Bryan Kalbrosky: I Did Not See The Miami Heat Trading For Norman Powell At The Value They Did

0:00We all know Saturday's game time can get a little messy. Your crew just came over to watch. Snacks on the table, drinks in hand, and somebody's celebrating like they just won the whole season and beyond. And when that energy gets going, your walls can end up taking the hit. Whether it's a big spill or a noticeable scuff, that's where Bare Ultra Interior Paint comes in. It adds an extra durable, stain-blocking finish that helps your walls hold up for the whole season. It also delivers outstanding coverage and hide in fewer coats with easy application and a smooth, even finish that goes on clean from the first pass.

0:34Plus, that easy, clean finish helps walls stay looking new longer. So before the next kickoff, give your space game ready defense and coverage that goes the distance. Bear Ultra, only at the Home Depot. This episode is brought to you by Facebook. So you were scrolling on Marketplace and there it was. The bike you've been searching for. You sent a message and it turned out the seller was super chatty, kind of funny, and an avid cyclist. The next thing you know, you're in a cycling crew. Well, a community cycling group. The thing about Facebook, you might find more than what you're looking for. From a browse to a bike ride, this summer, find more on Facebook.

1:16I'm living my best life. Yeah, yeah. This is the Rich Eisen Show. Here's the other surprising part. With guest host Brian Weber. Yeah, big shoes to fill. Eisen's a legend. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. The Rich Eisen Show. Do you know who I am? I'm a guy on television. I have my own show. And now, sitting in for Rich, here's Brian Weber. It's another hour of the program, and it's great to have you nationwide. 844-204-7424. Brian Weber with you. You can always throw a ex-post my direction, B.W. Weber. Weber would two Bs. We are getting closer to the guest portion of the program.

2:02In fact, we are supersizing today. Something I may or may not be familiar with. In 20 minutes, we'll talk NBA with Brian Kalbroski. You read his outstanding content on the For the Win platform, part of USA Today. An hour from now, 2 p.m. Eastern, looking forward to checking in with Mark Mulder. I'm going to remind him I interviewed him when he got called up to the Oakland A's circa 2000 when I was still doing local television in the San Francisco Bay Area. In fact, I got my big break in 1993. I was 23 years old, co-hosting the A's pregame show. So if you have tolerated me since July 4th, when I either have a rant or just a snarky aside about the West Sacramento athletics on their way to Vegas, if you believe that they'll ever get there, because the worst owner of professional sports, John Fisher, according to reports, and I'll be vague because he has lawyers, may not have the cash.

3:10that's why his soccer team according to reports is up for sale and i'm fully aware he's getting a ton of public money from the good people in nevada corporate welfare nice work if you can get it mark molder joins us in an hour we'll reflect on his terrific career we'll talk about the pitchers currently in the bigs that he makes a point of watching when he's flipping around and the purpose of the conversation is to let you know Mark is a three-time winner of the American Century Championship, the premier celebrity golf tournament of them all. Gets underway Friday, Tahoe, Nevada. Rich Eisen, part of the field, coming up.

3:56I do have the odds in front of me because in Nevada, you can bet on everything. The Sharpies like Mark. Well, why wouldn't you? In fact, he had a run of back-to-back-to-back titles. So last check, he has the sixth best odds to win it. Steph Curry leading the way, who was the champion a couple years ago. You have to go a little bit deeper on the list to get to Rich. Now, here's the good news for Rich. Better odds to win this event than Baker Mayfield. So that's saying something. We'll get there coming up. And we'll follow that conversation up in the last hour of the program with more college football.

4:31I realize that I can be guilty of coming up with sermons when it's connected to college football and basketball. That's my passion speaking. I understand a lot of you want to start thinking about matters on the field. So we'll reach out to the right guy, Tim Murray, who has a terrific college football betting podcast as part of his portfolio of work for VEASAN, where he's part of their weekday lineup. We're talking Eagles football. Fly Eagles fly momentarily. I want to throw a footnote to the Draymond Green monologue that opened the show an hour ago. A reminder, if you miss any portion of any program, you can listen anytime on demand.

5:16The Outstanding Podcast will be posted shortly after the conclusion of the show. I use the term transparency a lot because I think it's important. And I think it's foolish to think that anybody speaking into a microphone can check our biases at the door. Now, I do my best to have objectivity, but when I'm venturing into a topic in which I realize I can't be dispassionate, I just want to be candid with you. I am not an enormous fan of Draymond Green, both as a person in terms of how he presents himself as a broadcaster, understanding that he's probably just being authentic to himself. And why should Draymond Green, quote-unquote, play nice just because some villain guy on the radio doesn't find it that appealing?

6:06I just venture towards a degree of likability. Charles Barkley can say whatever he wants. I'm not getting political here, but Barkley can express any political opinion. Why does he have that kind of latitude? Because of his likability. Because people, I think, connect with him. They trust him. There's an old sales adage. Know, like, and trust somebody. You're more inclined to do business with them. and we believe that Charles is being authentic, but there's also a glimmer in his eye. Draymond just comes across to me, and maybe again I'm being too focused on the media space because I've devoted my adult life to it, he comes across to me as not having a real sense of connection with the audience.

6:59It's not about trying to relate, it's I have these strong opinions, whether you like it or not. and he's certainly entitled to handle his business any way he wants to. I'm sure if I looked up the metrics for his podcast, they'll be superior to the numbers I'm generating, hopefully not destroying Rich's brand as the fill-in host that you can catch on the podcast. So that's my frame of reference when it comes to Draymond Green. I also don't like people who cannot control their bodies on the floor, understanding the reason he's had success in the NBA. is what we refer to in sports as the high motor.

7:39I get it. I mentioned earlier, I worked for the Warriors on and off for nine years as their sideline reporter when they were dreadful. I have an appreciation for the transformation of the franchise, and they don't win multiple titles without the intensity of Draymond, the emotional leader of that team. But when it comes to him expressing opinions that are just dead wrong, I can't let it just float around out there without offering my assessment. So as we started the show, Draymond, reflecting, I think, conventional wisdom, I read your feedback on social media, and I am nostalgic. As a veteran of working during this time on the calendar, I much preferred, say, 2016 when Kevin Durant summoned teams to his hideaway on the Hamptons or my favorite NBA free agency anecdote DeAndre Jordan and maybe because I used to work for the Clippers flagship station here in Los Angeles remember he verbally committed to joining the Mavs he shook Mark Cuban's hand metaphorically and then the Clippers descended on his house locked the door wouldn't let him leave until he changed his mind to stay with the team yeah that was more entertaining than what happened last year but we have to deal with the facts as they are and Draymond while I agree with him that metaphorically what would happen in early July were basketball's version of fireworks as he posted on social media but when he said one can only point to the new CBA and the second apron for putting an end to free agency as we once knew it he's just dead wrong because it's not all about the second apron it's about the league and the owners negotiate that with the players and here's where treymon has to put himself front and center went on the post i should have been the players association president lol i could have helped a lot now if it's a popularity contest as any general here's a giant word plebiscite good nine everybody any voting comes down to who's the most popular who gets the most votes and he went on to say it wasn't wrong here it's baffling to me how little players know about this business and affects them in ways that most don't understand he's not wrong there i've dealt with a lot of professional athletes as co-hosts as analysts on games cover them many just focus on what they're doing on the floor and don't think about the economic impact because that's not their passion we should all have financial literacy but for draymond to say i alone could have solved this effectively i should have been the players association president well draymond why do you think you weren't elected to that role maybe back to my notion of likability So as we move now to the NFL, remember the NBA's goal with this more restrictive CBA, while the tradeoff was a free agent cycle that is not as frantic, as frenzied and as entertaining as years gone by.

10:56The point was they're trying to mandate parity. They want to create opportunities for small market teams to retain their stars. And we have Oklahoma City in part as a result, but I think primarily because of the renowned basketball mind possessed by Sam Presti. So Draymond can be upset. It ain't going to change. And remember, the Players Association could have tried to block this instead because ownership will win every battle other than baseball. because the baseball union is undefeated. Now, cost of sport, the 1994 World Series cost me money that year as a young broadcaster. But in every other circumstance, the players blink because they don't have the same kind of resources as billionaires.

11:47Secondarily, they have a concept called shelf life. There's only a finite number of years they can play, and many of them are not willing to give up game checks for the sake of principle. For future generations, I get it. So that's how we've arrived at what Draymond believes is a boring free agent cycle. But maybe, and the fellow's coming up, I promise, maybe he's most frustrated the Warriors haven't done anything. Now, they made their move when they got Jimmy Butler. But here's the business model for the Warriors moving forward, hoping and wishing that Jimmy Butler can stay healthy at 35, as well as Steph at 37.

12:28And remember, Steph couldn't even survive the second round of the playoffs because of his hamstring injury. Hope is not a plan. What's going on with Jonathan Kaminga? Now, remember, he's a restricted free agent, so the Warriors can match. Clearly, Steve Kerr has no faith in him. Couldn't even get him in the rotation with much regularity. So perhaps this is Draymond projecting because he looks around the West, sees all the moves made by Denver. Houston picking up Durant, in addition to Dorian Finney-Smith and Clint Capella. You look at the top of the conference, it's never been more rugged, all in the hopes of tracking down the reigning champs for, hopefully, if you're an OKC fan, years to come.

13:16But let's just take it one year at a time. Everybody gunning for what the Thunder have achieved. And if I'm just going off the top of my head, it's going to take me a while to get to the Warriors because they've done virtually nothing in this offseason. I'm Brian Weber, in for Rich. We'll pick up the NBA conversation in 10 minutes when we're joined by Brian Kalbroski of USA Today. B.W. Weber, Weber with two Bs, is the Twitter handle. So, if parity is one of the huge components for the success of the NFL, it makes sense the NBA would want to emulate that. And parody says, other than the Chiefs going back-to-back, and what a sizable accomplishment it was, even to make it to their third straight Super Bowl, then they got hammered by Philadelphia.

14:06But it is hard to repeat as NFL champions. So if you care about The View from Vegas, I really should be auditioning for some sort of gambling-related podcast. If you haven't downloaded my show, In the Book with B-Web, take care of that now, wherever you get your sportscast. That would be in addition to everything under the umbrella of the Rich Eisen platform, because that is the best. Am I kowtowing to the host enough? I will keep on doing it, because I like working here. If you've not scanned the Vegas odds to win the Super Bowl this year, co-favorites, the Bills and the Ravens, the plus 700, right behind them, the Eagles followed by the Chiefs.

14:50Now, if I was going to be lazy and read the top 15 contenders, you would note when I got there, there's not a lot of teams from the NFC other than the usual suspects, like the Lions. Okay. Do you think they're overdue for a step back? Was Jared Goff exposed last year in that playoff beatdown applied by Washington? How about the Rams? Well, the Eagles just handled them. And I understand that if we're thinking about who gave the Eagles the most trouble in their run to the Super Bowl, it was L.A. in the divisional round of playoffs. But Matthew Stafford is the gift that keeps on giving. It doesn't have to be the holidays for him to be generous with a lack of ball security.

15:35And he made some questionable decisions down the stretch. Still had a chance to win that game. Couldn't get it done. So as we think about where Philadelphia is in position to go back to back, a lot of it comes down to what you lose after winning a championship. And if we think about that Super Bowl, the primary takeaway was Patrick Mahomes got bludgeoned and the Eagles did not even blitz a single time on Super Bowl Sunday. They lost Josh Sweat, good pickup by the Cardinals to bolster their front seven. But like the Thunder with Sam Presti, making largely all the right decisions when it comes to roster composition, same story with the Eagles.

16:23Howie Roseman is a football genius. So Jalen Carter has the ability to step up early in his career and fill that void created by the loss of sweat to Arizona. I think a lot of the general view of Philadelphia comes down to how much you believe in Jalen Hurts. And it feels like we encounter a lot of Jalen Hurts slander. Somehow it's held against him that he had the best running back in all of football last year. joined the team because the Giants didn't want to pay Saquon Barkley. Well, how in any estimation is that Jalen's fault? And can I remind you, Jalen Hurts was part of a run to the Super Bowl by the Eagles just a couple years ago when they gave the Chiefs everything they could handle.

17:11So I understand if we're going through the premier quarterbacks in all of football, it might take you a while to get to Hurts because you believe he's got more talent around him. Again, how is that an anti-Hertz observation? That's a reflection of how well the Eagles have been built. He doesn't have to do that much. And you talk about maximizing your opportunity. Well, there was a reason why he was a second-round pick, and I root for anybody who's able to tap in and reach their potential. So if we're just saying step-by-step, Eagles coming out of their division. Who's going to stop them? And I'm a big Washington fan, and I am happy for Dan Quinn.

17:57He seems like a nice guy. Rich has him on the program often. He's put 28-3. That collapsed on his watch in the Super Bowl against Tom Brady and the Patriots behind him. Although, if we're doling out accountability, I think a lot of it should go to Kyle Shanahan as the play caller or because he simply refused to run the ball to run clock and stuck with his typical M.O. But we'll save that for another podcast. Coulda, woulda, shoulda with B. Webb. Washington to me, we wonder about the dreaded sophomore slump, and that's not in any way shot at Jaden Daniels. It's a confirmation and acknowledgement that most quarterbacks, Even those who have transformational rookie years deal with more turbulence year two because defensive coordinators now have an entire season to dissect, and they make the adjustments.

18:56Washington, I think, built to compete for years to come. I wouldn't be surprised, though, if we don't see them in the NFC title game again. They're ahead of schedule, certainly a playoff team as well. And then I mention the rest of the field in the NFC. Vikings have good odds to make it to the Super Bowl well tell me what are realistic expectations for J.J. McCarthy I don't know and you don't know 49ers right behind Washington on that second tier of contenders can you tell me with any conviction that they're going to be healthier than last year specifically my guy Christian McCaffrey who just has too much mileage too much wear and tear because he got beat up in Carolina and then used extensively by Kyle Shanahan, who loves to have that kind of versatility.

19:44So as I think about the outlook for the Eagles, unless you are of the mindset that losing Kellen Moore as the play caller is going to have some profound impact on this team, and remember, when they lost the Super Bowl, they lost both Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon as their coordinators to become head coaches, and they had that year that was a mirage in the regular season stumbled down the stretch and got battered by the bucks in the postseason feels like a different outlook to me but you can let me know an opposing view at 844-204-7424 or let me know your thoughts on the x platform bw weber weber with two b's coming up we return to the nba i mentioned okc keeping most of the young core intact with today's news that chet holmgren has agreed to his contract extension.

20:38Let's flip it over to the East with their young talents in a wide-open Eastern Conference. Can the Magic follow the Thunder playbook? Are we looking on Orlando as potentially the next destination for a team that's on the rise? That's coming up when we say hello to Brian Kalbrowski from USA Today. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich. Taking a quick break to tell you how Saturday's game time can get a little messy. Your crew just came over to watch. Snacks on the table, drinks in hand, and somebody celebrating like they just won the whole season and beyond. And when that energy gets going, your walls can end up taking the hit.

21:17Whether it's a big spill or a noticeable scuff, that's where Bare Ultra Interior Paint comes in. It adds an extra durable, stain-blocking finish that helps your walls hold up for the whole season. It also delivers outstanding coverage and hide in fewer coats with easy application and a smooth, even finish that goes on clean from the first pass. Plus, that easy, clean finish helps walls stay looking new longer. So before the next kickoff, give your space game-ready defense and coverage that goes the distance. Bear Ultra, only at the Home Depot. Rich Eisen here with some advice. If high-interest credit card debt is grinding you down, it might be time to call an Audible with a SoFi personal loan.

21:57It consolidates your debt into one low monthly payment with no fees required And with as soon as the same day funding, you can make the right play fast. Call an audible on your debt today at SoFi.com slash debt play. Loans originated by SoFi Bank N.A. Member FDIC. Terms and conditions apply. N.M. L.S. 696-891. Fast funds. Terms apply at SoFi.com slash debt play. O 'Reilly Auto Parts can help take the guesswork out of your vehicle's check engine, ABS, or maintenance light with O 'Reilly Veriscan. The service is free and provides a report with solutions verified by ASE certified master technicians.

22:30Ask for O 'Reilly Veriscan today.

23:00Of everything that's happened since we got to NBA free agency, what have you found most intriguing?

23:09And I have stumped the guest. That wasn't even a hard question. Technology is not my friend. We will effort a reconnection with my guy, Brian Kalproski. Brian is the caller there. I'll do Larry King. Hi, Brian. It's Brian Weber. Hey, Brian. It's Brian Kalproski. Thank you. It's a new program. Bri to Bri, I appreciate you hanging in there. My question was, of everything that has happened so far in NBA free agency, what have you found to be most intriguing? So far in NBA free agency, you know, it's been, I would say, a relatively quiet couple days. And I think that we're about to get potentially some big moves coming up soon.

23:56But I think that the Miami Heat trading for Norm Powell was really, really interesting. I did not see that coming for the value that they got him at. Basically getting Kevin Love and Kyle Anderson as the only pieces who were not really a huge part of their rotation for a guy who was a fringe all-star last season of Norman Powell was particularly interesting in that three-team deal. And I think it could potentially open the door for some moves for the Clippers to potentially add Bradley Beal. If the Suns decide to buy him out the same way the Bucs did with Damian Lillard. And potentially a reunion with Chris Paul as well.

24:38Just to get some help in that backcourt with Chris Paul and Bradley Beal to bolster the help that they'd be losing from losing Norman Powell. Brian, I try to be an active listener. So I heard you said more could be coming. Were you foreshadowing, say, Bradley Beal moving to a contender, or what else were you talking about? Yeah, definitely. I think that the Bradley Beal move should be happening fairly soon. I mean, obviously it's a fairly complex situation to unravel with Phoenix because he has a no-trade clause, and he is planning to hold on to that no-trade clause, so they'd essentially have to agree just on a contract file, and they need to figure out exactly how much money he'd be willing to give up in such a contract buyout.

25:24With the Suns in particular, it's a strange situation because the CEO of the Suns is Josh Bartlestein, and Josh Bartlestein's father is Mark Bartlestein, who is Bradley Beal's agent. What do you know? Hang on, Brian. We call that a confluence of interest, not a conflict, confluence. Yeah, absolutely. So there's at least some potential lines of dialogue there between father and son for the agency and the CEO with Josh Barlstein and Mark Barlstein. But I think that they'll work on some kind of an agreement because the Suns are overloaded at shooting guard right now, especially getting Jalen Green back as their primary return for Kevin Durant.

26:09They also already have Devin Booker, who's also a shooting guard. and Bradley Beal is a shooting guard. It's a roster with Grayson Allen across the board that's just filled with shooting guards. So I think that Bradley Beal doesn't really have a role in Phoenix anymore, but with his no trade clause, which he plans on holding on to, they'll have to probably agree on some sort of contract buyout. And Bradley Beal, I think at his current cost, is quite expensive, but Bradley Beal on more of a minimum deal or more of a mid-level or biannual exception deal is actually a pretty good bargain. So I do think that the Clippers potentially unloaded some of their books to make room for him in their rotation as the replacement for Norman Powell after shipping him off to Miami.

26:57Only question would be, as you know, can Beal stay healthy? That has been the challenge in recent years. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich Eisen, talking hoops with Brian Kalbroski. You can read his outstanding content on the For the Win platform, part of USA Today. Brian, I opened the program and then I revisited reading some excerpts from Draymond Green on social media. And I agreed with him, especially because I'm a veteran talk show host. I used to love when we got to July 1st. It was truly a free agent frenzy, but the world changes. So what do you make of him saying, I should have been the Players Association president, LOL.

27:39And how about this thought? If the players were dead set against what is occurring now happening, why did they not negotiate harder when the CBA was on the table? That's exactly right. I think that it's a good lesson for anyone who's part of a union, not to get too on my high horse about labor rights and everything. But at the end of the day, this was ratified by the players who are part of a union. and at the end of the day, all of the players did vote to ratify this. And if they didn't like it, they could have advocated against it. They could have held a lot out. They could have had any number of things to push against the collectively bargained for agreement.

28:26That's what ACBA is in nature. And they didn't. The money was too good. And if you look at their salaries, you could see why they wouldn't want to interfere and wouldn't want to touch it because it's like, hey, on a max salary, I'm making$60 million or so per year, depending on the player, depending on if they've made all NBA or what their supermax might look like. And even the guys who aren't on supermax deals are still making multi-multi-million dollar deals. So, you know, you could understand why at the time they didn't want to tamper with it, but it's a little rich, I think, to come by, you know, after the fact and say, well, what was CJ McCollum thinking when he did this?

29:05Because they're all part of this union together. Every player is a part of the NBPA, and they collectively bargained with the NBA to reach this agreement. And I think that there are going to be shortcomings from it. I do think that, you know, the July 1st free agency period that Dre was talking about is, you know, one negative side effect. For me, I think the biggest issue, and I wrote about this earlier today at ForTheWin, ussa.com, ftw.ussa.com, is that there are prohibitive basketball restrictions that stand in your way when you reach the second apron. And you can reach those potential restrictive penalties by potentially paying players that you drafted and correctly identifying in the draft pool.

29:57So the Thunder, who just were coming out for winning an NBA championship, want to give their max contracts to guys like Chet Holmgren, who they agreed to enact a contract with today, and Shae Gildress Alexander, the MVP and NBA Finals MVP, who got a super max earlier this offseason, coming up soon for Jalen Williams, who also played an integral role in their seed to becoming the best team in basketball this year. You want to pay all the guys that you drafted, but because of the collective bargaining agreement, there are restrictive basketball penalties that can make it difficult to maintain that roster.

30:35And so if they're going to have to start potentially stripping down pieces and trading away parts and getting rid of key role players because they have to pay guys who they correctly identified as potential stars, that's the part that I think is the bigger issue with the CBA. I think that there shouldn't be as harsh of restrictions for guys that you correctly identified. I could see why you want to potentially stop a big market from just overspending small markets. But now you're penalizing teams like the Thunder, who are definitively a small market team, from making moves and from paying the guys who deserve to get the money.

31:15Well said, and you can get that kind of insight and analysis, as Brian mentioned, by checking out his work, usatoday.com. Talking hoops with Brian Kalbrodsky. Brian, we love to throw things into the trade machine. It is the very fiber of NBA Twitter. I don't care, it's the X platform. So, with LeBron wanting to have it both ways, wanting the$50 million so he opted in, And then Rich Paul putting out the statement, his agent saying, he still wants to compete for a championship. If I throw out LeBron to the Knicks in a trade, and I know it's hypothetical, how would that even work? Well, there's got to be salary matching.