PMT DB
PMT DB
Shams Charania and Danny Trejo on NBA Protests and Movie Deaths
A heavy week in the sports world took center stage as the NBA, MLB, and even the MLS came to a halt following the shooting of Jacob Blake. Big Cat and PFT opened the show by acknowledging the gravity of the moment, with Big Cat offering his perspective on why the players chose to use their platforms to enact change rather than just being an escape for the fans.
Big CatUsing leverage to protest for change is the most American thing you can do
I'll always support the right to protest in this country. Being able to use your leverage and power to protest to try to enact change is kind of the most American thing you can do in my mind personally. It's why this country so great is that you have the ability to say, I don't agree with something, I want to change something.
They didn't shy away from the reality that the relationship between sports and politics has permanently shifted. While some fans might want to stick their heads in the sand, Big Cat and PFT are embracing the fact that players aren't going to stay quiet anymore.
Big CatSports will never return to a state where players don't use their leverage for political activism
I don't think it's ever going to go back to players not using their leverage in terms of getting into political arguments or political discussions or activism or that sort of thing. So at this point it's like you can either stop watching sports entirely or you can just kind of accept that this is going to be the new normal. You're putting your head in the sand if you think that it's ever going to go back to more of the way it was when these two things didn't interact as much.
Inside the Bubble with Shams Charania
NBA insider Shams Charania joined the show from inside the Orlando bubble to give the definitive timeline of how the Milwaukee Bucks' decision to boycott Game 5 blindsided the rest of the league. Shams detailed the tense late-night meetings, including LeBron James and the L.A. teams initially voting to end the season entirely.
Shams CharaniaNBA games will likely resume by Saturday following the protest
My sense is, the games will either begin Friday or Saturday. It's seeming more and more like Saturday because you want to give maybe these guys one more day of self-care and really practice for some of these teams.
Shams provided the scoop on how Udonis Haslem helped bridge the gap between the younger players and the veterans, and why the owners eventually stepped up with a $300 million fund to support Black communities. It was a fascinating look at the pecking order of the NBA and how George Hill essentially forced the hand of the biggest stars in the world.
Danny Trejo: The Ultimate Bad Guy
Transitioning from the serious to the legendary, the guys welcomed actor Danny Trejo. The man has been in over 300 movies, but he hasn't let fame change him. He’s still the same guy who became a boxing champion in San Quentin and now spends his time opening taco shops and giving back to the community. He shared stories about working with Robert De Niro and Michael Mann, and he finally addressed his incredible record for dying on screen.
I have died on screen more than any other actor in film history
I've died more than anybody in the film industry. I have the record. I think they said 63 deaths. That's a lot. God, that's crazy.
Trejo also dropped a bombshell about one of the most unexpected tough guys in Hollywood. While filming Con Air, he witnessed firsthand that John Cusack is not someone you want to mess with in a dark alley.
John Cusack is a 'bad mother' who could break bones with his kicks
People don't know it, but God, I would forget his name—Cusack. People don't realize Cusack is a bad mother... I watched [John Cusack] kick the heavy bag—you know the tall ones—I watched him kick one and bend it. That means broken ribs, broken leg, broken arms. He will break anything.
The Lottery Machine and Fyre Fest
In much lighter news, Big Cat's Fyre Fest involved the arrival of a $1,500 professional lottery machine he ordered from China via Alibaba. He is now officially addicted to the high of the ping-pong balls, using it to gamble on everything from Billy Football’s career choices to Jake Marsh's future. Between Big Cat's gambling habit and PFT wearing Nike Zoom 720s that act as literal lifts, the energy in the studio was chaotic as usual.
They also checked in on the latest "reporting" from Sir Yacht, who continues to claim the Big Ten is coming back every twelve hours. Big Cat isn't buying the smoke, even if he wants to believe it.
Big CatSir Yacht's reporting on the Big Ten is completely fabricated
Sir Yacht is a choose-your-own-adventure source. He's wrong all the time, a hundred percent of the time. He pretty much makes it up. But if you want to live in a fantasy land like I do, listen to Sir Yacht and ignorance is bliss in this respect. I do love the fact that like twice a week the Big Ten comes back.
Bigger Than Ben
To wrap things up, the guys reviewed the first episode of Ben Roethlisberger’s new YouTube documentary, *Bigger Than Ben*. Big Cat noted that for a documentary titled after his size, it was mostly just a tribute to Big Ben's own legendary toughness and his wife.
Big CatThe 'Bigger Than Ben' documentary is just a love letter to Roethlisberger's own pain tolerance
It was a love story to his wife, to his own pain tolerance, I would say. And then also I didn't understand the beginning when he was talking about all the haters and it's like who is really hating Ben? ... It was essentially the 'hey we need to remind everyone that Ben's the toughest' quote.
Big Cat was inspired enough by the self-seriousness of the project that he’s considering filming his own documentary right now, mostly for the aesthetics.
Big CatI need to film myself now to memorialize being relatively thin before I gain 40 pounds by October
Can we make a documentary of me in a t-shirt right now so I can memorialize this period in my life before I put on 40 more pounds in October?
If Ben can turn a routine elbow surgery into a 14-minute cinematic event, Big Cat can certainly memorialize his current weight before the winter sets in.
At least we know if things go south, Big Cat can always fall back on his career as a professional lottery ball operator.
