Drew Brees is a Hall of Fame Grifter

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Support him at SoundCloud.com slash May 1st Music. Speaker 1: NFL Hall of Fame happened. There is a lot of things to talk about in regards to that. Speaker 1: Larry Fritz Gerald got his flowers. Roger Craig got his flowers. Speaker 1: And Drew Brees got his flowers. Speaker 1: But let's focus on Drew Brees to start off, right?

Speaker 1: So Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints quarterback, also San Diego Charger quarterback. Speaker 1: Let's not forget that. Speaker 1: but he was the, I guess, the most luminary of luminaries of this Hall of Fame class. Speaker 1: So a lot of attention was paid to him. Speaker 1: He had like an almost 30-minute speech highlighting his career, Speaker 1: the people that helped him along the way, et cetera, et cetera. Speaker 1: And this is what that platform is. Speaker 1: This is that platform where you have a chance to give back, Speaker 1: to thank those that you might not have had a chance to thank publicly, Speaker 1: to reiterate other people that you have had to thank, family, friends, coaches, teammates, etc.

Speaker 1: But the one thing about Drew Brees that is often not spoke about is as much as we want to talk about his accuracy, Speaker 1: as much as he is as a quarterback, the greatness of what he is as a quarterback is always subjective to me. Speaker 1: But let's not forget who I think Drew Brees actually was. Speaker 1: And if you saw the thumbnail on YouTube, you know exactly where I'm going. Speaker 1: Drew Brees, to me, is and was a grifter. Speaker 1: And that is very strong language in the year of 2026. Speaker 1: But let me break it down for you. Speaker 1: Drew Brees happened to be in New Orleans at the right place at the right time off the heels of Katrina.

Speaker 1: The city was looking for someone, something to galvanize them, to encourage them, to help rebuild them. Speaker 1: Not just from a infrastructure standpoint, but from a spiritual standpoint, from a inspirational standpoint. Speaker 1: And not just Drew Brees, but Sean Payton, just the Saints story as is, helped rebuild and galvanize that city. Speaker 1: But something happened along the way, though. Speaker 1: As much as Drew Brees is heralded, as much as the Saints in the New Orleans Saints organization is heralded as helping rebuild New Orleans after the horrific state that was Katrina. Speaker 1: A funny thing came along and that funny thing was Drew Brees started to grift. Speaker 1: Drew Brees started to leverage his name, his likeness, his cachet in that New Orleans community and tried to benefit off of it.

Speaker 1: And not tried. He did. He was successful. Speaker 1: This man is a grifter. This man was able to leverage his name. Speaker 1: For his own personal gain, and while we are all entitled to that, if you have the celebrity status of a Drew Brees, Speaker 1: Drew Brees took it one step further because he would leverage his name to target the people that he has been given credit for in terms of saving and galvanizing. Speaker 1: He specifically targeted black underprivileged Christians in the New Orleans, Louisiana area with his products, commerce.

Speaker 1: And I'm just going to say it because he was taking the court for it. Speaker 1: Pyramid schemes. Speaker 1: So let's go ahead and talk about it. Here is the pyramid scheme that Drew Brees was a part of. Speaker 1: Advocare endorsed by quarterback Drew Brees to pay one hundred and fifty million dollars to settle pyramid scheme charges. Speaker 1: Now, this is as of twenty nineteen. So this goes back that far.

Speaker 1: So you might be thinking, well, Sam, why are you bringing up such old stuff? Speaker 1: This is shitting on a man when he's on cloud nine, enshrined in the Hall of Fame, has a bust, was able to celebrate with his wife and his family and his loved ones. Speaker 1: Why are you doing this? Speaker 1: Well, I'm doing this because I feel as though someone who has maybe not ties directly to New Orleans, I got ties to Louisiana. Speaker 1: This man is a grifter. Speaker 1: And I don't like to see people play in our faces when there's information that is telling you more of who they actually are than the public persona that's been forced upon us. Speaker 1: There is more information that is privy to us to show to us that Drew Brees is a grifter than the contrary.

Speaker 1: He was part of a pyramid scheme that was specifically targeting low income households in New Orleans, piggybacking off of the Saints winning that one Super Bowl, piggybacking off of this success that Drew Brees has as the quarterback of the New Orleans Saints during that time. Speaker 1: And it was targeting people that he was giving credit for, I think, in a in a glazing matter, in a matter that was not actually factual. Speaker 1: like Drew Brees was more of an inspirational help towards rebuilding Katrina. Speaker 1: But people kind of gloss over that and say, no, the Saints helped rebuild Katrina. Speaker 1: There was a lot of money that needed to be taken care of to fix up Katrina. Speaker 1: There was a lot of FEMA stuff that was going on that was needed to help to rebuild Katrina, Speaker 1: not just the Saints winning a Super Bowl. Speaker 1: Spiritually and inspirationally, sure, it played a factor.

Speaker 1: It could turn some frowns upside down briefly on Sundays. Speaker 1: But Drew Brees was able to leverage his name, image and likeness and targeted specifically low income people within the New Orleans area. Speaker 1: And if you're looking for what Advocare was, it was like a sports drink company or they provided wellness products. Speaker 1: And consumers were charged fifty nine dollars to become a distributor and had to pay or had to spend between between twelve hundred and twenty four hundred dollars on Advocare products to, quote, earn all possible forms of compensation. Speaker 1: That is MLM. Speaker 1: That is a pyramid scheme. Speaker 1: So Drew Brees was the face.

Speaker 1: Now, he didn't start this company. Speaker 1: He was not the CEO of this company. Speaker 1: But he was a well-known public figurehead used by this company, much like how we have Kawhi Leonard, who we'll talk about later, who was the face, although a more silent face and invisible face for that planting tree company. Speaker 1: Drew Brees was the opposite. He was very much a forward facing, public facing face of this company. Speaker 1: That was a pyramid scheme that leveraged Drew Brees to target people in and around New Orleans. Speaker 1: Now, this was a nationwide thing, but bringing in Drew Brees, all of a sudden there was concerted attacks or targeting towards people in and around New Orleans.

Speaker 1: So the same people that Drew Brees was given credit for in terms of rebuilding them and inspire them to rebuild Katrina, he then spun the block and targeted them for a pyramid scheme. Speaker 1: Make of that what you will. You might not think that's a big deal. You're entitled to your opinion. But for me, that seems a little sus. Speaker 1: But if this was the only thing I could let that slide, right? Speaker 1: I could say, you know what?

Speaker 1: Maybe he wasn't aware of all of his affairs. Speaker 1: Maybe, you know, his management set that up and he just trusted them and not knowing what this company actually was. Speaker 1: Plausible deniability, right? Speaker 1: Sure. Speaker 1: But what if I told you there was other instances of Drew Brees doing things that are a little sus? Speaker 1: we could skip ahead to 2020. Speaker 1: So this was in 2019.

Speaker 1: This lawsuit drops. Speaker 1: We could then go a year later to 2020. Speaker 1: And while making an appearance on Yahoo Finance, Speaker 1: this man was talking about Kaepernick, Speaker 1: the flag and all of that stuff. Speaker 1: So in the midst of social unrest on the verge of quarantine, Speaker 1: all that type of stuff where Speaker 1: police brutality was big, all those things that were the storm was building. Speaker 1: Right. Speaker 1: Your man's Drew Brees took to Yahoo Finance of all places and tried to stand 10 toes down on what he felt about Kaepernick protesting and what he felt was disrespecting the flag of the United States. Speaker 1: So Drew Brees was asked what the star quarterback, star NFL quarterback thought about players kneeling again when NFL season starts.

Speaker 1: So this was during the offseason. Speaker 1: Drew Brees, quote, I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country. Speaker 1: I didn't know those were two of the things. Speaker 1: I'll just bring the flag or their country. Speaker 1: OK, so Drew Brees felt the way. Speaker 1: This was a very common thread. Nothing spectacular about this take.

Nothing so salacious or crazy about this take. Speaker 1: This was a common thread that a lot of us learned about a lot of the people in and around, not just the industry, but in the country who shared the same sentiment. Speaker 1: This was a prevailing thought. It was two sides. Either you were pro what Kaepernick was doing or you were anti what Kaepernick was doing. Speaker 1: Not too many people were able to ride right down the middle. Speaker 1: breeze who looks to part chose the side of others who also looked the part like drew breeze where Speaker 1: they felt that anything of a protest is disrespecting the flag and therein lies disrespect to not only Speaker 1: them but those who have served he leveraged he had family who had served etc etc and even lebron Speaker 1: was able to spin the block and dunk on drew breeze even lebron james who has only read Speaker 1: just the pre-log of the autobiography of Malcolm X to this day, Speaker 1: was able to take a watered down, mediocre, right wing closeted take and dunk on Drew Brees.

Speaker 1: By saying it is still surprising at this point, you literally still don't understand why Cap was kneeling on one knee. Speaker 1: Has absolutely nothing to do with disrespect of the flag and our soldiers, men and women who keep our land free. Speaker 1: My father-in-law was one of those like whole thing of bringing up you have a family that is military is definitely a what about ism. Speaker 1: Like, oh, this thing means more to me because I have family that has like, well, most people in this country have family and or friends who have served. Speaker 1: So that's not saying anything. You don't get extra credit. Speaker 1: Your opinion isn't any more valid than the next person just because you have a family member who has served.

Speaker 1: So LeBron doubles back and say, yeah, my father in law served as well as others like that's not getting that off. Speaker 1: You can't just say, well, because I have family who has served. Speaker 1: I now take even more disrespect to someone who is protesting and also never forget that it was a man in the military who told Kaepernick that kneeling was the proper way to protest. Speaker 1: Anywho. So now. Speaker 1: Drew Brees had to go ahead and apologize for that, right? Speaker 1: He caught, he caught it.

He took a lot of L's and he had to spin the block and apologize. Speaker 1: But this wasn't the first time he had spoken about the flag because we could go back to 2016. Speaker 1: So this is 2020. He's on Yahoo Finance. Let's spin the block four years prior to 2016. Speaker 1: I agree with his protest. I don't agree with his method.

Speaker 1: Now, again, that method was told to Colin Kaepernick was suggested by someone in the military. Speaker 1: But Drew Brees is saying, I agree with this protest. I don't, in all caps, agree with his method. Speaker 1: When I look at that flag, I think about my grandfather's again, the what about ism. Speaker 1: I think about a lot of things like when I stand to listen to the national anthem with my hand over my heart. Speaker 1: There is emotions that well up inside of me. So, again, what about ism?

Speaker 1: What about ism? What about ism? What about ism? I have family who served. I have family who served. Speaker 1: That usurps whatever you're thinking. Silly.

It's an asinine point. It's a silly point. Speaker 1: It's a point that is null and void. But that point has gotten over so easily that it's been accepted as something that's legitimate when it's so clearly not. Speaker 1: So when we're looking at this, right? So again, you want to cop please for Drew Brees? Speaker 1: We can say, all right, well, look, the pyramid scheme, maybe he just got caught up.

Speaker 1: I am talking about Kaepernick. Speaker 1: Amen. Speaker 1: 2020 was a weird time. Speaker 1: 2019 2020 was a weird time. Speaker 1: We learned what a lot of people really thought during during those times. Speaker 1: Drew Brees and no different than others that look like him, sound like him and talk like him. Speaker 1: OK, I could let that go.

Speaker 1: I truthfully will not. Speaker 1: But I in the in the discourse of having it back and forth about Drew Brees, I could even let that go. Speaker 1: But what if I told you there's more? Speaker 1: what if I told you that outside of a pyramid scheme Speaker 1: outside of being on the wrong side of history Speaker 1: when it comes to protesting and Colin Kaepernick Speaker 1: and all of that stuff that him and Jay-Z are essentially on the same side now Speaker 1: if you let history tell it Speaker 1: what if I told you that there's more Speaker 1: now this more doesn't necessarily involve Speaker 1: Drew Brees at his standpoint of he was at guilt Speaker 1: But it goes to show the circles he was moving in while he was in his playing career. Speaker 1: Would you believe someone that was trying to involve or not trying? Speaker 1: He did. So let's let's run that back.

Speaker 1: Can you imagine a place where a football player, a luminary, a guy who was held in high regard, Speaker 1: a guy that was just inducted into the Hall of Fame? Speaker 1: Was recently or let me not say that a person that was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame was leveraging his name, image and likeness, not just for a pyramid scheme, but also to invest in blood diamonds. Speaker 1: What do you think Drew Brees was going to do investing in diamonds? Speaker 1: Because he got sued for those diamonds when the diamonds came up funny. Speaker 1: Drew Brees sues over $8 million ring. Speaker 1: The jeweler fires back. Speaker 1: So Drew Brees was out here copping diamond rings for upwards of $8 million.

Speaker 1: And I believe the lawsuit claimed, yes, Brees claims he's been buying jewelry from this person for years and has dropped roughly $15 million on some insane pieces, including watches, earrings, and rings. Speaker 1: so the man who was leveraging his name image and likeness to Speaker 1: scam impoverished people of New Orleans was then taking that money in terms of sponsorships and Speaker 1: partnerships in cachet and leveraging it to buy blood diamonds and jewelry Speaker 1: breeze claims the biggest hit he took was on a four carat blue diamond ring he bought in 2015 Speaker 1: for $8 million, over $8 million, Speaker 1: which recently was appraised for only three and a quarter, Speaker 1: no, three and three quarters million dollars. Speaker 1: So over half the value gone. Speaker 1: So not only was he involved in a pyramid scheme, Speaker 1: not only was he on the wrong side of history dealing with Kaepernick, Speaker 1: He was also out here buying blood diamonds and quasi trying to invest in blood diamonds. Speaker 1: And if you know what diamonds are and what they mean and you know what that means in the city of New Orleans, Speaker 1: we can talk about the history of New Orleans and the people that helped craft the city and build the city. Speaker 1: And the culture and the tradition of that city. Speaker 1: You know why that hits a little different.

Speaker 1: And if you don't know, Google is your friend or more specifically DuckDuckGo is your friend. Speaker 1: Drew Brees aggressively purchased multimillion dollar pieces of jewelry years later, claiming to suffer, quote, cash flow problems. Speaker 1: He tried to bully the jeweler into undoing the transactions. Speaker 1: So this is your man's. Speaker 1: This is your man's that had a 30 minute speech the other day in Canton thanking everybody under the sun for his ascension in his career. Speaker 1: And he was given the platform. Speaker 1: But this man has also taken his platform and has involved people that were supporting him that used him in the Saints Super Bowl run as inspiration to rebuild a city.

Speaker 1: He scammed on people. Speaker 1: Now, he can always do the plausible deniability thing. Speaker 1: It happened on his watch, but he wasn't aware. Speaker 1: All that type of stuff. Speaker 1: He can get all that off. Speaker 1: But unfortunately, when you start to stack all the things, it paints a very different picture of who Drew Brees is to me. Speaker 1: Drew Brees may be a Hall of Fame quarterback to you.

Speaker 1: But to me, Drew Brees seems to be more of a Hall of Fame grifter than a Hall of Fame quarterback. Speaker 1: the most telling storyline from Hall of Fame weekend Speaker 1: has more to do with Roger Craig. Speaker 1: And it has more to do with Roger Craig Speaker 1: from the standpoint of Roger Craig is Speaker 1: one of those football players that to me Speaker 1: was so instrumental, Speaker 1: so vital into what he was and who he was Speaker 1: and what he meant as a dual threat running back. Speaker 1: When you talk about the evolution of Speaker 1: But John Robinson going out there, getting the bag that he just got. Speaker 1: When you look at what, you know, Saquon Barkley has been able to do with his career. Speaker 1: When you look at what, you know, if you want to go back, Shady McCoy, Marshall Falk, Thurman Thomas. Speaker 1: All these running backs that were able to display skill sets that could show they can run the ball for a thousand yards.

Speaker 1: But they can also catch the ball and be a dangerous weapon out the backfield. Speaker 1: To me, growing up as a 80s baby, Roger Craig was the template. Speaker 1: I'm sure there were other running backs that were able to run and catch the ball prior. Speaker 1: But for me, growing up and learning what football is and was, Roger Craig was the template. Speaker 1: Roger Craig was the template for dual purpose running backs, dual threat running backs, whatever you want to classify him. Speaker 1: He could run for 1,000 and catch for 1,000. Speaker 1: and he was that damn good.

Speaker 1: As much as you want to talk about Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, John Taylor, Speaker 1: the defense with Charles Haley and all those guys, Speaker 1: you don't get that run that the 49ers had in that offense, Speaker 1: the way that they changed the game with that West Coast offense of Bill Walsh Speaker 1: and then George Seifert later. Speaker 1: You don't get that unless Roger Craig showcases his skill set Speaker 1: and they take advantage of that and leverage him as a true weapon. Speaker 1: Where you can line him up in the slot. Speaker 1: This ain't your plodding two yards of dust running back. Speaker 1: This is a legit dual threat weapon. Speaker 1: Where he can go. Speaker 1: He can tote the rock seven yards behind the quarterback and take it to the crib.

Speaker 1: And then he can line up in the slot and beat your safety Speaker 1: or take your linebacker outside on the edge and run by him. Speaker 1: that's who Roger Craig was Speaker 1: who Roger Craig is today Speaker 1: is now a Hall of Famer Speaker 1: and it took entirely too long Speaker 1: for him to be inducted Speaker 1: into the Hall of Fame Speaker 1: but now that he's in Speaker 1: I was very excited Speaker 1: for the standpoint of Speaker 1: I knew I was watching Speaker 1: the Hall of Famer Speaker 1: when I was watching him Speaker 1: growing up Speaker 1: I don't know why the hell Speaker 1: it took so damn long Speaker 1: for him to be inducted Speaker 1: I can't wait Speaker 1: to see Speaker 1: what this looks like Speaker 1: in Canton Speaker 1: the problem is, is that Roger Craig did not deliver his speech like Drew Brees did at the dais in Canton. Speaker 1: Roger Craig had to tape his speech. Speaker 1: And this isn't like when T.O. was just mad at the Hall of Fame and decided to do his own induction speech at his, Speaker 1: well, he went to his high school or was it he went to his college? Speaker 1: I forget which one. He went back to Tennessee.

He was in Chattanooga. Speaker 1: But this wasn't that. This wasn't done out of spite that Roger Craig was not able to deliver his Hall of Fame speech live. Speaker 1: Roger Craig was not able to deliver his speech live because Roger Craig has vascular dementia. Speaker 1: And if you don't know what vascular dementia is, or you didn't even know that Roger Craig was diagnosed with that, that would make two of us. Speaker 1: I was not aware that this is what Roger Craig was dealing with in his post-playing career. Speaker 1: And it was very troubling to see that someone who was a sign and a pitcher of strength, agility, speed, power, hand-eye coordination, balance, all the things.

Speaker 1: Like if he played today, he would be Bajon. Speaker 1: He would be Marshall Falk. Speaker 1: He would be one of the Edger and James. Speaker 1: He would be though he was that type. Speaker 1: He was the prototype. Speaker 1: He was the mold. Speaker 1: He was the template.

Speaker 1: To know that that guy, that man, Speaker 1: had to tape his induction speech Speaker 1: because of the simple fact that he has, Speaker 1: he's dealing with so much Speaker 1: and dealing with vascular dementia. Speaker 1: It's very troubling. Speaker 1: It's extremely troubling. Speaker 1: vascular dementia and I have the screen up here so let me Speaker 1: let me go here with it Speaker 1: let me jump over here vascular dementia is a Speaker 1: decline in thinking skills caused by conditions that block Speaker 1: blood flow to the brain Speaker 1: that is Roger Craig Speaker 1: now in his speech thankfully to him he did mention hey I've had concussions in the concussions Speaker 1: likely again that there's a lot there's still a lot of things where these players are not Speaker 1: they don't want to jump right out there is they don't want to jump right out there and say hey Speaker 1: football did this they still are reluctant to blatantly say that now whether that's for legal Speaker 1: reasons, whether that's for insurance reasons, because the shield, the NFL is very known for Speaker 1: being spiteful in terms of players and their claims in their health insurance benefits. Speaker 1: So I don't know if players are hesitant to to jump out there and say, hey, football did this to me Speaker 1: because they're scared that their benefits might get cut. Or certain coverages that they have will Speaker 1: no longer be had if they openly speak against the shield. Speaker 1: But Roger Craig more or less indirectly Speaker 1: said, yeah, football did this to me.

Speaker 1: So a man that was a pitcher of strength, speed, Speaker 1: awareness, agility, now has intelligence Speaker 1: as well. Let's be clear. Hand-eye coordination, Speaker 1: all that stuff, but intelligence as well. He now Speaker 1: has a decline in those skills because of the blood lacking of the blood flow to his brain. Speaker 1: Now, while he also said in his speech, if he had to do it all over again, he wouldn't change Speaker 1: anything. And that's a prevailing statement as well. And that's where to me, it kind of is Speaker 1: counterproductive to bring an awareness to what this can potentially cause future players present Speaker 1: future players because you can't tell me, hey, football.

Speaker 1: Oh, let me not say you can't. Speaker 1: It is counterintuitive to tell me, hey, football did this to me, Speaker 1: but I wouldn't change anything. Speaker 1: Well, then why even say it? Speaker 1: Then why even? Speaker 1: So are you warning players or not? Speaker 1: And this is nothing against Roger Craig. Speaker 1: It's just it puts us in a difficult spot because it gives people who truly don't Speaker 1: give a fuck an easy out because allows them to say, well, shit, Speaker 1: If he don't care, then why should I care?

If Roger Craig says he would do it all over again, then why do we care about, you know, future prevention or future health measures being taken for future players? Speaker 1: If current players who are rapidly aging and declining in health are saying they would do it all over again, then what's the emphasis to change the system as it stands currently? Speaker 1: And again, I talk about intelligence. Roger Craig is a very intelligent man, but a very intelligent man can also be dumb by the standpoint of he would do it all over again, which goes against the whole notion of confronting what you're dealing with in the public. Speaker 1: There are tons of players who are dealing with all types of mental health issues, physical, physical issues because of the fact that they played football. Speaker 1: But a lot of them are doing it in silence because they share the same sentiment like a Roger Craig where it's like, well, I would do it all over again. Speaker 1: It has given me fame, fortune, wealth, you know, whatever, whatever.

Speaker 1: That's cool. Speaker 1: But as someone who watched Roger Craig at his peak, Speaker 1: it looked to be one of the most indestructible human beings ever created. Speaker 1: To now see the fact that he can't even deliver a speech live Speaker 1: because his thinking skills are being deteriorated Speaker 1: because of the fact that he played the sport of football. Speaker 1: It puts me in a weird position. Speaker 1: And Roger Craig might not care. Speaker 1: Other football, like, look, Michael Strahan is still defending himself Speaker 1: after that horrific job he did with CJ2K. Speaker 1: Everyone's running around doing ice bucket challenges, Speaker 1: but the NFL ain't really putting no money up.

Speaker 1: They put money up on this ice bucket challenge, Speaker 1: but they're not putting real money up in terms of research. Speaker 1: More and more studies keep dropping of how ALS is directly tied to football players at a higher risk than normal people. Speaker 1: But yet and still, oh, let's just run back the ice bucket challenge and everything will be fine. Speaker 1: That's not how that works. Speaker 1: So while it was a very positive note to find out that Roger Craig was finally inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame, Speaker 1: It was also extremely troubling to find yet another player that has been impacted by playing the game of football. Speaker 1: But yet and still, still cops please for the game of football, which kind of makes the whole point of publicly stating your fight. Speaker 1: Which would only bring awareness and push towards more prevention if you're not in favor of prevention.

Speaker 1: And I'm not saying Roger Craig is saying that. Speaker 1: I'm saying what what is being inferred by saying I would still do it all over again, even though your body and your brain are rapidly deteriorating because of the sport you just got inducted into the Hall of Fame for. Speaker 1: What are we supposed to take away from that? Speaker 1: I love this sport. I loved playing this sport. Speaker 1: This sport brought me fame, fortune, a great life for my children, my wife, all the things. Speaker 1: But oh, by the way, I'm probably going to die prematurely in the last few years of my life are severely impacted because I played this sport.

Speaker 1: But I would do it all over again. Speaker 1: It kind of puts us in a weird spot where it's like, well, I'm for the prevention. Speaker 1: I don't want what's happening to Roger Craig that happened to Abhijan Robinson. Speaker 1: I don't want this to happen to, you know, Jameer Gibbs. Speaker 1: I don't want this. Speaker 1: I don't want Jameer Gibbs to have to tape his Hall of Fame speech 15 years from now. Speaker 1: I don't want to see that.

Speaker 1: I don't want to see James Cook having to have to tape his speech because he can't trust his brain to get through anything live. Speaker 1: I don't want that. Speaker 1: But if the people that are dealing with that aren't really showing any, see, it's going to make me say things about Roger Craig that I don't want to say. Speaker 1: And I'm not trying to be, I'm not trying to be that guy. Speaker 1: I'm not trying to be that guy today. Speaker 1: But it just, as someone that played football growing up, had family members that played football at high levels, no people in the league that have played. Speaker 1: it just is very very troubling to keep hearing the same story to where players admit this game Speaker 1: is fucked up players admit that this game destroys their bodies and can destroy their brain their Speaker 1: mental health all the things but then they also say but i wouldn't change anything and it kind of Speaker 1: puts us to them what do you want me to do with that what do you expect us to do with that what Speaker 1: are we supposed to do with that information then the sport tears your body down tears your brain Speaker 1: down, tears down your mental health and that mental health then impacts your relationships Speaker 1: with your loved ones and your kids and your teammates and all that stuff.

Speaker 1: But yet you would do it all over again. What are we to make of that? Speaker 1: You let me know. So off the heels of that, right? So we have Speaker 1: Roger Craig showing the world, hey, Speaker 1: my vascular dementia is a thing because it impacts my thinking Speaker 1: because it restricts blood flow to my brain. Speaker 1: Therefore, I'm going to tape my Hall of Fame speech Speaker 1: instead of actually showing up and doing the speech live. Speaker 1: He still showed up and he was part of all the festivities, Speaker 1: but to protect himself and to make sure that he gets his message out Speaker 1: the way that he wants to, they taped his speech.

Speaker 1: Then you have Amon Green. Speaker 1: So Amon Green played 12 years in the NFL. Speaker 1: He is still the Packers all-time leading rusher. Speaker 1: But he revealed that he is dealing with Parkinson's. Speaker 1: So you have CJ2K who's dealing with ALS. Speaker 1: You have Roger Craig who is admitting to the world now, Speaker 1: I have vascular dementia. Speaker 1: And now we have Amon Green revealing he's dealing with Parkinson's.

Speaker 1: again Speaker 1: Michael Strahan had CJ2K Speaker 1: right in front of him Speaker 1: and didn't ask him if he felt the fact Speaker 1: that he was 39 years old Speaker 1: and all of a sudden Speaker 1: his body started to work against him Speaker 1: he refused to ask him Speaker 1: if he felt that football contributed Speaker 1: to where he was Speaker 1: and I was treated as though I was a idiot for assuming that Michael Strahan would ask that question. Speaker 1: Just the even notion of suggesting that Michael Strahan should ask that question. Speaker 1: I was called all types of names. Speaker 1: Now we have yet another contemporary of Michael Strahan revealing he's now dealing with Parkinson's. Speaker 1: So from Lou Gehrig's disease, which is an autoimmune disorder, to now Parkinson's disease, to now vascular dementia. Speaker 1: And I'm still a fool for saying Michael Strahan should be asking these players if they felt football contributed to where they're at in life. Speaker 1: Roger Craig damn near said it in his taped speech that football did it to him, but he didn't want to jump all the way off the cliff.

He only tipped over and took a peek. Speaker 1: When will this sport be held accountable? Speaker 1: As this sport is steamrolling towards 18 game seasons, you know it's coming. You know it's going to be a thing. Speaker 1: You know how weak the NFL Players Union is. Speaker 1: They're going to bow down. Speaker 1: They're going to allow 18 games.

Speaker 1: And you know what happens after 18 games? Speaker 1: 20 games. Speaker 1: You just wait. Speaker 1: As soon as they get this 18 across the finish line, and it's close. Speaker 1: It's close. Speaker 1: As soon as that 18 gets done, you know they're going to push for 20. Speaker 1: Because at that point, there's no preseason.

Speaker 1: And you know why they don't want preseason? Because the preseason games don't make a lot of money. Speaker 1: They don't make a lot of money from broadcast broadcast perspectives, media perspectives. Speaker 1: Ticket sales and revenue perspectives that owners, if they had their choice, the regular season will be 20 weeks. Speaker 1: Hit the ground running. No preseason. OTAs and little bootleg scrimmages.

Speaker 1: that's all you need hit the ground running let's go 20 weeks 20 weeks of season tickets 20 weeks Speaker 1: of parking 20 weeks of merch 20 weeks of food and concessions that's what these owners want Speaker 1: that's what the league wants low-key let's be real that's what the media partners want Speaker 1: You think the media likes producing and putting all their wherewithal into producing preseason games? Speaker 1: You think those ratings go crazy? Speaker 1: When every single year, when you do the top 50 highest rated live broadcast, about 40 of those 50 are football games? Speaker 1: You think the league, you think the broadcast partners want to produce and put a lot of bread up to produce preseason games when they know they can just roll out 20 weeks and we would all be geeked for those 20 weeks? Speaker 1: Because we're part of the problem. I'll be real. We're definitely part of the problem.

Speaker 1: But the fact of the matter is that even if you, you, I'm talking to you, even if you stop watching football, you know all your mans and them going to watch it. Speaker 1: You know, your family and friends are going to watch it. You know, your colleagues are going to watch it. Speaker 1: So the impact isn't really felt if you decide to take a stand. Speaker 1: I know folks that when the whole Kaepernick thing went down, they said, I'm not I'm not going back. Speaker 1: I'm not going to watch the NFL. I'm not going back.

Speaker 1: And I believe most of them when they say they haven't gone back. Speaker 1: some of them I know are bullshit Speaker 1: but you're on an island Speaker 1: and it's a very small island Speaker 1: but you try to get that off Speaker 1: to now have this Speaker 1: where this sport is about to be 18 games Speaker 1: and you know after 18 comes 20 Speaker 1: and then at that point Speaker 1: I don't know what any of you Speaker 1: any of y'all going to say and want Speaker 1: because at that point you're going to get Speaker 1: all right so let's be clear Speaker 1: from a fan perspective only, Speaker 1: would you prefer zero preseason Speaker 1: or let's say they give you one? Speaker 1: Hopefully the union is strong enough Speaker 1: and we use strong as a pejorative sense there. Speaker 1: Hopefully the union is strong enough Speaker 1: to get at least one week of preseason. Speaker 1: 20 weeks of regular season football, Speaker 1: one week of preseason. Speaker 1: Or. Speaker 1: Do you think that this 18 week proposal, which I believe would cut the preseason down to two weeks?

Speaker 1: That's why I think if they go to 20, because it still stays around, because right now, back in the day, it was 16 weeks and four weeks of preseason. Speaker 1: We could do that map 16 and four is 20. Speaker 1: Now it's 17 weeks and we're still doing four weeks of preseason. Speaker 1: We could jump that up to 21. Speaker 1: We might revisit that. Speaker 1: If they go to 18, the proposals that I have seen, but none of it is official, like in terms of the breaking bread across the negotiating table. Speaker 1: But for the proposal I've seen, preseason would go from four weeks to two weeks.

Speaker 1: It's now you're back to that 20 week window. Speaker 1: Assuming we stay in that window. Speaker 1: They're going to now push for 20 weeks. Speaker 1: And if we get to 20 weeks. Speaker 1: How much preseason you think they're going to get? Speaker 1: if they're already chopping it from 18 weeks of regular season, Speaker 1: two weeks of preseason, Speaker 1: what you think will happen when they push the regular season up to 20? Speaker 1: You might get one week of preseason.

Speaker 1: And while from a viewership standpoint, Speaker 1: we might like that because we just want the games, right? Speaker 1: We want the games and the games that count for the players. Speaker 1: If you are a fan of a team, Speaker 1: do you think your team is going to perform well with only one week of preseason football? Speaker 1: And then the next week after that, everything goes, everything counts, everything is legitimized and counts. Speaker 1: And if you do one week of preseason, what are you even trying to accomplish in that one week? Speaker 1: In the four weeks we have now, it makes sense where your real players might play one game. Speaker 1: And of that one game, they might play one quarter or one half at the most.

Speaker 1: What if you got one game? Speaker 1: You're going to play your starters a half, a quarter. Speaker 1: They got to do something, right? Speaker 1: That's the weird spot we're in when we're looking at the NFL and what they're trying to do or what they're talking about doing. Speaker 1: We'll hit the chat. Speaker 1: Steven in chat was good. Speaker 1: with college football trying to expand their playoffs, Speaker 1: you know the NFL is going to respond with, Speaker 1: yeah, look, I can tell you this.

Speaker 1: I can tell you this definitively. Speaker 1: The NFL has been pushing for 18 games Speaker 1: for almost a decade Speaker 1: that I know of personally. Speaker 1: At least a decade. Speaker 1: This has been always on the table in every CBA. Speaker 1: It's been on the table. Speaker 1: And the few signs that the players union has a backbone is the fact that they've been able to keep that off the table and not actually fall victim to being got. Speaker 1: Just like we talk about Drew Brees is out here running a pyramid scheme.

Speaker 1: The players union has been able to avoid a pyramid scheme of, oh, we'll take a little bit more revenue if we keep giving up games. Speaker 1: Oh, wait, that's actually what they're doing. Speaker 1: They're accepting more money and more revenue and giving up more games. Speaker 1: That's exactly what they're. Speaker 1: We'll stay in football briefly, but the sports media side, Tony Romo. Speaker 1: Tony Romo could be unemployed very soon. Speaker 1: And it's not necessarily based off what he did this past.

Speaker 1: Well, not this past weekend, but a few weekends ago where he got caught out there with an O.W.I. Speaker 1: Mans was delirious. Speaker 1: Mans was out here saying I'm going to I was going to my grandma and grandpa's house. Speaker 1: Only for us to find out later, his grandparents been dead. Speaker 1: So Tony Romo was in La La Land, whether it was Vicodin, whether it was uppers, downers, whatever you want to speculate. Speaker 1: Tony Romo was on something. Speaker 1: But is that enough for him to lose his job as the number one color analyst on CBS?

Speaker 1: If it was just that, the answer is no. Speaker 1: However, this story is layered. Speaker 1: As someone that has worked in and around sports media, Speaker 1: and I have mutuals still at CBS because I used to work there, Speaker 1: I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt, Speaker 1: him losing his job has more to do with the amount of money he's paid per year Speaker 1: than him screaming about going to his grandparents' house Speaker 1: when his grandparents been dead. Speaker 1: Tony Romo has not been very good at his job. Speaker 1: I would say over the last three to four seasons, Tony Romo has seen a steady decline in his job, in his skills, in his ability. Speaker 1: And it's not because he no longer can call a game or color commentate a game. Speaker 1: It's because the one advantage that he had was the fact that when he took this job, it was so close to him leaving the game of football that his brain was still at top tier ability in terms of being able to read a defense and read an offense and predict what was about to happen.

Speaker 1: It was the cachet that separated him from the others. Speaker 1: Tony Romo's ability to look at a team breaking formation and immediately predict what was going to happen only for that thing to happen is what captivated audiences. Speaker 1: Because it's not just when you have a athlete in the booth. Speaker 1: They're supposed to provide color. Speaker 1: The job is color commentary. Speaker 1: When a play by play guy describes what has happened, your job as the color commentator is to now provide color. Speaker 1: Give us some analysis on top of the information we just heard dictated to us by the play by play guy.

Speaker 1: Now go in there and sprinkle some Sazon, sprinkle some adobo and sauce this shit up with your analysis on top of the information we were just provided by the play by play guy. Speaker 1: That is the job of the color commentator. Speaker 1: So Tony Romo being able to have Jim Nance describe the action, line it up. Speaker 1: And then as soon as they break huddle, Romo jumps in and says, all right, Jim, here's what they're going to do. Speaker 1: The X is going to go here. The Y is going to go there. You can watch the back out the backfield.

Speaker 1: Boom. They're doing a cover three shell. Watch the cornerback come down. Speaker 1: He's predicting everything. And then it happened to a T at least 70 to 80 percent of the time. Speaker 1: And it was great. It was captivating.

It was amazing. And CBS milked the fuck out of it. Speaker 1: now the problem is Speaker 1: Romo has been Speaker 1: a few years removed from the game Speaker 1: and as those years have gone by Speaker 1: he's not as in tuned Speaker 1: as being able to dissect Speaker 1: all the stuff that's about to happen Speaker 1: when the huddle breaks Speaker 1: so the one thing that makes you stand out Speaker 1: from the others Speaker 1: the one thing that makes you the best Speaker 1: at your job Speaker 1: and CBS paid you as such Speaker 1: because they foolishly thought you were going to continue to remain at that level. Speaker 1: Just like when teams see a guy that flashes for the first couple of years, Speaker 1: like, oh my God, we got to lock this guy in. Speaker 1: CBS did the same thing. Speaker 1: They locked in Romo with a max contract, essentially. Speaker 1: Romo's out here on the super max at CBS.

Speaker 1: And they are trying to find an amnesty clause. Speaker 1: You remember the amnesty clause in the NBA? Speaker 1: When teams were allowed to cut one guy that was making a shit ton of money Speaker 1: and just cut your losses. Speaker 1: CBS is hoping to use his OWY Speaker 1: as an amnesty clause Speaker 1: to be able to cut Tony Romo Speaker 1: because he's making the supermax. Speaker 1: Tony Romo out here Speaker 1: like on some Jalen Brown shit. Speaker 1: Jalen Brown is Tony Romo for CBS. Speaker 1: If that makes sense, let me know.

Speaker 1: Tony Romo to CBS Speaker 1: is what Jalen Brown is and was to the Boston Celtics. Speaker 1: So Tony Romo is out here, Speaker 1: still good at his job, Speaker 1: still gives you some insight, Speaker 1: and he still tries to predict stuff. Speaker 1: And now instead of hitting at a 70 to 80% clip, Speaker 1: it's now probably down to like a 40, 40% clip, Speaker 1: which is still better than most color commentators. Speaker 1: But it doesn't, that hit rate ain't the same. Speaker 1: That QBR is dropping. Speaker 1: That passer rating is dropping. Speaker 1: Still better than most, Speaker 1: But you were top tier.

Speaker 1: You were the Mahomes of Colin commentating. Speaker 1: Now you're looking like Trevor Lawrence. Speaker 1: Now you're looking like Jared Goff. Speaker 1: Still good, but they Mahomes. Speaker 1: So will Tony Romo lose his job? Speaker 1: And if he does lose his job, who's going to scoop him up? Speaker 1: Because I don't see him being unemployed for very long.

Speaker 1: Unless, much like we talked about with the ESPN layoffs a few weeks ago, Speaker 1: unless they put language in his contract or his separation agreement that he has a not compete clause or NDA, etc, etc. Speaker 1: So if that happens, we will revisit that. But I don't see that happening. Speaker 1: But if he does, if he does get fired, if they cut him loose, they do a buyout of his contract because he's out here making damn near this. Speaker 1: He's making this the Supermax. Speaker 1: Look, CBS is paying Romo 18 million a year under a 10 year deal signed in 2020. Speaker 1: He has 72 million owed to him between now and 2030.

Speaker 1: So, again, that's why they want to leverage this to be able to get out from underneath that contract. Speaker 1: They don't want to have to pay him those 72 M's. Speaker 1: Your man's Kyle Shanahan did a video on here. We did a live stream on here. Speaker 1: This man is now blaming his Tesla for the car accident that took Adam Schefter and other blue check boys and girls weeks to report. Speaker 1: if you're going to blame your car for the car accident that led you to have multiple broken ribs, Speaker 1: you almost lost an eye, according to your bestie, Chris Sims. Speaker 1: You had a severe concussion, not a malconcussion.

You had a severe concussion. Speaker 1: You had multiple broken ribs. Speaker 1: You almost lost an eye. Speaker 1: Now you're blaming autopilot as a factor in your car accident. Speaker 1: Now, I can speak to this as someone that has owned a Tesla. Speaker 1: I no longer own a Tesla, but I have owned a Tesla. Speaker 1: And autopilot is a great feature, but there's levels to autopilot.

Speaker 1: There's the autopilot that still requires you to keep your eyes on the road. Speaker 1: That's the stock level, the base level of autopilot to where the car monitors your eyes. Speaker 1: And if your eyes avert or divert from the screen or from the windshield for too long, the car will alert you. Speaker 1: And the car will disengage from the autopilot if you do not adhere to the car's warnings. Speaker 1: But then there's enhanced autopilot. Speaker 1: And then even after that, there's full self-driving. Speaker 1: Now, I'm wondering if Shanahan had full self-driving FSD is what the Tesla people call it.

Speaker 1: Or if he even had enhanced autopilot, but I had enhanced autopilot on a couple of trials. Speaker 1: And even that still requires you to requires you to maintain focus on the road. Speaker 1: You can look down and be distracted for a little bit, but at some point you have to put your eyes back on the road. Speaker 1: But full self-driving is a different beast. Speaker 1: self-driving and you could turn these settings off in the car. So even if the car says, Speaker 1: hey, I'm going to do all the driving, but I still need you to pay attention. Speaker 1: You can turn off some of those warnings and some of those signals that the car is supposed to give Speaker 1: you.

If you're if if you're not trying to have those things happen, like if you're if those sounds Speaker 1: are annoying, those signals are annoying, you can turn those off. So I'm wondering I'm wondering Speaker 1: if Shanahan was out here with FSD Speaker 1: engaged but he had turned off Speaker 1: all the signals. If we're going along Speaker 1: the lines of believing him Speaker 1: it turns out Autopilot played a Speaker 1: factor in his head-on Speaker 1: collision Speaker 1: that left him with broken ribs Speaker 1: a concussion and almost Speaker 1: losing an eye. Speaker 1: Steven in the chat Speaker 1: if my choices are Tony Roma Speaker 1: or Chris Canty, you know where I stand. Speaker 1: Oh, well, I mean, look. Speaker 1: I am not a Chris Canty guy. Speaker 1: He is failing upwards.

Speaker 1: I mean, because of his melanin, Speaker 1: I give him some slack, Speaker 1: but in terms of Speaker 1: if I'm being completely unbiased, Speaker 1: melanin be damned, Speaker 1: yeah, I'm rolling with Romo too. Speaker 1: But if I can get somebody else Speaker 1: booth who actually knows what the fuck they're doing and is actually engaged. I think that's the Speaker 1: part two to not only is Romo further Speaker 1: removed from the game, so his Speaker 1: ability to call out plays in real time has Speaker 1: diminished. That's fine. Chris Collinsworth Speaker 1: hasn't played a game in almost 40 years. Speaker 1: I don't need him predicting plays. That's not his stick.

That's not his bag. Speaker 1: but Romo made that his back Speaker 1: he made that his finisher Speaker 1: you know like in wrestling Speaker 1: you have a finisher move Speaker 1: like you know Rock has a rock bottom Speaker 1: all that stuff Speaker 1: you know all that type of stuff Speaker 1: that was Tony Romo's finisher Speaker 1: his finishing move was Speaker 1: I'm going to predict every single play Speaker 1: especially in the red zone Speaker 1: I'm going to call it out Speaker 1: I'm going to tell you exactly Speaker 1: what the quarterback is going to do Speaker 1: as soon as they get under center Speaker 1: now he don't have that Speaker 1: you got no more finisher Speaker 1: back in the day a super kick sweet chin music used to be a finisher now a super kick is like Speaker 1: a normal kick it's like a normal move no one gets put away by a super kick anymore that's kind of Speaker 1: like Tony Romo calling out plays like he can still call out plays but it's not a finisher anymore Speaker 1: because it's less effective Speaker 1: so if you're telling me Speaker 1: Chris Canty or Tony Romo Speaker 1: yeah I'm going Tony Romo Speaker 1: but I would hope Speaker 1: they have better options available Speaker 1: than Chris Canty Speaker 1: or anybody like Speaker 1: there's gotta be somebody Speaker 1: there's gotta be somebody Speaker 1: like they're gonna put Speaker 1: J.J. Watt in that spot Speaker 1: I'm not a big J.J. Watt guy Speaker 1: he's on that Drew Brees Speaker 1: grifting time to me Speaker 1: but Speaker 1: J.J. Watt will give you Speaker 1: some energy Speaker 1: but it's gonna be Speaker 1: manufactured energy Speaker 1: it's gonna be grifting energy Speaker 1: So I don't even know if I want that. Speaker 1: Who would be good in the booth? Speaker 1: I thought a key to leave was going to be was going to be given a chance.

Speaker 1: I know his accent or the way that he talks, depending on who you talk to, either helps him or hurts him. Speaker 1: But from the standpoint of the information he's providing, I felt. Speaker 1: He was cooking. Speaker 1: But he wasn't given that that chance. Speaker 1: In that spot, you want someone who could sprinkle that adobo and that sazon. Speaker 1: J.J. Watt is not sprinkling any seasoning.

Speaker 1: He's not. Speaker 1: He's putting raisins in a potato salad. Speaker 1: That's what J.J. Watt is doing. Speaker 1: Stefan, we need more defensive color analysts. Speaker 1: With in mind seeing them in the booth. Yeah, I mean, that's something like Aki Tlaib had a shot.

Aki Tlaib had a shot and then it didn't happen. You know, Richard Sherman, you know, he had personality wise. It fits, but I think he's more on that on that dream on green shit. Speaker 1: I don't know what he's going to give you in terms of color. Speaker 1: Because again, color, it's a dance you're doing. Speaker 1: And I think that's the part. Speaker 1: Because podcasting has become so easy for athletes because they just get to just talk Speaker 1: and there's no one really producing them outside of editing their shows and stuff like that.

Speaker 1: There's no one actually producing them. Speaker 1: When you're a color commentator, you kind of have to find your spots. Speaker 1: You have to pick your moments. Speaker 1: You can't break down every single play. Speaker 1: You don't have the time. Speaker 1: Like because the play by play voice is the main voice. Speaker 1: You're riding shotgun.

Speaker 1: Play by play is driving. Speaker 1: You're riding shotgun. Speaker 1: So you kind of have to know when to pick and choose your spots, when to go in and break something down and when to just add a little fluff. Speaker 1: Or sometimes stay all the way to fuck back and just stay out of it and let let the game cook. Speaker 1: it's a dance Speaker 1: it's a delicate dance Speaker 1: to try to get in that spot Speaker 1: as a colored commentator Speaker 1: and know when Speaker 1: okay I gotta break this down Speaker 1: this is my time to shine Speaker 1: and then alright Speaker 1: that was just a normal Speaker 1: little two yard run Speaker 1: I don't got nothing on that Speaker 1: I don't got nothing on that Speaker 1: like I've been in the Speaker 1: control rooms Speaker 1: you know Speaker 1: watching these games Speaker 1: being broadcast Speaker 1: and you can hear Speaker 1: colored commentators Speaker 1: when they're not up to snuff Speaker 1: they want to break down Speaker 1: everything Speaker 1: they want to break down Speaker 1: every single play Speaker 1: think every single play is important or they think their voice matters on every single play Speaker 1: which is probably the more accurate thing and it sounds bad and it's on the job of the producer to Speaker 1: know when to let the reins go and let the color guy get in and guy in a pejorative sense because Speaker 1: there are women color commentators I think me the time should be in the booth I'll just say that Speaker 1: off rip and she's already in the booth for like local games but I think she should be in the booth Speaker 1: nationally she might not want that because the attention might bring to her negatively but I Speaker 1: think she would be dope in the booth. Speaker 1: But to watch producers have to rein in Speaker 1: color commentators when they want to provide Speaker 1: color, which is their job, but the job of Speaker 1: the producer is to know when to allow the Speaker 1: color person to get in. The play-by-play Speaker 1: voice is always going to be on.

They're Speaker 1: going to set the tempo. They're going to Speaker 1: set the flow. Then it's on the color Speaker 1: commentator to be able to get in there Speaker 1: and pick and choose their spots. Speaker 1: Aki Tlaib I think was Speaker 1: giving you that personality Speaker 1: kind of like a Greg Olson has got into the mix Speaker 1: and has shown you he has some personality there Speaker 1: I think Tlaib was in that same Speaker 1: was heading in that same direction Speaker 1: but I think his accent to some people Speaker 1: or his dialect or the way that he delivers Speaker 1: in his talking, in his vernacular Speaker 1: it will put off some people Speaker 1: it will put off non-melanated people Speaker 1: And unfortunately, the advertising groups and the focus groups still prioritize non-melanated people in these spaces. Speaker 1: Steven and Chad, I wouldn't mind getting insight from Jason Kelsey every once in a while. Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, all linemen have been good, right? Speaker 1: Like, all linemen have been good.

Speaker 1: I think there's, obviously, you will always get the quarterback. Speaker 1: You will always get the cowboy, right? Speaker 1: Like, they tried with Jason Witten. Speaker 1: He was horrible. Speaker 1: Jason Witten was horrific. Speaker 1: He was horrible. Speaker 1: He went and got that surgery, and it was, yeah, he was horrible.

Speaker 1: They've tried it with comedians. Remember they did the Dennis Miller thing and even the Tony Kornhauser thing with like the lighthearted, like Larry David type of energy. Like, hey, I'm just a guy walking in here cracking jokes like they they have tried many things in these booths to try to, you know, jazz it up like this ain't back in the day with Madden and Summerall. Speaker 1: Like we long for the days of Madden and Summerall. And that's because Madden was the spice. But Summerall knew how to call the hell out of a game as a play by play guy. But then he also knew how to set up Madden to let him go in there and do his telestrations and boom and all that type of shit.

Speaker 1: Like he allowed and gave space to let Madden develop his personality and cook. Speaker 1: And then Summerall knew when to jump back in and, you know, steer the ship. Speaker 1: Just like you see with Ernie Johnson on inside the NBA with the TNT guys, like, or even when you keep it play by play. Speaker 1: Like Kevin Harlan does a great job of that. Speaker 1: Marv Albert back in the day with Mike Fratello. Speaker 1: Like that, that was a good combination. Speaker 1: I don't see it too much with Mike Breen, to be quite honest.

Speaker 1: I feel like it's a tug of war at times, but Breen is so respected in the industry that he kind of gets away with it, in my opinion. Speaker 1: But in regards to the people that you know, you know a good play by play. Speaker 1: Based off of are they over talking, the play by play guy has to do so much talking, but a play by play guy can over talk. Speaker 1: Same thing for color, color and commentating your job is to talk, but you can talk too much. Speaker 1: And then sometimes you could talk too little. It's a delicate dance. Speaker 1: And I see the chat.

Let me do. Let me answer Steph first. Speaker 1: How do you feel about Joe Buck and Aikman? Speaker 1: See, well, let's start with Buck. So Buck is a nepo baby, right? Speaker 1: So he was born in this shit. So he has a certain pedigree, kind of like Noah Eagle.

Speaker 1: And Jake Collinsworth, like they're born into this shit. Speaker 1: So they have a certain acumen for it off rip, but it's very much cookie cutter. Speaker 1: I'm not a big fan of Joe Buck because of the whole Randy Moss thing years ago at Lambeau with the mooning. Speaker 1: Him and Aikman is interesting. Speaker 1: Aikman to me provides analysis. Speaker 1: it's not that great from a standpoint of, Speaker 1: I don't feel as though, like, okay, so you know how Romo, Speaker 1: Romo wanted to prove he was smarter than what people thought. Speaker 1: Romo probably felt like he got the short end of the stick in his NFL career.

Speaker 1: We all know what happened with him holding the ball in Seattle. Speaker 1: And I think for a lot of casuals, that is the lasting memory of Tony Romo. Speaker 1: Tony Romo may or may not know that. Speaker 1: I'm going to assume he does. Speaker 1: So I think Tony Romo went out and tried to out-prove and out-shine everybody Speaker 1: to show everyone that he was smarter than that one play against Seattle. Speaker 1: Troy Aikman has no such energy. Speaker 1: Troy Aikman ain't trying to prove nothing.

Speaker 1: I think Troy Aikman feels his three Super Bowls proves that he knows what the fuck he's talking about. Speaker 1: And while that will always get him some cachet, I don't always feel as though I'm getting top tier analysis from Troy Aikman. Speaker 1: I feel as though I'm getting basic information from Troy Aikman. Speaker 1: I don't feel as though I'm getting a deeper insight into the game or into the POV of someone that's won multiple Lombardis. Speaker 1: I don't feel as though I'm getting that from Troy Aikman. Speaker 1: I think Buck does a good job in terms of the formatics of being a play-by-play guy. Speaker 1: And he allows Aikman to get his shit off, but it's not an enjoyable listen for me.

Speaker 1: It's never been anything that I tuned in for. Speaker 1: Like Madden and Summerall back in the day, I tuned in. Speaker 1: Even when they had a shit game, I'm still tuning in because it's Madden and Summerall. Speaker 1: When Romo was on that hot streak those first couple of years at CBS, even if the game was of little consequence to me, if that was the CBS big game and they're putting Nance and Romo on it, I'm watching. Speaker 1: I don't get that energy when it comes to Monday night and Buck and Aikman. Speaker 1: I think they've gotten better over the years, but it doesn't. Speaker 1: I don't look at them as a legendary duo.

Speaker 1: I don't look at them as, I don't look at them that way. Speaker 1: Your man's Clay Travis is building a new sports media site expected to launch before the kickoff of the new football season. Speaker 1: Travis filed a name and logo trademark for sport and state, describing it as a website that will cover sports and politics. Speaker 1: Let's focus on that on this last part. Speaker 1: Sports and politics. Speaker 1: So Clay Travis, who is part of the brigade that loves to tell black athletes shut up and dribble when they talk about politics or social issues, is now all of a sudden running a website that will cover sports and politics. Speaker 1: Anybody else see the irony there or not?

Speaker 1: Do you see the grift? Speaker 1: This whole stream is about grifters. Speaker 1: You want to talk about a grift? Speaker 1: This is another grift. I'm not saying Clay Travis isn't a racist. I'm not saying Clay Travis isn't a bigot. Speaker 1: What I am saying is that Clay Travis is being a racist and a bigot because it pays.

Speaker 1: Whether he is actually that in his downtime, I cannot say I have not been around that man enough to know. Speaker 1: I know people that have been I have mutuals in the industry that have been in and around him. Speaker 1: And they have told me he don't move like that behind the scenes, but I can't attest to it. Speaker 1: So I'm not going to put that out there too crazy as if it's a testimonial. Speaker 1: What I do, though, is that he is one of the linchpins of this whole shut up and dribble movement. Speaker 1: So it's not OK. Speaker 1: When black athletes and black commentators in this space want to bring up social justice issues, political issues that impact.

Speaker 1: Black athletes. Speaker 1: but it's okay for Clay Travis to profit Speaker 1: and build a website and a brand Speaker 1: and soon to be get credentialed Speaker 1: to go to sporting events Speaker 1: and even political events Speaker 1: that contradicts the message of shut up and dribble. Speaker 1: It's okay for him to do it. Speaker 1: Okay. Speaker 1: The more things change, Speaker 1: the more they stay the same. Speaker 1: except for the chat Speaker 1: Mark Jones was finding Speaker 1: his own lane Speaker 1: it was short-lived Speaker 1: and entertaining for a minute Speaker 1: here's the thing Speaker 1: and here's some tea Speaker 1: when I was at the Speaker 1: four-letter network Speaker 1: I worked a lot of NBA games Speaker 1: and while working Speaker 1: those NBA games Speaker 1: you sit in a control room Speaker 1: the control room Speaker 1: would be in Bristol Speaker 1: oftentimes you would have higher ups come by and visit higher ups, executives, things of that nature, right? Speaker 1: VPs, all that type of stuff.

Speaker 1: I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt, testimonial. Speaker 1: This ain't hearsay. This ain't secondhand, thirdhand. Speaker 1: My man's in them told my man's in them. My barber knows this. Speaker 1: No, no, no. This is I heard it with my own two ears.

Speaker 1: the higher ups never liked Mark Jones. Speaker 1: They never liked his shtick. Speaker 1: They never liked his, Speaker 1: the way he called games. Speaker 1: It would be, Speaker 1: it would be easy for me to say Speaker 1: I can count the amount of insults Speaker 1: levy towards Mark Jones Speaker 1: in the double digits. Speaker 1: Easy, easy numbers, easy numbers. Speaker 1: And I was up there for a few seasons. Speaker 1: Easy every time.

Speaker 1: every single time Speaker 1: Steph knows who I'm talking about Speaker 1: every time Speaker 1: hated Mark Jones Speaker 1: absolutely hated Mark Jones Speaker 1: so it was not surprising Speaker 1: to find that ESPN was finally Speaker 1: able to get out Speaker 1: from the Mark Jones experience because I was like Speaker 1: oh yeah they've been trying to find Speaker 1: a way to get out from underneath that and for Speaker 1: whatever reason I didn't get it Speaker 1: I didn't find him to be Speaker 1: bad I didn't find him to be bad at his job Speaker 1: did he go a little Speaker 1: heavy-handed with his crowbarring of Ebonics in there and Rappler. Speaker 1: He was trying to bring that Gus Johnson, Stewart, Scott energy. Speaker 1: He was trying to, yeah, he could be a little heavy-handed at it, Speaker 1: but if it's not okay for him to do it, why does Noe Eagle get to do it? Speaker 1: Noe Eagle gets cool points because he can make a Lil Wayne reference in a call. Speaker 1: So it's okay if Noe Eagle does it because he's got the right last name Speaker 1: apart but it's it's Speaker 1: shtick and it's overdoing it when Mark Speaker 1: Jones does it Speaker 1: Mark Jones was goaded for Speaker 1: me when he was when he used Migos Speaker 1: lyrics like see that's what I'm saying like Speaker 1: he was trying to keep Speaker 1: it up to date like he tried to take Speaker 1: the baton like that's in this Speaker 1: industry Speaker 1: especially when you're melanated and there's Speaker 1: few of you Speaker 1: when you get on Speaker 1: whether you're trying Speaker 1: to Speaker 1: get people hired Speaker 1: or you're at least trying to put on for your Speaker 1: culture and make sure that the baton Speaker 1: that was passed to you Speaker 1: gets passed to the next one Speaker 1: you know the notion of Speaker 1: you know so and so crawled Speaker 1: so so and so could walk Speaker 1: so and so could run Speaker 1: like that's kind of what you're looking at Speaker 1: like Speaker 1: Gus Johnson crawled Speaker 1: so Mark Jones could walk Speaker 1: now who's supposed to run Speaker 1: I don't know if we got somebody. Speaker 1: I don't know if we do. Speaker 1: Stewart Scott crawled.

Speaker 1: So who could walk? Speaker 1: So who could run? Speaker 1: Fraud A crawled. Speaker 1: So who could walk? Speaker 1: So who could run? Speaker 1: That's, I just think Mark Jones was trying to, Speaker 1: all right, Gus did it this way. Speaker 1: that's dope Speaker 1: I'm going to take some of that Speaker 1: and put my own shit on it Speaker 1: he might have went a little overboard with it Speaker 1: but as you see here with Chris Speaker 1: he was goaded because he worked in Migos lyrics Speaker 1: like that's again Speaker 1: just like Stuart Scott was mixing in Speaker 1: Jay-Z lyrics Speaker 1: Mark Jones was mixing in Migos lyrics Speaker 1: that's relatable Speaker 1: that's how you stay current Speaker 1: that's how you get Speaker 1: that's how you make us feel comfortable Speaker 1: And what a wild scenario that executives who don't look like Mark Jones or Fraude or Stuart Scott or Gus Johnson are able to leverage their power to say that they shouldn't be making melanated people feel comfortable watching our games.

Speaker 1: Now, the executives aren't saying that, but in their actions show that because where's the next Mark Jones? Speaker 1: Where's the next Gus Johnson? Where's the next? Speaker 1: Stuart Scott, where's the next Friday? Where are they? Speaker 1: Are they going to go in that mad dog wave and try to tell me there's nobody qualified? Speaker 1: Because that was a thing.

Speaker 1: If you know, you know, I've talked about the hero a lot, but Chris Mad Dog Russo, who pops up on first take and gets a bag from them, thanks to his relations with Stephen A. Speaker 1: Mad Dog infamously once said on his radio platform when a caller called up on his show and said, hey, how come you don't have any black host on your channel? Speaker 1: Because, again, Mad Dog runs a whole channel 24 hours, seven days a week of programming. Speaker 1: He has a whole ass channel in not one minute of that channel at that time had a black voice on it. Speaker 1: So a caller called up and called him out. Speaker 1: Hey, how come there's nobody of color? Speaker 1: There's no black people on as host on your channel, on your station.

Speaker 1: And Mad Dog said with a straight face and stood 10 toes down. Speaker 1: There aren't any that are good enough. Speaker 1: That's a thing that happened. Speaker 1: Mad Dog Russo said that with a straight face and meant every syllable. Speaker 1: There aren't any that are good enough. Speaker 1: Oh, y'all believe me? Hold up.

Hold up. I'll pull the receipts. Speaker 1: I got time today. Y'all caught me on a day off. Speaker 1: Ah, here we go. Deadspin. Long live Deadspin.

This is from 2014. Speaker 1: He was asked about his hiring practices. His Sirius XM channel, Mad Dog Radio, has never had a black host. Speaker 1: This is as of 2014. In light of the Donna Sterling fiasco, Mad Dog said there hasn't been a black host worthy of the gig. Speaker 1: This is as of 2014. Speaker 1: He said it.

He said it with his chest. Speaker 1: He said it and he meant it. Now, of course, Speaker 1: this got to be controversial. Speaker 1: Go here. It's got to be controversial Speaker 1: and it made things pop off for him. Hang on one second. Speaker 1: I didn't get my camera right.

Speaker 1: I didn't put the fan on. Speaker 1: So Mad Dog went out there and had to hire a black face because of the controversy. Speaker 1: And who did he hire to get the heat off of him to prove that, oh, matter of fact, there is a black voice that is worthy of being on my channel. Speaker 1: If you guessed Fraud A, you would be correct. Speaker 1: So Mad Dog was caught out there telling his truth and then had to go out there and throw a bag at Stephen A to give him some cover. Speaker 1: But it didn't really help because all it did was, oh, so you think the only person worthy of being on your channel is Stephen A. Smith.

Speaker 1: Which means that all your other hosts, all your other non-black hosts are of the level of a Stephen A. Smith. Speaker 1: But that was not the case. Speaker 1: He had a lot of retreads from his old sports station at WFAN. Speaker 1: I know because I used to work there as well. Speaker 1: He had a whole bunch of retreads and just no-name dudes on air. Speaker 1: Somehow they were worthy of a gig, but the only black person in the world worthy of a gig on his radio station just so happened to be the most preeminent and prominent black sports talk entertainment person going at the time.

Speaker 1: And therein lies the problem. Speaker 1: You have a station that operates seven days a week, 24 hours a day. Speaker 1: And you don't have a black host on it. Speaker 1: You don't have a black woman, a black man, a black anything on it. Speaker 1: Yet you're telling me there's nobody worthy of it. Speaker 1: Then when you get pressed, the only person you deem worthy is the biggest black voice in the game. Speaker 1: But there's no biggest white voice in the game on your network, on your channel.

Speaker 1: you just have a bunch of mid Speaker 1: and I'm being generous on the mid Speaker 1: so what's that telling you Speaker 1: only the biggest black voice in the game Speaker 1: is worthy of being on Mad Dog Radio Speaker 1: but any regular plain Jane Speaker 1: mediocre white dude can host a four hour show Speaker 1: but to be black you gotta be Stephen A Speaker 1: oh boy Speaker 1: but I keep being told Speaker 1: it ain't what I think it is Speaker 1: even though I keep Speaker 1: having instances to the contrary Speaker 1: I keep having information to the contrary Speaker 1: but that's a real thing that happened so again how is the next steven a supposed to happen if Speaker 1: mad dog only feels the only black person worthy of hosting a show on his 24-hour channel is steven a Speaker 1: how is steven a supposed to pass a baton if steven a is deemed to be the only person Speaker 1: Rufa damn who is black to be able to crack a mic. Speaker 1: So when we talk about gatekeeping, that is gatekeeping. Speaker 1: That is gatekeeping 101. Speaker 1: Gatekeeping 101. Speaker 1: Right there, live and direct. Speaker 1: So the Kawhi stuff is getting wild because Speaker 1: Pablo Torre found out more stuff, but the stuff that he found out isn't really that impactful Speaker 1: until we start connecting the dots. Speaker 1: So there's more shell companies that are giving Kawhi Leonard money.

Speaker 1: without him actually having to do anything. Speaker 1: And the money suspiciously adds up to the contract Speaker 1: that he was being paid to by the Los Angeles Clippers. Speaker 1: All right? Speaker 1: That's the end and short of it. Speaker 1: That's the nuts and bolts of it. Speaker 1: The figures that add up to the endorsement deals Speaker 1: that Kawhi Leonard was able to leverage Speaker 1: are strangely enough, Speaker 1: very cohesive with the money that he was being paid out Speaker 1: in his NBA money with the Los Angeles Clippers. Speaker 1: Make of that what you will.

Speaker 1: So that's the latest issue of what Pablo Torre has found out. Speaker 1: Now we're getting regurgitated stories from like six years ago, six, seven years ago about Uncle Dennis. Speaker 1: Uncle Dennis is a mysterious figure. Uncle Dennis is a mercurial figure. Speaker 1: Uncle Dennis is he's he's Kawhi's guy. Right. Speaker 1: If you want to get to Kawhi, you got to get to Uncle Dennis.

Speaker 1: And if you want to get to Uncle Dennis, you got to go through a whole bunch of other hoops before you can before you can even get to Uncle Dennis to even get to the Kauai. Speaker 1: Right. There's always been talk of how impactful Uncle Dennis has been in negotiations for Kauai, whether it's contract negotiations, management negotiations, endorsement negotiations, etc. Speaker 1: Again, if you want anything to do with Kauai, you got to go to Uncle Dennis. Speaker 1: It was long rumored. I remember when I was working at CBS. Speaker 1: I knew someone that knew Uncle Dennis.

Speaker 1: Or had ties to Uncle Dennis. Speaker 1: And they were telling me while Kawhi was a spur. Speaker 1: Kawhi is going to be a Laker. Speaker 1: And I was like, for real? He was like, yeah, him and LeBron, they're going to L.A. Speaker 1: It's going to be a thing. Wow.

OK. Speaker 1: LeBron and Kawhi as Lakers Speaker 1: like yep Speaker 1: it's a done deal Speaker 1: damn okay Speaker 1: now again Speaker 1: this was the only person I knew Speaker 1: that was telling me that Speaker 1: so I couldn't take that information Speaker 1: and run with it Speaker 1: because that's a lot of faith Speaker 1: off of one person's Speaker 1: alleged connection Speaker 1: to Uncle Dennis Speaker 1: but that was what I was told Speaker 1: so I kept that in the back of my head Speaker 1: while the negotiations were going on Speaker 1: so then Kawhi gets traded to Toronto Speaker 1: and he had the Toronto year Speaker 1: and while the national media Speaker 1: was trying to tell us Speaker 1: oh no, Toronto is in the mix Speaker 1: Toronto can convince Kawhi to stay Speaker 1: in the back of my mind Speaker 1: I always remember what dude told me Speaker 1: like no, Kawhi, LA, Lakers, we're Bron Speaker 1: then obviously we know what happens Speaker 1: they win the championship Speaker 1: and Toronto fans and media and the organization foolishly thought that winning a Larry OB was going to be enough to make Kawhi stay in Toronto. Speaker 1: We now know that was ridiculous. Speaker 1: So he left. He went to L.A., but he did not go to L.A. to be a Laker. He went to L.A.

to be a Clipper. Speaker 1: And it was always strange to me because I was like, well, if, because that sounds like something that would be collusionary. Speaker 1: It's collusionary for LeBron and his people, Kawhi and his people to link up and say, yep, this is what we're going to do. Speaker 1: All right, cool. Then all of a sudden, not only does it not happen, but now he's going to go play for the other team, the other team that's in the city. Speaker 1: Now they're in the same building, but they're sharing it. It doesn't make a lot of sense.

Speaker 1: How did we get here? Well, allegedly we got here because Uncle Dennis went Uncle Dennis. Speaker 1: Uncle Dennis allegedly, if you want to believe the reports, now this is not a new report. Speaker 1: This is just a regurgitated report. Speaker 1: But Uncle Dennis was requesting way too much from the Lakers in their brass, in their brass meaning Jeannie Buss. Speaker 1: During 2019 free agency, Kawhi Leonard and his team reportedly requested several illegal incentives. Speaker 1: illegal incentives from now ex-Lakers owner Jeannie Buss.

Speaker 1: Jeannie immediately informed Kawhi's uncle and agent, Dennis Robertson, Speaker 1: that these demands violated the NBA's CBA. Speaker 1: Buss rejected them and made it clear they breached league rules. Speaker 1: So the issue is that a lot of people are blaming Kawhi. Speaker 1: A lot of people are jumping down Kawhi's throat on this pause. Speaker 1: And while, yes, the player is going to be held responsible because that's how that works. Speaker 1: Right. Ultimately, though.

Speaker 1: Uncle Dennis is the one responsible here. Speaker 1: Ultimately, though, Kawhi is a bystander here. Speaker 1: He has entrusted Uncle Dennis to do what's best for him. Speaker 1: If you don't know, Kawhi's father was tragically murdered and Uncle Dennis stepped up to kind of be that father figure type role. Speaker 1: So Kawhi trusts Uncle Dennis. Speaker 1: But now there's a lot of people that are coming to Kawhi's defense because the media narrative is that this is all on Kawhi. Speaker 1: Kawhi is going to get in trouble.

Kawhi is going to have to have his contract voided. Speaker 1: This, that and the third. It's a lot of punishment for Kawhi. Speaker 1: But Kawhi is in essence just following the lead of his uncle. Speaker 1: And some would even say Kawhi was being more of a stand up dude in these organizations. Speaker 1: More so than Uncle Dennis. Let's go ahead and tap in on this.

Speaker 1: So Paul Jones, who is a NBA radio analyst. Speaker 1: Says that Kawhi would not make that type of allegation, would not make that type of demands in a contract negotiations. Speaker 1: He knows that for a fact. Then there is Bruce Arthur, who is a Toronto columnist, who is saying the same thing, saying the Raptors had no animosity towards Kawhi. Speaker 1: But they do have issues with Uncle Dennis. So it seems to be more of Kawhi was not the problem. Speaker 1: Uncle Dennis was the problem, but Uncle Dennis is operating on the behalf of Kawhi.

Speaker 1: So then what do you do with Kawhi? If Uncle Dennis is going in there and asking for the moon and the stars on the behalf of his nephew and getting most, if not all of it, including the Clippers, allegedly colluding and creating shell companies just to funnel the money to Kawhi. Speaker 1: Why is Kawhi being taken to task by the national media when it is clear that Uncle Dennis is way more responsible to all these nefarious and salacious allegations than Kawhi? Speaker 1: Because the player is always the easy target. Speaker 1: Kawhi has since removed Uncle Dennis from his financial dealings. Speaker 1: You no longer have to go through Uncle Dennis to get to Kawhi. Speaker 1: Kawhi has also moved on from his agent of record.

Speaker 1: So he's cleaned house. Speaker 1: He's cleaned house, I think, in an attempt to distance himself from what he knows is coming in terms of sanctions from the NBA and the Board of Governors. Speaker 1: If that's the case, what does this mean for the Clippers and Steve Ballmer? Speaker 1: Steve Ballmer is going to skate. Speaker 1: Pablo Torre went on Dan Patrick's show and basically said that he thinks Balmer is going to come out of this unscathed. Speaker 1: Can you imagine an NBA owner creating multiple shell companies to funnel money to circumvent the salary cap? Speaker 1: And the player gets punished more than the owner?

Speaker 1: And this is Adam Silver's NBA. I would expect that in David Stern's NBA. Speaker 1: I would not expect that in Adam Silver's NBA. Speaker 1: Adam Silver likes to think he's invited to the cookout. Speaker 1: If that happens, that does not sound like the movements of someone who's actually invited to the cookout. Speaker 1: If the black player is criticized or punished for accepting what the white owner dictates, Speaker 1: how is the black player more fiscally responsible than the white owner who set up all the things to make sure to funnel the money? Speaker 1: There is a lot to navigate with this Kawhi story because as we have talked about over these streams, Speaker 1: over this whole summer with everything that's been dropping around it, Speaker 1: when the trade went down between the Clippers in Toronto, I explained that there's a conflict of interest Speaker 1: because the head of the Board of Governors, who's going to rain down punishments on Steve Ballmer, is the Raptors owner.

Speaker 1: That's a conflict of interest. Yet in Adam Silver's NBA, that's OK. Speaker 1: Now we have people that are really close to the to the ongoing investigations, like a Pablo Torre saying, hey, Speaker 1: Steve Ballmer might come out of this unscathed, which is very damning. Speaker 1: If I'm Adam Silver, that is a very damning statement to make on the record. Speaker 1: And if Pablo is willing to put his name on it, there's got to be some credence to it. Speaker 1: And if that's the case where an owner can blatantly and with knowledge circumvent the salary cap. Speaker 1: But the player that accepts the money from the owner that purposefully circumvented the salary cap, only the player gets punished.

Speaker 1: That to me is extremely damning for the NBA's reputation amongst his melanated fan base. Speaker 1: Because you can't tell me what the you can't tell me the optics there don't look problematic. Speaker 1: The white billionaire owner Steve Ballmer walked in and dropped two billion dollars straight cash, homie, and bought the Clippers. Speaker 1: He then knew the game of how to create shell companies and have Kawhi and his people create bogus LLCs to be able to funnel some extra money that just so happens to equal the max contract that Kawhi was trying to sign or was negotiating to sign with the Clippers. Speaker 1: so Kawhi gets the short end of the stick Speaker 1: where all the animus comes down onto him Speaker 1: but not the white owner Speaker 1: who helped orchestrate the circumvention Speaker 1: of the salary cap Speaker 1: in a predominantly black sport Speaker 1: how is that not problematic Speaker 1: I haven't been going as detailed Speaker 1: as I wanted to with this story Speaker 1: because there's no smoking gun yet. Speaker 1: Even though the fact that these shell companies keep popping up Speaker 1: and the money from these shell companies keep equaling amounts of money Speaker 1: that look like Kawhi Leonard's contract, Speaker 1: that's still not a smoking gun per se. Speaker 1: So I've been falling back on the story to not go that crazy, Speaker 1: but at some point it's like, all right, dog, the season about to start.

Speaker 1: Is Kawhi going to be able to play or not? Speaker 1: and if that's the case who he gonna play for is he gonna be a clipper or is he gonna be a raptor Speaker 1: and if he's gonna be a raptor how does that work because the clippers are supposed to receive Speaker 1: first round picks and players in exchange for Kawhi if we're voiding the contract that means Speaker 1: voiding the trade that means the clippers just lose Kawhi and that's it now while some people Speaker 1: think that that's a negative. Speaker 1: It's certainly a negative in comparison Speaker 1: that they were going to receive picks Speaker 1: and players, but it's also not Speaker 1: a punishment. Speaker 1: You weren't going to have Kawhi anyway. Speaker 1: You were trading him away. Speaker 1: So avoiding the contract just Speaker 1: leaves you with the same endgame of, well, we don't have Kawhi. Speaker 1: Unless it's Speaker 1: they're going to void the contract Speaker 1: so they lose Kawhi and rain down Speaker 1: punishments.

Speaker 1: then that's a conversation in terms of fairness in terms of the players being punished and the team is being punished. Speaker 1: But if the only punishment is Kawhi's contract is voided, then he has to go and sign a deal with the Raptors individually. Speaker 1: So Kawhi is not really being punished per se. He has to play in Toronto, a place that he is not fond of. Speaker 1: That's punishment in itself, I guess. Speaker 1: But after that, he's still getting his money. Speaker 1: He's still getting a paycheck.

Speaker 1: And this time, it won't have to go through a bogus LLC. Speaker 1: It could be straight cash homie. Speaker 1: It could be a direct deposit. Speaker 1: But what's the punishment for the Clippers? Speaker 1: They lose Kawhi, they're going to lose him anyway. Speaker 1: They got to go find a guy to go score for them. Speaker 1: so the Raptors could still walk away and keep Brandon Ingram Speaker 1: and now just go get Kawhi?

Speaker 1: The punishment for the Clippers is they got to go out there Speaker 1: and go get Brad Beal? Speaker 1: Maybe bring DeRozan home to fill out that roster? Speaker 1: Is that the punishment? Speaker 1: What is the punishment for the Clippers? Speaker 1: What is a fair punishment? Speaker 1: There's a lot of talk about Kawhi. Speaker 1: Kawhi, Kawhi is a problem.

Speaker 1: Kawhi did this, Kawhi did that. Speaker 1: When Kawhi, from the people that know, did none of it. Speaker 1: It was all Uncle Dennis or largely Uncle Dennis with Kawhi's silent complicity. Speaker 1: But what happens to Steve Ballmer? Speaker 1: Not enough energy is being given to Steve Ballmer. Speaker 1: I keep seeing Kawhi's face plastered everywhere. Speaker 1: Where's Steve Ballmer's face?

Speaker 1: A owner circumvented the cap. Speaker 1: You're trying to show props to Jeannie Buss for saying no. Speaker 1: Where's the energy for Steve Ballmer saying yes to Uncle Dennis? Speaker 1: Where's that energy? Speaker 1: And this is the media narrative. Speaker 1: The media narrative is tear down the player because the player is disposable. Speaker 1: Whereas the owner has more power because you can't fire an owner.

Speaker 1: Unless you're silly enough to do some Donald Sterling shit or some Jerry Richardson shit. Speaker 1: Then you can be let go. Speaker 1: You know what it is. Speaker 1: This has been the V-Sandy podcast, Speaker 1: a podcast that is talking about sports and sports media Speaker 1: in addition to other things. Speaker 1: Soon we will be talking those other things. Speaker 1: The brand is growing. Speaker 1: The brand is evolving.

Speaker 1: Walk with me. Speaker 1: Stay with me. Speaker 1: This podcast is available on all major podcasts and platforms. Speaker 1: Don't forget to subscribe and rate. Speaker 1: Five stars with a less. Speaker 1: Tell a friend. Speaker 1: If you're into the visual component, Speaker 1: holler at the The Sam D YouTube channel Speaker 1: at The Sam D.

That's T-H-E-E-S-A-M-D. Speaker 1: For all my thoughts on tech, Speaker 1: that channel is now up and running and is strong. Speaker 1: At shill free tech on YouTube. Speaker 1: Thank you again for listening to this episode. Speaker 2: I will catch you again on the next one. Speaker 2: I go by the name of The Sam D. Speaker 2: This has been The Sam D Podcast.

Speaker 2: I'm out.