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00:00So, Daryl is in for Ken Carman today, and look, I heard a lot of stuff over the weekend that
00:06I could not believe.
00:08So, do you want me to start doing some myth-busting?
00:11I think we need to do some myth-busting, because a lot of revisionist history out there concerning the Cavaliers
00:20and what they did, what they should not have done, even though Clutch was intimately involved in some of the
00:27moves that the Cavs made.
00:29So, yeah, I think we need to do some myth-busting.
00:32All right, well, the first one that it was all about Darius Garland, right?
00:38That is the easiest one to debunk, because we've heard all the podcasts where they've commented or not commented on
00:48Darius Garland.
00:49And, look, I don't know how many times I need to stress this, but the money situation is what dictated
00:57that Darius was going to be out of control.
00:59It wasn't that Rich Paul hated the Cavs or anything like that.
01:03It's that once they traded for Donovan Mitchell, the writing was on the wall for Darius, because Evan was there,
01:11and he was going to get a max deal.
01:13And I don't know if you guys are paying attention on how the second apron works, but you can't do
01:19it.
01:19You just simply can't construct teams in that manner.
01:23And, obviously, Rich Paul wants Darius to get as much money as humanly possible.
01:28So, all this stuff that's come out over the last two days that, oh, if Darius would have been here,
01:34LeBron would have been here.
01:35I mean, it's total, utter nonsense, and I can't believe people are running with it.
01:39Number two, that LeBron just refused to play with James Harden.
01:45As if, by the way, it wouldn't be a good basketball fit.
01:48It would be.
01:49Like, we'll compare the fits in a second.
01:52But LeBron in the short roll is, like, one of the best at it ever, especially in this third act
01:58of his career.
02:00And James Harden's one of the best pick-and-roll players in the NBA.
02:03And I have all the numbers to back it up.
02:05I'm not going to bore you with it.
02:09Imagine LeBron setting a screen for James Harden, and then Harden being able to draw defenders the way he does,
02:17and the way that you can use spacing, and the way that he passes the ball.
02:20Like, it would be incredible to watch.
02:23And so, all of this, James, we've heard the podcast, too, like, specifically on February 17th,
02:31after the deal on the Mind the Game podcast, or whatever it was with LeBron,
02:36he's sitting there going, Cavs got better.
02:38Yeah.
02:38The Cavs got better with James Harden.
02:41Meaning that Darius was holding them back a little bit in the eyes of LeBron.
02:46Like, that's, and that's Rich's client.
02:48So, you know he's speaking freely, because why would he go on there?
02:51They wouldn't tell him to attack Darius Garland.
02:54So, that's nonsense.
02:55Number three, the whole Harden trade was a failure now.
02:59No, it wasn't.
03:01They got a better player.
03:02They went further in the playoffs, and they have more financial flexibility.
03:06Check, check, check.
03:08That's the easiest one to debunk of all of this.
03:10I don't understand where any of that stuff was coming from.
03:14Not to mention, Windy put that Darius finished the season healthy.
03:19And so, wow, that's a big mistake by the Cavs.
03:22No, he didn't.
03:23Yeah, didn't he say after the season that the toe was still bothering him?
03:27Yes.
03:27And he wouldn't be able to...
03:29He used it as an excuse in the first press conference he gave after they got eliminated,
03:34in which he fouled out and basically got played off the floor.
03:37He was so bad.
03:38In a play-in game.
03:39You guys are talking about James Harden being terrible in an Easter Conference Finals game.
03:43When are the games in the playoffs that Darius Garland has ever been good?
03:47And in his opportunity with Kawhi Leonard in a play-in game, didn't even make it out of that game
03:52alive, basically.
03:53So, one, two, three so far debunked.
03:55Do you want to go to number four?
03:57That Rich was mad at the Cavs over their treatment of Darius Garland.
04:02Well, that's interesting, considering they gave him, on the very first day he was extension-eligible,
04:08five years, $193 million, with the opportunity to make $231 million.
04:13If that is disrespectful, then I guess we have very different definitions of the term disrespectful.
04:19Number five, best chance to win.
04:22We can certainly debate this.
04:24It is subjective.
04:25Now, Zach Lowe over the weekend said he thought the Cavs would be better than what the 76ers are with
04:30LeBron.
04:30He thinks the Cavs would have been better.
04:31I heard Evan Turner say the same thing.
04:33Evan Turner's like, he should have gone to Cleveland if he was trying to truly have the best chance to
04:37win.
04:37Philly has a Joel Embiid problem.
04:40You guys all like to tell me about James Harden and all of his issues in the playoffs.
04:45His playoff career is legendary, to borrow a phrase from Shador Sanders.
04:50It's basically LeBron James' playoff career if you compare it to Joel Embiid's.
04:54Why?
04:55Because Joel Embiid doesn't play.
04:56He can't play.
04:57So, I keep seeing, look at this incredible starting five for the Philadelphia 76ers.
05:03Oh my God, the faces and the names.
05:06And Joel Embiid is on there, who I'm already seeing people in Philly and some national guys talk about trading.
05:12So, you can't call it this all-time starting five if you're already looking to trade him
05:17and if he's not going to potentially be available, which right now, prediction markets, here's a little tip.
05:25Probably put some money on the fact that he's not going to make it to the actual playoffs.
05:31Let's move on.
05:32Number six, that he went there because of Mike Gansey.
05:35It's not a good look for the Cavs right now, obviously, that Gansey goes there and looks like executive of
05:39the year.
05:40Let's see how this thing actually pans out.
05:43But I don't think it matters.
05:44I know they're in that photo.
05:45It was an awesome photo.
05:47We had fun with it.
05:47We went over all the names that I remember because that was from my high school days.
05:51Shout out to Mike Patrick from Perry.
05:53Went on to play his basketball at Walsh Jesuit.
05:55He's in that picture.
05:57If he would have been the GM, they probably would have gone there too.
05:59You know what?
06:00LeBron a lot closer to Brandon Weems than Mike Gansey.
06:03Yeah, exactly.
06:04I guess where LeBron is.
06:07Where's Weems, by the way, right now?
06:08Still has not been named the official GM of the Cavs.
06:12Do you want to move on to number seven that the Cavs stink?
06:14Here is Tom Haverstrow on his podcast from yesterday who's pretty plugged in.
06:21Does this sound like the Cavs stink to you?
06:23Let's start out with the Warriors.
06:24Of all the teams and fan bases that are most heartbroken right now, I guess it's Golden State and Cleveland
06:29for very different reasons.
06:30Golden State, to me, is so upset right now because it's clear that there really isn't much of a plan
06:36for the twilight of Steph Curry's career other than just letting this run its course.
06:40For Cleveland, they still went to the conference finals last year.
06:43Yeah, they got swept by the Knicks.
06:44But at least you have a core there that you can point to and say, hey, we still have a
06:48future with Evan Mobley, Donovan Mitchell, and James Harden.
06:50We're going to win 50 games next year and be right there in the thick of the race for the
06:53conference finals.
06:56Again, that was Tom Haverstrow.
06:58But, like, what was Kevin O'Connor saying over the weekend?
07:00The Cavs stink.
07:02When did we get this way in the NBA that 26 of the 30 teams stink?
07:07We don't do this in the NFL.
07:09We don't say that every team that doesn't win the Super Bowl had a failed season.
07:14But that is the way these NBA people talk about the league now.
07:18When I was growing up, it was the NBA.
07:20It's fantastic.
07:22The NBA, where anything can happen.
07:25Now, in 2026, the NBA, where 26 of our 30 teams flat out stink.
07:32Do you want me to continue, Daryl?
07:34Go ahead.
07:35Number eight, that this is a no vote on Donovan Mitchell.
07:38You know what is funny?
07:39I went through and did a deep dive.
07:41Tyrese Maxey's a really good player.
07:43Like, really good player.
07:44He's young.
07:45He's been ascending.
07:46Donovan Mitchell's numbers are better across the board at the same age.
07:49Like, and they're still better now.
07:52Like, there's no moment where he has ever outpaced Donovan Mitchell at the same age and had the playoff success.
08:00The playoff.
08:02Big number.
08:02And Maxey is ascending.
08:04But Donovan Mitchell has been a better player his entire career than Tyrese Maxey and also at the same age.
08:10Yeah.
08:10But I also think it is fair to say that Donovan Mitchell is not a number one.
08:15Okay.
08:16Yeah.
08:16Tyrese Maxey isn't either.
08:17You know, so, yeah.
08:21None of these myths have moved me.
08:27Number nine, the best starting five ever.
08:29I think I kind of went over that.
08:31Another one bled over into that one.
08:33And number ten, the final one.
08:34And this has nothing to do with the Cavs, but that this changes LeBron's legacy in any way.
08:40I just don't.
08:41I don't see that.
08:42Like, he shouldn't even be playing basketball at this point.
08:45Like, this is a bonus.
08:46The last seven years have been a bonus that we've even got to see him this time.
08:49He's going to be better for the 76ers than Michael Jordan was with the Wizards.
08:53Yeah.
08:54He's incredible.
08:55Yeah.
08:55And if he doesn't win the championship, I don't think it changes his legacy.
08:59However, if he wins a fifth NBA championship, a fourth with a fourth different team, then, to me, that elevates
09:07it.
09:07And then the question is asked, could Michael Jordan have won four championships with four different franchises?
09:16I know he won six.
09:17He went six for six with one.
09:19It's not as clean as, you know, people want it to be because sports have changed.
09:26You know, free agency is different.
09:27You move in free agency, and again, I'm saying assuming LeBron wins a championship with Philadelphia, they end their 43
09:36-year title drought.
09:39I mean, winning a championship is hard enough, but to go to four separate franchises and win a championship with
09:48them?
09:49I don't know, man.
09:50Yeah, that'd be incredible.
09:51That's some goat material for me.
09:53Yeah, I mean, that's why Tom Brady going to Tampa Bay and winning a Super Bowl.
09:57Did it without Bill.
09:59Didn't need Bill.
10:00It wasn't clean.
10:01Like, we like our players to play their whole career.
10:04But that's just from a different era.
10:06And he was able to help assemble a Super Bowl-winning team.
10:09LeBron thinks he's doing that in Philly.
10:11I don't think they will.
10:12I think they have some major, major challenges.
10:15The same stuff I would have said about the Cavs, by the way.
10:18I think there are some major fit issues in Philadelphia.
10:21Like, you imagine in a playoff series, like Jalen Brunson just picking on, you know,
10:27oh, Joel Embiid, come up.
10:28You're going to try to defend me.
10:31Maxie, you're going to try to defend me.
10:32LeBron, at your age, you're going to try to come up and defend me.
10:35Like, good luck.
10:36I can't see this iteration of the 76ers winning the championship, but I'll watch.
10:42Yeah.
10:42I'm going to watch.
10:43You'll be dialed in.
10:43I love the fact that Tom Brady won without Bill Belichick.
10:46Michael Jordan never won a title without Scottie Pippen.
10:49Yeah.
10:51Well, Bill Belichick's going to have to try to win at UNC this year without Mike Lombardi.
10:55Stay tuned for that news.
10:57Maybe Jeff will put it in the update.
10:58All right, LeBron didn't come here, so, you know, that stinks.
11:03For me, at least.
11:04I don't know how everybody felt because I think a lot of people pretended that they never wanted LeBron
11:10the minute he didn't decide to come in because you pivot.
11:13And, look, we're all guilty of this.
11:14We all get emotional on these things.
11:16We all cope.
11:17Like, I saw a bunch of people tweet at me.
11:18You're coping.
11:19Yeah.
11:20Yeah.
11:20I thought my basketball team with LeBron was going to be way better than without it.
11:24So, I'm coping.
11:26A hundred percent.
11:27And I see Philly fans are coming out.
11:29They've obtained some of our videos.
11:32So, they're coming after us.
11:34Hey, Philly should be pumped.
11:36They should wonder why he's not going to live in Philly.
11:39I mean, that's kind of weird.
11:40I just think the whole happiness thing ended up being one of the dumbest narratives out there.
11:46Ooh, you're myth-busting now.
11:48Yeah, because Philadelphia fan is some of the most miserable lot on the planet.
11:55I mean, these people boo Santa Claus.
11:57They complain two days after winning the Super Bowl about their offense.
12:03It's like, they're just, they're passionate, but they're miserably passionate in Philadelphia.
12:10And I can't imagine that LeBron James is truly going to be happy in Philadelphia.
12:18Well, I mean, imagine the first time he misses a layup or he misses a free throw.
12:24They're going to start booing him.
12:25Oh, come on.
12:26They're not going to.
12:26Yes, they are.
12:27Maybe by the end of the year, if things go south, but they're going to enjoy LeBron.
12:32LeBron is going to get booed on his home floor before he retires.
12:38That probably is something that probably is going to happen because they're not winning
12:43the championship.
12:44We all understand that, right?
12:45Like, Philly is not.
12:46If you guys were so sure that the Cavs, even if adding LeBron, I saw so many people definitively
12:53basically eliminate the Cavs.
12:54They got James Harden.
12:55They can't win the championship.
12:56All right, Philly's got Joel Embiid.
12:58They can't win the championship.
13:00Done.
13:00See how easy this is?
13:01If that's what we're going to do, and we're going to say 26 of the 30 teams stink every
13:05year, Philly, you stink.
13:06You're not going to win the championship.
13:08Your season's going to end in disarray.
13:10There will be boo birds.
13:12It's going to be a disaster by the end.
13:15Explain to me where the freedom of movement, how the offense is going to work.
13:20Like, if you're going to throw all these warning signs about how the Cavs roster is so bad and
13:27none of these things make sense, a terrible basketball fit, explain the fit in Philly.
13:32Like, your defense is going to be bad.
13:35Objectively, I'm trying to be as honest as I can.
13:37And I would have said it.
13:39If LeBron would have come to the Cavs, their regular season defense was going to be in big
13:43trouble.
13:43What if part of LeBron going to Philly was to elevate the clutch clients there that have
13:50assembled?
13:50I mean, now that's Rich's, that's at the forefront of Rich.
13:54Rich does not care about assembling championship teams anywhere unless, you know, that makes
13:58his players more money.
13:59His job is to get his guys paid and paid the maximum.
14:04And this is really the first time in LeBron's career where he is not getting every penny.
14:12I mean, he signed for basically the league minimum, two years, $8 million.
14:16Like, you know, so he's, he's always been a max player financially in the NBA.
14:24Well, it's a, it's a huge discount.
14:26Um, and that's, that's a big deal.
14:28What they were able to do basically on the cheap with the Cavaliers, here's the, here's
14:33the question that we have not really addressed is what would the financials look like with
14:39the Cavaliers because I suspect for LeBron to have come back to the Cavs, it was going
14:47to have to be for more money than just the minimum.
14:50That's my theory.
14:51That's my myth that I'll throw out there.
14:53Well, do you even think like LeBron was not going to come back for the veteran minimum
14:57with the Cavaliers?
14:59Um, you know, it's tough to say because I think people are now understanding that the
15:05goal, once he fell out of favor with the Lakers, right?
15:09I mean, the look at the money he signed for, like if he was willing to do this, why, why
15:13would he just go back to the Lakers?
15:15They wouldn't have to worry about moving or anything like that.
15:17It's because it looks like he, he wanted to go to New York.
15:19He wanted to go play for the Knicks.
15:21That was plan A.
15:21And then, and then the Knicks rained on his parade by winning the NBA championship in
15:27a weird way, right?
15:28Yeah.
15:28Like, um, cause he wanted, he, cause imagine this, right?
15:32You, um, start your career in Cleveland, you go to Miami, win a couple, you come back
15:36to Cleveland, win one, you go to LA, you lift them up.
15:40One of the storied franchises in the NBA, you win a championship there in the bubble, and
15:44then you end your career with the Knicks and end their drought.
15:47Like, that is as legendary, should or Sanders, as you can get as a player.
15:54Now, okay, well, the Knicks won the title this past season, so, uh, we're good, LeBron.
16:00You can go elsewhere.
16:02We got our trophy in the case.
16:03The drought is over.
16:05And so, well, the next best option available to him to try and end another drought is Philadelphia.
16:1143 years.
16:12I still can't believe 1983 is 43 years ago.
16:18And that, it blows my mind.
16:20And that Allen Iverson, Eric Snow, um, NBA finals run, right?
16:26Like that, uh, that was a long time ago.
16:27Was it 2001?
16:29Yeah, 2001, I think.
16:30Yeah.
16:30Um, was that the, uh, the Ty Lue game?
16:34Game one.
16:35Ty Lue.
16:35Allen Iverson went off for 40 and stepped over him.
16:38Uh, I have vivid memories of that series.
16:40I remember Ty Lue as head coach of the Cavaliers being asked about getting stepped over.
16:47Uh, Chuck in old Brooklyn.
16:49Go ahead.
16:50Next up on the fan.
16:50How are you?
16:51Yo, fellas.
16:52Thanks for taking my call, man.
16:53How you doing?
16:55Um, I just want to talk about this.
16:57It's out of all our senses, you know, it seemed like the spirit of common sense is what we
17:02don't use the most.
17:03You know what I mean?
17:04I mean, when LeBron came back the first time, it was unbelievable all because of the letter
17:10that Dan Gilbert wrote.
17:12No, everybody thought that would have sealed the deal.
17:15When he came back the first time, it was for the fans and he said it.
17:18I think the second time he didn't want to come back and win that owner another ring under
17:24the circumstances of him playing for less money.
17:26I mean, it all makes sense to me.
17:28Um, it hurts, you know, to me, I was calling them all typing names, but then at the end
17:32of the day, you got to understand, I mean, that letter was very crucial to me in this
17:38decision.
17:39It broke up the bond that he had with the city and it came between, um, him and the
17:44fans.
17:45You know what I'm saying?
17:46That letter.
17:47What do you guys think?
17:48All right, Chuck.
17:49Well, it's just, he got over it to come back because Dan flew to, flew to Florida and basically
17:54apologized and kissed the ring.
17:57And they agreed.
17:57I don't think that they became friends by any stretch of the imagination, but they agreed
18:01to go back into business together.
18:04Dan with, uh, I'll write, listen, I'll write the check.
18:08There'll be as many zeros on it needed to help win a championship.
18:11And LeBron said, fine, I'll come home.
18:13You're going to spend money.
18:14You're going to pay me the max money.
18:15You're going to pay everyone around us max money.
18:17We're going to go try and win a championship.
18:20And, and then once they accomplished that LeBron hung around for two more years,
18:25realized, all right, this isn't going anywhere off to LA.
18:28Like, and, and one, I've said this repeatedly once LeBron James won the NBA championship
18:34in 2016, that, that to me, cleared the books, cleared the decks.
18:39That's fine for me.
18:40Handshake.
18:41Thank you very much.
18:42We're even, we're good.
18:44You did right by us.
18:46Go, go live your life personally and professionally in a manner of, of your choosing.
18:51You've done right by us.
18:53Okay.
18:53We have nothing more to expect or ask of you.
18:57If he would have come, that's why like, you know, Friday I was on the air when the news
19:02broke, it was Dan Medigan and I, and it's why I, I, you know, wasn't raging radio lunatic
19:09that LeBron picked the 76ers over the Cavaliers because it's like, I get it.
19:15And he, he already did it.
19:18Now, had he come back for those four years and the Cavs never won a championship and then
19:23he went to LA and won a title and my reaction might be a little different, but no, we're
19:27good.
19:28Okay.
19:28So he's going to Philadelphia.
19:30Good luck.
19:30Not going to root for you.
19:32No, I'm going to hate watch, you know, I'm going to, I'm going to be back to the, uh,
19:35the Miami LeBron hate watching, which I had a lot of fun.
19:38I mean, maybe it does say a little bit about me, but, uh, you know, you can choose to be
19:44optimistic about life and look for good things.
19:46I'm going to look for bad here.
19:47I will be a hater.
19:48Yeah.
19:49Guilty as charged.
19:50And I think that's the fun.
19:51That's what sports is about.
19:52He now stands in the way of this iteration of the Cavaliers to try and win a championship
19:58and climb the mountain.
19:59And here's the area.
20:00I got to be honest with you.
20:01I think if you gate, because this was as they were going through the LeBron two point, uh,
20:07post 2.0 rebuild again, right?
20:09When Kobe Altman was reassembling this team, there was a little feeling within that organization
20:15and this was no slight at LeBron, but Hey, we're going to try and get, we don't have
20:20LeBron anymore.
20:20We're going to try and build our own team post LeBron.
20:24And I think that there's a little motivation internally with the Cavaliers to try and win
20:29a championship without LeBron.
20:31And again, that's no disrespect or shade at LeBron, but organizationally they should feel
20:37that way.
20:37Yes.
20:38We're eternally grateful for everything LeBron has meant to our franchisees.
20:42He's, he owns just about every record imaginable in our books.
20:46Okay.
20:47But now we're going to try what we just supposed to be in the lottery every year.
20:51No, they have built a really good team.
20:53Now, I don't know if they can win a championship, this group, but I'd rather sit here and have
20:58the conversations we've been having about this Cavalier team.
21:01You know, John the Camiga, is he going to make them better?
21:03I think he'll be better than Dean Wade.
21:05So yes.
21:06Is it good enough to help them win an NBA championship?
21:09Eh, probably not going to be the missing piece there.
21:12I would rather have these kind of...
21:14Winning the title thing is kind of hard.
21:15Right.
21:16And I would rather be having these type of conversations about how they bounce back from
21:20getting swept in the conference finals than them coming off a 19-win season in which
21:25they didn't win the NBA draft lottery, they had to pick third, fourth, fifth, whatever
21:29it ended up being, and how they're going to put Humpty Dumpty back together.
21:33Like, this is infinitely more fun and more entertaining to talk about.
21:40Right?
21:40But yeah, there's no rooting for LeBron now.
21:42He's now in the way of this Cavalier organization trying to win another NBA championship.
21:48And they've got a really, really good team.
21:50They're going to win at least 50 games next season.
21:53Oh, there's some people who doubt that.
21:54There's a lot more teams that are trying to win in the Eastern Conference.
21:57Oh, it's fine, but I think they're going to win at least 50 next season.
21:59It's 50 games.
22:00I mean, I, I, and I think they can still be a top four seed in the conference.
22:04Funny you should say that.
22:05The Lions came out this morning for opening win total.
22:07Did they?
22:09The Cleveland Cavaliers are at 48 and a half games right now.
22:13I'm taking the over.
22:14You will.
22:15I'm taking the over.
22:16I gotta wait.
22:17That is a decrease of seven games.
22:19Yeah.
22:19Well, remember, they won 64 the year earlier.
22:23They won 52 last year.
22:25I'm going to pause on that until I see what they're doing.
22:30As their off season now starts, everybody else already done with theirs.
22:34Let's see what happens.
22:35I will say one last note.
22:37I know we got to go.
22:38The Dan Gilbert part of this, you know, people have wondered, oh, they mended defenses and
22:41all that.
22:42I mean, I've heard Dan.
22:43I know he doesn't speak like he used to, right?
22:46Yeah.
22:47You know, he's been dealing with a lot, but when he talks kind of conspicuous how much
22:52he doesn't ever mention LeBron James.
22:54A lot has, I don't know if people go back to that win over Detroit, that game seven
23:01win over Detroit.
23:02Gilbert's comments there.
23:03You can read between the lines.
23:05Yeah, I think so.