Nightcap Hour 1: Wemby DOMINATES the Rockets + Jokic says Wemby will TAKE OVER the NBA + Lakers BEAT the Knicks without Bron + Jayson Tatum LOOKS GREAT vs Cavs + Pistons SELL vs Heat

16:02Chad Johnson:Yeah.

16:03Shannon Sharpe:And all things being equal, KD is phenomenal offensively, but he's not a defensive guy. Shingun is not a defensive guy. Now, I like Jabari Smith, but really the only guy they got that's on the defensive end that's trying to hold it down is Thompson and the Eastern.

16:18Chad Johnson:Yeah.

16:18Shannon Sharpe:And when you got those young guys, you look at that. What's the average age of San Antonio? 23, 24, maybe 25?

16:24Chad Johnson:Young.

16:25Shannon Sharpe:They getting up and down.

16:26Chad Johnson:Man, they got some hoopers, bro. They got some straight hoopers.

16:28Shannon Sharpe:And they run waves at you. They go every five to six minutes, they coming in with a new set. Yeah. Well, good luck keeping up with them. Because, look, they're top heavy. And most teams are. So don't think I'm saying it. But when you look at the most of their points, when you get 57 points from your bench, and you getting consistent play night in and night out, Dylan Harper was what? Western Conference Rookie of the Year. and you got Kelton Johnson coming off your bench. Kelton Johnson can start for a lot of teams. Dylan Harper probably should be in the starting lineup, but they say, you know what, we need that energy.

16:58Shannon Sharpe:We need those points coming off the bench because we know we're going to get from Vassell and we know what we're going to get from Stephan Castle. So now you're getting, Joe, on a given night, you're getting somewhere between 30 and 40 points a night from two guys off the bench.

17:12Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah. Yeah, you're right, huh? And you know what? But it seems as though nobody has a problem with it on their team, neither. You know, they all vouch for one another. They play hard. They play the right way. You don't see nobody out there forcing nothing. And the game just looks easy, man. It looks easy to them. And defensively, they all sit down in the chair. But when you got Wimby behind you, hell, it ain't got, you know what I mean?

17:38Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. But I'm with you. Even if you play the chair a game, don't worry about it. If somebody gets your chair, don't worry about it. Get back there to Wimby. Wimby got something for you.

17:45Chad Johnson:Hello. Hello, hello, but you know what, man? Hey, look, Castle's showing me a lot though, Uncle Ocho. Yes! Hey, listen, I'm talking about like, oh, oh, oh, like, ooh, he gonna be a problem.

17:57Shannon Sharpe:I mean, we talk about all defensive players now. I look, Jalen Brown has played extremely well. We know what Kawhi, but Kawhi is not what he once was, the injury that's taken his toll. But when we look at this kid here, he's taking the toughest offensive assignment every single night, and you ask him to still give you those 15 to 20 points that he gives you. Yeah. So, hey.

18:20Chad Johnson:Hey, man. Just saying. Yeah, young superstar in the making. Obviously, we know he won rookie of the year, but he's shown me, man, that he's ready to take that next step. Uncle Ocho. Hey, the Spurs are scary, bro. They scary, man. Oh, man. Hey, hey.

18:36Shannon Sharpe:Nobody want to see them boys. They don't. But I think the thing is, is that they took a page out of OKC. You see how well OKC? you can tell they genuinely like each other. They genuinely like being around each other. It's not like, okay, we get to a city and we scatter like mice when the lights come on. They're like, hey, bro, what you doing? Hey, let's go grab a bite. They talk about how they spend time with one another, how they're in the group chat communicating with one another. And I can see very similar what the Spurs are doing. That's how you – look, most teams that win are close. Now, there are always going to be a situation where sometimes you get outliers.

19:13Shannon Sharpe:where, hey, we win and fight and we don't really care about each other. But I think OKC and the way they play, I think everybody's trying to find that formula because your best player holds this thing together and Wimby is clearly their best player. But, man, they're young and they still got draft picks.

19:30Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah.

19:31Shannon Sharpe:And the thing is that most of these guys, Champagny and Wimby Yama, yeah, you made the trade for De 'Aaron Fox. De 'Aaron Fox said, like, I'm tired of SAC, blah, blah, blah, and I want to go elsewhere. and he lands here with Wimby.

19:45Chad Johnson:He probably the oldest on the team.

19:47Shannon Sharpe:Yes.

19:48Chad Johnson:So you got all these.

19:49Shannon Sharpe:He can push in the pick and roll. And he can get down, not joke, hey, quick as a cat on a marble table. Man. Get down hill and get to the rim. He can say, hey, he can snatch you and back up behind the three point line. He got a crazy head that you think he about to hit, a bop, he's to the rim on you. And now you got Wimby and you got Castle, you got Vassell, they loaded. Hey, Ocho, they're really good.

20:09Chad Johnson:Them boys made a statement. Absolutely.

20:11Joe Johnson:Hold on. They've been making a statement though, Joe. They've been making a statement.

20:14Chad Johnson:Yeah, but I'm just saying against one of the top teams like Houston in the Western Conference, they just making a statement.

20:20Shannon Sharpe:They're the third seed Houston are.

20:21Chad Johnson:Yeah, shit.

20:22Shannon Sharpe:They made mincemeat out of them. Yeah, it's levels to this. Made mincemeat out of them. They did. They did. They made mincemeat out of them. And like I said, it's going to be very interesting. I want to see it. hopefully everybody is healthy and nobody has any significant injuries.

20:43Chad Johnson:You want to see them at OKC? You want to see them at OKC in the Western Conference Final? I do. I do. That's going to be a good one.

20:51Joe Johnson:Joe, who you got? Hypothetically speaking, if those two listen, beating somebody one game is one thing, but a seven game series, who you leaning towards?

21:00Shannon Sharpe:Well, they've already beat them three out of four this year. Yeah, they done beat them three out of four this year.

21:04Joe Johnson:That's regular season. Now, you know, Joe, So the playoffs is a different ballgame.

21:07Chad Johnson:I get it. I get it. I get it. I get it. Hey, I've been in that situation. I've been in that situation.

21:13Joe 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?

21:51Joe 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.

22:29Joe 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.

22:43Shannon 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. Sign up for a free trial at audible.com.

23:00Joe Johnson: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. We got quarterbacks on the move.

23:37Joe Johnson: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.

24:00Shannon Sharpe:Listen. Go ahead, Joe. Go ahead. What you been saying? I was going to say, I want to see Castle and Shea. Yeah. Because that's a matchup.

24:11Chad Johnson:Yeah.

24:12Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. Because Castle, hey, Castle can pick it up. Now, they're going to run his ass off a bunch of pigs. They're going to try to keep him in the pig. They're going to try to keep his ass, run him off screen, the pit dives. Hey. They're going to try to keep him bumping him. But he a hound.

24:25Chad Johnson:He a hound, man. I know they won the season series of Spurs, but I'm probably giving me a little edge to OKC. Ben had done that. Probably give a little edge to OKC right now, Ocho.

24:38Shannon Sharpe:Okay. They might be a year away because remember, OKC was in a very similar situation the year before. And they ended up getting upset by the Mavericks. So I can see a very similar situation where they're right there and all of a sudden they get upset, but they coming. If you think you about to have your way with San Antonio, they coming. Wimby only going to get better. I don't know if y 'all know this, but Wimby going to get better.

25:04Chad Johnson:Hey, he like a cheat code out there, bro. It don't even look bad.

25:08Shannon Sharpe:How you take the first shot, you pull him up from 27? At the top of you pulling from 27.

25:15Joe Johnson:Hey, Joe, you played the game, Joe. You've been around for a very long time. Someone like like Wimby, there's no answer for Jokic. I mean, Jokic, you can slow him down. You can only hope to contain him. When it comes to Wimby, is there any way you can stop him? Anything you can do defensively, anything you can do tactically, you'll slow him down. Or do you just have to say, you know what, he's going to always get his. We need to worry about the other four on the court.

25:37Chad Johnson:Nah, you're going to have to wear him down, catch him early, body to body, and go away. And then you got to hope in the third and fourth quarter and second half of the game, you're able to wear him down to where he's not as effective. but Ocho, I mean, man, he can do a little bit of everything out there. I mean, I liked how he took his time and, you know, he started to play making, just making the right passes and guys getting wide open three. Next thing you know, they up 30 points, bro.

26:05Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. It's like, I mean - I think the thing with Wembe, Joe, you got, you like you said, you gotta have somebody that can body him. You gotta wear him down. Yeah. Because right now he's still in his young man, kid body.

26:16Chad Johnson:Yeah. He's not that old.

26:18Shannon Sharpe:He doesn't have his body body. So you got to wear him down. You got to have somebody that can make him work on the other end. And you got to go body with him. Hopefully you can get him in foul trouble. If you don't get him in foul trouble and he gets to play his normal allotment of minutes, which is about 30, play about somewhere like 30, maybe 33, 34 minutes. If you let him play his normal allotment of minutes, that means he's not in foul trouble and he's going to be down there. He's going to be there down the stretch.

26:48Chad Johnson:Oh, yeah, yeah.

26:49Shannon Sharpe:And he's going to make it very difficult because all layups, I'm sending return to sender.

26:55Chad Johnson:Hello. Hello. Yeah, you. I'm throwing your ish. I don't like what you're saying, so I'm going to send it back in 30 days. Yeah, man, they're going to be a tough matchup for anybody, though, in the postseason, fellas. I don't care who they play.

27:09Shannon Sharpe:Houston allowed the season most points, 56 in the paint. Think about it. They allowed 56 points in the paint, guys, and they shot 43s. They made 21 of 40 from the three-point line. So you get up 43s, and you still get 56 in the paint.

27:29Chad Johnson:Them dudes was – listen, they guards break you down so easy, bro. They in the paint themselves the whole time. Shoot layups, floaters. It's too much. You take that away. Now you got Chad Pennington and Vassar out there shooting the lights out, shooting the cover off the ball. It's like you got to pick your poison.

27:51Shannon Sharpe:Kelton Johnson come in just pulling. Wop, wop, wop. Well, they look good, man. Hey. I don't know why, but, hell, every time Kelton Johnson and Champagne shoot the three, I'm like, that's going to go in. They got me thinking they damn step forward.

28:06Chad Johnson:Hey, listen, because it don't be nobody two, three feet from them. You know what I'm saying? Because Wimby, he take the double team, triple team, and he just picking you apart. Them guys breaking people down, picking you apart. It's going to be tough to beat them, bro.

28:21Shannon Sharpe:The question is, look, I think the problem that the Rockets really have, they needed a point guard. Without Van Fleet, they can't go anywhere.

28:30Chad Johnson:Yeah, it's tough.

28:31Shannon Sharpe:I like Almond Thompson. I think he's a phenomenal player. He's a great two-way player. But without a true point guard, they not going nowhere. Yeah.

28:39Chad Johnson:I agree. It was glaring today, too. They needed Fred Van Fleet. They need somebody who can kind of get everything together. Yes. Get them together. You know, when things get a little crazy, you got to need somebody who can calm everybody down and make sure we get a great shot. But they was healthy-skelter a lot of times out there, man.

29:00Shannon Sharpe:They were. My thing is, Joe Ocho, you need a point guard. Y 'all mean to tell me that CP got that kind of baggage? Don't nobody want him? He can't help nobody in this situation? I ain't saying you got to sign him for the next five years, but he can't help somebody on a playoff run?

29:19Chad Johnson:Hey, ain't nobody picked him. I don't know. He probably wasn't getting what he – probably wasn't getting them phone calls. Like Ocho just – Oh, he wasn't? But I'm like, well, damn.

29:32Shannon Sharpe:I understand it's not a sub-zero. It's a little ice chest, but damn, ain't going to keep the mitt cool.

29:38Chad Johnson:Right.

29:40Shannon Sharpe:Damn. Hey, you know, hey, back in the day, Joe, you know we had them ice chests, we throw the ice and put the meat on top of that, the refrigerator would go on out. Hey.

29:51Chad Johnson:Yeah.

29:51Shannon Sharpe:Hey, buddy, back then ice, I think ice was like 50-sit of bags or something like that. Get you about three or four bags and put that ice,

29:57Chad Johnson:and put that meat in the ice chest. Hey, listen, you know as you age, you get up in them 40s and you under 6 '2", you know, it's tough to play. it's tough to continue to play, Uncle Ocho. Yeah. They keep running. Yeah, like you gonna have to be up there 6 '7", 6 '8", 6 '9", be able to play in your 40s to where you can still control the game a little bit. You know what I mean?

30:21Shannon Sharpe:Nah. Joe, you make a very good point. As you get older, the smaller you are, the harder it is for you to control the game. See, LeBron can control the game because he's 6 '9".

30:33Chad Johnson:Yeah.

30:34Shannon Sharpe:Luca still will be able to control the game because he's 6 '7", 6 '8". Yeah. Your kid should be able to control a game because he's 7 foot.

30:41Chad Johnson:Yeah.

30:42Shannon Sharpe:But when you lose foot speed and you're 6 foot tall, and these young kids now, man, they got jetpacks on.

30:53Chad Johnson:You hear me? Because they not walking the ball up.

30:57Shannon Sharpe:Joe, you remember back when you first got in the league, guys would walk the ball up. Yeah. They pushing this ish. Man.

31:04Chad Johnson:Listen, on May Bassett, I seen the Spurs catch a fast break, and they just got scored on. They scored right before Houston even get back. Like, I'm like, the game is played at such a high pace, bro. It's like, even watching it, you'd be like, come on, man. They could have got a better shot than that. Because it's just come down, boom, boom, pass, three. Three, three, lay up, float up. You know what I mean? It's just the game is so different now, bro. And that's what I'm talking about. Houston seemed like they were like two, three steps slower than Spurs tonight.

31:37Shannon Sharpe:Houston want to play in a half court set because they got a tremendous half court player in Kevin Durant. They got Shang-Goon. They can put you in the pick and roll. He can roll. He can pop. KD, you know what KD is. But these young teams, they're not really trying to play half court.

31:52Chad Johnson:You got to have them track shoes on.

31:54Shannon Sharpe:Hey. Mm-hmm.

31:55Chad Johnson:Yeah.

31:56Shannon Sharpe:You want to keep up with us? Don't bring your Tims. Don't bring your work boots. Bring your track shoes. Because we running. We run it. You know, hey. Oh, Joe, I know you see, you ain't doing no work. You from Miami. I had steel toe boots. Joe, I don't know. I know your grandfather, your dad had steel toes. You had them steel toe boots, them bro games. You know you put in a... If you had steel toe boots, you know damn well you put in a hard day. Hey, hold on.

32:21Joe Johnson:Why you do me like that? You had no damn steel toe boots. I used to work on the docks at the Port of Miami down here. I had to wear steel. I was a long short man. man. What you were doing on the docks? I was a longshoreman at the port of Miami.

32:38Joe Johnson:Everything that come in, you have to go through you? I'm doing all the containers, man, off them ships and them loads come in, Joe. I work in the crane, Joe. No, I'm telling you, Joe, I was a longshoreman. Ask about me, Joe. Yeah, I had steel. You got to wear steel-toed boots, Joe.

32:54Chad Johnson:Hey, hey, my grandfather worked on the railroad. He always was steel-toed.

32:58Joe Johnson:Hey, hey, I had my steel-toed boots and I had my overalls, Joe. Yeah, no lie.

33:07Shannon Sharpe:But back to what we said, Joe, being in the South and working, you know damn well, you saw somebody with some steel-toed boots and this is when you know, when the cover has started to roll off the front of them and you can actually see the steel and the toe. Yeah. That boy working. He done put some work in.

33:26Chad Johnson:Yeah, he working. He working.

33:28Shannon Sharpe:He done put some work in.

33:30Chad Johnson:Man, listen. What you talking about?

33:32Shannon Sharpe:Hey. But the Spurs, they beat the Rockets. Stay close. They're still the number two seed thanks to a 145-120 victory over the Houston, Texas. The Spurs placed four guys with 20-plus points. and Houston allowed a season-most 56 points in the paint. Well, Houston, you're going to lose a lot of games. If you let a team shoot 58 % from the floor and 52 % from the three, you lose it.

34:02Chad Johnson:Yeah, you ain't beat nobody with them no more.

34:04Shannon Sharpe:145 points?

34:08Shannon Sharpe:Nikola Jokic. Who said Nikola? It's Nikola Jokic. says he's glad he's retiring soon before Wimby takes over the NBA. He's changing basketball. I'm glad that I'll probably retire before Wimby holds the entire league in a chokehold. Never seen anything like it. We've never seen a guy that tall, that skilled, that can put the ball on the floor, can shoot the ball from three. Like Kevin DeGrantz can shoot it. But that man is like five, six inches taller than KD. And on the defensive end. It's like somebody Joe it's like you holding up two broomsticks in a lane You know what it is

34:47Joe Johnson:Hey Uncle Joe Wimby is basically should be the face of the NBA Or the fact that he doesn't have that Charisman personality like Anthony Edwards Would he not be the first Choice for it being that he's probably Going to be the one to dominate the NBA For the next 10 What 15 years depending on how long he decides To play

35:07Chad Johnson:Well I think globally you know, he puts a he brings in a great brand because that's where the NBA wants to go. Yep. You know, it's going to be games over and, you know, during the season, the guys are going to be playing games over there in Paris and stuff like that. So it only helps the game if you ask me, man. But to be the face of the NBA, Ocho, he got a chance, bro. If he won the championship, for sure.

35:37Shannon Sharpe:It's just hard. I mean, Things are gonna change, it's different now. Because you talk about an American sport and a foreign born player being the face of an American sport. Yeah. It's not like baseball, because baseball for the most part has always had Latin players. They've always had Korean, Japanese started coming over when you had Hideki Nomo and Matsuuri and Ichiro started coming over. But they've always had Latin players.

36:05Chad Johnson:Yeah.

36:05Shannon Sharpe:Always, always, it's different. baseball has always been a a universal or world game basketball just became that say the last 30 plus years yeah once the they sent the NBA to the Olympics in 92 that's what everybody that's when the dirks and that's when everybody like well damn that's what I want to do that's what I want to be right and so now and because if you really think about it the top five six seven players are foreign They're Canadian, they're Serb, they're Slovenian, they're Greek, they're French. They're not American. You got to go far. I mean, nobody's taking, you're not taking not one American player over Luka.

36:47Shannon Sharpe:You're not taking one over Jokic. You're not taking one over Shea. You're not taking one over Greek freak. You're not.

36:55Joe Johnson:You're not.

36:56Shannon Sharpe:You take your best. You take Jason Tatum. You take whomever you say is your best American player. and I guarantee you, you're not taking them over Jokic, Giannis, Luka, Shea. You're not. And I'm not so sure you're taking even Wimby in his third year. I'm not sure you're taking one over Wimby. So that's five right there.

37:16Chad Johnson:Yeah. Yeah.

37:19Shannon Sharpe:Damn. The world is not as deep as America, but it's definitely. It's pop heavy. Okay, you got a couple in Greece, and you got a couple in Slovenian, Serbian, Canada, X, Y, and Z. But as far as just depth, yeah, American got it. But those guys grow up playing together. Like Zion and Ja was on the same AAU team.

37:49Chad Johnson:Yeah.

37:49Shannon Sharpe:All those French kids, they played together their whole life growing up.

37:52Chad Johnson:Yeah. They grew up.

37:54Shannon Sharpe:The Serbs, the Slovenians, they played together their whole life growing up. the Greek team they played together their whole life.

38:00Chad Johnson:And they started playing pro professional basketball a lot earlier over there. Overseas Ojo versus over here. You know what I mean? They may be playing pro over there at 13 14 years old.

38:12Joe Johnson:So you develop a little faster huh?

38:14Chad Johnson:Yeah there you go. Luca been playing pro

38:17Joe Johnson:since he was 14. Hey Unc can I ask you a question? Yes. Would you really take Luca over like an Ant-Man or a Jason Tatum?

38:29Shannon Sharpe:I would.

38:34Chad Johnson:It's your present. Okay.

38:36Shannon Sharpe:Look, I think the thing is that Luka kicks a lot. Today Luka was locked in and we're going to talk about it a little bit. He locked in. Caught him a couple of charges, poking the ball out from the back. Luka was balling today. But that's scoring. He about to have is I think his fourth season where he's averaged 30. He's 26. He's 26. Yeah, he's going to put – yeah, look, he's going to take bad shots. He's very unorthodox. He's going to take some bad shots. He's going to complain. He's going to shoot a shot, and he's going to turn a look to the official, and he's got room and laid it up on the other end.

39:16Shannon Sharpe:That's just what it is. Damn. but I think the thing is and you're talking about a guy that's been he was a first team all the NBA selection for five consecutive years five Luke of the Don it's just that if he were to stop complaining I don't need him to sit in the chair Joe I don't need him to do that just don't get beat on the initial drive can you do that that's all I want you to do if he's trying to beat you on the initial drive cut him off make him pull it back up or make him give the ball up. That's all I need, Joe, because if he beats you on the initial drive, help got to come. If help comes, now you compromise the entire defense.

39:58Chad Johnson:Somebody else opens, yeah. Well, I'm sorry to tell you.

40:04Chad Johnson:That's all I need, Joe. Joe, that's all I need. Hey, he a bad boy. He a bad boy, but when it comes sliding them puppies, he ain't giving you no two slides. He might give you one, and that's a wrap.

40:16Shannon Sharpe:I don't know what got him in the J, though, Joe. I don't know what got in today, but Luka, he was kind of locked in today.

40:21Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think him knowing LeBron wasn't playing, you know, he know he had to lock in a little more. You know what I mean? Like, you ain't got LeBron out there. You know you got to be great. You know what I mean? Like, you and Austin going to have to carry us tonight. I think he knew that from the start.

40:39Shannon Sharpe:Yes.

40:39Chad Johnson:Yeah. I mean, this is tough.

40:41Shannon Sharpe:Austin looked really good tonight. He was aggressive, put the ball on the paint, put the ball on the floor, get into the paint. Lucas Luca. When Luca make his shot excuse me guys. When Luca's making shots like that you just hope he missed. That man take a one legged shot from 28 feet fall out of bounds into the next bench. What the hell you gonna do? The other night he kissed one off the glass from 29 feet. What the hell you gonna do with that?

41:07Chad Johnson:You hung up on him

41:08Shannon Sharpe:he can get by you. He's so herky jerky. He's so unorthodox. He's not gonna beat you with speed. He's bigger than you think. He's stronger than you think. You're looking at his body like, ah, this milk toast. I'm about to cook him. Okay, cook him.

41:23Chad Johnson:Okay, cook him. It don't seem like he's supposed to be making some of the shots he takes. But he took 16 threes tonight. He was five for 16 from the three. He took 25 shots. That boy don't mind shooting that sidestep going left to that three, do it? Nope.

41:41Shannon Sharpe:And on the fast break, he'll stop and let it go. But you look, he's going to have a high usage rate. He's going to look. The likelihood of him ever shooting 50 % is not good because of the shot selection that he takes. He's not taking, you know, I mean, you look at him in the shots, you're like, Luca, you just got to accept it.

42:03Chad Johnson:Yeah.

42:03Shannon Sharpe:You just got to accept it.

42:05Chad Johnson:Yeah. Because you want him to be aggressive. You want him to assert himself. You can't take that away, especially when LeBron's not playing. Even when LeBron is playing, you still want him to be himself. But, hey, when you look at them Knicks, man, I told you, hey, it's seasonal.

42:22Joe 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?

43:00Joe 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.

43:37Joe 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. Audible is a proud sponsor

43:53Shannon Sharpe: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. Sign up for a free trial at audible.com.

44:09Joe Johnson: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. You got quarterbacks on the move.

44:46Joe Johnson:We got teams rebuilding. It's hope season. 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.

45:30Shannon Sharpe:bump it from the back and then guess what you had free throw. It's the same thing. I mean, and I think the thing is you want to try to get up in the Luka. You want to try to be physical with him because that's the thing. Be physical with him. Try to take advantage of him. You put him in the pick and roll because he's their weakest defender. If you can say the Lakers have a weak defender, a weakest because they got a lot of weak defenders, but he might be the weakest. So you try to put him in the pick and roll. you try to get physical with him because you know they say the same thing about European players they're not that physical you know you get physical with Jokic and you get physical with him yada yada yada I get all that and so you know and he's probably done cried so much that he's like man I'm tired of the Joker crying I don't want to hear him cry tonight so let's call some fouls and he went to the free throw line because remember Joe we talked about it the other night he went to the free throw line 10 times the other night he went to the free throw line 4 times

46:26Chad Johnson:yeah Yeah, he went to the line 10 times. Yeah, but they need him to be like this, though. He has to be aggressive because his offense is his defense, fellas. You know what I mean? Like, if that's the case, he completely took Bridges out of the game. He was a non-factor. You know what I mean? Yes. He done his job in that part. But they're going to need these other guys to step up, man. I mean

46:52Shannon Sharpe:if you play if you go against Luca you got to give them at least half of what he's gonna give you because if you don't I mean he gave you 35 Bridges gave you nothing so he's plus 35 in that aspect

47:06Chad Johnson:yeah that's what I'm saying yeah

47:07Shannon Sharpe:so you got to half him up at bare minimum you like to play him to a tie now the thing is Joe and the same thing with SGA or any of these players Joe if they get their numbers Let's just say Luka gets 30, 35, and it takes him 30 shots. Joe, I've done my job.

47:27Chad Johnson:Yeah.

47:28Shannon Sharpe:I've done my job. If Shea gets 35 and it takes him 28, 29 shots to get it, I've done my job. What I can't do is allow him to get 35 on 16, 17 shots. There you go. There you go. Because now I know he's being extremely efficient. Now he – hey, the 16 threes that he took, he made 11 of them. Now I'm in trouble. Right. that's the thing with a score if you get your numbers and i make and i make you get those

47:56Chad Johnson:numbers being inefficient yeah you gotta you gotta shake his hand quarterback throw for 300 350 yards

48:04Shannon Sharpe:ocho and they're taking 57 attempts i can't do nothing about that i just can't let him have 350 on 30 attempts right right because that just means if he got 350 on 30 attempts ocho he probably

48:17Joe Johnson:completed 25 of them i mean you know you know the funny thing about it is depending on who they play when you when you when you play these special players obviously like a shay like a luca uh like a joker like a wimby and if you don't have a player that that has the green light to be able to shoot in volume to match their point total there has to be something else you can do to be able to stop them huh and joe something else to slow them down but every time we come every time we come on and we talk about the game of basketball and how difficult it is to slow them down how difficult it is to contain them i mean it's it's it's bad especially when they only give you well luca in general says that's who we talk about they only give you on one end of the court they only give you someone yeah do you realize that wimby has more blocks than joker in his

49:03Shannon Sharpe:career how he just got an nba exactly that's just going to joke you that's my point thank you

49:11Chad Johnson:Yeah, Joker ain't blocking no shot.

49:16Shannon Sharpe:No, that's not his game. His game is that I'm going to punish you so bad, so bad on the offensive end, and I'm going to get my teammates involved so much that you ain't going to be able to do nothing. And if you don't, like I said, that's why he killed. Look, if you go back and look at his numbers against Gobert, because Gobert can't make him work, he's not going to give you anything on the other end. So now Joker is just free to do whatever, whatever he's going to do. That's why he has a 60 point triple, double or whatever he's had. Hey, I told you, you got, you got, you got to make a guy, you got to make a guy like Jordan.

49:54Shannon Sharpe:You got to make a guy like Kobe. You got to make them work on the other end. If you don't, if you let them coast.

50:02Chad Johnson:Got to make them uncomfortable.

50:04Shannon Sharpe:And, and let them use all that energy on the offensive end.

50:07Chad Johnson:You in trouble.

50:09Shannon Sharpe:You better make that man work on the defensive. You got to make him guard somebody.

50:12Chad Johnson:Yeah. Facts. Facts.

50:17Shannon Sharpe:That's why they always took Larry and put him on the – you take Larry Bird and you put him on the weakest offensive guy. I want you to say that, NG. Yeah. I need you to bust their ass on the other end. That's why I always tip my hat to something like a Kobe or Jordan or these guys that are offensive guys and say, you know what, I want the defensive challenge as well. Yeah. Because it takes a lot. You've got to exert a lot. And everybody can't do that. Now, Jordan didn't have a luxury that he had Scottie, so he could easily, like, you know what, A.C. Scottie. And you're talking about a guy that's 6 '7", that has long arms, that can slide his feet as well as a smaller player.

50:52Shannon Sharpe:But everybody don't got that.

50:55Chad Johnson:You have to want to dominate the game, bro. They wanted to dominate the game. I'm talking about from start to finish. Yes. They wanted to dominate the game. It was no way that you had a chance to win, which is why they picked back then, back in the day. When you look, like we always talk about the top four to eight teams in the NBA, really probably four or five. They play tough defense, bro. They play extended pressure. They pick you up four, weigh you down like they were doing KD tonight, picking him up four, wearing him down. That's what they're going to do to you the whole entire game. and hopefully in the fourth quarter, you ain't got enough energy to continue to play at that peak level.

51:33Shannon Sharpe:You know what I mean? Yep. Yeah. The Lakers beat the Knicks 110-97. LeBron James with a late scratch, elbow contusion, arthritis in his left foot. Excuse me. But L.A. held the number three team on offense to just 47, excuse me, under 43 % shooting with 19 turnovers, which is 20 points below the Knicks' season average. Like I said, Mikel Bridges only gave him zero points. But you look at Rui, came in, played really well. He gave him 13 points on 3-8 from three. Marcus Smart, hey, he's a defensive guy, but he didn't shoot the ball well today. But you had Luka, had 35. Austin Reeves had 25. And like I said, Joe, you and I were talking about this.

52:16Shannon Sharpe:Luke Kennard. Yeah. Luke Kennard has been a godsend. Yeah. Because they basically swapped Luke Kennard for Gabe Benson. There you go. K. Vincent, look, they got him after he had that great run with Miami. You know, he was a guy that made some three, was a three and D guy. But I don't know what it is, but when guys can shoot the ball wherever they are until they come to the Lakers or they team up with LeBron, then all of a sudden they forget how to shoot the ball. Too much pressure.

52:40Joe Johnson:It's different over there wearing that jersey, huh? It's different over there wearing that purple and gold, huh?

52:47Chad Johnson:Hey, big city bright lights, man. It's a little different. that, hey, you know what's going on.

52:55Shannon Sharpe:Expectations. The number one killer is expectations. We've seen guys with nothing expected. We've seen guys with nothing was expected, or teams with nothing is expected of them. And then, whoo! And then the next year when they have those expectations, what they do. Because now we have expectations where we didn't have that last year. You have expectations on a player where we didn't have that last year. So let's see now. Now that they know what you can do, they know who you are, they know what type of team you are. Can you still do it again?

53:28Chad Johnson:Yeah, that's the hard part, man. You have to be hungry for success to do that, bro. Like to want to do it over and over.

53:38Shannon Sharpe:I thought they did a great job. They only had 13 turnovers, the Lakers. Luka had almost half of those. But, look, he has a high usage rate. The ball's going to be in his hand. When you have the ball that much, it's hard for you not to turn it over in an abundance. It just is. Most guys that lead in usage are going to be up there in turnovers. Just the way it goes. Go back and look at guys that's leading usage and see their turnovers, where they rate. But this was a big win for them. They needed this.

54:12Chad Johnson:It was. It was a huge game, too. Huge game. Yeah, I'm telling y 'all, man, if the Knicks don't do what they supposed to do this year, that's where your boy going to be at. Watch. Watch what I tell you.

54:26Joe Johnson:What about the young boy from Greece?

54:29Chad Johnson:Yeah. Greek free.

54:31Shannon Sharpe:They should have did that this season, huh? Well, you talking about, hold on, he talking about he don't want no ball, Dominic Garvey. What do you think, Brux? They going to trade Brunson?

54:39Chad Johnson:Hey, listen, look, he going to have to deal with this. You going to have to get with it because we got a plan now. Yeah, nobody trying to hear all that, man.

54:48Shannon Sharpe:But if you think about it, with the exception of maybe San Antonio, all the really good teams, they're ball dominant.

54:56Chad Johnson:That's what I'm saying.

54:57Shannon Sharpe:Who do you think got the ball with OKC? Who has the ball with the Lakers? I don't think Boston's going to break up their team. Boston swings the ball. They're not swinging. Cade has the ball. So I'm just trying to figure out where he thinks.

55:15Joe Johnson:And somebody as great as the Greek freak is, right? You don't think he can adapt to a different situation where you don't have to touch the ball all the time, as great as you are?

55:24Shannon Sharpe:That's not who he is. No, that's not who he is. He's not KD.

55:29Chad Johnson:His numbers won't be as gaudy as they are now. It won't be 30 and 15. Nope. He might have to take it down, Uncle Ocho, but he'll take it down about 24, 25, and 12 or something. I'm saying and be able to win the championship. Yes. Man, what you doing over there? What y 'all doing in Milwaukee over there? Y 'all ain't got nothing going.

55:52Shannon Sharpe:True.

55:53Chad Johnson:Y 'all ain't got nothing going.

55:54Joe Johnson:So I'm just saying, hypothetically speaking, if he is to go to the Knicks, so that means basically if he does bring the ball up, I mean, that don't make no sense.

56:04Chad Johnson:He would have times, Ocho. I'm not saying they're going to take the ball out of his hands, but it just probably won't be as much.

56:13Shannon Sharpe:we got options Giannis got to have a high usage rate look at Giannis' usage rate he got to be top 5

56:25Chad Johnson:some good games today man

56:27Shannon Sharpe:I think the thing is all things being equal Joe Giannis really prefers because Giannis knows he's going to be looked at differently if he leaves now because we look at all the guys what do we commend Jordan for? He won six championships in one spot. What did Kobe do? Five championships in one spot. Tim Duncan, one spot. Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, one spot. Steph Curry, one spot. What do we criticize LeBron? KD.

56:57Joe Johnson:Hold on.

56:58Shannon Sharpe:Hold on, Joe.

57:00Joe Johnson:Look at all the players you named that done it in one spot. Look at the teams that were built around those said players that you just mentioned. The teams where LeBron has played for, did they have anything that matches up or were even equivalent to the other four on the team that they played at.

57:15Shannon Sharpe:People don't care about that, Ocho. People don't care about that. They don't take that into account at all, no? No. We do. Joe do. Basketball, a lot of basketball people does if you're not trying to paint a narrative because what they say if you're as great, if you're the GOAT, you should be able to win a championship regardless of who you play with. That's tough. You know that other four, Joe.

57:38Joe Johnson:You know that support and cast matter. That's in any sport. Man.

57:43Shannon Sharpe:See, the thing is, as long as a team can trade you. Well, the team traded you. So now the team traded you. That's okay. But if I request to go to a team because the team isn't good enough or the team trades me because they want to bring a player in to try to win. Right. Now I want to go somewhere because you not bring players in to try to win and I want to go somewhere. You use that against me. Yeah.

58:10Chad Johnson:Yeah, I just don't want to see a situation where Giannis gets stuck in a situation to where he's playing meaningless basketball.

58:18Joe Johnson:Ain't nobody doing that?

58:21Chad Johnson:That's what I'm saying, Ocho. That's what I'm saying. I know he's been there his whole entire career and probably don't want to uproot and move. But this is a different era, Unc. This ain't, you know what I mean? It's not the 80s and 90s. No, this ain't that.

58:34Shannon Sharpe:Like, these guys on mind. They caught KG in that situation. KG came into the 90s and guys were loyal, didn't want to leave until they're on their last legs. And KG probably stayed four years too long in Minnesota. KG was supposed to have been got up out of there. But KG wanted to be loyal to the soil.

58:54Chad Johnson:Yeah, and he'll tell you, he probably wish he would have left early. He could have had him a couple championships. Absolutely. Yeah, so it's like I know Giannis got one and he wanted to stick around in Milwaukee saying all the right things. but hey man.

59:07Joe Johnson:Wouldn't Dame Littler also be an example of the same thing? Staying somewhere a little bit too long because you want to be loyal?

59:16Shannon Sharpe:Yes. But you see now we put in so much because it's the ring or nothing. See it used to be, it wasn't like that. But this ring culture now because fans say well there have been some great players that don't have rings and you have second and third and fourth options that have rings and they got people saying they're better than a one option that doesn't have rings. There are some guys that got rings, and people actually think they're better than Charles Barkley. They're better than Karl Malone, and you're high.

59:43Chad Johnson:Yeah, they tripping.

59:44Shannon Sharpe:You're high.

59:45Chad Johnson:Yeah.

59:46Shannon Sharpe:But because people have placed so much value on rings. Me, I'm an eye test guy. Yeah, rings. Now, if I'm factoring in, Joe, if I'm saying EST, great test, I think you have to bring rings into the occasion. And even though I understand that this is a team game, I factor it all there. I factor in regular season MVPs, final MVPs, all NBA, all defensive, all that. Points, rebounds. I bring all that into the equation because I think you have to when you're saying great tips. But these people, I mean, a lot of people are like, oh, he ain't got no rings. He bad. People are like, they crap on Charles Barkley.

1:00:29Shannon Sharpe:If you actually saw Chuck play, if you actually saw him play, you'll never see another guy 6 '4 under lead the NBA in rebounders. He did that.

1:00:41Chad Johnson:Dominated.

1:00:42Shannon Sharpe:Charles Barkley was a power forward at 6 '4. And back then, everybody played with a true five and a true, boy, please. Yeah. Everybody had a big. And they had a big-ass power forward to go alongside him. So you had Robert Parrish at seven foot, and then you had Kevin McHale at 16. You had Ralph Samson at seven foot. You had Akeem Olajuwon at seven foot. That's how everybody played. You had Rick Smiths, and you had them big-ass Davis boys in Indiana. Everybody played with a one, two, three, four, five. It wasn't no stretch, nothing.

1:01:25Chad Johnson:Nah. No, sir.

1:01:28Shannon Sharpe:and I look I get it but now I mean you got guys oh man he got a ring he better there are a lot of guys get there are a lot of receivers they got ringed so if y 'all say so now receivers they got a ring he better than Randy he better than T.O. okay I'm gonna let y 'all say that I ain't gotta call no name but there's been some receivers that's won some Super Bowls and bless them you've been fortunate of a team I was a part of a team I ain't win no I was part of a team that won because I understand that it takes a team to win championships but boy let's not fool ourselves now let's not fool ourselves there's some quarterbacks that won championships and quarterbacks that haven't yeah come on now

1:02:11Chad Johnson:yeah yeah

1:02:14Shannon Sharpe:but social media has done that because what it's done is that it's allowed everybody to have opinion and have their opinion heard Yeah. And so now, oh, he better, he better, he better. I was listening to the Michael Jordan because I saw that pop up, and he's like, I ain't going to get a part in this GOAT conversation. He said, you know why? He said, because I didn't play against those guys in their era, and I didn't play against these guys in these era. He said, it's not to take anything. KD, I think KD and LeBron. He said, Kobe, he's like, Kobe caught me not in my prime. He caught me in the tail end.

1:02:47But, no.

1:02:48Shannon Sharpe:and it's hard to compare errors because errors do different things. Some errors, they mainly ran the football, Ocho. So how you going to say a guy, well, he only caught, yeah, Lee and Swan only caught 300 passes. But they only threw, I mean, I think he had 300 catches for a career. But they might throw the ball 200 times a season. So if you throw the ball 200 times a season, Ocho, how many passes do you think they're going to catch when you divide it up between four wide receivers and two tight ends? Yeah, you right.

1:03:20Shannon Sharpe:and running back stats now are not gonna be like they were cause they don't run the ball. Well you got a two back system.

1:03:27Chad Johnson:And he got rid of the running back.

1:03:29Shannon Sharpe:The old, the old, the, the, I don't know. I don't know if we're gonna see Derek Henry might be the last of the true power.

1:03:42Shannon Sharpe:I can't hear y 'all. Is it my phone? Oh, there it go. You back, you back. You're back.

1:03:47Joe Johnson:It went out for a little minute. Okay.

1:03:49Shannon Sharpe:Okay.

1:03:53Huh?

1:03:53Shannon Sharpe:No, I think – Can you guys hear me now?

1:03:55Chad Johnson:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

1:03:56Shannon Sharpe:I thought my stuff went out over the offensive. Okay. Jalen Brown has scored 23 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, and the Celtics beat the Cavaliers 1-0, 9-9. Jason Tatum, in his second game back, had 20 points. So after, you know, his second game back, I think he had, what, 12 points? No, he had 15 points the first game with 12 rebounds. He had 20, so you see the improvement there. He had a big three to push the game out of reach. And I think he had a tweet that says, girl, I missed you. I think he said something like that. But he had, on 27 minutes, he had 20 points on 6-16 shooting, 2-9 from the 3, 6-7 from the free throw line.

1:04:37Shannon Sharpe:JB was 7-17, 1-3, 8-9 from the three-point line. He had 23 points. Peyton Pritchard, 18 points. on seven to 12. And hey, I don't know who this kid is, this left-handed.

1:04:51Chad Johnson:Scrammer. Scrammerman.

1:04:53Shannon Sharpe:Shearman. But man, he was letting that thing fly.

1:04:58Chad Johnson:Hey man.

1:04:59Shannon Sharpe:Cause every time they got close, he be spotted up in the corner. I'm like, damn, who is he?

1:05:07Chad Johnson:Hey, Boston looking scary now though. Yeah. Hey, hey, I'm good.

1:05:11Shannon Sharpe:Hey, Joe, Joe, that's, hey Joe, that's when you're on the court and somebody hear the three you're like who the F is me?

1:05:19Joe Johnson:Hey Uncan Joe I'm surprised you know I mean Jason you know obviously I was worried especially coming off that injury but seeing what he did first game 15 this game he had 20 and I'm sure I mean he played 27 minutes a night and as he gets a little bit more comfortable gets a little bit more acclimated to the speed of the game and everything catches up he gets back in rhythm man hell they might be here to deal with again They was already him to deal with without Jason Tatum. Now you add him back into the fold. You know, I'm sitting here talking about, you know, let Jason Tatum work yourself back into the game.

1:05:54Joe Johnson:You know, let Jalen Brown steer the ship. Well, hell, you came back and ain't missed a goddamn beat.

1:06:00Chad Johnson:Man, listen, once he gets back fine-tuning Uncle Ocho, and that'll be right probably when the playoffs is about to hit. He'll be comfortable enough to where he know he got the strength in that leg taking that Achilles and kind of get it out of his mind. Yeah, man, it pushed them right back at the top of the Eastern Conference. Yeah, dang. They just – because it makes them so deep, and now you got another guy who you can rely on as far as closing out games, managing games, taking the initiative, guarding some of the top guys. Shit, put Boston right back at the top, bro.

1:06:35Shannon Sharpe:Dang. Yeah, I think I agree with you. And we're going to talk about Detroit, who's been struggling as of late.

1:06:47Shannon Sharpe:I don't know what it is with Cleveland.

1:06:51Chad Johnson:You just don't believe in them at this time of the year, do you?

1:06:54Shannon Sharpe:Nope. Hey, Unc? I don't think anybody else does or should.

1:06:58Joe Johnson:Two-headed months, Unc?

1:07:02Chad Johnson:They're complimentary pieces. I don't see nobody who's going to win them a game in a tough playoff series. You think Harden, Mitchell, and Mobley, they're going to be solid. I think they'll be good enough to win a couple games, but you're going to need somebody who's going to have an out-of-body experience on the postseason for you to advance, bro. You need a little luck when you're in the playoffs. You can have your great players play great, but you're going to need somebody to be able to step up and have one of them nicer where they had 18 to 25 points and we get that dub. And I just don't see it.

1:07:41Chad Johnson:I feel like when I watch Cleveland play, they have to work so hard to score the basketball that it hadn't really looked real free-flowing like when you watch Boston, like when you watch OKC, like when you watch San Antonio, when you watch these top teams play. They just don't move the ball like that. Nope.

1:08:01Shannon Sharpe:and Evan Mobley had a good game today. He had 24 points, 8 rebounds. Donovan Mitchell shot 50 % from the floor. He had 30 points. Harden had 19, 10, and 4. But that was it. You get 7 points from Dean Wade. You get 5 from Merrill. 1 of 7 from the 3 for him. Thomas Bryant, Schroeder, Jalen Tyson. I just don't know. you're not beating anybody with 13 bench points, you ain't beat anybody.

1:08:31Chad Johnson:Yeah. Nah, you're in trouble.

1:08:33Shannon Sharpe:Because the one thing you know about Boston, Peyton Pritchett coming up the bench, he gonna give you 15.

1:08:37Chad Johnson:Yeah, and Mr.

1:08:39Shannon Sharpe:35 while you playing. Yeah. Oh, let you know, he like, okay, I'm cool. I'll sit back. I can JT back and JB doing what he does, but let one of them be out. And see what he do. And then put his ass in the start lineup. or let it or don't put him in the start line, but let him get 35 minutes and see what he do. Let him cook. Let him cook. Yeah.

1:09:04Joe Johnson:He efficient as hell, Joe. Anytime you get an opportunity, whether it's off the bench or whether it's starting, he going to give you that work. Yeah.

1:09:12Shannon Sharpe:Man, I watched him today. I was like, man, he's shooting step back. I mean, he's shooting turn around, step backs. Ball high as a mofo.

1:09:20Chad Johnson:Okay. Hey, confidence through the roof. Yeah.

1:09:24Shannon Sharpe:Swish.

1:09:25Chad Johnson:Yeah. So, look, you know, he's so confident because he done played. He's been the starting point guard a lot throughout this whole season. So, his confidence threw the roof. He in the right spot. He in the right spot he needed to be in. Come in, give us that spark plug, and we might need you to go for 30 tonight. And he can do it.

1:09:41Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, with no problem. I think the thing is it's going to take Schroeder some time. Schroeder's a guy that can win your game. We've seen Schroeder play well in the postseason. We saw him play well for the Lakers. We saw him play well last year for Detroit against the Knicks. So Schroeder has some experience. We'll see how that works out. But they need their big guns. Harden, Donovan, Evan Mobley. Now, they were missing Jared Allen, but they're going to need their big guns to be fired. Without them firing, they're not going to do anything and they're not going anywhere.

1:10:11Chad Johnson:Right, right. I agree. The only thing about Schroeder, you got Harden and Mitchell. One of them going to always be on the court at all times, and they gonna always have a ball in their hands. And Schroeder needs the ball. And Schroeder kind of needs the ball. He does. So it's hard for him to be effective, you know what I mean?

1:10:29Shannon Sharpe:Yep.

1:10:35Shannon Sharpe:Pistons were blown out by the Miami Heat. Yeah, yeah, they were blown out by who? Blowing out the number one seed. They blew a 20 something point lead. The Bucks, excuse me, Detroit did blew a 20-something point lead to Brooklyn and ended up losing. Tobias Harris had nine. Jalen Durant had 24. Cade was efficient today, only had 26. Paul Reed, but this game wasn't even close.

1:11:06Chad Johnson:Nah. You just – you don't have enough firepower Detroit offensively. Like, that's a great game by Cade, but for them to win, like I said, he always has to play. Lights out. kind of over and beyond. He probably need about 35 tonight, honestly. But you need these other guys around him to step up, bro, and be effective and be able to help. I don't know what's wrong with Detroit, man. They have tape, but I don't know if they got bored because they got such a big lead on everybody or what.

1:11:38Shannon Sharpe:I'm trying to figure out what happened to Norman Powell. Why they not playing him? The guy that could have been an all-star. He was an all-star. He wasn't a all-star?

1:11:45Chad Johnson:Yeah, he was an all-star. Yeah, he must be hurt.

1:11:48Shannon Sharpe:DMP coach's decision but Detroit's gonna have to do better defensively

1:11:52Joe Johnson:I mean

1:11:52Shannon Sharpe:man they let six guys get in double figures Bam had 24 Tyler Hero had 25 Phil Larson had 10 Jaime Harkin 19 Kel Ware 12

1:12:03Joe Johnson:but you also hey Uncle Joe but y 'all both got to understand chat y 'all also have to understand what the Pistons had to deal with tonight the Pistons were playing the best team in the East you hear me the Pistons were playing the best team in the East So y 'all sitting here confused on why Detroit look and why they've taped it off. But, hello, look who you playing. You playing the best team, probably the team that's going to come out east. It might not look like it right now, but I'm just telling you what's going to happen. They're not. Wait, come again? Man. Wait, what you said? Okay.

1:12:35Chad Johnson:I don't got them coming out to east on the show, but they'll make some noise. They got some guys who are capable and guys who can go off and have big games. And they well coached, bro. them dudes ain't going to really do a whole lot to hurt themselves. You just got to be disciplined when you play them. But they, I mean, this don't surprise me that they beat Detroit. I think they definitely capable of doing that. You talk about a series. Oh, yeah. Hey, Joe.

1:13:01Joe Johnson:Hold on, Joe. Don't do that. Now, we talk about a seven-game series. Boy, it's a wrap. You know, you know, you know. What do you mean it's a wrap? What do you mean what I mean? We got this. You don't believe me. We rise to the Cajuns in moments that matter. So in a seven-game series, if it happens, which is going to happen when we come out the East, you know, somebody going home, I don't know who it's going to be, but the fat lady going to sing. You don't believe in the heat? No. Okay. Okay. Can I ask your question? Yeah. You not believing in the heat, are you willing to put money in that belief, or you just saying it because you just

1:13:46Shannon Sharpe:they're not coming out of the east yes I put money on the heat that are not coming out of the east

1:13:50Joe Johnson:we're going to leave it at that I want you to remember these words I want Ash I want you to clip this statement from Unk and we want to keep it at that yeah

1:14:00Shannon Sharpe:but there is a joke he can't give you 24 and 5 he got to be double digit rebounds yeah he need to be double digit

1:14:11Chad Johnson:rebounds but But they don't get – like, you know, Bam don't really – he the center, but he like the point center. He kind of like similar to Jokic. Like, he'll bring it up. He'll initiate the offense. So he ain't just under the basket all the time. You know what I mean? So that's what you want to have. You want to have a big who can pull them big guys away from that basket and get them to where they are uncomfortable. And I think that's really much what happened because Bam had a great game today. He had a great game today too. Bam played road.

1:14:39Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. The Bam shot got up 10. The Bam got up 10 threes.

1:14:44Chad Johnson:Yeah, he been shooting a three lately. He been shooting a three lately. They look good. You know, Miami does this, Ocho. You know, they come out. They have a great game. They play well. They get them a nice little seed. And then, you know, it'll be first round exit. I'm just keeping it real, man. You want me to be honest, don't you?

1:15:01Joe Johnson:I want you to be honest, Joe. But didn't you play for the Heat, Joe?

1:15:04Chad Johnson:Yeah, I played for the Heat. Way. Had a good old time.

1:15:07Joe Johnson:I don't like your tone. I don't like what you putting out there in the atmosphere. The tongue is powerful, Joe.

1:15:14Chad Johnson:I have to be honest when I'm on here talking to you on Ark. I have to be honest.

1:15:18Joe Johnson:So that's both of y 'all don't have no faith in the heat?

1:15:23Shannon Sharpe:Nope.

1:15:23Joe Johnson:All right.

1:15:25Shannon Sharpe:Say less. Nope. Meanwhile, the Pistons have lost four games in a row. Oh, Joe, Joe, is it time to panic?

1:15:34Chad Johnson:Nah, ain't no time to panic. I mean, they just got to get it back together. Like I said, they got such a big lead on everybody in the East. I think they done got a little bored, Uncle Ocho, me personally. You know what I mean? Oh, man, we got a few games we probably could squander over, but they got to get back on track now. This thing winding down.

1:15:53Shannon Sharpe:I don't like that for the simple fact you ain't won nothing to be bored. Yeah. You should get bored of winning championships. I mean, people get sometimes, and you have a little lull when you won a championship. They ain't won nothing. You're right. You're right. I'm concerned because you lost to the Nets. You got a 20-something point lead and you lose to the Nets. You can't lose to the Nets.

1:16:12Chad Johnson:That's why I put it toward them getting bored because I'm like, man, they were beating the Nets head in. It's like, and you lose that game, man, you done got bored, bro. I don't know what to tell you. Like, you need to, you know, get it back in gear. But, you know, it's starting to wind on down, man. I expect for them to tighten up and make this late run.

1:16:31Joe Johnson:Hey, Joe, I think they're going to be all right, Uncle Joe. You know, even in battle, some of the best sluggers go into slumps. You hear me? Yeah, for sure. They go into slumps, man. You know, they're going to be straight. With CarGurus Discover, you can skip the filters and describe what you're looking for in your own words.

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1:17:13Joe Johnson: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. 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.

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1:17:59Joe Johnson: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.