Nightcap Hour 1: Nuggets OUTLASTS the Lakers COMEBACK + LeBron BREAKS ALL-TIME FGs Record + Spurts BEATDOWN the Pistons + Trea Young MAKES Wizards DEBUT + Shams REPORTS Jayson Tatum WILL PLAY

13:56Shannon Sharpe:He ain't. He ain't. Yeah. And then drop his head. And like, we surprised. Like, we actually thought you was going to make that shot, bro. We did. You the only. He's the only one surprised that he missed that shot. As you mentioned, look at Jackson Hayes' energy. You look at the team energy when Jackson Hayes comes in the ballgame. He's hauling ass. He'll get the rebound. He's looking at the outlet, and he's running a dead-ass sprint to the front of the rim. He gets an offensive rebound. He's like, you know what? I can't go back up. Let me find somebody to get the ball to. If DeAndre ain't getting the rebound, I bet you a doorknob to a bucket of cow manure.

14:33Shannon Sharpe:They're going to take it out of his hand and he's going to be like, damn. Damn. Damn what? You actually thought we thought you was going to go back up with some authority and put the ball in the basket? We didn't. We didn't. LeBron and the energy tonight from LeBron. Joe, what is this? Two points in the third quarter? Four points in the fourth quarter? Joe, what am I supposed to do with that? 11 shots in 34 minutes. What am I supposed to do with that? What's he trying to prove? I mean, are you hearing the outside noise and everybody saying, well, we'll be glad when LeBron leaves? Come on, LeBron.

15:12Shannon Sharpe:11 shots in 34 minutes?

15:16Chad Johnson:Yeah, I agree. I agree. I think he definitely has to assert himself more. 11 shots ain't going to get it. I know there's a little altitude there in Denver, but for the most part, him and Luka, they got to be assertive, man. I don't care if he go five for 25. He got to get up at least 20 shots for me. I'm going to be honest with you. Just for them to compete, man, because his aggressiveness, it opens up the floor for everybody else.

15:43Shannon Sharpe:You know who's been really aggressive that I didn't know had this side of him? Luke Kennard. I'm used to Luke Kennard as a catch and shoot. But Luke Kennard, if you run him off the free point line, he'll put it on the floor and get to the floor game, or he'll go all the way to the rim. I've been very impressed with Luke Kennard. I thought he's played well. He's been one of the best surprises for the Lakers. I thought tonight Rui was sensational. He was.

16:07Iso Joe Johnson:He was nice, bro.

16:08Shannon Sharpe:Honestly, and I might be in the minority, I wouldn't have brought LeBron back in the ballgame. I'd have left Rui in. Rui was cooking. I would have.

16:16Chad Johnson:Yeah, he was making some shots. Yeah, he was getting it done. He was getting it done. I agree with you. Luke Canard has definitely been a positive, bright spot for the Lakers. He's just so crafty and knows how to manipulate the defense because he's such a great shooter. and he know guys are running out to him uncontrollably. He's taking advantage of that. He's taking advantage of it. Shooting, getting in there, getting his little middie off, making plays. Yeah, Luke Canard been great. He's been great for the Lakers. And you know what, Joe?

16:41Shannon Sharpe:What's that? I was hoping. Like, you know how you sometimes like, okay, that's a kid or a pet. Well, you know, he's going through a stage. He'll grow out of it. I've given up. I was hoping that this was a stage Luka complaining every time. He's not going to grow out of it. This is who he is. So you know what? He's not going to stop complaining. I'm going to stop complaining about him complaining. I've come to accept this is who he is. This is who he's going to be. And Laker fans, you've got to deal with it. You've got to deal with it because every time he shoots the ball, he gets fouled. He gets to the free throw line.

17:19Shannon Sharpe:He got a tech last night or the other night, Joe. Even after he got to the free throw line, they called a foul and he still complaining. I'm like, so what do you want him to do? And if you shoot a shot and they don't call a foul, Joe, when was the last time? So, you know, the official, like, you know what? I missed that call. Y 'all bring the ball back. Y 'all foul Luka down here. Right, right. Let him go to the free throw line. They don't do that.

17:44Chad Johnson:Nah, nah. And it make it look bad, too, man, when you down there complaining. Look, the refs going to make mistakes. I think we all know that. They ain't going to call everything. But the ones that they don't call, I ain't never been the player just to, unless you just deliberately just filed me. Right. Hey, man, get back on defense, man. Help us in a positive way because down there complaining, we – You got us a five – they on five on four. Five on four, it's a wrap. We're going to give up something. So, I agree with you. It hurt them in a lot of ways too. You know what I mean? Because he do it every game.

18:14Chad Johnson:He do it every game.

18:16Shannon Sharpe:Joe, Ocho, they can't defend five on five. What do you think the chances are they're going to defend four on five? Nah. Think about it. They swing the ball. They getting layups. I mean, I was like, Lord, have mercy. This is – look, the match they can do is make the playoffs. Hopefully they can stay in the sixth spot. They want it done. They're not beating anybody. They don't defend well enough. They're not – because think about it, Joe. They were down 15. They cut it to five, and then they go three consecutive turnovers, now it's back to 12.

18:50Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah. 12, yeah.

18:51Shannon Sharpe:They cut it back down to six. then they go turn over, turn over, a terrible shot. Now they're down 13, 14. That's not sound basketball. That's not good basketball. They take these ill-advised shots in which they're out of position. Now they get run out. I'm like, bro, they keep going under the screen Hardaway Jr. He makes his first shot. You can't go under no screen. Zero. You've got to run him off the spot.

19:20Iso Joe Johnson:Ready for a different take on Formula One? Look no further than No Grip, a new podcast tackling the culture of motor racing's most coveted series. Join me, Lily Herman, as we dive into the underexplored pockets of F1, including the astrology of the current grid. Lewis Hamilton, Capricorn Sun, Cancer Moon. Wouldn't you know it, Michael Schumacher is also a Capricorn Sun, Cancer Moon. The story of the sport's most consequential driver's strike. We have one man who, upon hearing that he was going to be fired, freaked out, and apparently climbed out the window of the bathroom. And was Daniel Ricciardo's illustrious F1 career a success story, a cautionary tale, or some combination of both?

19:58Iso Joe Johnson:He started getting all this attention, and he maybe started to think, I'm bigger than this, I'm better. And plenty of other mishaps, scandals, and sagas that have made Formula One a delightful, decadent dumpster fire for more than 75 years. Listen to No Grip on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

20:42Iso Joe Johnson:And the winner of the iHeart Podcast Award is... See all the nominees now at iHeart.com slash podcast awards. Audible is a proud sponsor of the Audible Audio Pioneer Award.

20:54Shannon Sharpe:Explore the best selection of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals all in one easy app. Audible.

21:00Iso Joe Johnson:There's more to imagine when you listen. Sign up for a free trial at audible.com. I'm Daniel Jeremiah. And I'm Greg Rosenthal. And this is 40s and free agents. The games may be over, but the NFL never stops. This is my favorite part of the calendar. Yeah, mine too, Greg. Free agency, the combine, the NFL draft, pro days, trades. This is where teams reshape their future. This is where Daniel Jeremiah makes his money. On 40s and free agents, we break down every move that actually matters. From my draft evaluations, mock drafts, and team fits. To my top 101 free agents and how real rosters are built.

21:39Iso Joe Johnson:cap space, contracts, and all the tough decisions included. You got quarterbacks on the move. We got teams rebuilding. It's hope season. Yeah, absolutely. It's hope season. We'll tell you what's real, what's noise, and what it means for your favorite team. Smart analysis, real conversations every week. I don't know about the smart, but definitely analysis. Listen to 40s and Free Agents on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yeah.

22:07Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah. I don't know what they're thinking. But they definitely ain't got no pushback on the defense when it comes to guarding them. Guards out there on the perimeter. No. I'm talking about they don't got no resistance on the pick and rolls. It's like they let you get to your spots wherever you want to get to. If you let a dude just be comfortable and get to any spot he wants on the court, man, you at his mercy, bro.

22:34Shannon Sharpe:Yeah.

22:34Chad Johnson:You at his mercy. Get whatever you want. Them dudes getting what they want left and right. They're shooting darts.

22:41Shannon Sharpe:You, A, you want candy? You want cookies? You want chips? Just pick what you want. Because like you said, Joe, there is no resistance. I mean, I'm looking at them, I'm like, ain't no way you're this bad defensively. And that's why. They don't break down in any guard position. Let me tell you what they try to do, Joe. You see them in position, they try to hip you. Try to run, A, they try to bump you. and make you change direction. Nobody is in a guard position.

23:11Chad Johnson:Right, right. That's why, hey, look, that's why you see the upper echelon teams in the NBA, the OKCs, the Spurs, Celtics. They pick up full court, Uncle Ocho. They make it uncomfortable for you the whole entire game, bro. It ain't no sitting back, okay, I'm going to catch my man at half court. No, man, they up. They making you work, turning you two and three times before you bring the ball over half court. You know what I mean? Using up half of the shot clock so when you get it over, you got less time to get into your offense. You know what I mean? It's the little things like that that makes the game a lot harder for these NBA teams and only a few teams who understand it.

23:52Shannon Sharpe:But they can't guard. LeBron can't guard. Who's asking a 41-year-old to defend? Never in the history of the game. As great as Jordan was at all defense, Kobe were. As they got older, they were not the same defensive players. And none of them was playing. Only Jordan was playing in his 40s, although he wasn't in year 20 plus on. But, you know, he took the three years off. I mean, the year and a half off, and then he took a three years off. So he was in his 40s when it was like year 14, 15. Kobe was – I mean, Kobe came in as a 17-year-old. But as Kobe got older, he couldn't defend like he could when he was in his 20s.

24:30Shannon Sharpe:Absolutely. And we understand that. So to ask LeBron to sit in the chair at 41 years of age with all those minutes, with all those field goals, you're just pie in the sky. Ulster Reed is never going to be able to play defense. Luka is never going to be able to play defense. So the only guy that you really got that can defend or tries to defend on a consistent basis, every possession, is Marcus Smart. Okay, but there's only one of him. Aiden ain't no defender. He's not.

24:59Chad Johnson:That's why the Lakers are going to have some major decisions to make this summer, Uncle Ocho.

25:04Iso Joe Johnson:It ain't really that major, Joe. Yeah, it is. You know what you need.

25:08Chad Johnson:I'm saying because AR is up. They're going to have to pay AR, and you're going to have to pay them top dollar. Yes. And I don't know. That's the hungering boy, but I don't know if that's going to help the Lakers advance in the postseason. I'm just going to keep it real. Yeah. No, they're not. Because nobody, I mean, look, if you look at backcourts that were really,

25:35Shannon Sharpe:really good, let's go back to the Pistons. What could you, what could they do? They could defend, but they had defenders. They had Mahorn. They had Lambeer. They had Sally. They had Joe Dumars. Go back and look at the bad boy two Pistons, Big Ben, Rashid. Rashid, they had guys that would defend. Uh, uh, uh, uh, what's the lefty? Uh, what's the light skinned guy?

25:59Chad Johnson:For who?

26:00Shannon Sharpe:For Detroit. Rip Hamilton. No, not Rip, the lefty. Tayshaun Prince. Tayshaun Prince. They had guys that could defend. You don't have enough guys. Look at OKC, what can they do? Defend. Defend, yeah. You look at Minnesota. you got McDaniels but you got Rudy whatever you think about Rudy he is a rim protector now is he an on the ball defender no but he makes you think twice about bringing your ass up in there because you know there's a potential chance there's an 80-85 % chance he's going to swat it up out of there and if he doesn't swat it he's going to make you alter it the same thing with Wimby you know with hey I don't see guys have a 2 on 1 like nah that's to his advantage We need a three-on-one in order to have an advantage.

26:50Shannon Sharpe:Women make them turn around out of there. And like I said, you look at Luka and AR, they're dynamite offensive firepower. Yeah. But they can't stop anybody because the opposing backcourt is going to match them. They're going to get layups. And this is where it hurts you at in the clutch. Because while you're struggling and you're down late down in the shot clock, they get layups. Yep. They're getting floaters. They're getting easy shots. Or they're getting wide open shots where you're running it down. You're following it down to the very end and everything is tough. Yeah. Yeah.

27:28Iso Joe Johnson:Well, how about they let Brother Reeves go and let him sign somewhere else and they bring in defensive players that they need to play defense?

27:39Shannon Sharpe:They're not going to let him go. They're not going to let him walk out the door. But he's a homegrown player. It's hard to let homegrown players. I mean, he was an undrafted free agent. And he's turned himself into this. Yeah, he's nice. He's turned himself into this. No, he's phenomenal. I love the way I love. And every year, he's gotten better. He's gotten better. He's improved in an area of his game, which shows you that you can improve incrementally if you put the time in. This notion that you can improve, you can. I'm not saying he's going to ever be Jordan, James Harden, Dwayne Wade. but being an undrafted free agent and had he not gotten hurt he probably would have made the all-star team, Joe.

28:22Shannon Sharpe:Oh yeah, I agree

28:23Chad Johnson:he's been balling his sail out he took advantage of all the opportunities that came his way, especially early with LeBron being out and him and Luka basically being the focal point on offense man, look, he's great in pick and roll he can create off the dribble you can't go under on the pick and roll so you always gotta go over, so he's always gonna have you in the huckle buck to where okay, do I take away this midi, this two-pointer, this lob, or this three? So he's always going to give you a chance. I love watching him as a player, how poised and patient he is. You know, on the floor, he never seems in a rush.

28:55Chad Johnson:And he plays well off Luka and LeBron. That's why I like folks about it, yeah.

29:00Shannon Sharpe:Yes. Udonis Haslam can play as Luka whining toward the refs to a young Jason Tatum. The next step of evolution for Luka, stop whining, stop complaining to the refs. you're not going to beg your way to a title or cry your way to a championship. I remember this with Young Tatum, and he has evolved and made these changes. When we were there in those battles with the Celtics, as soon as he started complaining to the refs, I tell our guys, now we got him. Yeah. Yeah.

29:30Iso Joe Johnson:Well, the funny thing about it, Uncle Joe, saying now we got him and he's still dropping 30 and 40 and 35 on you?

29:39Shannon Sharpe:No, no, no. They're talking about then. They ain't talking about now. He's changed that. He doesn't complain like he once did.

29:44Iso Joe Johnson:No, I'm just saying, using that analogy, when Luka is cooking every night, even though he's complaining, he's still cooking every night.

29:51Shannon Sharpe:But guess what? His other guy coming right back at him getting 35, and he's getting them when they matter in the clutch situation. Yeah. And guess what? So while he's complaining and getting teed, because he got 15, he gets one more, he's going to have to miss a game.

30:04Iso Joe Johnson:No, they already said he was suspended, though.

30:06Shannon Sharpe:What is it, 15 or 16? 16 he gets one more he gets one more he got to get one more tech and he's suspended for a game so that's the problem that you have and the refs at some point in time it's the boy that cried wolf man you ain't get foul you ain't get foul

30:25Iso Joe Johnson:yeah the funny thing about it too Joe maybe I might be wrong you would know better but refs that have players or secret players that complain like that all the time wouldn't they be a little bit more reluctant not to even give you the call because you're kind of irritating hey

30:39Chad Johnson:that's what i would think ojo that's why i've never been a complainer about calls and i hate i hate seeing guys do that every trip down the court talking to the ref man the ref got a job to do too do your job man we'll be all right you know what i mean so uh it's it's annoying bro it's annoying especially when you just continuously do it throughout the whole entire game yeah but i'm like ud uh yeah i know we got him once we once you get him complaining to the rest Yeah, you know the ref probably be a little reluctant to blow his whistle. Right. You know, here and now. That's just human nature, bro.

31:12Shannon Sharpe:Because he missed a point-blank layup, thought he was going to get fouled. You remember he beat the guy, did a great move, and he thought the guy was going to foul him, try to get contact, and whipped it.

31:20Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah. But look, enough about the Lakers.

31:26Shannon Sharpe:And we'll get back to the Lakers. We'll talk about LeBron in a minute. But when you get Nikola Jokic and you get Murray. playing like this, they gonna be tough to beat.

31:37Chad Johnson:Yep, when they efficient like that.

31:39Shannon Sharpe:Jokic went to, he had the quietest 28 points. And when you looked up, I mean, you looked up and like, damn, he got a triple-double at the end of the third quarter.

31:51Iso Joe Johnson:Hey, Uncle Joe. What's up? Hey, I think he be pulling the wool over our eyes, Uncle.

31:57Chad Johnson:What'd you mean?

31:58Iso Joe Johnson:Goddamn Joker.

31:59Chad Johnson:Wait, why'd he say that?

32:01Iso Joe Johnson:Like, be faking like he tired, but he don't really be tired. He be breathing hard, hands on his hip, but you steadily cooking there, your goddamn body. Something ain't adding up. One plus one equal two, but the way you're looking and the way you're playing don't go together.

32:15Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, yeah.

32:16Iso Joe Johnson:You see him on the bench, Unc? He look like he about to fall out.

32:19Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. That's a large man. That's a seven-foot man that's 280 pounds, and he's moving up and down the court. So it's taking a lot out of him.

32:28Chad Johnson:Man, I'm telling you.

32:29Shannon Sharpe:He's the focal point of their offense, and he runs the offense. So he's going to have a – I mean, you don't see very many bigs. Teams run their offense through a big. Right. They do that with him. It does.

32:43Chad Johnson:And they're able to do that with him because his IQ is through the roof, Ocho. You know, as far as awareness, making guys around him better,

32:55Shannon Sharpe:getting his own shot when need to, he don't have no weakness, bro.

33:00Chad Johnson:he has none hey hold on

33:04Iso Joe Johnson:he don't have no weakness right you see how John Morant look when he

33:09Chad Johnson:explode you see how D-Rose

33:11Iso Joe Johnson:look before he got injured how he explode Russell Westbrook how he explode their lateral movement their quickness and you can just like wow what is there's nothing about him it's like he moving in slow motion or maybe I'm tripping maybe there's something wrong with my little 13 inch TV

33:27Chad Johnson:nah it's like he's not

33:29Iso Joe Johnson:even moving but everything go in everything be working oh joe it's called deception bro like

33:36Chad Johnson:he's deceptive with everything that he does you know what i mean he's precise with it quick moves or he's scared he get right to his little go-to a couple spins in that post then he gonna jump hook you to death now he's gonna jump yeah yeah yeah he's gonna jump hook you to death he got

33:59Shannon Sharpe:It's hard to find. Joe, I mean, need somebody to tell me who had better touch around the rim. I'm talking about from 8, 10 feet, either hand, lefty, righty. Off the ground. One leg.

34:09Chad Johnson:Float. Yes. Yes. I agree. He got great touch, man, for a guy his size. And that's why he'll be able to play a long time because he's a below-the-rim center who just has great touch around the basket. Yep.

34:25Shannon Sharpe:But the thing is, you go look at the really great players. Look at Bird. you like he ain't athletic he cooking folks look at Luka he ain't athletic all those players and yo they play a below the rim you know what's funny too

34:41Iso Joe Johnson:you know how much I love footwork you know how much I can appreciate footwork now I might not know what the hell players they got there and running but it's one thing I do pay attention to to understand how they're able to do what they got to do as slow as he look as tired as he may play but young bull got some feet on him Hey, he got some feet on him to beat that guy damn big. But the fact, to me, I'm trying to get it to register to me that your footwork is phenomenal, but you're not moving fast enough to beat the dudes the way you're beating them. You know why?

35:12Shannon Sharpe:You get what I'm saying? Yeah, but you know why? What do they play a lot of in Serbia? Soccer. You ever see what? Look at Luka. What are they doing with the ball? Olajuwon. Why was Olajuwon able to beat somebody? He grew up playing soccer.

35:25Chad Johnson:Yeah. Footwork, yeah. D-Nash.

35:27Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. That's it. I drop step. He take that big swing. Or he face you up.

35:39Chad Johnson:It's over with.

35:41Shannon Sharpe:Hey, Unk, that face up be slow as hell, man. But see, the thing is, all he wants to do, he's trying to see. When Yoke face you up, he's trying to see, okay, where's the double coming? I know they're not going to leave you one-on-one with me. I know that. Somebody coming. I just need to know where you're coming from. Absolutely. Oh, okay, here he comes. So if you notice, they bring the double. He was throwing the pass way across court. Bruce Brown in the corner. Wow, wow. It's like a quarterback. If you bring the blitz from one side, I know where you're vulnerable because I know you had to replace this guy that's coming extra.

36:18Shannon Sharpe:So now I know where you're vulnerable.

36:21Chad Johnson:Yeah.

36:21Shannon Sharpe:That's how big guys, guys that see, okay, you brought the double team. You're supposed to be guarding him.

36:28Chad Johnson:Yeah.

36:29Shannon Sharpe:Well, if you guard over here, Brett got your little small ass over here bothering me. Who over here? Now, I got an instant second. Okay, they rotated. Good. Perfect. But you didn't rotate enough. It's hard. Okay, it's kind of like with, who broke Luka down? Oh, Grayson Allen. Broke Luka down. Here come LeBron. Pass to the guy LeBron was supposed to be guarding. Here come Austin Reeves. He kicks to the guy to Austin Reeves. Hey, guy late getting out there?

37:05Chad Johnson:Yes, sir.

37:06Shannon Sharpe:As Joe say, Gooseneck.

37:08Chad Johnson:Gooseneck. They late in the dollar show. We got you.

37:13Shannon Sharpe:So LeBron James breaks the all-time NBA field goal record with 15 ,838 field goals. He passes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar once again. Remember, he passed Kareem for the most points. I remember when Kareem broke that record. Actually, Kareem broke the record at Thomas and Mac right there in Vegas. See, Joe, they used to go to try to get the interest in the NBA. They would be playing all over.

37:43Chad Johnson:Yeah.

37:44Shannon Sharpe:Boston would play in Connecticut. Atlanta Hawks would play in New Orleans. Yeah.

37:51Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

37:53Shannon Sharpe:Because they were trying to drum up interest because the interest isn't what it is, wasn't what it is now. Right, right. So we're trying to drum up interest and so teams that, cities that.

38:02Iso Joe Johnson:Ready for a different take on Formula One? Look no further than No Grip, a new podcast tackling the culture of motor racing's most coveted series. Join me, Lily Herman, as we dive into the underexplored pockets of F1, including the astrology of the current grid. Lewis Hamilton, Capricorn Sun, Cancer Moon. Wouldn't you know it, Michael Schumacher is also a Capricorn Sun, Cancer Moon. The story of the sport's most consequential driver's strike. We have one man who, upon hearing that he was going to be fired, freaked out, and apparently climbed out the window of the bathroom. And was Daniel Ricciardo's illustrious F1 career a success story, a cautionary tale, or some combination of both?

38:40Iso Joe Johnson:He started getting all this attention, and he maybe started to think, I'm bigger than this. I'm better. And plenty of other mishaps, scandals, and sagas that have made Formula One a delightful, decadent dumpster fire for more than 75 years. Listen to No Grip on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is the biggest night in podcasting. The countdown is on to our 2026 iHeart Podcast Awards. Live from South by Southwest, March 16th, we'll honor the very best in podcasting from the past year and celebrate the most innovative, talented creators in the industry.

39:17Iso Joe Johnson:It's truly a who's who of the podcasting world. Creativity, knowledge, and passion will all be on full display. And the winner of the iHeart Podcast Award is... See all the nominees now at iHeart.com slash podcast awards.

39:32Shannon Sharpe:Audible is a proud sponsor of the Audible Audio Pioneer Award. Explore the best selection of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals all in one easy app. Audible. There's more to imagine when you listen.

39:43Iso Joe Johnson:Sign up for a free trial at audible.com. I'm Daniel Jeremiah. And I'm Greg Rosenthal. And this is 40s and free agents. The games may be over, but the NFL never stops. This is my favorite part of the calendar. Yeah, mine too, Greg. Free agency, the combine, the NFL draft, pro days, trades. This is where teams reshape their future. This is where Daniel Jeremiah makes his money. On 40s and free agents, we break down every move that actually matters. From my draft evaluations, mock drafts, and team fits. To my top 101 free agents and how real rosters are built, cap space, contracts, and all the tough decisions included.

40:24Iso Joe Johnson:You got quarterbacks on the move. We got teams rebuilding. It's hope season. Yeah, absolutely. It's hope season. We'll tell you what's real, what's noise, and what it means for your favorite team. Smart analysis, real conversations every week. I don't know about the smart, but definitely analysis. Listen to 40s and free agents on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

41:10Shannon Sharpe:to space, go to this place like that. Joe, what do you think? You think somebody else, you think someone else is gonna get over 15 ,000? Cause when it's all said and done, he'll probably be over 16 ,000 field goals made.

41:23Chad Johnson:Man, he gonna have to be different. What I mean different is, he gonna have to have some real discipline, Uncle Ocho. Cause this man here playing 23 years, bro. I'm talking about him been playing at a crazy level for over two decades. Like, come on, man. I don't know. I don't think – I don't know. No. I don't know if we're going to see nobody get there, bro. The longevity that LeBron has had because he's never had an injury that's kept him out a significant time to where he's had to miss like half a season or a single season. And he's been dominant every year he's played. So I don't see nobody catching that, bro.

42:00Shannon Sharpe:I mean, you know, think about it, Ocho and Joe. A 21-time All-NBA selection. That's crazy. 21 times he's been an all-NBA selection. 22 times he's made the All-Star team. Tom Brady played 23 years, so Tom Brady is a 22-time All-Star. You know, baseball players used to have a bunch of, I think, Hank Aaron and Willie Mays got 25, 27 All-Star. But here's the thing, Joe and Ocho, they used to have two All-Star games. So you could make two All-Star teams in one season. Yeah. Oh, the rules were different back then. They used to have some crazy rules back then. But to play at the level at which you play, think about it.

42:44Shannon Sharpe:Greatness is monotonous. It's boring as hell. Bring your own food. You get up, get to shoot around, get your workout, practice, go home, sleep. Now you got kids. Mama going to have to make sure the kid's quiet because you can't have any interruptions. You do that over and over. Think about it. Basically, it's a situation where you're doing the same. It's Groundhog Day. You wake up and do the same thing. Chad, stay with you just a second. Just imagine if you had to get up and do the same thing over and over and over again. Even if you say, well, if I was making this, I was making that. It's easy to say if you was making this.

43:26Shannon Sharpe:Because here's what I know. You're making the money you're making now. And you probably thought you were going to be making when you was a kid. and you can't do the same thing over and over and over and over. Same thing over and over and over and over and over for 23 years.

43:42Iso Joe Johnson:Some people get bored. Some people don't understand it. It's great. It's great. It's great. And let's, we talk about 23 years. To give everybody perspective, I'm not sure how many people are in the chat, but think about all the people in the chat when the New Year's hit. How many of you said New Year's resolutions? We in the month of March. I guarantee you 98 % of y 'all have that resolution is going to shit. Excuse me. It's going to the wayside. Because you're able to do it when the new year first start off. Hey, Unk and Joe in the gym, everybody mind they mom in the gym. Can't even get on the equipment.

44:15Chad Johnson:It's too crowded.

44:16Iso Joe Johnson:They on the weight bench. They all in the way. You can't get on nothing. You get about three months into the new year, gym empty as hell.

44:25Shannon Sharpe:Give it two weeks. The first the first, like January 1st, Ocho, the first week, don't even go to G.

44:34Chad Johnson:Oh, man. Hey, hey, hey.

44:36Shannon Sharpe:Next week, damn, look at all this equipment I got. Y 'all got new equipment?

44:43Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah, it's hard, though. It's hard. People don't understand the sacrifice it takes. You know, most of the time you see something that LeBron is able to do

44:52Shannon Sharpe:over such a long, extended period of time.

44:56Iso Joe Johnson:And the fact that, to me, The fact that people are able to find things to say bad about him based on what he's accomplished when he had so much riding from being being a high schooler coming into the NBA and exceeding all expectations to where he's at now. And still people still have, you know, everyone, everyone has a right to their own opinion. But but to to to to watch greatness like this live in person, I don't think people will understand or appreciate it until he's actually gone from the game. and then you're able to see for yourself, you know, I mean, obviously the product that's going to be left in the NBA is going to be good, but it's not going to be anything like that.

45:36Shannon Sharpe:Look, if they criticize you, they talk, you got to be great. They don't talk about average or mediocre people.

45:42Chad Johnson:It's part of it.

45:43Shannon Sharpe:Because I've got your greatness. I've got to find something to say you're not as great as you think you are or as people say you are. So I've got to find something to chip away. Yeah. If he was just a regular guy, ain't nobody criticizing. A guy that played 15 years, averaged 10 points, ain't nobody criticizing him. But as you go up levels, and there's levels, there's great, and as you keep going, great tips. The moment people start to add that EST, you can be great, G-R-E-A-T, great. Then you can be E-R at E-R. But when you start adding that EST.

46:24Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah. It's a different ball game. Yes. Yes. Absolutely. And that was you, Unc, that asked if we ever see someone achieve what he's done, you know, the longevity. I don't think we'll ever see a player with that, for one, that kind of discipline, right?

46:40Shannon Sharpe:Yes.

46:41Iso Joe Johnson:In the injury history, right? Yes. So many different factors. So many things have to go right, Joe. Yeah. And then obviously someone that is physically imposing, where over the years, in the different areas that he's played in, because he's played so long, that has been able to evolve with the game itself.

46:58Shannon Sharpe:Yes.

46:58Iso Joe Johnson:And improve on his game where regardless of what era or what time he's playing in, he's able to adapt to it. And that's something he's been able to do as he's gotten older as well.

47:07Chad Johnson:Yeah, hey, look. But when it's all said and done, Uncle Ocho, the man going to have almost every record in the book, bro.

47:14Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah.

47:15Chad Johnson:He going to sit top of the charts. And ain't nobody going to be able to catch him probably as long as we live. Unless they come out with something that can keep these guys on the floor, but he got it sold up, bro.

47:29Shannon Sharpe:But you know what, guys? It's the – if you just look at his points, you're like, damn, that's a lot of points. Right. But look at his assist total.

47:39Chad Johnson:Yeah.

47:40Shannon Sharpe:He's top five in assist.

47:42Chad Johnson:That's what I'm saying. A guy that is a pass-first guy, the guy that is pass-first scored more points

47:50Shannon Sharpe:than anybody else in the history of the game.

47:52Chad Johnson:Mm-hmm.

47:56Iso Joe Johnson:and then they used to kill him for not having that killer mindset with the ball now he got all the now he got all the records i i'm confused when it's no 10 whatever seconds not having that mamba mentality not having that killer instinct like jordan but but but the stats

48:15Shannon Sharpe:say otherwise but but i keep telling you if i like you there's nothing that you can do to make me dislike you. If I don't, I don't care. LeBron James walks on water. They're going to say, yeah, he's walking on water because he can't swim. Damn! No help! Hey, that's a good one. He cured cancer. What about diabetes? What about heart disease? I like that. That was a good one. He cured cancer. I know two guys would have cleared it in two years. Here he is, the year 23, and he's just not finding a cure for cancer. Yeah, yeah. That's the way it is. And you have to understand that. The greater you become, they try to knock you off the pedals.

48:58Chad Johnson:The more they ridicule, yeah.

49:00Shannon Sharpe:They're going to come. They're going to come. And he's done a great job. He's not in the tabloids, you know. But I guess that's what they want. Everybody wants to get something on him so bad. So bad. I've never seen anybody. I've never seen an athlete that people want to see fail. Not everybody, because he has a lot of support. You don't get – you know, his shoes and what he does off the – you know, as far as endorsements and advertising, you don't get to that level. But when they said who is the most hated athlete, who has the most negative social media, he gets it every year. Yeah. So it's just not in our imagination, guys.

49:44Shannon Sharpe:The facts back it up. It is what it is. Yeah. Wimby had 38 points, 16 rebounds, five blocks in a 121-106 win over the Pistons. San Antonio won 13 of 14 games and remains second place in the West with a 45-17 record. This took – I don't know. I mean, come on, Joe, man. You ain't supposed to be this tall and be able to do that. You're supposed to be awkward. You're supposed to be – when you start getting that tall, You're supposed to be Manu Bo. You're supposed to be Boban. You're supposed to be George Murassan. You're supposed to be Sean Bradley. You're not supposed to be this athletic. You're not supposed to be able to handle the ball and change directions and do what he does.

50:32Shannon Sharpe:Excuse me. He blocked the shot on one end and then ran down the court and got a lob on the damn other.

50:38Chad Johnson:He'll cheat code, huh? He'll cheat code, man.

50:41Iso Joe Johnson:He nice with it, boy.

50:42Chad Johnson:Five blocks, 38.16 rebounds. I mean, hell, he took Duran out the game. He wasn't even a factor in this game, was he? He must have got hurt or something. He only played 12 minutes during. His feeling was getting hurt early.

50:58Shannon Sharpe:But here's the thing, though. If you can't pull him away from the rim, he right there. So if you get an offensive rebound, what you going to do? You going to put it back up? No, you can't.

51:10Chad Johnson:He going to fly. Yeah, he going to fly swat there.

51:13Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, exactly.

51:14Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah. I see big Isaiah Stewart back, though. He had 18-5. Big fella, the big bully. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think it might have been his first game back, too. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He played decent. But, I mean, K-10 for 26. It's going to be hard for them to win if he ain't efficient, Uncle Ocho. And these Spurs, man, hey, the other day it was just Vassal, who I said won the game for him. Now, look, Boxer had 29. And Wimby had 38. They got a team full of guys who scrap. They like OKC. They can guard. They can go off the dribble. They can cause havoc on both ends of the floor, man. And they pick up and play full court like that, too.

51:54Chad Johnson:They young. You got them young legs, Joe. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, they push you to the brink, bro. Hey, look. San Antonio, they've been having an interesting season. They done beat OKC three times, so they got some confidence going to the playoffs. Ain't nobody gonna wanna see them boy. No. Nah, ain't nobody gonna wanna see them boy. Them boy, they're cutting up.

52:15Iso Joe Johnson:In the, hey, hey, Uncle Joe, you remember the episode of Martin when the angry man be on there? Which one? You don't remember angry man from Martin? He just always be angry.

52:28Iso Joe Johnson:No? Okay, okay, it just, I'm not telling the joke. I'm like, I'm being dead serious, but angry man from Martin, they remind me, he remind me, Isaiah Stewart remind me of angry man. Oh, do it? Yeah, the character from Martin. He always angry, but the fact you coming off suspension, right? And you coming off the bench and you played 30 minutes and had 18? And he's supposed to be in the start line-up?

52:49Chad Johnson:Nah, he don't. He come off the bench, Ocho. He had nights like this where he give you a huge spark on the offensive end. But for the most part, he the muscle. I mean, he can make a shot now, don't get me wrong. He was playing well for him before, you know, obviously before he had his suspension. What did he play? He played a four, huh? Four to five.

53:11Shannon Sharpe:Four to five. Hey, Eddie hit some threes. He was three of five from the three, Joe.

53:15Chad Johnson:That's what I know. I'm saying like, he'll shoot that thing.

53:18Iso Joe Johnson:Hey, Joe, you know what they could have did tonight? What's that? They could have had Isaiah Stewart start and intimidate Wimby the whole game.

53:27Chad Johnson:No, you're not. No, no. He too short. He too short. He going, what?

53:33Shannon Sharpe:What?

53:34Chad Johnson:Wimby's 7-4. Everybody too short. Hold on, he's short. but he going to do his work early, meaning he going to meet Wimby probably damn near half court, Ocho, and he going to make him bump and grind all the way down. Wear him down, huh? Yeah, try to wear him down. That's the only thing you can do, man. That's the only thing you can do.

53:52Shannon Sharpe:Joe, when Cade is 10 or 26, it's going to be hard for them to overcome that. They shot 40 % from the floor.

54:00Chad Johnson:I know. That's what I've been saying. He has to be efficient for them to win. Okay, Ocho, this ain't no team to where he can play mediocre and they can still win. Nope. Like, he's got to put up big numbers and he's got to be efficient, and he got to get these guys involved. The Thompson kid must have got hurt too, because I see he played two minutes. He was out.

54:19Shannon Sharpe:Yeah.

54:25Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, during his problem was foul trouble, Joe. He had five fouls and only played 12 minutes. Damn. Yep. so that means he was in he's y 'all go ahead they tried to rage bait they got all these guys talking about oh he just got better than LeBron we see y 'all rage bait we ain't paying y 'all no attention

54:45Iso Joe Johnson:they talking about Wimby

54:47Shannon Sharpe:nah they talking about some guys that they might not even be in the league anymore but Champagny Fox look if Fox get going

55:01Chad Johnson:and he nice with it

55:02Shannon Sharpe:that lesson be killing folk yeah he hard to slow down

55:07Chad Johnson:he hard to slow down

55:08Shannon Sharpe:and both guys shot 50 % from the floor you let women shoot 50 % from the floor and you put them on the foul line 11 times

55:17Chad Johnson:they gonna be hard because look they still get good contribution from their bench they didn't get a whole lot tonight but I thought Harper and Johnson especially I like Brian too all those guys come in high energy play well Harper always under control. Good poise and patience guy. And it'll be a different story for that rookie of the year, Uncle Ocho, if he wasn't on this good team that he on. Talking about Dylan Harper.

55:40Shannon Sharpe:Yeah.

55:40Chad Johnson:If he was on another team to where he could really make go. And he would actually play in major minutes. Yeah, yeah. But, I mean, he's been effective for them. He's been effective for them. He going to help them.

55:48Shannon Sharpe:Well, Keneppo should be winning rookie of the year. I agree. I agree. That's just my opinion. Trey Young makes his Wizard debut. He had 12 points, six assists while playing just 19 minutes. He'd been sidelined with a knee and quadricep injury and was on a minutes restriction. Juju Reese, who's the brother of Angel Reese, in his third career game had 18 points, 20 rebounds, 10 on the offensive end. He was 5 of 7 from the floor. He was 8 of 8 from the free throw line. Most rebounds in the game by a rookie this season. Ace Bailey crashed Trey's debut, scoring 21 of his career high, 32 points in the first half.

56:32Shannon Sharpe:Look, I mean, I – kid, I mean, 20 points, I mean, your third career game, Ocho. I mean, Joe and Ocho, and you're not expecting a guy to do this.

56:47Chad Johnson:Talking about 20 rebounds?

56:48Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. 18 points.

56:50Chad Johnson:He got a knack. Them Reese's got a knack for rebounding that ball. Get that ball, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Hey, hey. Because that surprised me. I had never really seen him play. I have not either. And 20 rebounds, man. That says a lot. Good active big. I mean, he 8 for 8 from the free throw line. So, he's probably pretty aggressive. That's probably another bright spot for Washington. Mm-hmm.

57:14Shannon Sharpe:So, you know, hey, AD gets back.

57:20Shannon Sharpe:Utah, like, okay. They sending people out here to check on us. we better try to win this game. We better try to win this game, Joe. Kyle Filipowski, he had 20 points. Cody Williams had 13. Isaiah Carrier had 27. H. Bailey had 32. Blake Henson had 10. Bryce Insubar had 14. They got contribution.

57:42Chad Johnson:Yeah, they got some young boys who can get to the money, Uncle Ojo. But what's the kid that normally been killing for Utah? Oh, Keontae George. Yes. That boy been getting down. But when he don't play, Isaiah, call your steps right in, man, and pick up right where he left off, 27-11. It's good to see Ace Bailey get off to a great start, 32 points, 12 for 19. They got some bright spots. They got some young talent.

58:08Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, yeah. But they say, no, we still want DeBonza.

58:13Chad Johnson:There you go.

58:14Shannon Sharpe:We got the talent, but we want A.J. DeBonza. You look at the Wizards, they had, Joe, they had seven guys in double figures. They shot 47 % from the floor, 43 % from the three-point line, 18 made threes. They were terrible from the free-throw line. They missed 10 free-throws.

58:34Chad Johnson:Damn. Yeah, they got to catch a rhythm, huh? Got to get Trey in the form. Obviously, you know, he playing that point guard position, so he's going to have the ball a lot of times in his hands, so they got to get him in the rhythm.

58:47Shannon Sharpe:Well, look, next year they'll have AD. AD and Trey in the pick and roll should be deadly

58:54Chad Johnson:but what about the growth of these other guys around them too though they got some guys man they got some guys who can play Uncle Ocho they ain't just gonna be you know unless Trey and AD gonna be dominant outside of that they got some young boys over there who can go

59:11Shannon Sharpe:man look here if Trey can have the kind of success he had with Clint Capella I know damn well he can have good success with AD with AD yeah Well, it just depends on what AD we're getting. A healthy one? We're getting the one to stand on the floor. How can we get that one?

59:27Chad Johnson:That's what I'm saying.

59:28Iso Joe Johnson:You're getting a healthy one.

59:30Shannon Sharpe:All right.

59:35Shannon Sharpe:According to Shams, Jason Tatum will play this season and could make his debut Friday against the Mavs. J.R. Smith says the Celtics have been always been – this is what Swish said. The Celtics have always been Jalen Brown's team. Even players believe it, and that the media is the one trying to make it Jason Tatum's team. Joe, what are your thoughts? Oh, man.

1:00:02Chad Johnson:JB and JT don't need to get into that, bro. Obviously, you know, everybody going to have their own opinions. They're going to say about who team it is. I mean, just go out there and ball and win championships and let the chips fall where they may, because at the end of the day, when you're done, ain't none of that's going to matter, bro.

1:00:20Iso Joe Johnson:Hey, that's really important though, right? Hey, Joe, listen to me real quick. Now, I know I don't know much about basketball like y 'all two, but I do know something about players that have pride and that have ego, especially when two of the better players are on the same team. Now, when Jason Tatum comes back tomorrow against the Mavs, I'm hoping his mentality, I'm going to put my pride and my ego aside. I've been hurt for a long time. I know I want to get myself in rhythm. I know I want to be a part of this team and part of this offense and get going and show everybody I can still be the old Jason Tatum of old.

1:00:57Iso Joe Johnson:But please allow the offense and the way things are going, the consistency and the continuity, allow Jalen Brown to still steer the ship. That's all.

1:01:08Chad Johnson:I think he'll still he'll still put up his normal Ocho, meaning Jalen Brown but I do think Tatum is coming in to assert himself, be aggressive

1:01:20Iso Joe Johnson:Nah, nah, Joe, you can't do that Joe, you can't do that coming off of Keeley, Joe Ocho, what other reason

1:01:26Chad Johnson:they bringing him back at this point of the year we trying to give up and win the playoffs, man we got to test out that Achilles these last 20 some odd games

1:01:35Shannon Sharpe:Yes Yeah

1:01:36Chad Johnson:Yeah they not bringing that man back Just so he can just fill his way in And no no no no we need you to be him

1:01:45Shannon Sharpe:I agree And he gonna be him I think the thing for me They don't need to get in that Cause that's the quickest way If the camps to start splitting you up Oh man Because yeah man You know you better than him man You ain't got to say that, but we know it. Everybody knows it. And then, you know.

1:02:08Chad Johnson:You start having pulling and tugging different ways. And, you know, like, it's like you want to keep them two together, bro, because they're so dynamic together. It's almost, to me, Uncle Ocho, I know Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown have won a championship. But it's like Vince Carter and Trace McGrady, when they was playing together in Toronto, it's like, bro, you ain't supposed to let them two. You ain't supposed to let not one of them get out the door. You got to make that work some form of fashion. Right. Yeah. And I look at Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown, same thing. They done won. They've been to the finals and lost, the Eastern Conference finals and lost.

1:02:43Chad Johnson:And they've been to the finals and lost and been to the finals and won. So I just think through everything that they've been through, man, you keep them dudes together, I think they can at least get you another one for sure in the next year or so.

1:02:56Iso Joe Johnson:Hey, Joe, you don't think he going to hurt himself though, Joe? I like what you said. You say, you know, he got to come back. and I know they're bringing him back for a reason, but you said he needs to assert himself. That's doing a little too much, Joe.

1:03:09Chad Johnson:I think they've been in practice, training. I think they wouldn't put him out there if they didn't think he was ready. I agree. Yeah.

1:03:18Iso Joe Johnson:I mean, hey, Joe, what's one thing? Football, basketball, I don't care what sport it is, especially at the highest level. Practice ain't the same as the basketball game. It ain't the same as the real game, Joe. I know that.

1:03:29Chad Johnson:I know it ain't, but I bet you they done had him out there scrimmaging five on five, going up and down an extensive number of times, testing out that Achilles, seeing where his wind is at. And I bet you they've built his tolerance up to the point to where he can come in and play at least 25 minutes.

1:03:45Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah.

1:03:45Chad Johnson:You know what I mean? I ain't going to play him no 40 minutes, Ocho, but he probably started off about 25, close to 30 minutes.

1:03:52Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah, he's going to be on a time restriction. But listen, hey, Joe, I'm going to watch this game, Joe. I don't want to see him put the ball on the floor, Joe. What? I want to see him come out the pick and roll. I want to see him pop and shoot. You know, I just want to see him put the ball in the flow and have to make irky-jerky a sudden movement, Joe, where you got to push off. It just, that scared me, Joe. I know. I know. I don't even know more like that. I know. It make me nervous.

1:04:19Chad Johnson:I know, but he going to test that, Ojo. He going to do all that you say. He going to pick and pop. He going to dribble it out the pick and roll. He going to do all that. He going to post up.

1:04:26Iso Joe Johnson:Hey, hey, hey, hey. Hey, hey, hey, Elm, you hear my basketball lingo?

1:04:32Shannon Sharpe:I've been working on my shit now. I think that's the thing. I mean, sometimes that's not even true. But people start putting that out there in the universe. Yeah. And, you know, they start to consume it. Teams start to consume it. And we saw it happen. That's what happened. Whose team was it in L.A.? Shaka Colby's. And they started to buy into it. It's my team. Nah, I'm big brother. You little brother. I'm Batman. man, you Robin, like no, no, no.

1:05:02Chad Johnson:That was Shaq's persona and personality though. You know, to a Kobe at the time. He was playing that big brother role.

1:05:11Shannon Sharpe:But let me ask you a question. Kobe ever strike you as a guy that wanted a big brother? I mean, let's be all the way real. I know him a little bit. I don't know him like you know him, Joe, and been around him, but did Kobe strike you as a guy that wanted a big brother?

1:05:27Chad Johnson:Nah, nah, nah.

1:05:33Shannon Sharpe:So, and after a while, like, hey, you know, Kyrie and LeBron, you know, Shump said, you know, Kyrie wanted to beat LeBron. He thought he could lead a team. I'm like, hold on. Okay, you had a great opportunity. You go to Celtics. You don't get to say, well, I want to lead a team. I want to be the guy and go team up with Kevin Durant because you're not going to be better than KD. And then when you bring James Harden in, so where does that put him in the pecking order, ISO?

1:06:03Iso Joe Johnson:Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. There's a pecking order with them three on the same court? Of course. With KD, Harden, and Kyrie. Kyrie Irving, the greatest handler of the basketball that got the ball on the yo-yo on the string?

1:06:19Shannon Sharpe:He ain't better than KD. Hey, listen.

1:06:20Iso Joe Johnson:I know he's not better than him. We talk about different positions now. Come on, hold on, man.

1:06:25Shannon Sharpe:But that's my point. He said he wanted to beat LeBron. He didn't want to play second fiddle. He felt LeBron was getting things, perks and so forth, that he wasn't getting. So my thing was is that, okay, if that's the case, you go team up with KD. The best situation, the ideal situation for him, Joe, was to do, to get Boston with those young guys, JT, Marcus Smart, JB, to get those guys to the championship. and now you got something. Sometimes you don't realize how... Because somebody makes something easy, look easy, that don't mean it is easy. It's not. You know, Tom Brady made winning look easy.

1:07:11Shannon Sharpe:So everybody now thinks, oh, man, he should get to the Super Bowl. He a franchise quarterback. Just because you lead a franchise, that doesn't make you a franchise quarterback. You're just a quarterback of a franchise. there's a difference between being a quarterback of a franchise and a franchise quarterback

1:07:27Chad Johnson:there are two different things

1:07:31Shannon Sharpe:but Brady has made it like man everybody I mean is he it ain't easy it's not winning is not easy regardless of the sport and the more players that you have involved the harder it is to win

1:07:50Shannon Sharpe:to you guys that believe the same thing like the only common goal guys is for us to win the championship that's the only common goal i won't if you want to be all nba if you want to make the all-star team you want to win sixth man of the year i want you to do all of that but i don't want any of that to come at the expense of the team success it's hard for some of these guys to

1:08:15Chad Johnson:put the egos to the side. That's why I commend the Warriors, bro, for sticking together, winning four titles, not letting egos get involved, and they just obviously traded clay. But when you got from what you heard from Kyrie playing with LeBron, it's like, man, they were such a great duo, Ocho. It's like, damn, you just know they could have won at least two, maybe even three more titles. You know what I mean? Yeah.

1:08:41Shannon Sharpe:I don't think LeBron, I could be wrong, and it's easy to say what we'll never know. I don't know if LeBron leaves. If Kyrie stays, I'm not sure LeBron leaves and goes to L.A. because he has a piece there. He knows he can win with Kyrie because he's already done it. He knows he has a guy that he can hand in the ball and say, young man, do your thing.

1:09:00Chad Johnson:Yeah, I think it was a business move. I think he was leaving going to L.A. regardless.

1:09:06Shannon Sharpe:Even if Kyrie stays?

1:09:07Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah. I think he was going to L.A. He was thinking about the next chapter of his career. I don't think it had nothing to do with if Kyrie stayed or left. I think he would have always took this opportunity to go play for the Lakers because it was so prestige and he understood what it would do for his brand and his legacy. If he came to LA and won a title which he did, it was in the bubble. A lot of people put an asterisk behind that but he can't even deliver. Anybody that won a championship

1:09:35Shannon Sharpe:doing COVID, it's an asterisk. Who won the championship? Tampa. He's got an asterisk. whether the Dodgers or the Braves that won the championship, there's an asterisk. Anybody that won a championship during COVID, there's an asterisk about it. So, Joe, we just make that easy. Any team that won a championship in 2020, there's an asterisk.

1:09:58Chad Johnson:Yeah, okay. Yeah, well, yeah, you know how they say, you know, it just wasn't the same, wasn't no travel. But I commend what they did in the bubble. It was fun to watch. so I don't put no Astrid beside it. I'm just saying.

1:10:12Shannon Sharpe:Joe, think about when COVID and people couldn't stay at home. People had to get out. So just imagine, you can't leave this place for three months. How many people could stay in your house for three months?

1:10:29Chad Johnson:It ain't a lot. It ain't a lot of people who stay in their house for three months and not go nowhere, real talk.

1:10:36Shannon Sharpe:it ain't

1:10:37Chad Johnson:yeah and to do that and still be able to perform when need be it was special

1:10:44Shannon Sharpe:and with no family around Joe because I think they let the family come in later but in the beginning they didn't have any family right

1:10:55Shannon Sharpe:man please look I just think the thing is that the pecking order in football is a lot different than basketball because the superstars, they control everything. And I don't think you'll ever see a situation like that in football, Joe and Ocho, for the simple fact, the quarterback is the top dog. Yes. So who's challenging him? Ain't another quarterback on the team? Well, it happened with Steve and Joe.

1:11:23Iso Joe Johnson:Okay.

1:11:24Shannon Sharpe:And they had to make a decision. And they chose Steve.

1:11:29Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah, Joe went to Kansas City.

1:11:31Shannon Sharpe:He did. He got hurt. See, the thing is, he got hurt. Steve won the MVP. So, Joe, Ocho, how do we go back? We got a guy that won the MVP. He's like seven years, six, seven years younger. How do we go back to the guy? Now, we know what this guy's done. Joe had won MVP. Joe was a three-time Super Bowl MVP and a four-time Super Bowl champ. But Ocho, this young guy.

1:12:01Iso Joe Johnson:Nature to business. Oh Joe When T.O.

1:12:04Shannon Sharpe:got good What did they do with Jerry?

1:12:07Iso Joe Johnson:He had to go

1:12:09Shannon Sharpe:It's what they do

1:12:11Iso Joe Johnson:Once they see Joe Once they see that younger player Has developed And you can get that high salary And get that money off the books And get production for a lower price Man stop playing Until it's time To pay that young player and then the cycle repeats itself.

1:12:32Chad Johnson:That's what happened here to my Atlanta Hawks. Trey got hurt. They went away with the young fella and they end up trading Trey up out there. I already know. I know what's going on. Oh yeah.

1:12:46Iso Joe Johnson:Jalen Johnson, right? Yeah. I gotta meet young bull when I come out there. I gotta meet young bull.

1:12:53Shannon Sharpe:And here's the thing. This is why quarterbacks, Joe, don't want the backup to play. right

1:12:59Chad Johnson:Drew Bledsoe got hurt what happened

1:13:02Shannon Sharpe:who got hurt he got Wally Pilt Drew Bledsoe

1:13:05Iso Joe Johnson:he let people see Tom and it was a wrap it was history

1:13:14Chad Johnson:hey cause you get your opportunity you got to show out that's why they don't

1:13:19Shannon Sharpe:take no slap you know what I got to kneel down You might like the way he kneeled down or something. Hey, the kneeled down or something. Hey, the kneeled down or something. Yeah, you might like the way he kneeled down or something. Nah, I got it. Hey. Stay your ass over here.

1:13:36Chad Johnson:Hey, that's why they don't let him get no reps in practice.

1:13:38Iso Joe Johnson:None. Hey, nah, nah. No, sir. No, sir.

1:13:45Chad Johnson:I wonder why the backup get out there looking like he don't know what the hell going on.

1:13:48Shannon Sharpe:Hey, you better learn through osmosis. You damn sure ain't going to get no meaningful reps.

1:14:03Shannon Sharpe:What's the guy?

1:14:07Shannon Sharpe:The Tampa. He came from Indy. He's the offensive coordinator at Indy with Peyton Manning. And he said, what? Huh?

1:14:17Iso Joe Johnson:The one that just retired.

1:14:19Shannon Sharpe:Yeah.

1:14:20Iso Joe Johnson:Yeah, heavy sake. I forgot his name. I forgot his name.

1:14:23Shannon Sharpe:But anyway, and they asked him, said, why don't you let the backup quarterback get any reps? He said, we don't practice OF. We don't practice OF. Because that's what happens if Peyton goes down, and we don't practice that. So he better stay up. Tom Moore, yes. We don't practice that. It's different, man. It's different. But I will commend the Patriots on this. because you know the more you win. And ask anybody about when you win. Everybody thinks they're the main reason why we won. The groundskeeper. Man, you see how we had that grass edged off? You see them lines? Perfect. The craft, the people that bring the food, hey, you know you had some good food now.

1:15:10Shannon Sharpe:Hey, we cooked that thing to perfection. The way they clean. People take ankles. The physios, the massage therapists. And then guess what? But everybody comes back and try to do a little bit more when what they were doing was plenty enough. For the Patriots to keep that thing together for 20 years. Yeah. We know Mr. Kraft has an ego. We know Coach Belichick has an ego. And we know Tom has an ego. For them to keep that thing together for 20 years, that in and of itself is a feat. And you won't ever see it again. not in my lifetime.

1:15:49Chad Johnson:They had that thing running

1:15:50Shannon Sharpe:military style over there, didn't they? Absolutely. Absolutely.

1:15:57Iso Joe Johnson:Ready for a different take on Formula One? Look no further than No Grip, a new podcast tackling the culture of motor racing's most coveted series. Join me, Lily Herman, as we dive into the underexplored pockets of F1, including the astrology of the current grid, the story of the sport's most consequential driver's strike, and plenty of other mishaps, scandals, and sagas that have made Formula One a delightful, decadent dumpster fire for more than 75 years. Listen to No Grip on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

1:16:44Iso Joe Johnson:who of the podcasting world. Creativity, knowledge, and passion will all be on full display. And the winner of the iHeart Podcast Award is... See all the nominees now at iHeart.com slash podcast awards.

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1:17:07Iso Joe Johnson:There's more to imagine when you listen. Sign up for a free trial at audible.com. I'm Daniel Jeremiah and I am Greg Rosenthal. I know that Greg we're teaming up on 40s and free agents the podcast that owns the NFL offseason. This is where teams are built free agency combine pro days trades every move matters from my draft boards and mock drafts to my vaunted top 101 free agents and how rosters come together quarterback movement, surprise signings, we'll tell you what it means and who really wins. Open your free iHeartRadio app, search 40s and free agents and listen now.