- 5 weeks ago
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00So yesterday, like I, Joey put up a clip, Joey's wonderful, we love Joey, he put up
00:05a clip and it was kind of like, I was pretty flippant about it, you know, because there
00:09was, there's rumors all over the place.
00:10And one of the rumors that were out there was, you know, LeBron's waiting to see if
00:14a team is willing to make trades, Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, if they can get this guy, or
00:22both of them, could LeBron then just sign with that team?
00:26And you and I discussed it briefly.
00:28It was a four minute discussion in the middle of a segment.
00:32And I said, yeah, bring him in.
00:34I don't care.
00:35I don't care.
00:36And Joey put it up there.
00:38And I got a couple of people brushing me back on it, even in my personal life going, you
00:42want old, beat up Anthony Davis?
00:45What are you going to do with Jared Allen?
00:46I go, well, I guess I got to trade.
00:48You're going to, you're willing to trade Anthony Davis with Jared Allen?
00:51I go, yeah, I'm all in.
00:53Aren't we all in?
00:54If we're doing this for LeBron, like, I don't want to have to say things I take back.
00:58Like, it feels like you're saying, like, one kid's better than my kid.
01:02I'll trade for that kid to be in my family.
01:05But this is professional sports.
01:09It's what GMs actually do.
01:10Yes.
01:10What they do for a living every day is they talk about taking calls or making calls.
01:14And if it helps us.
01:15They're not married to their rosters.
01:16If it helps us and help us get him and does help the chances of a championship, I don't
01:20need him to play 82 games.
01:22He won't play 82 games.
01:24He is, he has been glass.
01:26Jared Allen has been much more durable over time.
01:29But this is my issue.
01:31Some of the same people who have been complaining and complaining and complaining about the Cavs
01:37and how this team is going nowhere and how they're not real contenders, if I'm offering
01:43solutions, these are real solutions.
01:46Now, both coming off a serious injury, I understand that.
01:49These are both serious solutions here to bring in LeBron James if it were to be this way.
01:54We'll find out later on in life whether or not it's all real or whatnot.
01:58But let's just go through all the millions of hypotheticals when it comes to LeBron, shall we?
02:03If it were those two guys, would you make a deal to bring those two guys in and move
02:08on from a Jared Allen or even a James Harden's impossible, but one of those two guys, a Jared
02:14Allen and so-and-so to make the salaries match up and make it work?
02:17Would you do that right off the rails?
02:19Well, so let me point this out because I like the way you're thinking.
02:23If you are so down on the Cavs, if you were part of the malaise and you're part of the
02:30well, we had no chance against the Knicks in the playoffs, that's how far behind them
02:35we are, even though we're so much further ahead than so many other teams, then you have
02:39to be open to some unconventional thoughts when you're in a cap era where you're seen
02:46all 30 teams are having trouble getting better.
02:48The Knicks got worse this offseason.
02:50I can go through all the teams that you think we're not in the same playing field as, and
02:56you can make the argument those teams got worse also.
02:57The Boston Celtics clearly got worse.
03:00So, one by one, these teams all got worse, and the Cavs so far have pretty much stayed
03:04the same.
03:05You can make the point, well, the Cavs have gotten worse, too, in losing Dean Wade.
03:09They might have had a nice rookie, maybe a nice second-round steal.
03:13Either way, and I'm not going to get ahead of myself, but either way, I think you have
03:17to be open to some risk-taking because we all agree this is on Donovan Mitchell's window
03:24now.
03:24So, if it's on Donovan Mitchell's window now, and you all have said you hate the Donovan
03:30Mitchell contract because he's going to deteriorate, then you should all be in agreement that you
03:34have to kind of take some risky moves in the interim.
03:38How risky do you want to get?
03:40There is no doubt that Anthony Davis, if he makes it to a playoff series, is exponentially
03:45better in a playoff series on both sides of the ball than Jared Allen.
03:50That's just a fact.
03:52Now you can tell me that one of the odds he gets to the playoff series, I'm with you.
03:56Like, it's no leap of logic to understand that it is tough because he has been injured.
04:04But if he gets there, yeah, he's better than Jared Allen.
04:07And all of a sudden, you've got a player that I think is better than some of what the Knicks
04:11have to offer.
04:12When I get that pushback, I either say what I just said to you, or I'm going, you're lying
04:18to yourself about how bad you think the Cavs really are.
04:21If you're not willing to move, I mean, Jared Allen is a top quality player for his contract.
04:25He's outperformed his contract.
04:27I think he's underrated by a lot of standards.
04:29And that's why he would be a nice piece if you had to move him.
04:33Because I think that the general NBA and Cavs fans who have come around over time, the general
04:38NBA probably thinks higher of him than a lot of other people do.
04:41But if you're yelling and screaming about how the Cavs are going nowhere and we're just
04:45stuck in this concrete box and we're never getting out, and I offer you a way to get
04:49out with the greatest player of all time in his final year or final two years, and then
04:54one of his friends that would be a possibility for a championship there, and I understand
04:58there's so much load management that has to be done, then I don't know if it's the right
05:02league for you.
05:03Because we're going to have to be willing to make moves at some point here.
05:06Because you're seeing fit matter more.
05:08That means I think there will probably be more moves than we've ever seen.
05:13As far as trades are concerned, I think trades become bigger than free agency.
05:18There is no free agency in the NBA anymore.
05:20Exactly.
05:20Like, there was a point.
05:21I remember Keith and I having an argument in the hallway because he thought NFL free
05:25agency was bigger than the NBA free agency.
05:27And this is like the LeBron.
05:29It was before 2014.
05:30But I'm going, you're crazy.
05:32And now, this is like the last stand of free agency is LeBron.
05:37Like, to me, it's all trades now.
05:39And so, you got to, I don't know if you can fall in love with guys anymore.
05:42I really, unless you, like, unless you know that they are a one-of-one on your team.
05:48Like, I'd be pretty shocked if Shea Gilgis-Alexander is playing at a different uniform anytime soon,
05:53or Victor Wemmin, Yama, etc.
05:55But I think when you get these guys, and I know what they say about Mobley, everything's
06:00true until it's not, it's very, very hard for me to sit there and guarantee the future
06:05for any of these guys when they haven't accomplished what they want to accomplish.
06:10And most of the people are outside their front door with pitchforks and torches wanting
06:14to move them after the end of the season.
06:16Yeah, and look, as much as Jared Allen has been awesome for the Cavs, he's been a real
06:21steal at his value.
06:22Yes.
06:22We've had nonstop questions about what he is in the postseason, what he does or doesn't
06:29do for spacing, and the lights are too bright.
06:32I think he defeated that notion this year.
06:35He had two huge game sevens.
06:37But, you know, who does LeBron pal around with during the offseason?
06:41Who has he been this year?
06:43Draymond Green.
06:44Yes.
06:44Draymond Green has gone on national television and ripped to shreds Jared Allen in playoff
06:51games.
06:52So, you don't think that LeBron has talked to Draymond about different teams, different
06:57situations, and in this case, Jared Allen?
07:00So, I do think, like, it's just one thing you've got to consider.
07:04Yeah.
07:05Like, the Cavs are going to make moves.
07:07You know, once LeBron makes his decision, if it's to the Cavs, probably going to trade
07:12Jared Allen immediately and try to retool there as best you can.
07:16Again, there's only so much flexibility they have.
07:18And if LeBron decides to go anywhere else, well, now the Cavs have to figure out, you
07:23know, I doubt they're going to just run it back status quo.
07:26Exactly.
07:26That would shock me.
07:27And that's why, and we got about last night coming up here at 643, where, again, if you
07:33and your wife are thinking about moving, I got a hell of a house for you coming up here.
07:37Um, that's why I'm willing to make these moves.
07:39I've never been the biggest Anthony Davis fan.
07:42Uh, yeah, I, I, I understand that there's a glass there with him, but when you're talking
07:47about Jared Allen, I'm not going to do what a lot of people do.
07:49See, when we talk about training a guy, we start to, we start to bag on to convince the
07:54people that we talk to why you can trade him.
07:57I'm not going to do that.
07:58Jared Allen.
07:59I think he's quality player.
08:00And again, he overperforms his contract.
08:03Draymond Green does question his playoff ability.
08:05A lot of people have questions playoff.
08:06J.D. Bickerstaff did.
08:08The reason why you could make a move like that is because Jared Allen is quality.
08:14You have to give up quality for quality to help out your basketball team.
08:19If this were, if this hypothetical were to be true about LeBron James.
08:23So there's no reason for me to bag on, on, on Allen.
08:27If Mobley were a conversation, not for Anthony Davis for crying out loud, but if Mobley were
08:31a conversation with something else, you have to give up something good to get something
08:35good.
08:35So I got nothing wrong with Jared Allen in, in so many ways, it's sad to see, it would
08:40be sad to see him go and you're taking a tremendous risk, but are we not taking a tremendous risk
08:45anyway?
08:46So what's, what's wrong with more risk?
08:48We know that this will probably be busted out at some point anyway.
08:51So we might as well really go for the gusto.
08:53And if you're not really real willing to go for the gusto, why are you complaining at
08:57us back in March and April and May?
09:00Right.
09:00If you, if you were so what we wanted, if you were so set, I think fans, they live in
09:05this world where they, they want all these awesome young three and D guys.
09:09And guess what?
09:10Teams don't give them up.
09:11They just, good wings, great defensive players.
09:14Like, this is why you have to kind of turn back the clock and look at somebody like Anthony
09:20Davis, who, when he is right, he's one of the best.
09:24I think he's a better defensive player than Evan Mobley when he is right.
09:27He's just not right very often.
09:29All right.
09:30If you're willing to go all in, if you're willing to go with, with LeBron, you got to
09:33be willing to go all in.
09:35How many people are willing to bring in LeBron?
09:37A lot of people.
09:38How many people are willing to bring in his buddies?
09:40Not so many.
09:41Now these, well, well, I got, I got, I got beat up for it a little bit.
09:46So I want to bring it up with you.
09:47His buddies, when they are right, are pretty damn good.
09:51When are they right?
09:52And that, and by the way, that's a fair question.
09:53In our video that we had, that was part of it.
09:57It's going, when they're healthy.
09:58Okay, Ken, when are they healthy?
10:02Fair.
10:02That's absolutely fair.
10:04But my answer to it, and I, I don't know everybody's history.
10:08If you're one of the ones that were saying, and there were so many that were saying it,
10:13if there were so many that were going, this team isn't going anywhere.
10:17You're not going to be able to do anything with this team.
10:20They're not going to be able to do anything.
10:22You got to cut bait and move on with all this stuff.
10:26How on earth, how on earth can then I say no to Anthony Davis and or Kyrie Irving?
10:34Seriously.
10:35How could I not?
10:36Now, there might be some people who are, or very optimistic of it.
10:40How can I really say no?
10:42Like, I don't want to go crazy about it either, but you really have to make a decision.
10:46You're going to either do it and go all the way for him, or we're just not going to have
10:51the discussion ever.
10:52And so many people over the last 25 days have become so excited and enthralled with LeBron
10:59James and the possibilities of him coming back.
11:01They've gone through the whole gamut of emotions.
11:03Lord knows I have.
11:06That now is where we draw the line.
11:09Now is where we draw the line.
11:10Is Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving?
11:12I think it's going to go bust anyway after this year.
11:14Well, you already have James.
11:15Yeah, you have James Harden anyway.
11:17Yeah.
11:17James plays.
11:18So.
11:19Well, it's more of an either or with Kyrie.
11:21Like, not an either or, but like, all right, either Anthony Davis or Kyrie.
11:26Now, it's a hypothetical.
11:28It's something that's been brought up.
11:29Kevin O'Connor's brought it up.
11:30Other people have brought it up.
11:31And because we don't really know exactly what LeBron's thinking, it's all a discussion.
11:36Very little of it can be reported with any solid evidence, right?
11:43But you've tied my hand so much.
11:46I've been saying it's a good team.
11:47It's a good team.
11:47It's a good team.
11:48And Lyman and I have agreed with each other how good of a team it is.
11:52And we've been called yes men and excuse makers for the Cavs.
11:56All right.
11:57Well, if you want big changes, this is a big change.
12:00It's a big realistic change.
12:01Either Anthony Davis or Kyrie Irving.
12:05Kyrie has his own set of circumstances.
12:07And I still ask you, where did Kyrie always play his best basketball?
12:11And it wasn't just because LeBron was the most powerful player on the planet.
12:16LeBron has a way of keeping people in check.
12:18He just does.
12:20Even at 41, I would have faith in him to keep people in check.
12:24Kyrie's older.
12:25I know he's more injured.
12:27He just has this way of bringing it all together.
12:31And it's not just with what he does on the court.
12:34I think it's what he does in the locker room.
12:36I think it's what he does with the team.
12:39I have to remind everybody, J.R.
12:41Smith left the New York Knicks.
12:43He was a pariah when he got traded here.
12:47And I do think part of the rehabilitation of his image in New York is his history with the Cleveland
12:53Cavaliers.
12:55When LeBron was here, how great was J.R.
12:57Smith?
12:58Cavs conversations brought to you by the fine folks at Surfside Hard Ice Tea, who ask you to please enjoy
13:02Surfside Hard Ice Tea responsibly.
13:04Then we're throwing soup at people afterwards.
13:06And I do believe that the championship in 2016 with J.R.
13:10Smith and his time with LeBron, he's showing up in the NBA Finals in a reunion with former New York
13:17Knicks.
13:17And I do think that that's part of his rehabilitation of his image in New York was his time with
13:22LeBron.
13:23Matthew Delvedova was a good player, never a bad teammate, never a crazy person.
13:28Matthew Delvedova certainly raised his profile playing with LeBron.
13:32I know Anthony Davis to be a really, really, really good player, not a guy that I want to build
13:39a franchise around because of the injuries.
13:41And, you know, the New Orleans thing didn't always sit well, but you know what?
13:44Not a lot of things with New Orleans Pelicans are going to sit well.
13:47What would he do with LeBron James?
13:49Kyrie Irving is an interesting character, to say the least.
13:55Again, where did he play his best basketball?
13:57Where was everything focused?
13:59With LeBron James.
14:00Yeah, did make a Finals run with Luka, but it was much more in a...
14:04The role of Kyrie at that time was very different.
14:07That's what I mean.
14:08And so, I have these two players who are questionable in how some people feel about him.
14:16A lot of fans feel about him.
14:18They certainly are polarizing in their own ways.
14:21Different ways, certainly.
14:23But I've been able to rely on LeBron James through the 11 years he's been here.
14:27And I usually come out on top with that.
14:29Or really competitive.
14:31Like, I still stand by it.
14:33Tone, like, he's 41 years old.
14:35Tone, he does not have the same power as what he did before.
14:39I stand by all my emotions that I've said before.
14:42But I still think that he can make guys play with him and be more professional
14:47and be a help to whatever franchise he plays for.
14:50I think he can still do that.
14:51Of course.
14:52Of course.
14:53And this is why I keep coming back to, you know, the damned if you do, damned if you don't
14:57summer of the Cavs.
14:58This is where we're at.
15:00Where if they don't do anything or they do things around the fringes, everybody's just
15:05going to say they have no chance at a championship anyway because it's what you said at the end
15:09of last year.
15:10And you're probably right.
15:11It's probably going to be hard for them to leap over teams like the Knicks if they're healthy
15:15and whatever.
15:16And a lot of teams have attempted to get better in the East.
15:19But some have gotten clearly worse.
15:22While if you actually go after the big moves and you get LeBron and then you reshape the
15:28roster a little bit as best you can by moving out Jared Allen, moving out whether it's Schroeder,
15:34Max Truce, whatever, to cobble together an actual wing that can play some athleticism,
15:40which they sorely need.
15:41And then you go big game hunting for an Anthony Davis, a Draymond Green, or a Kyrie Irving.
15:48Everybody's going to say the same thing.
15:49These are older guys.
15:51What are the odds they make it?
15:52But I can surely tell you that if they do make it, you are way better off than you were
15:57the last few years with the roster as it was.
16:00So that's why I say damned if you do, damned if you don't.
16:03But if you can get guys somehow to the finish line, you have a much better chance to actually
16:08contend for a championship than you would have otherwise.
16:11Eddie Johnson, a serious XM, said that he believes he's made his decision already.
16:15Do you think LeBron has already made a decision?
16:17I did.
16:17I wasn't buying a lot of the panicky Pete's in the last week that have said, well, it
16:23was one way, but now he's changed his mind.
16:25I have never bought that.
16:26I understand.
16:27It could be wrong.
16:28Everybody seemed to say the same thing from Brian Windhorst to Jason Lloyd, Joe Varden,
16:33to whoever.
16:34They've all come around saying the same thing like nobody knows.
16:37The leaks have been bottled up.
16:40They're not giving this out to social media people.
16:43They're not giving this out to t-shirt companies.
16:46That was another one the other day.
16:47Oh, did you see Miami?
16:48The Heat are selling this shirt that harkens back to the last era.
16:53Like, I don't believe that any of that stuff has gotten out because if it had gotten out,
16:57you'd have so much more reporting on it.
16:59I do think he's made up his mind.
17:01I have no idea at this point why it's taking any more longer than it is.
17:06Kevin O'Connor seems to think it's about the next move and whether or not, you know,
17:12the teams are able to pull off that next move because that could be important to LeBron.
17:16Obviously, he doesn't want to go to the playoffs.
17:17But if he's already made it, see, this is what I don't agree with him.
17:20If he's already made up his mind and you're waiting for the next move, then you haven't
17:23made up your mind.
17:24Because what if another team that you haven't decided yet it makes the next move?
17:27Are you going to change your mind and go over there?
17:29Well, I think you're putting pressure on, let's say, he has his ranking of teams and
17:33he's like, all right, if all, if all, when all is said and done for happiness, for whatever,
17:40money, for situation, for culture, whatever, maybe nostalgia as well.
17:45Let's say we're the Cavs and I had all these things lined up.
17:48Now, he has to make the phone call to probably one person and one person only.
17:54And that's, he might have talked to Brandon Weems, but it's Kobe Altman.
17:57Okay, what are you putting around me in the playoffs?
18:00Because I, or in the regular season as well, because I, these are the things I can't do
18:03anymore in my career.
18:05So what can you do?
18:06Hold on.
18:07Let me figure it out.
18:08Now, you also have to be careful if you're Kobe Altman, because you don't want to do
18:12anything that gets all these rumors going to where you're held hostage.
18:16You know, that was the problem with the Celtics and Jalen Brown.
18:19Once it was evident that they needed to move Jalen Brown, the rest of the league was like,
18:23no, we're not bailing you out.
18:26We're not bailing you out of this situation.
18:27We're not helping you out.
18:29So you're going to have to sell off pennies on the dollar.
18:32Yeah.
18:33Well, the Cavs are in a spot where they can't have that happen because their assets are so
18:37restricted.
18:38They're so limited.
18:39But if you've made your decision, then what's the alternative?
18:44If you've made the decision for happiness and nostalgia, say it's Cleveland, right?
18:48And you're the general manager of the Cavs.
18:49He calls you up.
18:50I want to sign with the Cavs, but there's this, that, and the other.
18:54So you've made your decision for nostalgia and you've made your decision for happiness
18:57and business because if you come back to the Cavs, to me, it's the best story, championship
19:02or not.
19:04What if I can't make these moves?
19:05You're going to go to another team?
19:07Or are you just going to retire?
19:08He can always change his mind.
19:10I mean, you know for a fact that the Miami Heat have openly, their players have openly
19:13talked about doing everything they can, picking up the phone, calling him, recruiting him.
19:19So your mind isn't totally made up then?
19:21I guess until you sign on a diet of mine.
19:23You make your decision and that's where your decision is made.
19:25If you've made it for your personal happiness, that's where your decision is.
19:29If you could just be happier somewhere else or just as happy somewhere else and you're
19:33still leaving it open, then you haven't made your decision.
19:35I think nobody is 100%.
19:38Just like when you buy a home, it's not 100% until the title, everything is signed, all
19:43the finances are secure.
19:43Oh, that's why I like to just sign it as fast as I can so I don't have to think
19:46about it
19:47twice.
19:47Yeah, you don't have to worry about going the other way.
19:50So I think he has it in his mind.
19:54Also, who knows about the way he's going to make the decision, the way he's going to break
19:59it to the public.
20:00I have no idea about any of that stuff, obviously.
20:03I mean, he has maximized, and I think we would all agree, he has maximized what he can maximize
20:09when it comes to newsworthiness and agenda setting and making sure that he has been at
20:16the forefront of the NBA offseason now once the Giannis and Jalen Brown stuff is done.
20:21But this is where you're right.
20:23I mean, at some point when it comes to that, he's going to start to fall down the ladder.
20:28Like I told you, Nick Wright did a full podcast yesterday on it.
20:32Kevin O'Connor, Tom Habistro did a full podcast on it.
20:35These are basketball people.
20:35They're not going to do that a week from now.
20:36Oh, that's true.
20:37That's over.
20:38Yeah, that's true.
20:39But I mean, these are basketball guys.
20:40This is their lives.
20:41Like, we have to talk about other things as well, and we have already today.
20:44But what I have to say, though, is that if I can't make these decisions work, then to
20:50me, the next biggest threat is retirement.
20:53Because you're at least admitting to me on the phone, or I've admitted to you on the
20:58phone if I'm LeBron, that, yeah, I'm not going to be as happy in Minnesota, Philadelphia,
21:03Miami, than I am in Cleveland.
21:05All right, if you're not as happy, even if those teams make those moves, are you basing
21:09this on happiness?
21:10I know you can't change your mind, but that means, again, your decision isn't made.
21:13I would be more stunned if he were to retire than I would be that he would go to Minnesota
21:20or Philly.
21:21I'd be absolutely shocked.
21:21I'd be absolutely shocked.
21:22Considering what's on the table, it would be completely insane, I think, if he were
21:27to retire.
21:29I would be surprised.
21:33That's, to me, the most surprising.
21:35The second most surprising would be if he were to do, like, an Aaron Donald and wait until
21:38Christmas and say, like, listen, I'm still going to consider this.
21:43Let's leave some room open, but I got to go until Christmas, something like that, like
21:47halfway through the year.
21:48Like, that would be the second most surprising thing.
21:50I think you make your decision and you move on.
21:52And if you made your decision for happiness, if he's just waiting for the show of whenever
21:56he does it, whether it be on his podcast, does his wife have a show or something?
22:00Oh, I don't know.
22:01Does the missus have a show?
22:02Or am I thinking of Steph Curry's wife?
22:04Does she still have a show?
22:06Either way, if you're thinking about your own network to do it on, okay, that's fine.
22:10I can live with that.
22:11But if we're still waiting around to make a decision or you say you've made a decision
22:17and then you're waiting for all this, your mind isn't made up.
22:19Does it matter to anybody, I know we got to go, that he has not once said this would
22:24be his last year?
22:25It matters to me, yeah.
22:27Does that matter to anybody that he's never once pronounced next season is his final season
22:32in the NBA?
22:33Does it matter to anybody that he's not yet?
Comments