Nightcap Hour 1: Seahawks TOSS Jaxson Smith-Njigba the BAG + Tracy McGrady JOINS Nightcap to talk NBA, Michael Jordan & MORE

25:02Shannon Sharpe:Yes. So it's kind of hard to say, OK, maybe some, you know, the upper echelon of those that are content creators or influencers, maybe they do make the money to be able to sustain that type of lifestyle. But, I mean. I mean, I talk about content creators, Ocho. It's kind of like professional athletes. Everybody ain't making$60 million a year in basketball. Everybody in football ain't making a JSN salary. So even the content creators that's making, that's making 10, 15, 20, whatever they're making a year, a lot of them making$500 a month. Damn. Yeah. So this notion that everybody, oh, I'm a content creator.

25:42Shannon Sharpe:Everybody is not a Casano. everybody is not a Jake Paul everybody is not a speed everybody is not one of those type of content creators so just because you throw that out that doesn't mean necessarily that money comes along with it yes yes because everybody is an influencer everybody is a content creator now hmm so yeah I don't know yep Okay. So, like I said, I don't know. Like I said, I just don't believe a whole lot. All right. Copenhagen spit-free pouches are packed full of American-grown tobacco. Made for welders. Stuck behind masks. More mechanics. Stuck on a fused spark plug. The long-haul trucker is stuck in gridlock.

26:34Performing. Working late at the field office. Or anytime there's no time or space to spit, there's Copenhagen spit-free pouches. Find them in stores today. Not all varieties available in all geographies. Warning, this product can cause mouth cancer.

26:48Shannon Sharpe:We're lost. It feels like we're going round in circles. I'm going to ask that man for directions. Hi there. We're trying to get to Wisconsin Dells. Well, you're going to take a left at the old oak tree at this here road. Nah, I'm just kidding. Let me get my phone out. How is there signal out here? T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular are coming together, so the network out here is huge. We get the same great signal as Milwaukee, saving a boatload with benefits. And there's a five-year price guarantee, too. Okay, here's the turn. Actually, can you pull up the way to a T-Mobile store? America's best network just got bigger.

27:25Switch to T-Mobile today and get built-in benefits the other guys leave out, plus our five-year price guarantee. And now T-Mobile is available at U.S. Cellular stores in Pleasant Prairie. Best mobile network based on analysis by Oklo of Speedtest Intelligence data second half of 2025. Bigger network. The combination of T-Mobile's and U.S. Cellular's network footprints will enhance the T-Mobile network's coverage. Price guarantee on talk, text, and data. Exclusions like taxes and fees apply. See T-Mobile.com for details. Hi! Uncle Lazer here. America's built on fast cars, fast food, and even faster women.

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28:28Shop in-store or online for participating hair care items from Pantene, Head & Shoulders, Aussie, and Old Spice and earn four times points. Points can be redeemed later for discounts on groceries or gas. Offer ends March 31st. Restrictions apply. Promotions may vary. Visit Jewelosco.com for more details. Critics and audiences agree. What the hell is this place? Only three letters described they will kill you. W. T. F. Splendid. USA Today calls it bloody and bonkers. Are you ready to die? IGN declares it's electrifying action cinema and popcorn entertainment to the max. How many of you are there?

29:08It begs to be seen in a packed theater.

29:10Shannon Sharpe:Please remember to clean up the blood. Wow. They will kill you only in theaters tomorrow. Rated R. Under 17, not admitted without parent. There is our very special guest joining us tonight. He's a seven-time NBA All-Star, a seven-time All-Star, excuse me, he's a seven-time All-NBA selection, a seven-time NBA All-Star, a two-time scoring champ, straight out of high school. Here he is, T-Mac, Tracy McGrady. T-Mac, what it do, bro?

29:38Shannon Sharpe:What's up, dog? We good, we good, bro. How you feeling tonight? Man, I'm blessed, brother. All good. Thanks for doing this tonight. Go ahead, Ocho. You want to say something, Ocho? I was at Mac. What's good, boy? Florida boy. You good? My dog. What's up, boy? Man, I'm chilling. I'm chilling. I ain't see you on the court in a minute, man. You still want smoke again? Ocho, come on, bro. That's how we starting off this tonight? I'm just asking. I'm glad you said that, Ocho. Let me clear some things up for people out there. We played in a celerity game many, many moons ago. And this is my dude. This is my Florida brother.

30:27we was out there playing roughing each other up and folks thought we were actually fighting online I would never fight this man this is my dude so to clear that up that was not me and Ocho fighting in a celebrity basketball game that was something else going on me and my dude was just acting like Florida boys out on the basketball court that's what we were doing so I wanted to clear that up man because I ain't never get a chance to talk to you about that and I know there's a lot of stuff floating out there about us fighting.

30:56Shannon Sharpe:Nah, but what he's been talking about, he's been telling us he dropped like 14, 16 on you, and you kind of got upset with him about that.

31:09Shannon Sharpe:On me? I said, did you drink? I said, did you drop all 14, 16 points on T-Mac? He's like, yeah. What'd juice that nigga drunk that night? On me? Hell no. All right, T-Mac, let's get you some basketball. Look, the MVP, I think we got Luka, we got Wimby, we got Jokic, you got SGA, you got Jalen Brown, and I think you got Cade Cunningham. I think Cade is going to miss the cutoff because he's going to miss too many games. So just for the sake of this argument, let's set him to the side. But I believe it's out of those five, Luka, Jokic, SGA, Jalen Brown, and Wimby. I don't know if you have a vote, you may or may not.

31:56Shannon Sharpe:But if you had to vote right now, there's still about 12, 14 games left in the season. But if you had to vote right now, T-Mac, where are you leaning? So, obviously, I think all five of these guys can win MVP because they're all having a phenomenal season. But how I see the MVP and view the MVP, who's most valuable to their team? And out of those five, when I look at the rosters, it's Jalen Brown. No question. Right? It's no question. SGA is playing with another all-star and playing with a cast that he played with last year. Yes, sir. But J-Dub has been out, in and out of the lineup. He's just coming back.

32:39And then when I look at Jokic, now, Jokic, before he got hurt, I don't care what anybody was doing. He was my clear-cut MVP. The numbers he was putting up was just astronomical. Yeah. And then when you look at – when you look at, bro, I'm just going to say this. When you look at Wimby, if Wimby doesn't win it this year, good luck to all the other players for the next six or seven years because defensively, like, his floor is better than all of those guys' ceiling. and we've never seen anybody on the defensive end have that type of impact and i say the dude is like deon senders bro on the basketball court being able to shut an entire side down yeah and then and then luca you know for me you got to play both sides of the ball i think he's done a lot better this year defensively but in this stretch that we've seen him on he's been phenomenal scoring with the best of I mean we the dude is just a phenomenal offensive player but again he's playing with LeBron James and they didn't really the team the team wise I think there was a little you know up and down really wasn't playing great basketball Jalen Brown and his boss himself has been playing great basketball from the from the jump and you look at his roster JT has been out right up until a few weeks ago him coming back but you look at their roster it's like no way you guys should be in a second seed in the eastern conference so most valuable player at this point to me still is jaylen brown when you when you when you look at this and you see what the uh the

34:23Shannon Sharpe:the okc thunder what they've been able to do um even when s when sga was out they were still finding ways to win even when and that's the mark of a good team when you can be without your best player and you still win you can be without your second best player and guys come in and contribute and you can still win that shows you the depth of a given team yeah so now if i said okay team matt some money that means something to you and if it's your money you putting up it means something to you who who you think is in the finals because i go back i go back and forth because a part of me wants to say San Antonio.

34:59Shannon Sharpe:A part of me wants to say the OKC. OKC. And then I look at the East. I still think Boston healthy. I don't think anybody. If Boston and Detroit but Cade has to play great in order for them to win. JT can have an off game and JB carry him. JB can have an off game and JT can carry him. And then you got that little guy Peyton Pritchett. He coming out the bench and before you know he done hit you over your head. with 22 point team back. No, you absolutely right, man. You know, some of these guys, when they miss games, their team don't fall off. They still win ballgames. You know, Detroit had a good one tonight, but they lost against the Hawks, but they still playing good basketball without Cade Cunningham.

35:47Jalen Dern is stepping up in the absence of him. And actually, their little point guard, Dennis Jenkins is playing great basketball for them too. So for Detroit, this is, I want to see this because I wanted to see how they function without the head of the snake and Cade Cunningham. And they answer my question. These guys are still a legit team without him. And I see how they can play when Cade gets in foul trouble or he's off the court for whatever reason, they still play good basketball. and with Jalen Brown there, man, I just don't see nobody in the Eastern Conference as balanced and solid all around like them.

36:28New York Knicks, they have everything, but you just don't know. It's been some inconsistent basketball with them. So I'm going Boston, and it pains me to say this because I love the Denver Nuggets. Jokic is my favorite player. Them being healthy,

36:46Shannon Sharpe:they're off man because peyton watson is coming back at some point in time because you look at the way they were playing with peyton watson and you got jamal playoff because you know jamal murray he and yogish in the pick and roll is the most stoppable stoppable tandem so i'm i'm gonna say this before i had denver when they were fully healthy i just thought denver was that team but because it's been, you know, Aaron Gore has been out of the lineup. I mean, Peyton Watson has been out of the lineup. Chris LeBron has been out of the lineup. Like, so many of these guys, Cam Johnson, they're core guys that's made so much time.

37:25I've got to go with Boston and OKC in the finals, dog. Wow.

37:30Shannon Sharpe:No San Antonio. You don't think San Antonio is quite old enough yet? Because I love Wimby, Stephan Castle, Bissell. I mean, they got – Harrison Barnes comes off the bench. Kelton Johnson, I love Kelton Johnson. He's a bucket. I don't care what – it don't matter. He get in the game, he going to get 20 team, man. No, that boy be playing, man, whether he's knocking down the three or getting to the cup. I love their team. I just think this is the year where they're going to have that groin pain of failing to reach the finals. And then the next few years, my gosh, watch out. It's going to be crazy.

38:09My gosh Yeah Hey Mac I want to switch gears real quick Obviously you With great knowledge of the game And everyone has their own criteria Hold on bro Where you at bro? I'm in the car I was stuck in a rush hour traffic You ain't no goddamn rush hour traffic bro This how you do me bro You supposed to be my boy You supposed to be in the studio Or at the crib You in the car tomorrow No I swear to God T-Mac I was in stand still traffic For like 45 minutes Alright Apologies for yourself, bro. I'm at the house now, but real quick, everyone has their own criteria. There's always dialogue. There's always endless conversations, barbershop talk, basketball talk, when it comes to who the best is to ever play this game.

38:51So based on your knowledge and having to face these individuals, in your mind, who is the greatest basketball player of all time when it comes to the debate about Michael Jordan and LeBron James? Who is the go-to-the-game? You only threw two of them in there?

39:10Shannon Sharpe:You threw two guys in there I think T-Mac got COVID in that discussion You only got two guys in there? Talk to me nice man Talk to me nice And let me know Let me know who you feel the best is Ever We talk about the GOAT now So if there's another GOAT you want to add to the conversation So for me it's MJ All day I grew up watching Mike And I just haven't seen And it's not even about the numbers And the championships It's what I'm watching Right with my eyes What I see on the basketball court Yeah that other stuff helps But it's all about the eye test And what this man did You know night in and night out Defensively Clutch Whatever you needed And that's not to say LeBron can't be the GOAT but for me it's my goat it's mj and i think how you have to do it you got to go by errors man because you know it's right right you know i'm saying like it's it's different style of basketball it's different players like mj ain't see no kobe mj ain't see no t-mac mj ain't see no vince you know like and i'm trying to disrespect those wing players but let's be honest the 2000 wings bro they wasn't in the right right they were deeper and the game changed so and then in lebron's era he ran that right putting up crazy stats the mvps but he had some competition that was kobe bryant and then later on in his career he's got to ask step curry in there right so i it's so it's errors for me man all these guys are goats because they all was freaking great bro yeah i think the thing is that I don't know how you felt when you first saw Michael Jordan but I always tell the story he doesn't seem real T-Mac he he he level I mean when I first laid eyes on this man I was in the Super Bowl this man was levitating and I'm looking at him and he probably thinking man Sterling Sharp little brother uh he's something wrong with him he didn't he don't he T-Mac am I Does he seem real?

41:22So I'm going to tell you this story. And I'm glad you said that. And people really don't understand. That aura is a real thing, bro. For real. His aura is like none other. So I was 17 years old. And this is when I announced that I was going to go to the NBA. Chicago was playing at Atlanta Hawks. Like, go to the game. watched MJ and Pip and the Bulls do their thing that night. I go in the back after the game, and I'm waiting for these guys. I'm waiting by the Chicago Bulls locker room because we got some passes, and the team that I was with had the connections. Shane, MJ, well, Rodman walked out.

42:09All right. Cool. That's the problem right there. Pip walks out. All right. bro mj walks out of that locker room i do

42:23nah nah it's like he was glowing bro he had like this aura around him that was i'm telling you this is 17 year old me watching this guy because this is right nbc this is the golden era of basketball that's how i got to watch him right it's to see him on on tv and what he was doing back in the late 80s, early 90s for me when I started watching? And to actually see this brother in person? Nah. He didn't seem real.

42:54Shannon Sharpe:He still don't. I get the same feeling when I see that man in person that I got the very first time that I saw his ass in person. This guy was levitating. I don't care what nobody say. This man was levitating. He was not walking. He was levitating. And I've seen a lot, a lot of famous people in the world in my time. But don't nobody has the aura like Michael Jordan. Now, maybe Michael Jackson, but I never saw Michael Jackson in person. I've seen Prince in person. I've seen a lot of celebs in person. I've never seen anything like what this man, the glow and the power, the energy, the force that is around him, man.

43:37Shannon Sharpe:You got to be in his presence to understand what T-Mac. But if you think about it, Chad, everybody that's ever been around him has said the same thing. From Shaq to Kevin Garnett to everybody said the exact same thing. He doesn't. Allen Ivers say, man, he don't even seem real. No, he don't, man. And I was actually just with him at the Writers' Cup. And it's hard not to just stare at Mike, bro. That's Mike, bro. I'm glad I ain't the only one. I'm glad I ain't the only one. That's Mike right there, fool. But, nah, he – and for me, when I first saw him and then my first couple times playing against him, like I still had that feeling.

44:22But it's like I've been around Mike so many times. I still, you know, have high regards. The auras kind of wore off a little bit. It's still there, and that's still Mike. But man, when I was 17 years, I ain't never seen anything like it, bro.

44:38Shannon Sharpe:It's amazing. Like I said, I've been around a lot of famous people. A lot, a lot of famous people. But ain't nothing like this dude right here, man. Nah, nah. And when he came back to the Wizards, because I was 17 years, I mean, 18 years old, you know, I played against him when they won 72-10. That was my rookie year. Okay. And I played against him his last year before he retired. And, you know, that 18-year-old me was trying to figure out, you know, who I was as an NBA player and trying to learn the game. So I didn't really, you know, have that type of game or that force that I wanted. But when his ass came back, when he was with the Wizards, ah, ah.

45:23Hey, you might be wounded, but I'm going to give you this work. I got to give you this work.

45:29Shannon Sharpe:I don't like what you did to my mind when I was 17 years old, making me seem like you ain't real. Hey, because that was Kobe's mindset. You remember Kobe dropped 55 over the last time he played it, and people were like, well, Kobe, why would you do that? He said that's what he would want me to do. He would have it no other way, because I guarantee you, if the roles were reversed. Oh, yeah, he would have did the same thing. Would have did the same thing. So that's why before he left that, I had to get at least 40 on it, bro. Before he stopped playing, I had to see that. I dropped 40 and I don't care if the Wizards might, because the Wizards might, we're still averaging 24 points, 25 points and putting up some crazy numbers when he was healthy playing.

46:08So I viewed him as Chicago Bulls might. He got to come get his work. Copenhagen spit-free pouches are packed full of American grown tobacco. Made for welders. Stuck behind masks. More mechanics. Stuck on a fused spark plug. The long-haul trucker stuck in gridlock. Performing, working late at the field office. Or anytime there's no time or space to spit, there's Copenhagen spit-free pouches. Find them in stores today. Not all varieties available in all geographies. Warning, this product can cause mouth cancer.

46:45Shannon Sharpe:We're lost. It feels like we're going round in circles. I'm going to ask that man for directions. Hi there. We're trying to get to Wisconsin Dells. Well, you're going to take a left at the old oak tree at this here road. Nah, I'm just kidding. Let me get my phone out. How is there signal out here? T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular are coming together, so the network out here is huge. We get the same great signal as Milwaukee, saving a boatload with benefits. And there's a five-year price guarantee, too. Okay, here's the turn. Actually, can you pull up the way to a T-Mobile store? America's best network just got bigger.

47:21Switch to T-Mobile today and get built-in benefits the other guys leave out, plus our five-year price guarantee. And now T-Mobile is available at U.S. Cellular Stores in Pleasant Prairie. Best mobile network based on analysis by Okloof. Speedtest Intelligence data second half of 2025. Bigger network. The combination of T-Mobile's and U.S. Cellular's network footprints will enhance the T-Mobile network's coverage. Price guarantee on talk, text, and data. Exclusions like taxes and fees apply. See T-Mobile.com for details. Moto Casino. America's social casino.

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49:03Help! How many of you are there? It begs to be seen in a packed theater.

49:08Shannon Sharpe:Please remember to clean up the blood. Wow. They will kill you. Only in theaters tomorrow. Rated R. Under 17. Not admitted without parent. When you look. You know what I wanted to ask you, T-Mac? I have a guy that played the game at an elite level. There was a lot of conversation going back and forth when Bam got 83. Bam got 83. Look how he got to 83. The game was out of reach. T-Mac, can you just tell the people how hard it is to score? 40, 50, 60, because I think you've got a career high of like 60, 62. So now, go to 70, go to 80. I don't give a damn how he did it. I don't care if he cherry picks, snowbird, whatever you guys call it, where the guy just started at half court and getting layoffs on the other end.

49:51Shannon Sharpe:I don't give a damn what you call it. 83 is 83. Talk to the people from somebody that played the game at an elite high, high level. Explain to the people, even though the Washington Wizards are trash and it says more about them than it does BAM, explain to people 83 damn points. Yeah, the league has been around, you know, 70-something years. Only – 1947. 47. How many people scored that? Three. Three. That's all I have. It's only three, regardless of how he did it and how you view him when he did it. It's 83 points, and we haven't seen that. Only one time, and that was B. So, yeah, I think it could have been a little bit more competitive on Washington's side.

50:36Of course, but they make millions of dollars as well. right they got a job to do and if you had an opportunity to make history who's not gonna do that so when so so 30 years from now when you know kids are coming up these these babies right now they come up and they looking at the scoring list like damn what's the man out of bio he scored 83 points they're not gonna care how he scored it they just know man that man is on the whole time so i don't care how he scored it man you know it's a lot of people out there that's that's hating on the man because he overtook. And Kobe never had the record.

51:14I don't know what they talk about it. Kobe had the record. The record is 100. The record is 100. Now, we haven't seen it.

51:20Shannon Sharpe:I haven't seen it in the video. But the record is 100. But you know what I think, T-Mac? I think because Kobe got 81 and then back. See, I think it was Bam is because he's the most unlikeliest guy to get 83. Had Kobe got 83, had you got 80 plus, had one of these guys that we look at at scores, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Allen Iverson. If we look, if one of you guys get it, I don't think anybody's batting the eye. But you're talking about Bam that's a career, what, 20-point a night score, and all of a sudden he jumped from 20 all the way up to get 83? We don't normally see guys go like that. You look at Donovan Mitchell.

51:58Shannon Sharpe:Donovan Mitchell, when he got 70, you look at Luka, he got 70. Those guys are scores. So it's not anything. So if they were to get, because we saw them get, Luka got 73, I think, against the Hawks. I think Donovan Mitchell got 70-something. If they get 80, we not even batting the eye. But Bam got it. And we don't look at Bam as one of those guys a score. He's an NBA player, man. The man got hot. He had a phenomenal night. End of story. Like, he scored 83, man. Let that shit go, bro. Like, man, he's an NBA player, bro. I've seen guys averaging, you know, 17 points in this league get 50 so what do you got to say about that uh oh i think ultra trying you muted ocho can you hear me now yeah hey mac i got i got a question listen normally normally push back for for 83 point game that bam scored you hear from analysts you hear from pundits you hear from from from fans that are just just just fans of the game in general that that enjoy watching basketball um but when you hear pushback from actual players that played the game you know and they complain also about bam scoring 83 why do you think that is especially from those who have played the game at the highest level why would they have a problem with it it's because of how it happened and rightfully so like it was it was a nasty game it was a nasty game of what they was doing that's what that's what they're speaking on There's no disrespect to BAM.

53:33It's just how it happened. You know what I mean? Like the Washington Wizards and fouling and then Miami fouling to try to get the ball back. Yeah, it was all that stuff right there is what they was pissed off about.

53:47Shannon Sharpe:I don't know. Did you see Shump's comment? I did not. Iman Shump said, this is what he said about BAM. Don't bring up Aiden no more. Don't bring that up. That was a regular season game versus a tanking team. You murdered that team and then you walk off bam. You don't need to talk about it. We all saw it Let us talk about it. I'm in a suit. I can talk about it Don't talk about it no more bam cuz now it looks weird. You're about to make it where I don't like 83 no more I'm dead serious. Please don't be holding on to that this bam. I need you to add to your resume F that I'm talking about it forever.

54:22Shannon Sharpe:As a matter of fact, I'm changing my name. Mr. 83 Mr. 83. Actually, that's going to be my social media name on all social media channels. Mr. 83. Straight up. Like, come on, bro. How do you not talk about that? Man, people out here are crazy, dog. That's 83 points in an NBA game, my dude, against NBA players that are making millions of dollars. Come on, dog. It's his. No, we can't do that. Hey, Unc, it's history. It's history. How can you not talk about history? you're a part of it. Let me get, I tell you, Ocho, let's just say for the sake of argument, all their top corners go out, but you get 300 yards, and y 'all still throwing the ball, y 'all up 21 points, and y 'all throw the ball, and you catch a 15-yard route to go over 300.

55:13Shannon Sharpe:Are you going to say, man, I feel bad for them. They top three corners was out. I did the move. Oh, no. Oh, no. Right. You in the NFL. I'm going to talk. You'd be crazy. I might change my last name to 300 too. Shut up. 300.

55:32It's very rare for us to see this type of performance, regardless of how it happens. Regardless of how it happens. It's a professional. It's supposed to be the best players in the world. It's supposed to be the best league in the world. That's all I'm saying. We're the best players in the best league. the man scored 83 points there's no asterisk it happened i think see i people like well

56:02Shannon Sharpe:colby didn't mention it well colby had a game where he stopped at 62 and left in the third and in the third and then come back in the game colby has had these scoring outbursts so we're not surprised i don't think anybody was surprised because just three weeks earlier he had a 62 point game where he outscored in time if I'm not mistaken I think it was the Mavericks by himself in three quarters so we're not surprised when Kobe like kept going and ended up getting that or when Jordan has got these 60 points but Bam I don't even know if Bam's career high is even 40 do you remember David Robinson was trying to get a scoring title I do last game of the season they got him the scoring title to beat Shaq every single time every single trip we don't say nothing about that As a matter of fact, I think it was against the Clippers It was against the Clippers They fed the crap out of Dave Robinson He had 71 Man, he wasn't scoring that against nobody else But the Clippers Why?

57:02Because they were like the Washington Wizards Well, you mean the Washington Generals

57:07Shannon Sharpe:They played the Harlem Gold Trotters That's what That's what the Wizards are now Hey, team man You said this week The Board of Governors of the NBA, they're convening and they're going to vote possibly expansion. One Vegas, one Seattle. You said you was like, hold on, guys. I'm not so sure there's enough talent on the 30 current NBA teams for you to dilute it even more, adding two more teams because you can only protect a certain number of players. And then everybody else is up for a discussion with those teams like, okay, I want this guy, I want that guy. What went into your thought process? Why did you say you don't think there's enough talent that's currently in the NBA for the league to add two more teams?

57:53So we just talked about Bam scoring 83 points, right? What did you call that team he scored 83 points on? The Washington Generals.

58:06We want two more teams. And you just said the NBA team, you call these boys the Washington Generals. They're not the only team like that. You got Utah thinking. You got the Brooklyn Nets. Yep. You want to watch the Brooklyn Nets?

58:26Shannon Sharpe:Nah, bro. I don't. Why? Why you don't want to watch the Brooklyn Nets? Because they ain't even trying. At least the Wizards are playing their guys, T-Mac. Utah, not even – they take their guys out. They down by two. And they started for the whole fourth quarter. Triple J getting surgery on the wisdom tooth. He out for the rest of the year. Man, that's a blow job. You make it – so when you answer the question that you asked me, Sacramento, you two in the way Sacramento up? No. Not even. All right, man. so now you talk about adding two more teams than this come on bro i got a question i got a question mac oh let me let me follow this up right quick t mac you're talking about two teams and each team they say the winning bid is going to be somewhere between seven and ten billion dollars and the owners you know that that's probably 500 that's probably 500 maybe 600 million dollars in each owner's pocket hey hey i don't want to take no money out of nobody's pocket i know it's about bread i know it's about bread okay but i'm just saying as a fan of the game okay and if we don't have the product man i'm just i'm sorry we we just don't have the product i'm looking the league is weird it's strange man i don't i i can't understand the league i'm looking at a guy that averaged 30 points last year in the nba 29 30 points on a bad team but a bucket getter probably one of the best bucket getters in our league as a young player.

59:58He gets waived from his team. Another bad team picks him up, right? Cam Thomas. Cam Thomas. Another bad team picks him up. He stays there for a few weeks, and they waive him. That, Ocho, the brother was averaging 30 in the NBA last season before he got hurt, and he's out of the NBA. so come on like i want that type of talent in the nba i want some i want that in the nba so where he takes tough shots he'll tough shot maker he can't find out he can't find a home in the nba now i don't know the other stuff that's going on whether it's attitude or he's not you know i'm saying i don't know none of that i don't have any of that information but in terms of a basketball player and what we need in this league what we want to see that kid is one of the best scores you will see in this league hey hey hey matt what i'm gonna say right you know if it make money it makes sense especially the owner to the gms the bottom line it will always be the same and it's always been the same since the beginning of time it's always about it's always about the money so with these two expansion teams if seattle is able to get one if vegas is able to get one How long do you think it would take before they're able to produce the product or get the product necessary for those teams to compete?

1:01:22Or is that not possible because there's not enough basketball players in general? No, I think it is possible because, I mean, there's, you know, I think with some of these kids coming out of college, it depends on like how you construct your roster. there's some vets that's probably are you know up for a contract and possibly will look at that Las Vegas situation or look at Seattle's a phenomenal city to hoop it by the way Vegas NBA players that's a little tricky yeah but that's a little tricky that's Vegas hey the girls can handle that the WNBA players understand of that the NFL players it's more of a strictly you know you guys only got one game NBA players got too much downtime dog Vegas might be a little tricky but T-Mac tell us about the

1:02:22Shannon Sharpe:ones league that you found the table what what what is the ones so that's my one-on-one league man you know I you know started a one-on-one league back in 2022 and uh there was my proof for concept season and i i started this league because of where i am sitting today is because a platform that i got on when i was in high school and that was the abcd camp see if y 'all don't know i was an unknown high school player up until my senior year nobody really knew who i was i got invited to the adidas camp become you know the number one player after that adidas camp and you know the story is i go to the nba and the rest is history so it's that platform that really made me who i was and gave me a name so i it's a lot of hoopers ocho you know you grew up down in the bottom man you grew up some guys that that can hoop like crazy and probably had you know a situation where someone in the family died and they had to pivot and and step up and and you know be the parent, the guardian in that situation, or they just couldn't get it right as a teenager and was in some trouble and, you know, ruined their careers or whatever.

1:03:35And then guys just really didn't get the opportunity to live out their dream of playing basketball. Well, there are so many guys, so much talent and one-on-one out here, man, that I feel they should have that platform. You played one-on-one growing up?

1:03:50Shannon Sharpe:I did. Ocho, you played one-on-one growing up? But we all play. But go ahead, T-Mac. Hey, T-Mac, you know 21 was one-on-one. Basically. It was one-on-one against 15 other guys. I was just about to say that. Like, I grew up playing one-on-one, and then 21 was our one-on-one as well. So, man, I just think these cats out here really need that platform. I want to create it for them. But on top of that, you know, it's much bigger than just giving them a platform to make a name for themselves in basketball. I also want to do something for brothers that look like us in the ownership department. See, it's not too, and your league, it's not too many guys that look like us that have ownership.

1:04:35I was lucky enough. I was lucky enough to have that opportunity to go in with the Buffalo Bills with my cousin Vince. So, you know, we got some ownership with that. and it just really you know sparked my interest like i want to do this for my people and i want to change how i'm building this league so i'm building it to have cities i want cities and have guys like jadekis who's from new york i give him 15 of this team that's based out of new york john wall john wall is from raleigh i gave him 15 of that raleigh team and i have eight cities and eight owners and GMs that I assigned to this team, gave them equity.

1:05:19I didn't want any money for them. I just handed it to them because they are impactful in those cities that they grew up. And then when you look at the game of basketball, our game of basketball, NBA, like Steph Curry is not from Oakland or San Francisco. LeBron James is not from L.A. These guys are homegrown from these cities, and I want that community to get behind them and push these guys and support these guys. So that's why I want to do this, man. And, you know, I'm really excited about giving these guys this platform.

1:05:49Shannon Sharpe:T-Mac, we're going to get you out of here. I don't know. I think Pat Bell – No, man, y 'all cut me off all early. No, well, we'll keep you. We're going to keep you going. Check this out. Pat Bell says, Dame Dollar is not a Hall of Famer. This is what he said. He said, hell no. I love Dame. There's too many people getting in the Hall of Fame. How are we going to say no to Derrick Rose getting MVP and say yes to Dame Dollar? If he get a chip, for sure. T-Mac, dang, a nine-time NBA All-Star, 2000 All-Rookie team, 75th anniversary team, seven-time All-NBA selection, 2012-13 Rookie of the Year, 2023-24 MVP, All-Star Game MVP.

1:06:28Shannon Sharpe:What we doing here, T-Mac? You ain't got to run all that stuff off. I'm disappointed in my brother, Pat. I'm disappointed in my brother, Pat. That man is a for sure Hall of Famer. Are you kidding me? Did he watch it? Did he watch it? Like, if that's not a Hall of Famer, I don't know what it is. Yeah, I mean, right. Like, I think we'd be looking at, like, we'd be trying to put too much into what it is. Now, obviously, there are different rooms for the Hall of Fame. Yeah. Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, like LeBron James, Steph Curry. These boys are in a different room. Right. Yes. Right? They're in a different room.

1:07:03But don't discredit Dame Dollar because he didn't accomplish this up there, bro. That man still is one of the greats. He a top 75 player. That's Hall of Fame worthy. I'm sorry. I'm going to have to holler at my boy Pat because he trades at my house. Next time he comes, we got to have a conversation.

1:07:23Shannon Sharpe:I agree with you. Go ahead. Pat Bev trying to be the villain in a sense. Obviously, Dane Ballard meets the criteria for what a Hall of Fame player is. No question. Bev tripping, man. Bev just trying to stir up the conversation. He's trying to stir up stir up the conversation. That's where you are. I think the thing is, you said something very interesting, T-Mac, and this is what I tell people all the time. I said, I'm in the building of the Hall of Fame. I'm in there, but they got rooms for Jerry. They got rooms for Lawrence Taylor. They got room for certain guys like that. Aaron Domlin's going to be in one of those rooms.

1:08:01Shannon Sharpe:You know, Tom Brady's going to be in one of those rooms. They got rooms, but to say this man and what he's accomplished doesn't belong in the Hall of Fame? Yeah, no, that's crazy. I don't know about that. That's crazy. Because you got to understand, man, there are guys that are just put in situations. They're great players. I'm not taking anything, but they're put in situations where it's the organization, whether there's a GM, whether there's a coach, that is all about winning. and they get into, you know, that organization, that team, and, you know, they become – their greatness is highlighted because of what's around them, right?

1:08:44Yes. It's highlighted because of what's around them. And some of these guys, like, you know, I will look at – give me a player. Like Kevin Garnett. Before he went to Boston, right? Before he went to Boston, to me, Kevin Garnett was a freaking Hall of Famer. Yeah. A Hall of Famer, no doubt. And he didn't have a career where he was like going deep into the playoffs and going to the finals. Like he didn't have that. You trying to tell me KG wasn't a Hall of Famer before he got to Boston? Man, get out of here with that though. Again, it's different rooms.

1:09:21Shannon Sharpe:T-Mac, you know what has happened. social media has come on and so not everybody has an opinion and we can see everybody's opinion yeah and i think the thing is this ring culture because what they do now is somebody has the fifth guy the 10th 12th guy on the bench can have a ring and they'll say he's better than an all-time great that doesn't i'm like bro do y 'all realize what y 'all saying i said when y 'all take shots at charles barkland when you take a shot at uh uh uh uh carl malone i understand they don't have rings but do you understand how great they were just because you don't have a in rings are sometimes this takes a very special situation you look at a guy like steph curry he goes to golden state he had uh peter uh group uh joe lakeham and peter gruba as owners bob myers of the general manager they got money more money than than than god should give 20 people in a lifetime and they did a great job.

1:10:16Shannon Sharpe:They select Steph. They select Clay. They get Draymond. Kevin Durant joins them. Sean, you know, they did a great job. I'm going to end this argument right now. Where was SGA before he got to OKC? Clippers. Clippers, yeah. People are talking about SGA catching up with Cody right now because he's averaged 30 points four straight years. Got an MVP. Got a finals MVP. They are putting him in the conversation with Kobe. Bruh, he wasn't even thought of or talked about when he was with the Clippers. Had he stayed with the Clippers? Are we talking about SGA? No. Right, that's my point. Because he was going to be – and this is what I tell people.

1:11:07Shannon Sharpe:Situations matter. Yes, man. Because he was not going to have the ball in his hand. That was Kawhi's team. So he wasn't going to be able to have the freedom like he has an OKC in the Clippers. And sometimes you have to leave a situation in order to get your own team in order for you to grow. He was not going to be this. Not with Kawhi there. Because Kawhi was the guy. He's coming up for finals MVP. So he's a two-time finals MVP. He's a two-time defensive player of the year. And you mean to tell me this first or second year guard is going to be the center of attention? after you moved heaven and earth in order to get him.

1:11:44Shannon Sharpe:It wasn't going to happen. Not at all. Hold on, Matt. Listen, as great as SGA is, right? Let's say he doesn't have the ball in his hands. As great as he is at OKC, you mean to tell me even if it was Kawhi's team and Kawhi had the ball the most, he still wouldn't be able to do what he's doing now? No. No, no, no. I still think he'll be an all-star, but I don't think we will see. He's not putting up 30 like this. right and he probably wouldn't be an mb mvp with playing alongside kawai i don't know not at all not at all because the ball will be a quasi he's a he's a two times finals mvp ocho and sga was a young point guard at the time so that ball was going to be in kawai's hands it's the same situation t-mac what about the situation with james harden james harden was not going to become James Harden in OKC.

1:12:39Shannon Sharpe:He had to go to Houston in order for him to flourish because you got Russ and you got KD. So how was he going to be able to show you? How was he going to be able to show you that, T-Mac? No. No. He would have been James Harden in OKC. Hold on. With Russ and KD? Listen. I want to hear this one. Listen. Did you see how he was coming off the bench putting up numbers? Right? Yes. He was very young. At some point, he was going to be inserted into that offense, or maybe he come off the bench, but he still would have been James Harden. No, ain't no way. Ain't no way, K. I'm going to have to disagree.

1:13:21Shannon Sharpe:You mean to tell me you believe this man was going to average 36, 9, and 8? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I'm not talking about the numbers. I'm just saying what he became. Yeah, he would have put up. He, with those three, all three of them guys probably would have averaged 20 to really make it work. But he would have been – Well, they don't work there. I mean, we got James because James Harden, we fell in love with James Harden because what was he doing? All them 30-point games. All those 50 and 60-point games. So, what are we going to do with Russ? So, if you say James Harden, who needs the ball, what are we going to do with Russ, T-Mac?

1:13:56At that point, James Harden wasn't playing the way he's playing. When he was with Rockets, it was a different style of basketball. He was playing.

1:14:05Shannon Sharpe:So how can he do that then? Which mean how? Okay. The style of ball that he ended up playing in Houston. How could he play that style with KD and Russ in OKC? Coaching. It's coaching. Coaching. You do not. I bet those guys regret. Well, they won a championship now that, you know, all those guys are gone. But looking back, I bet they wanted to keep those guys together. You talking James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and KD together? Bruh, they would have been a dynasty had they stayed together. They went to the finals, Unc. They went to the NBA finals. But James wasn't even close to what he was in Houston.

1:14:51Shannon Sharpe:He was going to get there. He was going to become that. I'm confused. He was going to become – and I'm not talking the 30-point. I'm just saying he would have been an all-star, which was good enough. Oh, I believe that. But you talk about a guy that's a three - or four-time scoring champ. We talk about a guy that got a 60-point triple-double, a 50-point triple-double. The numbers that he's putting up with Russ because now if you give the ball to – if you give the ball to James, that means you take the ball out of Russ' hands. Now, Russ can't – I don't believe Russ can play off the ball. He needs the ball.

1:15:31Shannon Sharpe:Kevin Durant. Kevin Durant going to be Kevin Durant. You give Kevin Durant 14 shots, he going to get you 29 points. That's all KDB. I'm confused. But that's – no, hold on. Oh, Joe. But Kevin Durant is the reason why this can work because he doesn't need the ball. He's a catch-and-shoot type guy. He's a one-dribble pull-up. He doesn't need the ball like that. But these two guys, the way they play, the way Rush pushes the ball, the tempo, and you got James Harden and KD on it. Oh, come on now. But if you think about it, so let me ask you this. If KD believed so much, he could win a championship in OKC, why would he leave for better ball movement?

1:16:18I guess he and Rush, the relationship between those two. But look at this. Steph Curry, Clay Thompson.

1:16:25Shannon Sharpe:Didn't Clay Thompson hit 60 playing alongside Steph Curry? Yes, but no dribbles. No dribbles. I think he had somewhere between 11 and 13 dribbles. Okay, nine dribbles. I was going to say somewhere between 11 and 13 dribbles. Which one of those guys are catch and shoot? Other than Kevin Durant, which one of those guys can catch and shoot? James Harden was a catch and shoot guy. James Harden is a catch and shoot. Russ is not a catch. James Harden? Come on. I'm looking at James Harden, what he was in Houston. You still looking at James Harden, what he was in OKC, as a pup. You know once you get that taste of blood, it's like you, T-Mac.

1:17:09Shannon Sharpe:T-Mac, I'll give you a prime example. I look at you your first two years. When you got started averaging 30, ain't no way you're going to be able to play. Moving forward like you did the first two years, T-Mac. But what I'm saying is stop looking at the 35, 30, stop looking at that. James Harden was going to be the player that was that. It was just going to be on a lower scale than that. But he was going to be that player that can put up those type of numbers. He was going to develop into that. That's all I'm saying. But I don't think we look at him like that because if you think about it, when he was at his best, we had a serious discussion, T-Mac, who's a better scorer Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan or James Harden we're not having this discussion if he's an OKC I agree to that I agree to that I agree to that but what I'm saying is he's still with those two guys he's gonna be James Harden and developing to an all star in essence still put up 40 points with them he still can get a 40 he still can get a 50 with them now he's not going to average 35 because he's not going to have those shots but i'm saying the player that he was going to develop into with them will be able to do that is he an all nba is he an all nba in okc in okc is he an all nba player yeah hell yeah hell yeah hell yeah hell yeah the way that man can score the ball absolutely hey mac go ahead mac how you how you say even with jame hard even though it was a young pup right and he would develop into the same player he is now maybe not scoring 35 but he wouldn't He would have been just fine with Russ and KD, but you don't feel the same way if SGA stayed to develop with Kawhi and still wouldn't be able to do the same thing.

1:19:16What would be the difference? The difference is SGA needs the ball. James Harden don't need the ball. James Harden can catch and shoot. Now, I'm saying it's opportunities playing with Russ to get the ball and be a playmaker and a scorer, but SGA needs the ball in his hand. You don't see SJ sitting out on the perimeter for the catch and shoot. James Harden, at that point in his career, he was a great catch and shoot guy. You're basically saying that just based off style of play then? Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

1:19:48Shannon Sharpe:But see, I look at James like when he went to Brooklyn, he took the ball over. Because I don't believe he could have played any other way than with the ball in his hand. Now, they didn't play long together. Him, Kyrie, and KD didn't play long. I think Kyrie got hurt, and then James ended up getting hurt, and so it really didn't mesh. But I just feel that in order for us to get to James Harden, the guy that's a top 75 player, I don't believe he was going to be a top 75 player in OKC with Russ and KD. Oh, no, man. Three guys on one team? They scoring 150 points nowadays, bro. But you look deep, man.

1:20:35Shannon Sharpe:They're putting up some crazy numbers. That's what I'm saying. It's just hard, and you could be right, D-Mac, but it's just hard for me to believe. Seeing the way Russ played and seeing the way James Harden, the way we fell in love with James Harden was when he got to Houston because I knew he could score because I saw him have a couple of 30-point games off the bench. But he burst out the same first game, 35, then another 35, and then he's getting 40, and then he's getting 45. And I'm like, I thought he could be good, but I didn't think he could be, I didn't think he could be that. Now, when you have the ball in your hands in the NBA and there's unlimited shots that you could get and you have the green light, and when you're playing in a D 'Antoni system, I wasn't surprised by that because I seen what he was, what he was doing in OKC with those two guys.

1:21:25So when now you get the ball in your hands and you're in an offensive system, you're playing with an offensive genius mind in D 'Antoni, you see what he did for Jeremy Lynn Lynn Sanity right I wasn't surprised by that I'm just saying what I seen in James and how what I projected I saw that he was going to be that type of player regardless

1:21:51Shannon Sharpe:I'm glad you said that because I saw what Jeremy Lynn did when he got with D 'Antoni and Kobe was there and Kobe said give me that damn ball and get your ass out of the way So, I'm glad you said that, T-back, because now we got James Harden who needs the ball. Russ needs the ball. Somebody can't have the ball. Because, look at it. Look at Luka and LeBron. Now, granted, LeBron is 41. It would have been very interesting if Luka is 27 and LeBron is 28, used to having the ball, and Luka not has the ball. It would be very interesting. Bron knows I'm not the same guy right now. I'm 41 years of age. I'm 14 years of senior.

1:22:33Shannon Sharpe:You know what? As a matter of fact, damn second, I'm going to get in the backseat because at first I was driving. Then I started riding shotgun. Now I'm all the way in the backseat because Austin Reeves now has the ball more than LeBron. LeBron basically on the wing, in the dunking spot. He's diving to the basket. LeBron shoots 13, 14 times a game. I ain't never think I see no bull jive like that. I'm glad you said that. I'm glad you said the third option on play. When you have three dynamic players like that, and the third option is getting like 14 shots. So you have Russ, you have KD, you have James Harden.

1:23:14Yes. KD is the most efficient player we've seen shooting jumpers ever. 15 shots, he giving you 30, huh? Is he not? Yep. I believe it. That's 15 shots, right? you trying to tell me James Harden with 17 18 shots he can't get that with those three guys what was James Harden do with having 18 shots a game huh he gonna

1:23:39Shannon Sharpe:put up the numbers huh he could if he was like KD if you look at James Harden is like a 46 % of 46 % from the floor is Kevin Durant that's shooting 50 plus what's Russ Russ doesn't have that level of efficiency so you're gonna have to In order to get points, you're going to have to put up more shots. Unk, unk. That's why I was telling you this is where the coaching comes in, right? This is where the – no, I'm serious. This is where the coaching comes in because you know James, when you look at him, he's becoming one of the most dynamic scores, right, on our team, in the league at this time. He's young, but he's becoming that type of score.

1:24:20Russ, we need you – you remember Russ, the way he played in Washington? when he went to Washington, you remember how he played?

1:24:26Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, with John Wall, yes. Russ would have to play like that, and that's coaching. We need you. And Russ, a triple-double guy, so 10 to 12 shots a game, Russ, you still going to get 15 points. You have 10 rebounds. You have 8 or 9, probably your average of triple-double. He probably would have averaged a triple-double back then because he's playing with two of the most dynamic scores that we will see on the same team. That is coaching. It can work. they don't seem to be doing a lot of that now these days is what you're talking about, coaching they seem to be letting these guys do whatever the hell they want or because if you coach me too hard I don't want to leave I ain't putting up with your bull jive, T-Mac you yelled at me, talked crazy to me in front of my peers I got to get up out of here yeah man, the game is just different I be talking to some of these coaches and I just want to know what's the mindset, what's the mental capacity of these players And I talked to some of these coaches and they like, yo, when these kids miss a, you know, a first day, first couple shots, it's like, they're done.

1:25:31I say done for what? He's like, they're, they're done for the game. He's like, man, we, yeah, man. He was like, some of these guys just get in their own way, get in their own head. And I was, and I was just like, how do y 'all get them out of this rut? And it's like, just constantly, constant, just babying and just talking to these kids. Oh, what? you miss a couple shots and you done for the night. Like, it's a different league. But then talking about, you know, the coaching, in our era, it was like the Lakers didn't look like San Antonio. San Antonio didn't look like Sacramento. Portland looked a different way.

1:26:13Boston didn't look like Orlando. Like, everyone had a different style in which they played. And when you watch today's game, It's only about a handful of teams that plays a different style. Like San Antonio has a style that I love that they play. Denver has a unique system that they play in. And, you know, you could say Boston as well, but everybody else is just.

1:26:36Shannon Sharpe:You don't like jacking up all them threes? Nah, man, I don't. But Boston shoots a lot of threes too, but I don't like it because everybody don't have the personnel to be jacking up these threes. You know what I mean? So why not adapt a system that, you know, ultimately fits your team? Do something that's conducive to the talent that you have on your team, and I just don't see a lot of that. Hey, we have a guy that comes on the third member of the Big Three, ISO. You got any stories about going one-on-one with ISO? No, by the time me and ISO became teammates, I was no longer a team, I was Tracy.

1:27:18You and Tracy McGrady? I was Tracy McGregor.

1:27:24Shannon Sharpe:Let me ask you this, T-Mac, because we see how athletic you were. You talk about a guy that's 6 '8", 6 '9", could jump out of the gym, could either hand. We saw you score all those points in a little bit of time. What was the injury that really slowed T-Mac down that you saw back? It's like, you don't know what? I'm never going to be that guy again. Yeah, so it was not, you know, I didn't tear my ACL. I didn't have an Achilles or nothing like that. Mine was just the wear and tear. And, yeah, I had zero cartilage in my knee. I had micro fracture. Yeah, micro fracture. Yeah, that's what took me out.

1:28:00Shannon Sharpe:When they drill it and try to get the blood to try to get some regrowth. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And what's crazy, they don't even do that surgery no more. Yeah, did it take? Man, it took me like two years for me to even just feel pain-free and then feel like my, you know, feel healthy again. It was the worst surgery and the worst thing that I went through. Oh, man. Yeah. Didn't Penny have microfaction also? Man, Penny. And shout out to Kenyon Martin. Kenyon Martin, I think, had two of them. He came back jumping off the jet. Jumping off. That boy got a bump in his knee. A large sidebar. I think he had microfaction as well.

1:28:42That microfaction is no joke. It took a lot of guys out, man.

1:28:45Shannon Sharpe:It did, yeah. Yeah, I know a couple of players and Rod Woodson had it early in his career, and he came back and played, I think, another, you know, decade. Bruce Smith ended up having it. But I can just imagine basketball players trying to have it because it's a – what was it, a six to eight, six to nine-month recovery? Oh, that was like 12 months, man. A year? 10, 12 months back. Yeah, yeah. It took me – man, I had to keep my knee in the machine for like eight weeks, man. Man, that was like a grueling comeback. And for me to play those four years after I left, was that Houston? It was all about just proving to myself that I could come back from this surgery.

1:29:32Because I was like in my 30s now. It's proving to myself that I could get back and make an NBA team. I knew I wasn't going to be the same, but I had to prove something to myself that I could push through this. I had the mental fortitude to push through this and make another team. So that was my mindset, man. But T-Mac, let me ask T-Mac this.

1:29:53Shannon Sharpe:T-Mac, how hard was it for you mentally? Because you know what you were before. And all of a sudden, you've got to come to grips with yourself. This is a battle between T-Mac and Tracy McGrady. Yeah. I've got to come to grips with, I'm never going to be what I once was. And I've got to be okay with that. That's not easy. Because you know what you were. You were an all-NBA player. People were talking about, I had two guards. Okay, T-Mac, Colt, woo, woo, woo. All you guys, and all of a sudden, like, damn it. Yeah. I'm not going to be that anymore. So to be vulnerable and transparent with y 'all, Like that was the darkest time of my life.

1:30:43Right. That was the darkest time of my life because 2007, 2008, we went on a streak and won what I was with the Rockets at this time. And we won 22 straight games, right? 22 straight games. And if you go back and look at that roster, you like, and look at the guys, the teams ahead of us, you're like, how the hell these, this team won 23, 22 straight games and on top of that we lost yow yeah game 12 we lost yowing like game 12 and we kept that streak going that was a very very good team very polished team veteran team and we were so connected man to win 22 games i thought that was going to be our year well we at least push somebody to the brink and possibly try to make it to the western conference finals because I think that had we beat Utah, I think we played Phoenix, and we kind of had our number with them.

1:31:41But then the following year, right, so now I'm like, my knee was bothering me a little bit in that 07, 08. I had surgery. So I come back. We sign, run our test in the offseason. I'm feeling good. Oh, my goodness. It's time. Surgery. I'm in rehab. You know, I'm trying to get back to pull strength. My knee ain't right. I'm coming into training camp. My knee's not right. Trying to start the season off. I'm not feeling right. Not feeling like myself. So the shot at broke the camel's back. We were in Milwaukee. And I can remember, man, I got a fast break. Going up, I seen somebody trailing me. So I knew I couldn't really elevate.

1:32:32If I came up on the same side, he was going to block the shot. So I tried to go up under and dunk and I got hung. I didn't get no lift. And I was like, oh, man. So I get in the locker room at halftime. And so much going in my head. I'm like, damn. I ain't the same, man. I can't play. I was like, I can't play no more, bro. I got to shut it down. like I was crying bro I was like I gotta shut I gotta shut it down so I shut it down that season I have I go to Chicago I have micro fracture surgery my team makes it to the playoffs now mind you we've been killing Portland like Portland was young team up and coming because they had LaMarcus Aldridge and Brandon Roy B Roy is a problem by the way but they were young and we had our way with them i'm sitting in chicago man in the cpa machine you know eight hours out today and i'm watching my team play portland in the playoffs and they beat portland we got the lakers next oh man kobe me me this is my opportunity to play kobe in the play off play at the staples center i'm going through it man i am going through it mind you i haven't made it out of the first round my team played portland and they advanced and they lost yow in in the lakers series we take the lake we take the lakers to seven games fojo and um without me they lost y 'all in like game five they taken the seven games i'm in chicago microfax of surgery depressed going through it and i'm like yo man what like i'm talking to god bro why me why is this happening to me why this is like these last two years it's supposed to be my time it's supposed to be my window of winning i lost my window in orlando because grant hills injury that was a good window for me in the eastern conference for four years i lost that i didn't have him but now this is my window right here i got another window and i can't i can't perform and that man that was so devastating because i i wanted so bad for myself for the team for the organization that group that i was with we were so tight-knit and i'm out of there bro and it was hard for me so i'm like god why why why is this happening to me so like give me something please give me something to get out of this call mr mcgrady we just want to inform you you made it to the hall of fame thank you lord i appreciate you man that like to hear that brought me back, bro.

1:35:33That was tough, man, because we played this game to win. And that was my opportunity to win, and I didn't do it, man. I didn't do it. Man, that's dope.

1:35:44Shannon Sharpe:I mean, you look at yourself, Grant Hill. There were some guys that had Penny Hardaway. There's Rose. Because I'm old enough to remember when Penny came in the league. I'm older than I remember when Grant came. I know how special Grant Hill was. People, and you look at Grant Hill in college, it's like, bro, what has been? You look at him in Detroit, before he had that ankle injury in Detroit, T-MAT, you look at Grant Hill, he looked like a top five player. There ain't nothing he couldn't do. He could score it. He could rebound it. He was a point forward. He could defend his ass off. and then he got like what we thought was a simple a simple ankle injury and i guess he tried to rush back or something happened and he was never the same player i think they misdiagnosed him and rushed him back because g hill like when he was my teammate he wasn't supposed to come back to like january january or february he ended up coming back in like september like september like september October yeah like they had him doing stuff early in that process right and then you know it's just it got worse yeah and then you know at that time it ain't it's not like you go out there and get you another player if I you're not a great heel that the salary cap is not it's very low in what it's compared to today so you just can't go inside somebody so we was you know we was handcuffed and I mean it for me it helped me grow as a basketball player you know really fast but man I I hey man I miss Rick I miss him out there bro because I know what I was doing without him what could have been in that Eastern Conference with the two of us can I I'm gonna get you out of here on this one teammate why is it so hard for players of the 80s and 90s to give this generation players credit.

1:37:48Shannon Sharpe:Why is it so hard? If you give a guy credit in the 2020s or 2010s, it don't take away from your era in the 22, 1980. It doesn't take away from your 80s. That money. Money, bro. You think that? It's money. It's money, bro. Ocho. The money? What? Bro. You do realize like in the 90s, Reggie Miller, Michael Jordan, they only making like two, three million dollars. And that was the top. They were the top guys. Man, two, three. I don't even think anybody making two, three million dollars in the league right now. These guys making so much money. It's the money. It's the money and how the league has really catered to the players.

1:38:37They made the league soft for these guys. trying to cut down to 82 games now? I mean, you're trying to cut down to 82 and go to 72? I think it's just all the other stuff of, you know, babying and coddling the players when they're making all this money. It has to be that.

1:38:57Shannon Sharpe:The players have power now. Even the great players back then never had. I'm talking about guys that might not even be the top, top dogs. got power that a superstar back in the 80s and 90s could only dream of. How they can call their shots and get me that player or move me here, do this or else. And I got my boys. Hey, guess what? I fly with my massage therapist. I fly with my nutritionist. I fly with my this. I fly with my that. And you know what, by the way? Hey, my homeboy, T-Mac, he come here practice all the time too, so he's going to need an access code to get in anytime he wants to get in too.

1:39:39Shannon Sharpe:What? If you had tried that day, it's not this. Like, if you don't get your ass up out of here. Hey, let me just tell you a quick story. Grant Hill, myself, and Tim Duncan was getting recruited by the Orlando Magic. Okay. Right? Obviously, I'm the third guy that recruited because I was a bench player in Toronto. Tim Duncan is coming off a championship. Greg Hill, multi-time, multi-all-star at this time, all-NBA player.

1:40:11They were going to sign all three of us. Tim Duncan wanted, I think, his fiancée at the time to be able to travel to some games on the road. What G Hill told me, Doc said he wasn't going to allow that. so because he couldn't allow he couldn't have his fiancee travel with us that was a deal breaker you know we could have had tim duncan myself and g hill on our lando magic wow

1:40:48Shannon Sharpe:so some things t-mac you just got to make a concession for i don't think it was i don't think me being in the NBA was for me to win, man. I just don't.

1:41:00I don't think it was in for me to win, bro. I really don't, man, because it was just a lot of shit that happened to me in my career that was, damn, bro.

1:41:09Shannon Sharpe:Hey, T-Mac, tonight, the Nuggets did beat the Mavericks. Nikola Jokic, 23 points, 21 rebounds, 19 assists. Jamal Murray, 53 points on 19 of 28, nine of 14 from the floor from the three-point line so yokich had 23 21 19 he was an assist short of a uh of his second 20 20 there's only been three 20 20 games where you 20 assists 20 rebounds 20 points well we had no coli yokich finished an assist short of that we had them we had them on our network last night on nbc and we were in the studio watching i thought he was going to have that 2020 game last night. The man is unbelievable. I don't see anything like you.

1:41:57You're talking about mastering a game of basketball and really look like after the game, he just didn't really play a game and don't even give a shit that he just had 2020. Hey, man, let me get on my phone and check my horses. What about horses? Hey, you got somebody out there kicking your ass, bro, and don't even care that he just gave you 20, 20, 20. Beat your ass, and then he go and check on his horse.

1:42:24Shannon Sharpe:I don't care about that. I think the thing is that you look at him as the same thing with Bird because they don't jump high. They don't run fast. They don't have Charles Oakley or they don't have Mason or Ron Artest's shoulders. So you're looking at them like, I'm about to do a number on him, T-Mac. Oh, he's about to get it. And the next thing, you know, you look up. this motherfucker got 30, 15, and 15 on me? Highly skilled, man. Give me skill. Give me skill. That man and Luka, they are highly skilled. And that's what I said. Tate Watson came back tonight in 23 minutes, 21 points, four rebounds, three assists on seven or 10 shooting, two or three points.

1:43:08Shannon Sharpe:I'm telling y 'all, man. I'm telling you. See, this is what I saw. And again, can they do it? they probably can't but i i'm saying they can't because of the inconsistency of you know them being in and out of the lineup but what i saw when they added cam thomas i mean cam johnson when they added um they brought back bruce brown and along with the other core that they have and Balanchunas as well, right? Adding another big that can go inside, rim protector, and he can step out and run your offense so you don't have that drop off when Jokic is on the bench. I was like, yo, that's my championship team right there.

1:43:56Think about it. They were injured last year, and they took OKC to seven games. Now they're much deeper. But I'm going to tell you somebody on that team that I'm so, like, just impressed by, and I salute him for the season he's having. He had a phenomenal season. Hey, man, that Tim Hardaway Jr., dog. He is hooping this year, man. Hooping. When he shoots the ball, it's like Seth Curry this year. Like, that's a bucket. That's how well he's shooting the ball this year. He's super-duper confident.

1:44:27Shannon Sharpe:I need somebody to study Aaron Gordon because all he did was play a ride. All he did was play in the paint, and now he done turned into a three-point mark. Three-point shooting. I'm like, what the hell? Two-point. Two-point percent. Hold on. I mean, you get the people in Orlando probably thinking about, where was that when you were here? Right, right. Hey, man, he got there and worked, and they unlocked something there, because I damn sure didn't see that in Orlando. But that's a testament to his dedication and his work, man, shooting 41%. Denver is dangerous. Yeah. Denver is dangerous. That's all I'm going to say.

1:45:01They are dangerous, and they could come out of the Western Conference Finals. But I just think that, again, that inconsistency and trying to flow that all together and connect that and have it, you know, consistent in a seven-game series against teams like San Antonio or OKC. I don't know. I don't know if it's there. But, hey, we'll see.

1:45:23Shannon Sharpe:Man, T-Mac, thanks for joining us tonight. Seven-time All-NBA player, seven-time All-Star, two-time scoring champ, Hall of Famer, Tracy McGrady. T-Mac, thanks for joining us tonight, man. We appreciate that, man. Come on, you're welcome to stop by anytime you want to, and we can chop it up, bro. We appreciate you. Oh, man, anytime y 'all want me on here. I ain't doing nothing that night. Hey, you got to hold up. Tell our channel about your podcast. You got a podcast with your cousin, BC. Talk to us about it. Where can they find it? Yeah, man, we trying to catch up with y 'all boys, man. It's on all platforms, man.

1:45:54All platforms. Please subscribe to that. Me and my cousin just talking the game of basketball, talking about life. What's the name of it? Cousins. Scott Cousins.

1:46:04Shannon Sharpe:Okay. Chat, so y 'all hear that? Cousins, Vince Carter, and T-Mac got a podcast talking all things hoop. Make sure you check it out on all platforms. T-Mac, again, thanks for joining us tonight, bro. Chat, y 'all like me? Can I come back? Can I come back on the show, chat? Yeah. Chat, y 'all want T-Mac to come back?

1:46:24Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, they say you come back anytime you want to, man. That's what it is, man. I'll definitely come back in the playoffs, and we'll chop it up. That's going to be fun. Yeah, appreciate it, T-Mac. Love, man. All right, baby. I'm going to catch you. Yes, sir. That's Team Matt. I want to thank you for joining us tonight, man. Hey, he said he had ex him out of time, Ocho. I was trying to get him out of here on the time that he said. He said, man, y 'all try to cut me short, all right? We'll stay. We'll stay. You're welcome to stay, bro. Copenhagen's Spit Free packs American-grown tobacco into pouches made from when your elbow's deep in an engine block.

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