PMT DB
PMT DB
Mike Golic on Mike & Mike's Future, J.J. Watt, and the Polish Goal Line
We are officially in the post-Super Bowl hibernation period where there is absolutely no football on television and everyone is slowly losing their minds. Hank has been caught watching Patriots Super Bowl replays at least six times this week just to feel something, while Big Cat and PFT Commenter are trying to fill the void with NBA drama and early-season award show "lib-offs."
Cupcakes and Coddled Stars
Kevin Durant finally made his return to Oklahoma City, and while the atmosphere was electric, Big Cat wasn't entirely impressed by the local hospitality. The "cupcake" theme was everywhere, but the vitriol felt just a little bit light for a guy who joined the 73-win team that just beat him.
Big CatI actually thought the boos for Kevin Durant's return to Oklahoma City weren't loud enough
I actually thought the boos [for Kevin Durant's return to Oklahoma City] weren't loud enough. [Durant] said, 'I thought that they'd be louder.' Kind of a little twist in the knife there.
Speaking of KD, the conversation turned to his place in the pantheon of NBA villains. While LeBron James famously took the brunt of the heat for "The Decision," the guys feel like Durant has largely skated by with a fraction of the criticism despite his sensitive relationship with the media.
Big CatKevin Durant is the most coddled star in the NBA and has received significantly less backlash than LeBron James did
[Kevin Durant]'s been the most coddled star out there. I mean, LeBron got killed for not winning a title in Cleveland the first go-around, and basically killed for going to Miami and all that stuff. Kevin Durant got a little bit of backlash, but for the most part, he's supposed to be one of the top three players in the league, and he hasn't won a title.
If the beef between KD and Russell Westbrook ever spills over into an actual physical altercation, PFT Commenter has a very specific vision of how that ends. It wouldn't be a boxing match; it would be a primal struggle fueled by Westbrook's pure, unadulterated rage.
Big CatRussell Westbrook would 100% win a fight against Kevin Durant because he would just bite him to death
[In a fight between Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, I'd take] Westbrook, 100%. Just purely because of his anger. He's just angry. I think he would just use his teeth. He would just bite Kevin Durant to death.
Who's Back: Awards and Tight Shorts
With football in the rearview, the guys turned their attention to the Grammys and the return of award season. PFT Commenter is leading the charge for a retrospective award for the song that dominated the late 90s and every sporting transition since.
PFT Commenter'Smooth' by Matchbox 20 and Santana deserves a Lifetime Achievement Award
Can we get a Lifetime Achievement Award for Matchbox 20 and Rob Thomas doing 'Smooth' with Carlos Santana? You never hear about Lifetime Achievement Awards for a song. But if there is one, it should absolutely go to 'Smooth'. That song took over a whole summer. Every single time that there's a national sporting event on TV, you can count on 'Smooth' to be one of the transition songs.
In the world of college basketball, a revolution is brewing in the wardrobe department. The era of baggy shorts dragging below the knees is over, as players look to streamline their look for maximum agility and style.
PFT CommenterShort, tighter shorts are making a major comeback in college basketball
The bagginess has gotten way too far. It's getting in the way of the dribbles. These guys like to go between their legs a lot, you know, with these new players out there. So they're bringing back short, tighter shorts. A couple guys in Indiana are doing it. I've seen it across the Big East, too, I think. So we're going to see a major swing here. Get out in front of this. If you're a college basketball player, tighten those things up.
Meanwhile, the "Fire Tom Crean" crowd is back in full force after Indiana's latest collapse. Big Cat isn't worried about Crean's future, though, because his legendary sideline expressions are a commodity in the modern media landscape.
Big CatTom Crean will be hired by another team specifically because he has a 'contentable' face
Tom Crean, he will get fired by Indiana sooner rather than later. But someone will hire him simply because of his face. He's got a brand. Crean has a contentable face. He has an exceptionally stupid-looking face. And that in itself, that's a brand that people will be like, oh, wow, where is Tom Crean coaching? He can go coach the Missouri Valley, and people will now be watching Missouri Valley games because of his name and his face.
Mike Golic Joins the Program
Radio Hall of Famer Mike Golic sat down with the guys during Super Bowl week to discuss his 18-year run with Mike Greenberg. The interview started with the only appropriate tribute: Golic eating a sandwich with a fork and knife to honor Greeny's weirdest habit.
Naturally, the conversation moved to Notre Dame and the status of Brian Kelly. Golic didn't mince words about where the program stands after a disastrous four-win season.
Mike GolicBrian Kelly knows he is on the hot seat at Notre Dame
Brian Kelly knows that he's on the hot seat. I mean, the people in the facility, the players and the coaches know that if they don't improve, things are going to change. So going into this year, Brian Kelly knows that he has to improve, and hopefully they can.
When he isn't sleeping on his office floor in his underwear or raising pugs, Golic is still keeping a close eye on the league. Despite the hand-wringing over TV numbers and the election cycle, he remains bullish on the NFL's dominance.
Mike GolicThe NFL is still king and ratings aren't in real trouble despite the 2016 dip
I don't think the league's in trouble at all. I don't. I mean, it's still king. Even though when their ratings were down, any other sport would still take the ratings. And I think one of the things you look at is it was also an election year that hurts ratings. I think after the election was over, some of the ratings started to go back up.
He also weighed in on the PMT favorite topic of J.J. Watt's "football guy" status. While the guys love to joke that the Texans defense improved in his absence, the former defensive lineman isn't buying the hype that Houston is better off without a three-time Defensive Player of the Year.
Mike GolicThe Houston Texans are definitely not better off without J.J. Watt
How could you be better without [J.J. Watt]? You know, no matter what people think about him off the field, on the field, he's a pretty darn good player. Now you put him with Mercilus and Clowney, it'll be interesting what happens. So to say the Texans would be better with him off the football field, I don't think is—that's just [the PMT] hot take.
To wrap things up, the guys put Golic's competitive spirit to the test. After nearly two decades of being the "athlete" of the duo, he addressed whether he could actually take down his partner in Greeny's preferred sport.
Mike GolicI would beat Mike Greenberg in tennis if my life was on the line
If my life was depending on it, I would practice enough and do enough to beat him because I knew my life was on it. [Greeny] can't even play his one little nerd sport better than [me]. He's probably better than me at all, but in that given situation, not only would I try and beat him, the best way to do it would be try and somehow hurt him during the match so he couldn't finish.
Segments and Stay Woke
James Dolan continues to provide a masterclass in PR 101. After the Charles Oakley incident, the Knicks brought out Latrell Sprewell to sit with Dolan in an attempt to show they still love their alumni. It’s a bold move to use the guy who once choked his coach to prove you aren't the bad guy, but that's the Knicks for you.
In Philadelphia, "The Process" is hitting a snag as Joel Embiid deals with more knee issues. The timing is suspicious, coming right after he was spotted dancing on stage at a concert. Big Cat warned us that the Twitter jokes might dry up once the injuries start piling up.
Big CatJoel Embiid will stop being funny on Twitter when he starts playing poorly or getting hurt more
I predicted like a month ago how Joel would not be so funny on Twitter when he starts fucking up. So this is the first one. He's injured like every other day. He's got a lot of time to go back and forth. Take away his umlaut over the Joel. You're just Joel now.
Finally, we checked in on the Bulls, where Rajon Rondo is still doing Rondo things. It turns out that hunting for triple-doubles doesn't always lead to winning basketball, especially when you're passing up layups to find a teammate behind the arc.
Big CatRajon Rondo passes up easy layups specifically to hunt for assists
You know what Rondo does that's so fucking annoying? Everything, but he also loves, loves, loves to pass up super easy layups just to get assists. He's the worst with that. He did that today when the Bulls got smoked by the Wolves. He was ready to go for a layup, and then he passed it for a three-pointer. Dude, just fucking shoot the layup. Stop trying to get assists.
Hopefully, we can all make it to Wednesday without another video of CeeLo Green dressed like a golden robot.
