Takes

The Ravens are using a two-QB package as a passive-aggressive way to bench Joe Flacco

The Ravens just blew our minds. They're working on a package that has two quarterbacks on the field at the same time... This is the passive-aggressive Ravens way of just like, kind of easing [Joe Flacco] out. Just like having the formation change slowly until Lamar Jackson is standing directly in front of him on every snap.

Jimbo Fisher is a massive upgrade for Texas A&M

[Jimbo Fisher] is a big deal for us. It had been in the works for what seemed like a year and a half... I think we were ready for a little bit of a change and a guy who doesn't happen a lot where you get a coach that leaves from a national championship contending team and goes to a team that wants that.

Drake is laying low following the Pusha T beef and will likely return with a response

[Drake] could use a friend right now. I wouldn't say he's dead. I would say he's probably laying low... I definitely feel in his defense that something was either made or another track was either made in the process and something is like—you've got to look at it as a business too. Is it even worth kind of replying back to Pusha T?

The Cleveland Browns will be an exciting team this season with Baker Mayfield

Cleveland might be one of the most exciting teams in football this year just because they've got so much going on and then they get Baker potentially... If they go 7-9 this year versus, but if they go 2-14, it's kind of as expected.

Kyrie Irving wants to leave Boston for the New York Knicks

There's a lot of rumblings coming out of Boston right now that Kyrie Irving might be thinking about going somewhere else after next season... Kyrie has always had his eyes on New York, and so he's always wanted to be a Nick.

A winning pitcher hugging a batter after a strikeout is a disgusting display of pity

This is disgusting. I would put one in that pitcher's ear hole next time he got up... That's a more disgusting move than pimping a home run. That's showing up your opponent more. Go up to him and be like, 'Hey, I'm going to give you a big hug because you can't handle this big loss.'

The US will win the 2018 World Cup

I'm going with the U.S... They could still come back. You never count the U.S. out until they're totally out.

Uruguay will win the 2018 World Cup

I'll take Uruguay. Luis Suarez. I actually put a little money on that, so we'll see how that goes.

Russia will win the 2018 World Cup

I got Russia.

Teams should hesitate to sign LeBron James to a Supermax due to his whiteboard-punching 'hand injury'

how does lebron's like terrible terrible very very painful looking um displaced compound fracture hand injury affect his free agency status because if I was a team, I would hesitate against paying a guy with an injury like that a Supermax contract.

There is a 'Cavaliers Curse' affecting teams named the Cavaliers

We talk a lot about curses on this show. I think it's fair to ask, given the showing in recent basketball tournaments by teams named [Cavaliers], is there a Cavs curse? [UVA and Cleveland].

The Warriors can play only 15 minutes of real basketball and beat anyone in the world

The Warriors can play 15 minutes of Warriors basketball and beat anyone in the world, and they just needed to be pushed a little. And even if you saw their body language going to that game six and seven in Western Conference rounds, they didn't care. They're like, yeah, we're going to still win.

The Capitals are going to win only nine games next year and I am fine with it

I wouldn't be surprised if the Washington Capitals won nine games next year. And I'm totally fine with that. I am 100% fine with them absolutely crapping themselves because it was all worth it.

The Colts are favorites to finish second in the AFC South behind the Jaguars

the Colts, just in general, are back this year. I think you've got to pencil them in as favorites to come in second in that division behind the Jaguars.

People who think Michael Jordan is better than LeBron James have a real basketball mind

people that love Jordan, it makes it obvious that you're just into the memes and that sort of thing. And those are the people that side with LeBron. That's how I know who actually has a basketball mind. Oh, you're going to do that? Like LeBron. Yeah, if you think Jordan's better, that's cool. Listen, you're going to like Jordan. It just tells me where you're at intellectually on a basketball level.

If Kevin Durant and LeBron James switched teams, the Warriors would still sweep the Finals

I think the Warriors win the title and sweep in the finals.

The Cavaliers would have beaten the Warriors if they had Draymond Green

I actually would say that if LeBron could even take Draymond Green from the Warriors, the Cavs would win. ... I think what [Draymond] does for the Warriors, and if you had a guy like that on the Cavs, I think they would have had enough to beat the Warriors.

The NBA should abolish the draft and let college players become free agents immediately

Are we sure we need an NBA draft? Why not let the guys just become free agents? Like, they just graduated college, and now they're just free agents out of the gate. And it's like people just try to sign college players. Because it's going to happen anyway.

Luka Doncic is overhyped by 'nerds' and the EuroLeague is a garbage league

The nerds love Doncic, and it almost is offensive to me just how they talk about Doncic. There's like a slant against college basketball in how people talk about Doncic. I'm not going to pretend like I've watched the guy, but my problem is the beef I have is that everyone else is pretending like they've watched the guy... you go look at who's actually won EuroLeague MVPs and what it takes to win a EuroLeague MVP, and you're like, holy shit. That is a garbage league. These are not great players.

Colin Sexton will be a better NBA point guard than Trae Young

It hurts me to say it, but probably Colin Sexton. Just because Colin Sexton, that dude... he has that drive and the intangibles and all that kind of stuff that people go nuts for. Manalytics... Failure is not an option. I really like Trae Young. I hope it works out... but everyone thinks Trae Young is going to be Steph Curry again, and the margin of error is, I don't think you understand how hard it is to be Steph Curry.

Mikal Bridges will be the 'Donovan Mitchell' of the 2018 draft who steps in and doesn't miss a beat

I would say Mikal Bridges is the best that could probably step in and he's not going to be like as good as Jason Tatum or Donovan Mitchell probably. But, uh, I don't know. He can give you something like right away and you can like see, see it right away... that guy could jump on an NBA court right this second and not miss a beat.

The Warriors will win the next three NBA championships

I hate to be that college basketball fan of bitches about the NBA, but they really are just going to win it again. They're going to win the next three.

Something will eventually break up the Warriors dynasty, like a Steph Curry injury or a Draymond Green suspension

I think eventually one of these Steph injuries is going to catch up to them. Something's going to happen. Draymond is going to get suspended for a whole season for kicking everyone's balls. Something's going to happen that will break them up.

If the Blazers had drafted Kevin Durant over Greg Oden, they still wouldn't have won any titles and KD would have left anyway

if they take KD [in Portland]... then they don't win any titles, and then he leaves. How is KD's situation in Portland any different than what it was in OKC? It wasn't. He still wouldn't have won any titles. He would have left. That's my two cents on that.

There is no one in the world who can beat me in a combined competition of every single sport

It also helps my longstanding theory that there is no one in the world who can beat me in every single sport. I'm talking every single sport, like darts, skiing... [Justify] can't beat me in basketball... I'll cross him up.

The Washington Capitals will win the Stanley Cup again next year

The only reason you're going to feel like it was lame is because the Caps are probably going to win again next year, and you're going to be like, we're used to this, right?

The Washington Capitals dynasty has already begun

The dynasty has already begun.

The Imagine Dragons performance placed a curse on the Vegas Golden Knights

I told you there was a curse, man [the Imagine Dragons curse]. They need to exercise those demons, and I think the only way they can do that is by writing a song with us.

The torch has passed from LeBron James to Kevin Durant as the league's best player

I think Torch goes directly to Kevin Durant. I don't see how you can make the argument that it's LeBron's league anymore.

No one in sports has it better than Steph Curry right now

It's actually a perfect, no one has it better in sports than Steph Curry right now. [He invites superstars to his team], Philly will love Joel Embiid more than they will love LeBron. And LeBron will take all the heat if things go south.

I don't see any scenario where LeBron James signs with a team in the Western Conference

I don't see a world where LeBron goes out to the West. Well, you know, Klay and Steph Curry and Draymond are still on that Warriors team.

Julian Edelman is likely innocent of PED use because his Call of Duty stats were consistent

I've played Call of Duty with Julian Edelman multiple times... and I never noticed any performance that was out of the ordinary. Usually his kills to death ratio was pretty consistent throughout. No big spikes. So from where I'm sitting, probably didn't do it.

Julian Edelman's positive PED test was a false positive

I say all signs point towards a false positive at this point. If he had been on PEDs, his quick twitch thumbs probably would have gotten a little bit faster and you would see more focus [in Call of Duty].

The Pardon My Take interview with Theo Epstein in early 2017 caused the Cubs to fail in their title defense

If we had a general manager... like Theo Epstein, and we talked to him, do you think that there would be a little bit of dissent in the Cubs clubhouse... and maybe they play a little less hard that year and maybe not win the World Series again?

Hank is correct: MLB baseball seams are 9% bigger than in previous years

I saw an article in, I think it was The Athletic, that they tested baseballs. And the biggest difference between baseballs from, I think it was this year or last year, and say 2013 or 14, was the seams were 9% bigger. Hank is right. Hank is actually right.

The Arizona Diamondbacks will play the Boston Red Sox in the World Series

D-Backs, Red Sox.

Kobe Bryant is not the GOAT and he thinks he's too smart

I'm a big Lakers fan, but I don't think Kobe's the GOAT. Kobe bugs the shit out of him. He thinks he's so smart. That's what really bugs me, is he thinks he's really smart.

Clayton Kershaw is not finished as an elite pitcher

Neither [done or finished]. Come on. I'm a Kershaw fan, even though I work for the D-backs... I never count that guy out. He works too hard.

Justify may be running low on energy heading into the Belmont Stakes

In the Preakness, he wasn't quite as good as he was in the Kentucky Derby... Energy level might be getting a little bit low. He really needed that wire to come up when it did in the Preakness... How much he's got left in the tank is the big question.

Hofburg and Vino Rosso are the best horses to bet on to beat Justify

I think the two best horses to be betting on in this Belmont are Hofburg and Vino Rosso... Ten of the last 18 years, the Belmont has been won by horses that ran on Kentucky Derby weekend, skipped the Preakness, and waited for the Belmont to be rested.

Free Drop Billy is a strong longshot bet to finish in the Belmont Stakes superfecta

There's another horse in there that fits that profile that's probably going to be 20-1. His name is Free Drop Billy... I think he's got a good shot to be part of, let's say, the Superfecta at a big price.

Call to Mind is the top horse to bet in the Belmont Gold Cup

The horse's name is Call to Mind, M-I-N-D, Call to Mind, number one in the Belmont Gold Cup tomorrow. I don't know what the price is going to be... but there's another horse if you want to hook that one up in some exotics.

Gronkowski the horse does not have much of a chance in the Belmont Stakes

We talked to the trainer, and he doesn't even know what to expect... It's like he's been going up against Class A pitching, and now he's got to go against the Yankees. So you have no idea what to expect. Big, nice, good-looking horse. I don't think he has much of a chance.

LeBron James will NOT sign with the New York Knicks or Miami Heat

I am officially reporting lebron james will not be going to the new york knicks... I'm going to report that LeBron James will not be returning to the Miami Heat.

LeBron James will not sign with the Boston Celtics

You can officially take LeBron out of the Celtics running. Now that this Edelman story's come out, the Boston sports media doesn't need a story... so you can officially take LeBron out of the Celtics running.

A cup becomes a bowl once it is wider than it is long

I think it's when it's wider than it is long. When it becomes a chode. When it's a chode, it's a bowl.

The Stanley Cup Finals are over and the Capitals will win in five games

This series is fucking over. Done. Done. Over, finished, no chance. They're not even going to get a single more game. It's going to be 4-1. Caps in 5.

If Alex Ovechkin wins the Stanley Cup, he might be the GOAT

If [Ovechkin] gets the Stanley Cup, which would be his third Stanley Cup in this playoffs, you've got to say, is he the GOAT? He might be. GOAT Vetchkin? It's either him or Gretzky.

The Capitals will suffer the biggest championship hangover ever and miss the playoffs next year if they win the Cup

If Ovechkin wins the Stanley Cup, I am predicting the biggest championship hangover of all time in — we're not even making the playoffs next year. No, I bet he's going to score five goals next year because he's going to spend the entire summer on a yacht in the Caspian Sea just having hookers and blow just delivered to him by Putin.

The Cavaliers will win Game 3 of the NBA Finals

The NBA Finals are off. I don't know when they're coming back, but who even — I mean, the Cavs are going to win game three. I'm going to say it right now.