin out west, and I don't care. Whoever gets through that gauntlet is going to be kind of worn down. But it would be an accomplishment in and of itself just to make the finals out of the West.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Outside of, obviously, your Celtics, who we can talk about, and I mean, Jerry mentioned the Cavs. You need to talk about. Is there a team in the east that scares you as a Celtics or just in general, like, hey, this team. Keep an eye out.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, I think it's the Pacers. And because they don't have an individual player, like, I'm big into this gravity thing. Like, what makes defenses shift, right? So you, like, use things like a 141 5, pick and roll with the Knicks. That's Brunson and Cat. That creates, like, a defensive problem. Well, the Indiana Pacers pace, no pun intended there. That creates a defensive problem. Like when they sprint the floor and they're getting the ball over the timeline less than three seconds, 78% of the time. So they're pushing that thing. And when they do that, it causes defense to overreact. And all of a sudden, now they just get a wide open shot and they don't take their gas. So Celtics like to play control. They like to pace the game in the second half. That's a controlled tempo. The Indiana Pacers, we. We being the Boston Celtics, swept them last year, but every game was a dog fight.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So it was.

[Matt Leinart]

I'm. I'm worried about that team, and I think they have more experience, and they're flying under the radar, which they're kind of playing with house money.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So, you know, I want to ask you, too, because Matt always talks about, you know, part of the super bowl team with the Cardinals, and, like, just the preparation for the super bowl was like, hey, treat this as any other week, right? Like, you don't get caught up in the hysteria of the Super Bowl. And I feel like the NBA is so different because you're getting these teams night in, night out. Like, this was the first time ever where I'm never ready to say, let's get the regular season over with so we can get to the playoffs. Not usually, because the Knicks aren't going to the playoffs for most of my fandom, but this was the first year I'm like, all right, everything's kind of locked in with seating. I'm like, we need to get to the playoffs because I'm ready to lock in on one team and one team only in that difference. I guess we all know what to look for on the court. You've been a part of teams that have gone on finals runs and championship runs. What's going on off the court, in the locker room, at practice when it comes playoff time, are you preparing differently and you now know, you know, what a team needs to have vibes wise off the court? That's what I'm kind of getting at here.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah. Let me just. I'll just break it down really simply, like, if you like me, right. I'm. I'm not a playoff player because I. I have to play it like 100% and there's nowhere for me to go. Right. Like, my playoff. My regular season preparation will allow me to do well in the regular season. But then when everybody's prepared for everything, there's like nothing you could do at that point. Right. So it comes down to just having the best players. Right. And so you're going into a game where everybody knows what you're going to do. You're preparing, like, hours and hours. You're making adjustments based off of what they've done from the night before. So there's not like this sometimes in the NBA, you prepare for a team in like a hotel ballroom for like 15 minutes before you go and play them in the regular season. But you're going to spend hours. I mean, I'm talking about hours and hours of film. You're going to watch your games and how they guard you, and they're going to cut that up. And let's use my guy, Jason Tatum. He's going to watch every possession that Orlando guarded him and how they guarded him, where the help came from. So it just comes down to the best players making plays. And if you're not good enough to make those plays, then you're not going to win. So when it comes to, like, the depth of everything, it's not just a normal game because usually the star players continue to get better as the series goes along. It's the reason LeBron went to eight straight finals. Like, he's the brightest guy of our generation. And he just kept learning and learning and figuring things out as a reason he came back from the warriors down 3:1, because he just kept figuring things out. So it's the high IQ players and the really physically gifted ones and the ones that have super talent that are going to make the biggest difference in the playoffs.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Do you think? I don't want to beat a dead horse with, like, the whole Tatum and the. The Olympics experience, Right? And we all kind of agreed, like, kind of got screwed it was such a weird thing, right, that he wasn't playing and Jaylen Brown and all that kind of stuff. Do you. I don't want to. Like, I know that doesn't have anything to do with the season, the mentality, but you're around this team, you cover them, you see them. He's. Superstars show up and he's going to show up because he's a great player. Is there, has there been a change and also repeating. Is there a change in mentality that you've seen with these guys? Like it might meet, it might mean a little more this year as they approach the playoffs.

[Matt Leinart]

I don't know what got into Tatum, but he is completely. I think he's, you know, and this sounds stupid because like in the margins are so small. If I said, right. If I said Tatum is 5% better, people could scoff at that. But in the NBA when you're five a lot, that's a whole lot, right? It's like a massive jump. Like, like SGA is like 5% better than he was.

[Jerry Ferrara]

He's the MVP, right?

[Matt Leinart]

So Tatum is just like, he's his processing of the pick and rolls his double teams. Like he took, I think what happened last year. He didn't play well in the playoffs, he didn't win conference finals mvp. Didn't win finals mvp. He didn't play in the Olympics. So it's weird. You win a championship and no one really celebrated him. And the dude loves to work and he wants to get better and he studies the game and he's really mature about his approach. He's always, since he's 19 years old, he's always been really mature in his approach. But this year is the first year I feel like it's unlocking. When you guys think of Jayson Tatum, you probably don't think of him as a pick and roll player. His pick and roll efficiencies are off the charts.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Like elite.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, yeah.

[Matt Leinart]

He used to be like an ISO guy, step back guy, mid range jump shot guy.

[Jerry Ferrara]

His decision making is unbelievable this year.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, it's off the charts. Right. And you, if I said you asked it like just a commoner, like name top five pick and roll players out there. None of them would say Tatum, but Tatum's numbers would prove that he's a top five pick and roll player. So he's made Matt, he's made a massive jump. Like. Yeah, you know it. I can only equate it to like there was a point in time when you were doing the reads and then One day it just clicked. And that's just the way it goes, right? Yeah. For him, he was doing the reads and it was like, sometimes happening and sometimes not happening. This year, I want to say, like, maybe he makes one mistake. And the crazy thing about it, when he makes the one mistake, he's telling, like, the third wing coming off the bench, hey, man, that's my bad. I should have read that low, man. I'm like, when you're doing that, like, immediately, that means, like, you're processing at a high rate. You know what you did, and you know you're going to be able to make the adjustment moving forward. So I just think it could be timing. It could just be like after, you know, Year seven and turning it. Yeah, it could be championship. Get the, you know, that championship pressure in Boston off your back. It could be that or it could just be, like, over time, you just figure it out. Or he could be motivated by the way the world treated him after he won a championship.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I love hearing that he's a superstar that I think doesn't get enough credit for what he does, you know, for.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Sure, he's absolutely terrifying to me in the playoff series. Like, all my Knicks threads are like, we could be. I. You know, Nick fans are so optimistic. Everyone's like, we're gonna beat Boston. And I'm like, guys, I don't want to be the reality check here. Like, anything could happen. Like, lace him up. Who knows? I just don't think my Nick buddies have watched enough Celtics basketball this year because obviously they're trying hard. Do you know who I was? I just was wrong about. I did not think Joe Mazzulla was going to be this kind of coach, I think. And maybe, like, you can give some of the credit with the way Tatum's going. And you look at the development of guys like Pritchard and all that, like. And Joe, Matt, he seems just like a coach who only does that. Like, I don't know what his personal life is. None of my business. I just feel like that dude's up at three in the morning scheming for whatever for the Hornets the next day. Like, I. I'm scared of Joe Mazzullo as a coach.

[Matt Leinart]

He's a great coach, I'll give you. Like, he believes in what he believes, and it's just a matter of it took some time for him to convince his players and, like, you know, like the 53s. Right. Like, I, I mean, we had discussions at the back of the. In the back of the plane. Like, I Don't understand why you would take this shot right here. And he's like, to win big, you can never pass up an open shot. Like, so many times. If you look at just the playoffs, if you ever watch and you see a guy pass up an open look, watch what that possession turns to. There's a lot of times it turns into a turnover, bad shot, shot clock violation. So. So he's like, so why would I play differently in game 22 than I do in, you know, the NBA Finals, Game 7? So he's always kept that approach. And with that approach, like, these guys eventually just started buying into it. They do not pass up looks. And here's the biggest thing. If I was a player and I missed, like, three threes in a row, I'm probably affected by the fourth, right? It's just, like, it's ingrained in our head. Take it to the basket. Do something else. Like, attack the game differently. Like, they don't waver from that. And from top to bottom, from the 10th man to the number one guy, like, that shot is open. They take it. And over time, when you do that, you put a lot of pressure on the defense. And I think me having the argument with him on the back of the, you should take the ball to the basket. You should get a better look. I was flat out wrong. Like, he's proven to me that if you could change a player's mentality, that if you play the odds right, if you miss four in a row and you take every shot the same, and you're a 38% shooter, the odds are you're about to hit right? You're about to hit three out of four, right? That's just the way it goes. So he's convinced me of that. And even though. And he took the time to have that discussion to educate me in the back of the plane, and I didn't believe him the first year. Like, I didn't know if I still liked him as a coach. But I totally understand what his philosophy was that first year. And it's definitely carried true with this, like, last two years.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Are you shocked at all with the success we meant? You mentioned Redick and just kind of what he's done. Are you shocked with the success that he's had? I know it helps having LeBron and he just had Luka, but the way they're playing defense, especially as just a player that just retired, like, a couple of years ago. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Matt Leinart]

I can only use this one. Like, I'm not shocked that JJ's having success. Like, he's an very impressive individual. When you talk to him, like, he's. He's a good dude, and you think, like, he's really smart and everything.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah.

[Matt Leinart]

But, dude, how the hell do you trade Anthony Davis, get Luka Doncic, and become, like, you go from 18th to 1st in defense? What the is that?

[Brian Scalabrini]

That's crazy.

[Matt Leinart]

Like, Like, I. I just said, you know what? I don't know the game. Like, I'm supposed to do this for a living. And I was like, how'd you do that?

[Brian Scalabrini]

How, how, how, how. What can you point to?

[Matt Leinart]

Like, yeah, it does a few things, right? Like, he used. It's some unique things. He, like, made Luca and LeBron like, kind of like a middle linebacker, center field, whatever you want to say. Like, and then he put everybody else, and he made a pressure. So there was all these things where, like. Like, Jared Vanderbilt would pressure a guy, and then when he would drive, LeBron and Luca would pick that guy up, and then Vanderbilt would fly somewhere else. So we had, like, five savages running all over the place, right? And two guys that were telling everybody what to do, and that's the only thing I could point to, right? And then when LeBron went out, the defense went down, and then, like, I just assume, like, they're going to get back to it, but it's amazing. It's. It's the most incredible thing from a coaching standpoint I've ever seen, like, in the middle of the season. I mean, like, but in. In all honesty, how's Luka Doncic, like, a good defender, but he, like, got it, and he made it happen. Like, that's. That's incredible. And I was like. And he did it, like, overnight. It wasn't like, oh, it took a week or anything. Like, they. They started guarding right away. So I give him all the credit in the world. Even in my wildest imagination of JJ Redick having the perfect year, I would not expect you to trade AD to get Luca and all of a sudden go to number one in the NBA in defense.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Dude, I'm.

[Matt Leinart]

I'm.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I'm manifesting Lakers, Celtics, finals.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You got.

[Brian Scalabrini]

You got to have a little. You got to have a little just la. In your heart left, man. The essence.

[Matt Leinart]

See, no, no, I do. I. I'm a big fan of all things out there. Like, I. I'm not like, one of those guys. Like, I. We lost to the Lakers in 10. We beat him in eight. Like, I don't care. Anybody says, man, I respected that team all the way. Like, all Those guys, man, they were good. They were tough. I'll tell you the biggest one. Like, everyone, Kobe was a savage both times. But like, Pau Gasol is night and day what he became. And maybe that's the influence of Kobe or whatever it was, but he does not get enough credit for turning into what he was in 08 with Garnett and what he turned into in 2010. But no, I'm a big fan of. I would definitely sign up for la.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Even Adam Silverwood too, probably.

[Matt Leinart]

Like, do you guys really now if you're a Laker fan, I'm. I'm all for it. But, like, do you guys really see him beating Oklahoma City if they match up? I, I. Yes.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Did we just beat them by 30 the other night?

[Jerry Ferrara]

Matt's irrationally confident. And then they beat you by 30 the other. The night after that. You had like, you're not, you're not.

[Matt Leinart]

Worried about their top to bottom?

[Brian Scalabrini]

I gotta be honest. I was tell. I'm not worried. And you know, more than me. I think our path to get to the Western Conference finals is favorable. Minnesota, obviously, they four in their last 22 sucks.

[Jerry Ferrara]

We're gonna lose Anthony Edwards or Luca.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And then, and then you're probably, I mean, I. Who, who do you like in Houston? Golden State, man.

[Matt Leinart]

Like, three weeks ago, I like Golden State and Draymond Green, he tried to fight saying goon and he had like, points on him. And you know, I'm a big IME doka.

[Jerry Ferrara]

That's what I was gonna say. The eme identity has broken through.

[Matt Leinart]

That dude is unwavering in his coaching style. Like, he does not treat any. He coached Tatum and Brown the hardest. Like, I'm telling you, I love that. I don't know this for a fact because I've not experienced it, but it feels like it was like IME doka is part of the Celtics story to getting back on top. Like, for sure, his. His demeanor, it was part of, like, their growth now. Right. But so I'm a big fan of him. I just look at that team and like, when I just started the whole thing by saying, like, I'm not really a playoff player, like, I play really hard, I'm really smart, whatever. But, like, when the level goes up, there's nowhere I can go. I kind of feel like that about the Houston Rockets. Like, when everyone's playing hard, like, do you guys just become average? But I think they're an exceptionally hard playing team. Like, it's almost like I don't know how sustainable it is against the Warriors. But I watched the warriors last night. I don't know if it's time stamped or anything, but they. Sometimes they could be like, you watch them, you're like, man, that team can win a championship. And sometimes you think, how are they going to make the playoffs? So, like, I. I don't think it's a cakewalk. So on that one, I'll pick Warriors only because of logic. But dude, the Rockets are savages.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So the other puzzling thing to me before we start to wrap up and let you go is, you know, we talk a lot about coaches. I agree. I love ime like, that's was the perfect hire for the Rock. Like, such a young team of a bunch of. They're basically like angry, hungry Wolverines, you know, just running around. But now we also have the best player in the world or arguably Jokic. And all the stuff that went down with now two coaches and who knows if Memphis ends up getting in by the time this airs. Have I've never seen. In all my years of just watching as a fan, I've never seen a coach of the best player in the world on a good team who just won the championship two years ago, fired. Have you ever even heard of anything like that? And what are you thinking as a player? Like, I just don't. That was shocking to me. I don't know if you were shocked.

[Matt Leinart]

By that, but we all can. We all can. I'm sure Matt and Jerry, like, we all can identify dysfunctional function. I think the NBA is just sick of it. Like, yeah, screw, screw. Like, there's so much money in at stake. Screw coaches and GMs arguing over stupid.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Right? What are we doing? What are we doing?

[Matt Leinart]

Hold. Gone. Yeah, let's be honest, man. Let's be honest.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Like, I know, like, we're all living.

[Matt Leinart]

A good life and everything like that. Like, do we really got to be childish about this? Like, yo, just get along. They're arguing over the eighth man. You got Nicole Yich on your team and you're arguing over the eighth man.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Like, don't you just pick yokich going like, tell these guys to shut the.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Up so you can play.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Exactly.

[Matt Leinart]

Like, what are we doing right now? You know, like, like, I get it, man. It's NBA. This ego involved, all that stuff. But come on, man. Like, why at this point in time you have a coach and a GM not talking if I'm an owner? So I'd be like, it, you guys are both gone. I don't care. It. I tell you what, dysfunction as I Mean, I know in the past it used to be fine, like, I guess Jerry Krause and Phil Jackson never talked or whatever, whatever. Like 2024, 20, 2025. No more dysfunction in sports, man. Let's get on the same.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well, we see everything now too. You know, it's not like you could really keep anything behind closed doors with social media and every player now has a podcast and stuff like that. I wanted to ask you this too. Do you think if you were currently a player now in your third year, whatever, in the same role, like, do you think you would have been a part of the content creation as a. Because first of all, you'd have been.

[Matt Leinart]

Awesome if I would have made it.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well, no, I'm saying it's like if social media and YouTube were around when you were playing, like, do you think you would in your off season be like, you know, I'm gonna launch a pod with Mike Miller or some. I don't know.

[Matt Leinart]

I don't know. I don't know if I would have made it. Nowadays, I'm just being honest. Like, I know that everyone loves to like, like, oh, if you would have played now, you would have shot more threes. It's like, no, I actually played because there was like eight guys that could shoot the three, so I was a ninth. So great. I work, but I'm not sure I. I'm not sure what I would have done and how I would have played it, but if I did, I would have. Would have done some fun stuff. Probably. I didn't start doing a lot of that stuff till I got done, you know, like most athletes are smart asses by nature and they kind of wait and then once they, once they kind of get done, they don't give a F you anymore and they just like start doing stuff like that. So I do regret, I do 1000% regret not embracing, like being the 12th man off the bench as a player in Boston. I should have totally embraced that in Chicago. It was a blast, man. I like, I would do commercials. Like, you know me, I'm the guy that comes in when we won the game. But I didn't. I wish I would have embraced it early. I would have like totally ran with that. That would have been the one thing. Because, you know, there were times in Boston I would start and playing to playing time and rotational minutes and stuff, but I thought it was so disrespectful. I totally would have embraced that. That would have been the one thing that I would have gone with and, you know, still been professional. Along the way. But I think I could have really.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Melked that just going back to usc. What's. What's your best memory? Because you're on some good basketball teams. And what's your best story of memory from the USC days?

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, you know, it wasn't. I guess it started to change now. It was kind of still, like, not that nice when you were there, right? Like, yeah, nowadays, it's freaking amazing.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Matt Leinart]

All right, I'll tell one story. This is kind of crazy. So I remember I would. I would be the guy that had to do all the fundraising for the Galen Center. So you guys see where they play now? I probably raised, like, a hundred million dollars of that. Like, they weren't sending anybody else. They were sending me.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Right.

[Matt Leinart]

So there was that and then all the recruiting trips and taking the recruits out and like. Oh, yeah. Know, it's funny how you have to, like, so what do you want to get into? It's always like. Like, you know, like, when mom and dad are there, they're doing prayer before the meals. Like, yo, we want to get wild.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Where are we going? Take me out. Take me to.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Who was the biggest?

[Matt Leinart]

Like, all right, so what do you want to do today? You know? Well, all right, well, me. I'm gonna go. And they'll tell the parents. We're gonna go look at the dorms. And then dude's like, no, we're w and out. Right? So I did that. That was a fun. Like, all the recruiting stuff was good. The one thing, I don't know if it changed because, like, at the time, the football team wasn't very good. Right. You guys were there, and even, like, Carson Palmer's there, they got really good when Carol came and you guys were good. But it felt like the football players back in the day, man, they just. They kind of, like, mad dogged you. Like, you know, what are you doing here? You're the basketball. You're the football team. So I don't know if it got better. Like, when you guys were good. Everything is all good. But at the time, we were, like, the talk of the school. And even though it's a football school, it's all the way football.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, but you guys were rocking, dude.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah. And the team wasn't. The football team wasn't doing very well. So I remember going to parties and feeling like, like, record scratching.

[Jerry Ferrara]

The basketball players are here.

[Matt Leinart]

So that was the. The one thing that I wish. Like, this going through it. Like, athletes should all stick together. You know what I mean? So that was the one thing that I felt like could have been, I, I, we.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I, I was close with, because I was. I. You left and I was, I was fresh. I was a freshman, I think, when it was still. Clancy was still there.

[Matt Leinart]

Oh, so you were a freshman? Carson Palmer?

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah. So I backed up Carson for two years, so. But we didn't overlap. I think you left right when I came in. But I was a part of, like, I was there with Nick Young and, like, Gabe Pruitt. Like, we had a couple good teams. I actually. This affair. True story. I was le. I was, I was. My senior year, I was done. So I was. I was getting ready for the draft and combine, and that's when O.J. mayo was coming in and. And he was a one and done. Everybody knew it. And I don't know where OJ came, I don't know where he was from, but Virginia. I was on. I was on a golf cart. It was me because they asked me. They're like, hey, it was Tim Floyd. Who. I love Tim Floyd. He got in trouble for doing all that, but I love Tim Floyd. And so they asked me, like, hey, O.J. mayo's on campus. Will you. You, like, I don't know, talk to him, whatever. So I was on a golf cart. It was me, OJ Mayo, OJ's dad, and whoever's driving. And they were just asking me. I said, bro, I said, dude, you're coming to LA for one year. You're going to be a God here. Just come. What? And I think they went to the tournament. So I'd like to say that I. I did somewhat help recruit oj, man. I'm sure there were some other things that went down to get them there, but we were always tight with the hoops, though, so that. That culture shifted. Shifted for sure. Those guys, like, the Craven twins, were my boys. Like, we all. We had some good teams. I. I was a big fan of those guys.

[Matt Leinart]

I always ask this question, like, I tell you what, I don't know what it was like for you, but, man, I had a job and I got, like, paid a thousand bucks. Dude, I thought I was the richest dude in the world. Can you imagine? Can you imagine having a million dollars and going to college? What is that even like? Like, if you have a million dollars in college, college, you might as well be Jeff Bezos, to be honest with you.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Dude, just driving down, driving down the row and your new whip. Just.

[Matt Leinart]

Can you, like, I hear now, like, the football players got lambos. Lambos.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Oh, it's crazy.

[Matt Leinart]

What is going on here.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I think the average. I think for college hoops, I think it's like 300 to 500,000 is like the going is like the like the level bar of like what it's going to take to pry a play to. To pry like an average player like a 12 point a game guy away.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah, like that.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And that's the low obviously some of the higher profile. That's. That's nuts. Dude. Could you imagine how much, how much slausons we would have went to?

[Matt Leinart]

Oh my gosh. Or how about just being like a regular dude and we show up pockets fat like that dude has no chance. Oh, dude. Can you imagine just walking in and be like, yo everybody, first one's on me. Wow. I can't even imagine because when we were there we're like I got 15 bucks.

[Brian Scalabrini]

You got 15 bucks left on your keyboard.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Isn't.

[Matt Leinart]

They're like there was like dollar beers on Tuesday. We had to do like.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Can you imagine what that was like we would. How many? Oh, okay, last one.

[Matt Leinart]

Dude.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Now we're talking the.

[Matt Leinart]

Not.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I try to, I try to explain Jerry. Like the Nine Zero I've been to.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Hey, I live in 20. 20 years LA. I went into the night. I've been kicked out of them.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I've been in the nine.

[Jerry Ferrara]

My boy was the bouncer walking in.

[Brian Scalabrini]

With the floor, walking back with the floor. Like three inches of beer. Just walking through a. Just puddle of beer.

[Matt Leinart]

Going home somewhere that it can't exist anymore. Does it?

[Brian Scalabrini]

Oh yeah, it does.

[Matt Leinart]

Oh my gosh. I would have thought torn down condos.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Well, they rented, they renovated it. It's. It's same size but like it's nicer inside. I mean I haven't been in, in like a decade, but they renovated it a long time ago.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I feel like you guys should go grab. If you're both in LA at the same time, you guys need to meet up for a beer.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Hell yeah.

[Matt Leinart]

For social. If. If Celtics do it. We're. We're going. We're definitely going. Fifteen minutes there, let's go.

[Brian Scalabrini]

That would be so great, man. You're the best, dude.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Yeah. Thank you, man. And you know, I don't want to say good luck to the Celtics. I don't think they need it. And also too, I have to say, you're. You're awesome calling the games. I, I like when guys call the games and they, they, you know, not that they're like taking shots there. You call it like call me a homer, dude.

[Matt Leinart]

It's all right. It's all right.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I don't think you're.

[Matt Leinart]

I am a homer. I'm a homer.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You are shocked.

[Matt Leinart]

It's funny.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I think you're not full homer, and I don't think you're full. But by the way, I watch Nick games. It's Breen and Clyde Frazier. Like, there's no negative Knicks talk on the Knicks broadcasts.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So, no, I think you do a great job calling the games. And that's got to be a lot of fun walking around Boston calling the games.

[Matt Leinart]

Oh, yeah, I don't pay for much there.

[Jerry Ferrara]

And the 902. You ain't going to pay for a beer over there.

[Matt Leinart]

Oh, yeah, we're going. So Lakers, Celtics, we'll run it back.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And we'll go get a drink for sure.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Done. Thank you.

[Matt Leinart]

All right, guys.

[Jerry Ferrara]

All right, everyone, listen up. If you're ready to take on the off road, there is only one ride built for it. The 2025 Nissan Armature.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Jerry, this car is an absolute beast. Whether I'm going to the mountains on a ski trip or whether I'm going to the lake, the towing capacity holds up to 8, 500 pounds. But probably more importantly, all the sports gear, the kids, all the stuff that I can fit in my car. There's nothing out of reach with a Nissan Armada.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Yeah, and some of that sports stuff will weigh 8, 500 pounds by the time you're done with it. For me. You know, my wife loves the beach, so we're always kind of throwing the boys in the back of the car with a lot of beach stuff. But my little secret with the Armada too is I love it for the golf trips. I. I like to drive. So get my buddies in there, throw a few different clubs in the back, bunch of shoes. That's where I really like my off roading. My off roading is also going to the golf course, to the parking lot, and then just opening up that trunk and getting ready for a great day. So the other thing is it's also got twin turbo V6 engine. So it is good for basically all these things we just said and whatever you throw at it.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, the power, the performance, and just overall rugged toughness. It's like being behind the wheel of your own offensive line, Jerry.

[Jerry Ferrara]

It's the closest I'll ever get to being behind an offensive line, but either way, I'm telling you, this is the one. Get ready to adventure bigger in the all new Nissan Armada.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Let's go.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Let's go. There are people out there all across the country pushing boundaries to grow the game of golf. Like champion speed golfer Lauren Kupp, who plays faster than anyone else, and Will Lowry, whose work in the golf community inspires more kids to get into the game. As a champion partner of the Masters, bank of America supports everyone determined to find out what's possible in golf and in life. What would you like the power to do? Bank of America. Bank of America. NA Member FDIC Copyright 2025 bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved. The kids are still at practice, and I have no idea what's for dinner. You can get a rotisserie chicken and two sides for just $15 in as fast as an hour with Walmart Express delivery.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Who said that?

[Jerry Ferrara]

Who's in my house? Don't play with me because I'm not the one. It's just your friendly Walmart announcer. This is a commercial. Oh, okay. You were saying dinner for a family was just $15? Yep. It'll be at your door by the time you get the kids home from practice.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Order now.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Welcome to your Walmart. Subject to availability restrictions and fees apply. Now that was a helpful commercial. All right. That was awesome. The white Mamba. Gotta love Scal. It's time now for Flavor of the Week, presented by Wendy's. Clock in for sweet treat time with Wendy's classic. Frosty. Get one. Now, Matt, maybe you make a little stop for breakfast for the boys. Get some Frosties. Frosty, Frosty, Frosty.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Frosty's calling my name later, that's for sure. Boys are getting whatever the hell they want.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Flavor of the week, even though it was last Sunday. Right. So we're a few days removed. Everybody got their Rory. Masters takes off. You watched more golf than you've probably watched in a really long time. Unbelievable ending.

[Brian Scalabrini]

It was.

[Jerry Ferrara]

And it kind of brought up more. So, like, so Rory's the flavor of the week, but it's, it's the question now. You know, I feel like the whole country, if not most of the golf world, was rooting for Rory to win. Whether you were a Rory fan or not or a golf fan or not. Can you think of some other times? And I have some names here for you, where everyone seemed to be so clearly rooting for the same outcome. And look where Rory stacks in that list, which I think he's almost number one at this point. Even though he's won majors, he's never won the Masters, which is its own thing.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah, well, first of all, I, I, it was, it was unbelievable for golf. We all know that. And, and to miss the putt for par on 18, which like, I don't want to say I could have made it, but like I feel like I could make that, you know, like that.

[Jerry Ferrara]

It'S more of a make than a mess for him.

[Brian Scalabrini]

That's like making a layup, right. And, and so I was like, I, my heart sank because I was like, damn. You know, part of me is rooting a little bit for Justin Rose.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well, he was on fire.

[Brian Scalabrini]

He was on old guy. But yeah, I, I think to answer your question, guys that we're rooting for and this one, you're gonna, this one's a little bit. You're gonna understand why I was thinking about this in football. And, and you have guys like, you know, Josh Allen that go against Mahomes. You kind of root for like one super talented, but like good guys. Like good guys. Good, like do everything right on the field, do everything right off the field. I'm rooting for Jared Goff, dude. Goff, I was thinking about this guy. I'm thinking like, I'm thinking of NBA, like, you know, Chris Paul, like, like, I'm just not sure he's ever going to win one. You root for some of the guys that never won one. Obviously they're retired. I think with football, you know, Jared Goff, 1, he's one of the greatest dudes out there. Just an all around great dude. Led LA to a Super bowl, didn't play particularly great in that game. Lost, got shipped out to Detroit after a Super bowl and he was an.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Afterthought they were gonna move on the.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Rams go and win a Super bowl with Stafford, which makes Goff look even worse. Even though Goff had like, had a great career in la and now he's, he has Detroit Lions relevant for the first time and God knows how long. And they, and they've been really, really close the last couple years, but they've fallen short. And not necessarily on him. It's just one of those guys that you're like, I'm not sure if he's ever going to win a Super bowl because it's just so hard to win a Super Bowl. But man, I'm rooting for good guys who do it the right way and who, and who have a shot. And I think he's got a shot. So it was hard for me to think about hockey and all these other sports, but like, there's a lot of quarterbacks in the league that you kind of root for. Golf is one of them for me.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So in some of those other player athletes that you would be rooting for. For to do the thing. You go way back. A lot of people like Clyde Drexler happy when he won Jason Kidd. Then you get into kg, Kevin Garnett, anything is possible. Dirk was a pretty every. You know, I wasn't a big Mavericks fan, but I was super happy for him. Jerry west, obviously, back in the day, football wise. Elway, you know, Elway went a very long time without getting one, and he kind of had that right. And then most recently, Stafford and Saquon. Saquon, you know, and I'm a Giants fan.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Saquon's only been playing for like four.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Years, but he's a running back, so he might only play for eight. You know, he might only be in his prime for seven or eight. He might not get that many chance in that many seasons. So then when you start thinking of the next guy, I. I like your. I like your golf call. Obviously, in football, we'll all be looking at Josh Allen and Lamar too, of course. I think you can't say Aaron Judge in baseball, because no one feels bad for any Yankee ever. That's just not a thing. No one's gonna be like, oh, I'm so happy for the Yankees and Aaron Judge. That's not a thing. I got one for basketball and it's going to involve the team. You love that. We got some time. We got years. Because the dude's only 25.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Tell me, Luca.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Tell me, Luca, if we're having this conversation in three years, if. If Luca and LeBron and the Lakers don't win the title in three years, then you start to do. Every media head will do the. When's Luca gonna get his championship? His defining moment, you know? But I think he's just. I just don't think it's going to happen.

[Brian Scalabrini]

It's also just how, like, you're the. Arguably the best player in the world, right? You're top three, top four. Wherever you look at it. You just led your team to an NBA finals. And how he was done so dirty, the way he was done, right? We don't need to rehash it. And then when they go back to Dallas, what, a couple weeks ago, just the emotional tribute. And he's bawling the whole time like, like you just. Like, that's the hard part about sport, man. Like, I've been there, like, you know, when. When you're, you're. And again, I'm not Luca and I never was. But when you're. When you're a part of a city and you're helping, there and then all of a sudden you're just like, peace, you're out. And. And you're Luca Doncic. Yeah. Like you're just rooting for the dude. He's likable outside of, like, I know he complains a lot about calls and stuff, but like, he's a likable dude. I think feel like every teammate loves him who's played with them. And you're right, he's. He's a superstar that I hope wins a championship. But I was rooting for him in Dallas, man. I was like, yeah, he's must same tv. He's fun to watch.

[Jerry Ferrara]

So if the trade doesn't happen in if three years, if Luca doesn't win a ring, it still would be the same conversation. Like, I feel. I feel like expect him to win many.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Oh, for sure. And I feel like if he, like, I found myself rooting for him. I'm sure you did too. Last year in the Finals. If. If he stays on Dallas and my Lakers aren't in it, like, that's the team. I would say he's like my favorite player, but that's the team I'm rooting for.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Happy on their run.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And I like Kyrie. Like, I like those guys. So I'm happy he's a Laker. And yeah, I hope. I hope. It's just hard, dude. It's hard to win championships, man. Like, it's just. It takes. It takes a lot of things to happen and go right for you to win a title. So hopefully he gets one.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Shout outs to Wendy's. I actually think I am going to get a frosty for that 6pm Knicks playoff game. It just, just. I just had that vision of me on the couch with a Wendy's with a Frosty and just watching the game with my kid. My.

[Brian Scalabrini]

We might do it really quick on. Because you're a golf lover and I. And I'm. And I'm like watching Rory and we don't have to go too deep in this, but watching the emotion and like, dude, winning the Masters, bro, like the way he did and especially after giving it up like you. I think we all thought he was just, gosh, he's gonna choke this away, dude. This poor guy. He's gonna choke this away.

[Matt Leinart]

Yeah.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And he. Dude.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Because all he has to do on 18 is hit the green. I'm not saying it's an easy shot, but for Rory McElroy to just. The drive is the hardest thing when you get to 18 and you have a lead. Right. That's the thing. Where things could go wrong. You could cost yourself a shot with the drive. Once you hit the fairway like he did.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Yeah.

[Jerry Ferrara]

To be where he is, it's like, look, even if you put it to 40ft, 30ft, I know Augusta is not the easiest place to two putt, but just, you gotta get it on the green. Then he puts it in the bunker and then he still hits a great shot. He played all the hits. It was the perfect roller coaster ride. I actually, I didn't turn it off, but I was solo with the boys and I dipped out with them to get them outside doing stuff. I didn't want them to watch TV all day when watching the Masters, thinking Rory had it well in hand. A four shot lead, right? I'm like, I'll come back and I'll power through and watch him win and get his green jacket. And then the tax Justin Rose green fee. Max Greenfield, everyone's text. Are you watching this? And I went, son of a. He blew it. I knew it the minute I saw double bogeyed one.

[Brian Scalabrini]

That was when it was like, so. And also on the playoff hole because Justin Rose was playing better than anybody.

[Jerry Ferrara]

He was on fire.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Even Justin Rose's is approach shot. His. His second shot was 10ft from the pin.

[Matt Leinart]

Yes.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And then. And then. Or 11ft. So that's a, you know, he missed the birdie, but that's a, That's a makeable putt for him. Rory just puts it within five feet. Like that. That, that. It was unbelievable. I. It was. I was. It was. We've heard it all week, but it was so great for golf, the build up, Bryson being in the finals. Obviously he didn't play his best. But then Justin Rose coming out of nowhere.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I just wonder if he goes on a run now, like the whole proverbial monkey off the back. Right? Like. And golf is so mental, as we've seen with his round. Like, I wonder now, does this set up for Rory, who I think it's his fifth major. Like, does this set up now for him to just have a monster. He already won the players, which is a huge tournament in its own. So does this now set up for him to go on a crazy run?

[Brian Scalabrini]

We'll see. All right, man.

[Matt Leinart]

Shout out.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Shout out. By the way, Shout out. Justin Thomas, our. Our boy, I know, finished strong. I think he finished his back nine on, on Sunday where he was like minus three, chipped in on 18.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I think to finish it off, he.

[Brian Scalabrini]

He, he never quite got it going. Yeah, it's tough, man. It's Tough.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Although he did have a moment in round two where he eagled whatever it was two or three when he chipped me gold.

[Brian Scalabrini]

One or two.

[Jerry Ferrara]

I think it was two. And then he had like a five foot birdie putt to go three under when Rose was leading at seven. That would have put him right in the mix. It's just golf is hard, man. We always love. This is a JT show, though. We love. All right. Should we do a little mailbag? I took a sneak peek of this one and I think this is one that you are very a person. I would. If I was scrolling on social media, I would stop to hear your take on this. Do you want to tee it up?

[Brian Scalabrini]

I got you. All right. So, Will in Tennessee. What's up, guys? I appreciate your perspective on pretty much everything, so I really need your help with. Thanks. Thanks, Will. I really need your help with how to feel about my Vols right now. Our QB just up and left because of an NIL dispute. Should we have just given him what he wanted or did the school handle this the right way? This has been the number one discussion and, and I'll try to keep this as short as possible, but there's, there's so much, there's so many nuances and layers to this whole thing that we're dealing with in nil. And a lot of it, to answer the question, I think a lot of it, it doesn't even fall on the school or the player falls on the ncaa. And the lack of a governing body that has created a system that allows us to have. It's just, it's, it's a shame on them. And we've all know that. Everybody knows that. And college athletics needs a commissioner. They need somebody to put rules in place. That's. That's one thing. So that's a, this is a result of that. I, this one's interesting to me because I'm a dad of a kid who's getting recruited. I'm about to sit in meetings and get pitched nil dollars to my son over the next eight months, which is really going to happen. So you. So it's, it's there, there's this battle of like what's best for my son or, or what's best for his future. Short term gain versus your long term future. All of these things. Right. And this situation makes me sad because from a player's perspective, Jerry, and just from that side, being in the locker room and, and especially being a quarterback, I hate that these types of situations may or may not jeopardize someone's future and, and jeopardize the way we view them, the perception of them, whether they're in the locker, especially at the next level. Because a lot of this stuff surrounding Nico and Tennessee and I, and I, I'm not, I'm not even blaming the kid. Like, I don't really think he's at fault at all. It just, it just is, it just makes it more challenging and difficult when NFL teams and that locker room at the next level, which is no joke, those are grown men and you have all of this, this perception and the holdout and this and that and you're chasing this. It just, it just, I would just caution players to stop chasing this. Short term, this isn't even low hanging fruit because he's obviously getting paid a lot more money than a lot. But the short term gain that possibly jeopardizes your long term future and your future in your goals to play in the NFL make millions and millions of dollars. That's one thing I, I just, you are, your value is what a school will pay you or what a work will pay you. I get that. And I just worry about this situation that sometimes the grass isn't always greener and when you have representation and people that may or may not have your best interest, maybe they think you do, but they don't. Things like this happen. And, and again, it's, it's, it's. I think, to answer the question, I don't necessarily think he probably outperformed his contract. You know what I mean? Like, it's not a knock on him. I just don't, I think you could look at it from Tennessee and say, hey, like we're not gonna pay the 4 million or whatever it is that they're asking for because we don't think you're worth that. And that's fair because that's the world we live in. And if he, if they think he's worth that and they're going to go chase it somewhere else, like there might be a reality check coming. So that's the, that's the nature of this business, man. That's the part I don't like. But at some point I think like these young men, they're not kids anymore. These young men, like we, we need to figure this out and they need to have better people around them. I don't know what the equivalent would be in acting and all that, or if you're an act like coming up in the world and you maybe like these young TV stars that are, that, that make all this money. And then all of a sudden it's like, you know, you get, you see all this, the horror stories, like, they take this or they get advantage, take advantage of this. And these networks are these whatever. Or it's just, it's, it's the world we live in, man. And you just, you hate to see it. And I root for all the kids. I root for them getting paid. I really do. But at some point, like, you have to look at the big picture. You have to. And a lot of these kids just don't.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You know, you just made me think of something too. Because part of my question almost is like, now, how is this also so public? Because that's where I think we're going to get into some trouble too. And I think that's just the way it is with sports and with athletes. We discuss professional athletes contracts all the time. With acting, you could maybe only think of a handful of times where there's been big contract disputes, where it was the cast of Friends negotiating together and getting a million. Hollywood's always done a good job of keeping the monetary value of people's contracts out. Like, you really don't know how much people are getting paid in TV and on screen. Athletes and sports. We've always. Because it's, it's, it's almost like a content thing for media to discuss their contract. Now when you start doing it in an unregulated marketplace that is nil right now.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Crazy.

[Jerry Ferrara]

And it's you. You could see how the tide could turn on a young person or a parent or whatever, where now everyone's talking about it and they're in the limelight for something that has, has nothing to do with where their career is ultimately trying to go.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I'm all for players getting paid for sure. And, and again, I, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm a father to a son who's getting recruited. Like, so I'm, I'm in it. And, But I also cover college football. I also know schools, ads, coaches. I know agents. I know, I know everybody in this business, and I hear everything. I would like to, to think to myself that, hey, son, call. I'm gonna, this is my, I always tell him. I always tell him this all the time. I said, hey, buddy, this is my opinion. Doesn't mean it's right or wrong. This is just what I think. And this is just, These are the people that I can talk to, and this is how we can all make an educated guess or an educated decision on what's best for your future, whatever that is. Right? And that's how I always say. I never come at him and say, well, you have to do this, because this is the only way. Now, I might think some of these are the only way because I've seen it play out a million times, but I never want, like, I. And if I don't know something, Jerry, and I'm sure, like, you're. You might be, if I don't know something, I will go ask somebody who's an expert in that, or I will go and I do that now. And so, like, when you see a lot of people who just are kind of taking control and they think they know everything and what's best, and, like, that's not always the case. Like, sometimes you need to take a step back. Like, I know the type of player my kid is. I know his personality. I know. Know what motivates him. I know the things that he struggles in. I know all of those things. So then how can we build a team around somebody that we can get the best out of that every opportunity? And now it has to do with financial. Like, now it has to do with money. And that's okay, right? Educate. It's, It's, It's a lot, man. And again, it's. It's unfortunate that both sides are going through this, but at the end of the day, like, you're, You're. These are, These are grown people helping, making these decisions, and they're not always the right ones. And I hope it all works out. I really do. I hope everybody, I hope, I hope Nico finds a home and balls out and Tennessee moves on, all those things. But, man, it's just, you see, I mean, thousands of kids enter the portal and thousands stay in the portal, and because they're getting bad, bad advice.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Yeah, it's. I never thought I would live long enough to see this day where we're discussing, you know, opt outs in college football. Opt outs in college football. Like, you know, if you told me eight, 10 years ago, that's going to be a big discussion on a podcast that you're going to have with Matt Leinert, I'd be like, yeah, all right, sure, that's gonna happen. So, yeah, I'm gonna be watching again. Yeah, again. At the end of the day, you hope it all. You hope it all works out. And I, I don't even have anything to offer. And I. That's what I wonder. Like, my kids are not probably gonna be getting nil deals, unfortunately. Like, I know your kids are be.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Your kids are gonna be on the other side. They're gonna to be GMs or.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Well, that's what I mean. Like, I almost wonder, like, what do you say to the young man or woman or whoever that doesn't have anyone to really guide them? It's almost like. But there, that's the thing where I think it becomes tricky. You're a good guy, you want the best for your son, and you would probably help another young athlete if they came to you for advice. Some people maybe don't have that outlet.

[Brian Scalabrini]

And I understand that it goes back to when we had Kurt Warner on and all these young quarterbacks, they are people advice. They don't take advice from, you know, hall of Famers like, that are just there. And again, I get it. Like, like, do I want to go call. Maybe it might help. And maybe it's just a phone call. And I, and I, and I understand that because a lot of, like all of these young men and women, right. All sport, they come from all different areas. Like, like, whether it's like, you know, financially or they come. Whatever, it doesn't matter.

[Jerry Ferrara]

It's hard to keep the bad advice away, maybe, but it's hard to keep.

[Brian Scalabrini]

The bad advice away. But also, like, I don't know. I just feel like there's. There's so many outlets now through social media. You're right. You could, you could message anybody. Like, you could message.

[Jerry Ferrara]

You're right.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I mean, again, you have to find people you can trust. But there, but there are. There's so much access out there to people and good people that, you know, a player could reach out to a coach, a former. Like, I think of, like, I think of urban.

[Jerry Ferrara]

What Josie's doing, like, in speaking in Oklahoma. There's people everywhere. Yeah, yeah.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Or just people who are like, hey, here I can guide you to these people and you do what you want, but at least you have a bigger circle around you that can at least help give you advice or give your family members advice. It's. Again, I know it's not that easy, but, you know, there, there are. It is a. We do live in a world where there is a lot more.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Easier to do that there's more access. Well, good question. Will I, I. I'm glad we did this because I was going to ask you one way or another. I'm glad someone put that in the mailbag. So I think that's a good way to close. I'm gonna be getting ready. To me, it felt like a very long time from the super bowl to NBA Playoffs. Normally I'm a basketball nerd and I, I, I even struggled this regular season to like lock in. I loved all the trade stuff. I didn't even lock in the way I normally do. Now it's time to lock the in.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I was gonna say your energy level is high.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Let's go. It's time. You have not seen you. You saw a little psycho Jerry last year. You're gonna see a whole different psycho this year because the ceiling is high. So. Yeah, man. Thanks again to the white mamba for joining us. We'll be back next week with some. I mean there'll be NBA playoff games in the next week.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Come on, bro, stop. Who cares about the NBA? We're going to NFL draft. We're gonna be in Green Bay, Wisconsin next week with throwbacks with triple option with our guys with Mark and Rob and Urban.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Giants are doing. They're talking to Shador again. It's so this is. The Giants are going to be the team and I'm saying this because it's my favorite team. They're going to change the whole draft.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Like, by the way, Shador will be there. Shador will be there at three and so will Abdul Carter. They will have their pick of who they want. Travis Hunter's going to guaranteed.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Oh, my God.

[Brian Scalabrini]

So you're. So you're either going. You're going to have a room with Russ. With Russ Jamison, Shador Sanders. Are you going to have a premier pass rusher and maybe win eight or nine games and be right back in the same spot next year?

[Jerry Ferrara]

I'm just going to try not to freak out.

[Brian Scalabrini]

I can't wait. I'm excited. I'm excited to see. I'm excited to see what the Giants do because they hold. Like you said, they hold the. They hold the big chess piece. I think as far as they're the team. Do they re. Do they get Shador? A lot of people think Shador might fall a little bit. You know, Abdul Carter is the safety pick and a talent there and that's.

[Jerry Ferrara]

Who the Patriots are probably praying for that the Giants don't take. So they're going to impact everything.

[Brian Scalabrini]

Maybe. Maybe smoke screens and they say they're going to take Abdul Carter and the Patriots flop, flip, flop that like, get another, you know, like. And then Giants pick four. I don't know. There's. There's going to be some that goes down and we're going to be there. Dude. Front row, let's go.