Takes

Anthony Edwards has an incredible instinct for knowing exactly when to take over a game

Since I've got here, [Anthony Edwards] has always had this incredible sense for the moment within a game of like knowing when to take over and it could be defensively too. He gets on these mini runs and he could turn a quarter or turn a game around in a heartbeat. He's way more thinking the game than he had early on.

The Chicago Bulls are a joke of an organization with no path forward

This franchise [the Bulls] is a joke and it should be called out as a joke and stop pretending that March and April basketball means something and actually pick a lane and go for it. They do not know how to tank. They do not know how to win.

A 71-47 score is the largest possible 24-point deficit in basketball

The halftime lead for the Heat was 71-47 and that is pretty much the largest 24-point deficit you can have... It feels like 30. If you can jump over multiple digits of 10, that's when it appears so much larger.

Kawhi Leonard is currently playing like a machine

I watched Kawhi go through some pre-game shooting routines where he was as impressive... all Kawhi does is look like a machine. I remember watching him make like 96 out of a hundred 17-footers. That's what Kawhi looks like right now.

The 'Rule of 5' is the mandatory limit for a group dinner to be productive

Rule of five, no dinners more than five people. I will maybe sometimes allow a sixth if it's somebody's spouse... I want everybody at the table to hear the other people. If I go to a dinner and there's four of us and they call back later and say we're adding people, I'm like 'okay, you guys have fun. I'll go someplace else.'

The Lakers' roster is not currently built to win the 12 playoff games necessary to win the Western Conference

I don't think there's a lot of pressure on the Lakers... they're not built. The roster isn't built out to win 12 playoff games to win the West, in my opinion.

Donovan Mitchell faces immense pressure to prove he can carry a team deep into the postseason

I think there could be a little bit of pressure on Donovan Mitchell... he has spent this whole year as the Cavs racked up 64 or 65 wins saying, none of this matters if you don't win. I think people are gonna look at him and go, well are you really a type of guy who can carry a team?

NBA players do not respect the Oklahoma City Thunder because they haven't won in the playoffs yet

The thing I've noticed about Oklahoma City is that the players [in the league] don't respect them... they're not afraid of them. Even though they won 68 games this year... you just don't respect young guys who haven't done it before.

The Bulls are currently rebuilding and don't even realize it

The Bulls are in a rebuild and they don't know they're in a rebuild. And that's almost the worst position to be in... If you don't have the dude, you're not going anywhere. You gotta kill yourself to get the dude and the Bulls aren't doing things to get the dude.

Zach Edey needs to stop bringing the ball down on rebounds to avoid being stripped

somebody needs to pull him aside and be like, youngster, you need to quit taking the ball down on rebounds. Yeah. You put that ball up higher, you're taller than everybody else. 'Cause he's addicted to it. He does it every single time to get stripped.

NBA divisions are completely useless and should be abolished

Divisions in the NBA are, there's literally no reason for 'em. It's meeting, there's... Just get rid of them. Get rid of them. So stupid. No one cares about the divisions.

Kyle Shanahan is now the top candidate for the 'Can't Win The Big One' narrative

Kyle Shanahan needs a Super Bowl so badly. It's, it's desperate. It's aged him. Have you seen the before and after? Yeah. It's like he's a president.

The Celtics bench development is just as important as the starters' playing time

We don't have our top guys today. This game matters even more. Because development goes a lot of different ways... you have to deliver every single night when you are a Jalen or a Jason... to give them three, four nights where they have to deliver that to me is just as important to their development as the skill work.

Soccer cutting and spacing tactics translate directly to basketball

Cutting a place. You know, the way you cut can open up a two on one, you know, for the guy next to you... to move the defense. That stuff comes from soccer. That's my favorite sport to watch.

Success in the playoffs isn't about following a specific curriculum or number of games

there's just no one way to go about achieving your goal. Like if you study the rounds leading up to a successful team, there's no curriculum of like, you have to go five this one, you have to go six this one, you can't go seven here, you can't lose game one... being open-minded to knowing that it'll be one of the hardest things that we ever go through together.

I'll die on the hill that sleep talking is not evidence of cheating

Sleep talking is not evidence. I'll die on that hill. Sleep talking is not evidence. No one knows what you're saying in your sleep. No one has any like, people will just sleep talk and they have no recollection of what they were dreaming about or what they were saying.

Mouth tape leads to more restful sleep

I'm a mouth tape guy now. I do feel more rested with mouth tape. It just forces you to breathe out your nose.

I would rather have a set of guys I hate in golf than root for whoever wins

I would rather have a set of guys that I root for and a set of guys I hate than be like, I'm just rooting for whoever wins. And then when they win, I say, what a great story. Rory deserved it.

I prefer Rory winning a Masters through a series of chokes and comebacks rather than a comfortable blowout

If Rory was gonna win the career Grand Slam, I wanted to see him push to the brink. So, and he almost went in the water at 11... the fact that Rory was pushed to the brink made me, even as a hater, I had to tip my cap. Like the career achievement... he choked and he unchoked and he choked. And then he got like, the shot of a lifetime on 15.

Rory McIlroy's Masters win extinguished the hater narrative forever

It's a much harder hate. Yeah. We had to retire it. That's what I'm sad about. We had to retire because Rory, no matter what he is now the sixth all time to have the career Grand slam... He beat all the haters. Including us.

Ludvig Åberg would have had an all-time meltdown if he had been in the final group during his final holes

If he had the lead outright and that's how he ended his round, people would be, let's say he was in the final group today and that's how he finished his round. When he was in contention to win. People would be talking about that as maybe the biggest meltdown outside that French guy [Jean van de Velde] at the open championship. Or Greg Norman.

LIV golfers are no longer serious contenders at the Masters compared to PGA Tour players

I'm done with with thinking that, you know, the live guys can make it happen. The masters... as the years have gone on, yes. It's 'cause they Yes. They all have a ton of money. Yes. And they're all playing 54 holes... they're not pushed the same way.

The NBA Play-In tournament is a ploy for owners to convince fans they made the playoffs

I've said from the beginning it is a ploy for the Jerry Reinsdorf type owners to convince their fan base that they've made it to the playoffs when they have not. I hate the playing tournament... it sucks.

Stan Van Gundy is wrong about Knicks and Sixers fans being fairweather

I couldn't disagree more living in New York for whatever we did, six, seven years. Knicks fans love their team. They just fucking expect, they want them to be good... what Stan Van Gundy is describing. That's just fans.

Tennessee was smart to move on from Nico Iamaleava

What Tennessee did was actually smart. They came out and they said, we're moving on from Nico. Yeah. Before Nico had a chance to be like, I've entered the transfer portal. He wasn't good enough to get a million and a half raise.

Nico Iamaleava is receiving bad career advice from his father/agent

I think he's getting bad advice from his, so his dad is his agent, which also complicates thing because when your dad is your agent... he doesn't have to act in good faith... I think it's shortsighted because Nico, if he had a really good year in Josh Heupel's offense could be a high draft pick.

Donald Trump reports his weight as 224 pounds specifically to troll the media and trigger a reaction

He's actually lost weight. He's 224... 6'3" 224. So that is that's RG3... I think that he does that now. Like at first I think he was lying about it. Now he lies about it because he knows that people are going to make fun of him for lying about it.

Rory McIlroy's Masters win was primarily 100% relief

It was almost all relief. And the thing that Andy North described to me... you feel so much more relief than joy... it was so obvious that sure there's joy in there... but clearly it was like, just thank God I did it.

Wearing an upside-down hat at Augusta is disgusting and beneath the tournament

I kind of agree with people who are like the upside down hat at the, at Augusta's bullshit. It's beneath Augusta. Yeah. And his defense, he was probably hammered... I saw the hat and I was like, this is disgusting. You can't do this to Augusta.

Patrick Reed winning the Masters is great because of the chaos and anger it causes

I like it when Patrick Reed wins the Masters because it makes everybody so mad. I like how angry he makes golf people. So I don't like him, but I do enjoy watching the chaos when he does well.

You cannot fire Michael Malone if he wins two NBA titles in three years

If he then comes back and wins a second NBA championship in three years and your team's never won one before... That is a good thing. Yeah. No matter what like concerns you have about his coaching style or whether it's built for long-term success. If he wins two in three years, you cannot fire him.

It is not gay to take a shower in a gym locker room after a workout

I finally look up, I'm like, is he yelling at me? And he's staring at me... 'bro, what the fuck are you doing? What the fuck is this gay shit, bro, you gonna shower?'... I really do. I love Joey Swoll. Love his content. He's the best. Joey, I need you to weigh in on this. Am I outta line? Should, should. Is it gay as shit to shower after you work out?

The Washington Capitals are not legitimate Stanley Cup contenders despite their record

Why I don't think [the Capitals] are gonna win it... It's kind of just like a gut feeling. I think last year they were so bad and I know it's a different team. I'm like, how would this team be that good the next year? ... I don't really buy [them].

David Pastrnak should be a top five MVP candidate for carrying a talentless Bruins roster

The coolest story of the Bruin season is Pastrnak. He has a hundred points. The next guy has 55 points. That's crazy. It's actually one of the, he should be like probably top five in MVP for what he's done because he has nobody.

Houston was uncomfortable not playing from behind in the title game

I think that Houston was uncomfortable not playing from behind. I feel like Houston had had to lead the whole game and they were like, wait, we're, we're usually the ones that are, that are coming back at the last minute.

Will Richard was the real player of the game for Florida in the National Championship

Walter Clayton got player of the tournament player of the Final Four, which he deserved... But Will Richard was the player of the game for this game. And it was him keeping them afloat in the first half with his threes. And then if you look at the final possession, his on-ball defense in the final possession is where like all the timing for Houston got screwed up.

Todd Golden's technical foul was the most strategic in history

Todd Golden probably deserves credit... his technical was maybe the most strategic technical of all time. Because after his technical foul, which was of I think like three or four minutes into the second half, the fouls went 13 to three on Houston.

Seth Davis's 'refereeing is art' take is the dumbest argument ever

Seth Davis though tweeted this about the refs... 'Reffing is more art than science.' I'm gonna disagree with that. I think that's, that makes me want robot s. That's the dumbest argument I've ever heard. If the refs don't call physical play or something that happens in the first half and then all of a sudden they decide that they're gonna call that a foul, that's very confusing for the players.

Duke losing is still a bigger story than Florida winning the National Championship

I think the story from this final four though, if we're gonna think back, put yourself in a time machine 10 years from now, Duke, Duke losing it is still the, it still the story of the final four. Yes. That I I will die on that hill.

The 2025 Final Four will be remembered as the Final Four of Chokes

I think it'll be remembered as the, the final four of chokes. [Cooper Flagg] choked. [Kelvin Sampson]... this would've been 800. Brutal.

The Florida championship win means college basketball is alive and well

It turns out that the only thing that we could say after the tournament was over if Duke had won: NIL ruined college basketball. And since Florida won and they didn't have freshmen, it's college basketball alive and well.

The Nuggets firing Michael Malone right before the playoffs makes no sense

I would keep the coach that you're winning right before the Playoffs... your NBA title coach, the only one you have in your history of your franchise Right before the Playoffs. Makes no sense.

Nikola Jokic definitely signed off on the Nuggets firing Michael Malone because he doesn't want to be annoyed by a coach

Jokic had to sign off on this, right?... with Jokic, I feel like you, he's always teetering on the edge of being like, 'You know, I don't really like playing basketball. I'd rather just hang out with my horses.' You don't wanna piss 'em off. So I feel like you have to have that conversation with 'em.

I am officially 'opting out' of ever playing Augusta National

I have opted you. You forget Big Cat like three years ago on this show. I said I don't want to play at Augusta. I'm not Augusta material. All right. Fair. I'm opting out.

It is more likely that Sydney Sweeney DMs Hank than it is for Augusta to invite him to play

You work on the, at the number one sports podcast in America. You think it's more likely that Sydney Sweeney [messes with] you than Augusta invites you?... I kind of agree with them. No one plays at Augusta. It's impossible. I kind of agree with them.

I'm the freshest person in the Masters field

I am the freshest person here. I have not played a weekend in over like a month and a half and I, I have been getting more rest, more time on my couch. Like all these guys are gonna be exhausted by the time the tournament comes and I'm just cruising on it.

The road to being a good golfer is to eliminate big mistakes by not overswinging

I respect that you've come to that, that that is how I would say the, that's the road to good is to eliminate the, the big mistakes by not over swinging.

Tiger Woods is no longer a 'force of nature' in golf

Tiger Woods such a force of nature in golf for the last 20 years... this does feel like the first year where it's, I don't wanna say it's over 'cause I hope he plays again, but it does feel kind of over where it's like, you know, the Achilles injury and he already was already banged up and the leg problems. Is it do, can you feel that vibe where it's like that force of nature is no longer here?

White Lotus Season 3 is the worst season of the series

I'd put it clearly number three. I think clearly number three, I think season, I'm gonna go season two. Yeah. Then season one. Barely. And then clearly season three.

The Ratliff fake-out suicide arc in White Lotus Season 3 was annoying and repetitive

The Ratliff story was, was one of my biggest issues... that was like the sixth time we had a dream sequence slash something happened where they tried to fake us out that he was committing suicide or killing his family. Enough of it.