Steve Aschburner: This Could Be A Long Year For The Milwaukee Bucks

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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 is another hour of the program, and it's great to have you with us nationwide. Brian Weber with you, appreciating the company on this busy Thursday. The phone number is 844-204-7424. The impossible happened in the first hour of the show.

1:57We took not one but two phone calls. My goodness, I'm opening two. Having more of a dialogue with you. Later on in 20 minutes, we return to the NFL after we went through the leading contenders to be the most improved teams. We'll jump into the pit of negativity. That is the lifeblood of Sports Talk Radio. What coaches out there? What's the short list of head coaches? should be maybe looking over their shoulder. Who has the most urgency to win? We'll get there coming up. But I love talking NBA this time of the year, and I always learn something when I read content written by our first guest today.

2:37It is Steve Ashburner, senior writer of NBA.com, a very good friend of the program. Steve, Brian Weber in for Rich. How are you today? I'm doing well, Brian. How are you? I'm doing well, and I appreciate you taking the time. Well, let's start with Giannis speaking. This is like Greta Garbo years ago. You probably saw the headline that he appeared on a live stream when he was asked about his intention to stay with the Bucs, and the quote was, probably, we'll see. I love Milwaukee. I'm interested in your reaction to that. And then on the floor, how much improvement do you expect to see from the Bucs this year with the addition of Miles Turner?

3:19yeah you know it's it's hard to make of uh any player these days based on what they say at any given point in time about their long-term plans i mean long-term plans in the nba but a week and a half um i and now yannis is a little out of the ordinary in that having um you know given his roots and the way that he developed as a player as a young man where he was drafted, how things have gone for him in Milwaukee. You know, he might not have the stars in his eyes related to glamour markets, and Milwaukee seems to have suited him as long as they are a contending team. You know, that's obviously the big if right now because of Damian Lillard being cut loose as a result of the Achilles injury and his unavailability for the entire coming season.

4:11So, you know, they're going to have to slap things around Giannis pretty quickly. I know initially there was talk that this would be a gap year for the Bucs, and they would work on building things up over time. I think they still need to do that. They've pieced some things together in the short term, and obviously Miles Turner, he'll be there for a little while. And as a tandem sort of player with Giannis, you know, that could work out well. I think Miles Turner is a little underrated. He didn't shoot that well in the postseason, but he does have a fairly reliable three-point range. When you have Giannis near the paint and you have a guy who does a pretty good job protecting the rim while not being a leaper or 7-foot-plus type of guy, Miles Turner is pretty good, too.

5:08So I think that that helps. It plugs the Brooke Lopez opening with a guy who's younger and more in his prime than Brooke was. So that's a nice pickup. I think some of the other guys they have there, Gary Trent Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., Kyle Kuzma, I mean, you're still sort of in search of a true offensive sidekick. I don't think Turner qualifies that way. What they had hoped that Lillard would be in Milwaukee, Lillard put up some solid stats, but it just didn't click. It wasn't quite a blatant my turn, your turn, but it also wasn't any sort of a Stockton-Malone-Kemp-Payton type of synergy between those two guys.

5:58That's going to be a challenge, and how they get that and where they get that from will go a long way, I think, in keeping Giannis content. I think his inclination is to stay, not to be a guy who stamps his feet and wants out, but this could be a long year for the Bucs, and if so, the climate there could be entirely different next summer. Talking hoops with Steve Ashburner, senior writer for NBA.com. I'm Brian Weber, in for Rich. Steve, I was listening closely and agreed with everything you said. To me, if we're going to crystallize that, I think the Bucs are a play-in team. But the positive is they're in the Eastern Conference.

6:39So if we go with conventional wisdom that Cleveland coming off a 64-win season last year will be the team to beat, the Knicks bringing their top seven players back from their run to the Eastern Conference Finals. If I asked you who was on the next tier, who do you think could push Cleveland and New York to be the best team in the East? Well, I like what Orlando did. I mean, I think the magic are on the rise, and I think Desmond Bain is, you know, exactly what they needed. You know, a much more reliable, prolific three-point shooter than any of the guys that they've had. They also need to stay healthy.

7:18If they stay healthy, and the addition of Bain, I mean, I think that that and the maturation of Banqueiro and Wagner, You know, they're just naturally going to be getting better. And I think that they're, you know, they're due to take a big step. I would think, you know, I don't think it's any stretch at all that they would be a contender for that third slot in the East and maybe even higher. So that would be the team I would most be keeping an eye on. And I think Atlanta's gotten better. I think with, you know, some of the moves that they've made and, again, you know, guys getting better from within, and Dyson Daniels being back, and Zachary Richa Shea, you know, in his second year as a player.

8:01I think that's big. You know, the Porzingis addition, and McKeel Alexander-Walker is a player to me. He lacks only consistency, you know, to be sort of a pocket version of his cousin Shea. You know, it's a team that a lot of us don't even pay much attention to during the season because they've been stereotyped as, you know, Trey Young and a bunch of guys who don't really know what team they're on. And I think that Atlanta has got a lot more momentum now, and Trey Young will be able to maximize his skill with, you know, an improved supporting cast. Steve, I wanted to go east because I don't want to fall into the habit of being where my feet are.

8:48This show was based in Southern California, and the West has gotten so much better, especially at the top when you look at the moves made by Denver and Houston. You've been doing this for a long time. I came up with the comp of when the Lakers won three in a row and defeated the Sixers and the Nets and the Pacers in those finals as the last time I could think of this broader disparity between the Western Conference and the East, in part because of the injuries, right? No Halliburton, no Jason Tatum. Does that jibe with you? Can you think of another time when we've had this kind of disconnect between the conferences?

9:24Yeah, I can't argue with that without sort of sitting down and breaking it down and everything. My gut reaction is that that sounds about right. I mean, you look at the West, and it's brutal to the point that, you know, people speculate, shouldn't Kevin Durant have pushed to get to the other conference? You know, he helps Houston immensely, and the Rockets should be much improved, but, you know, you're still mired in a group of really difficult challengers there. And obviously the Oklahoma City Thunder aren't going anywhere, and they'll come back with a pat hand, and, you know, they might not win more than 68 games, they might not win 68, but in terms of their expectations heading into next postseason, You know, they want to end this seven different champs in seven different years run and put together a little bit of a, you know, a repeat or three-peat as much as they can.

10:22So, yeah, the West is brutal. It kind of explains why LeBron seems to be thrashing about and not pleased with, you know, whatever the Lakers' short, medium, and long-term vision is. um so well steve let i jump in there how do you read that situation with the lakers and lebron well i i think it's i get a little impatient with it because you know it it it's prime lebron as prima donna um look we can talk about the offseason moves all we want but the biggest expectation, the biggest suspense coming in the next season is how is an in-shape Luka Doncic going to play? And what sort of problem is he going to be for the league with the Lakers with a full season there?

11:16I think Doncic, I mean, he's such a valuable piece and you couldn't have a more inspired superstar based on the flack he took, you know, during the time of the trade and rationalizing the reason that Dallas moved off of him and how he played and all the memes with the photoshopped poundage on him and all that. You know, if I'm LeBron James, you're sort of like, well, yeah, this is perfect. You know, I'm on the 18th hole, in essence, and there's a guy who can take, you know, take the biggest load. You know, but for him to, you know, make noise about a trade or his people to make noise about a trade.

11:59It's like, what would please LeBron James at this point? And frankly, I'm not sure how many people around the NBA or NBA fans in general really care. If he were to change teams again, I think it waters down his portfolio. I think, frankly, I think the longer he stays, the more he risks dipping down in people's estimation when you start talking. He seems to covet the GOAT title, and I think he's getting farther away rather than closer the longer he stays. You become a compiler. You add years in which you don't win titles, and those matter too. And I just think it's unnecessary drama. He should be, in my opinion, more committed to making it work in Los Angeles.

12:50Or, you know what, just figure out a way to get to Cleveland, even in a buyout or a minimum salary situation, which he didn't want to do, obviously, and have your final, your farewell, your swan song season with the team that brought you into the league. I can't imagine LeBron anywhere else and not just seen as a brazen chase of a ring. Appreciate that response, and you covered a lot of ground. Final thought as we're talking hoops with Steve Ashburner, senior writer for NBA.com, good friend of the program. You hear him on the Rich Ozen show frequently. I know you're not a college hoops expert per se, but you're aware of the potential surrounding Cooper Flagg, who's going to make his summer league debut tonight in Las Vegas, coincidentally taking on Bronny James and the Lakers.

13:41Steve, in terms of realistic expectations for the Mavericks this season, how do you view how Cooper is going to make the transition to the league? And then I guess my question would be, how can we factor in the timetable for Kyrie Irving coming back from the torn ACL? And unfortunately, Anthony Davis, while he's going to be projected to be ready to go for the start of training camp, just had eye surgery. And we know his injury history. Yeah, and that was a retina surgery. And frankly, I had a retina surgery a year ago. And it's not to be taken lightly. I don't know the degree of his repair, but anytime you're messing with the eyes, obviously it gets your attention.

14:26And if you're a seven-foot player who's right at the point where a lot of players' fingers and hands are smacking you in the face and the eyes, I mean, that's a concern. We might see Anthony Davis wearing goggles the next time we see him and forever after. So that's a big deal. And, yeah, Irving is a key part of that team. I hope that in his absence that people enjoy the Cooper flag experience and don't expect too much in terms of winning. I'm not saying that's prohibited, but that's not typically what rookies do. I mean, the rookies who have won big in this league generally have come into teams with real solid and healthy supporting casts.

15:11And those are going to be, you know, that last part, the health is an issue for the Mavericks. So I think it's going to be fun. I'm eager to see Cooper Fly. He's young, even as a guy who's a one-and-done at Duke. He's basically coming out of high school by age. Everything I hear about him is that he's a sponge, that he learns things quickly, and all of a sudden he's added that to his game. He doesn't have to go away one year at a time, offseason by offseason, to add things. His learning curve happens rather quickly. So I think that'll be fun as long as, you know, people aren't holding out too many expectations in terms of, you know, again, he's in the West too.

15:53Dallas is in the West. And if they can keep their head above water, given what the reaction to the Doncic trade was, this will be a heck of a save. you know they got very lucky landing that number one pick and it's kind of muted the the Donchich criticism so I think if they can if they can you know be playing for a low seat or a playing spot that's pretty good considering the alternative. Steve I appreciate you taking the time and the analysis the audience has heard me say way too often I love basketball more than the NFL and I spent a lot of time on NBA.com. I appreciate the advanced metrics and all your great work.

16:38So really glad we had this conversation and thanks so much for joining us today. You're welcome, Brian. Steve Ashburner has been covering the league for decades. And if you listen closely, that was a powerful response about LeBron James. And I like how Steve framed it because he didn't use the word legacy. And I'm Brian Weber in for Rich, 844-204-7424, wide open the rest of this hour. In fact, we will not have another guest and only two guests today. So now I'm going to get defensive. I understand I am not Rich Eisen. Now, I try to come up with the parallels as much as I can. We're born in the same year.

17:24Rich is actually a resident growing up of New York City from Staten Island. I grew up less than three miles away from the city line. My old man fought his way out of the Bronx, but I'm from New York City adjacent with the high school in the city. And it occurred to me today, Rich started his career in Northern California in Redding. I was kind of a big deal. I was already in San Francisco and then everything diverged. I peaked circa 1996. I wonder if Rich even knew who I was. Well, I was on regional cable. So yeah, we were all over Northern California. No wonder why I was strutting. But if you are not a fan, I get it.

18:03I am a guest host. I'm an acquired taste. And I got more good news for you. I'm done on this show. After next hour wraps up, my pal Dan Schwartzman has hard-hitting opinions. East Coast Edge. He'll be here tomorrow. Rich and the guys are back. But I was going to pat myself on the back. I don't overwhelm you with guests. As a veteran guest host on several different shows, I keep mentioning I was filling for Mike Florio years ago. I do have a pet peeve of guys who fill in and have 19 guests. Hey, this is a massive platform. Shoot your shot. Here's your chance to shine. So the only other, unless you pick up the phone, outside voice you will hear, will come one hour from now, even more NFL.

18:49Are you not entertained? When we get you lined up for the start of training camps, which officially start Saturday, two days from now, when the Chargers rookies show up looking forward to our conversation with Ted Wynn of The Athletic. To put a footnote on the conversation with Steve, so he didn't say legacy, but he said LeBron is potentially damaging his portfolio, his body of work. Can't argue with that. In fact, I liked also the baseball comp. LeBron's moving into the stat compiler era of his career. Now, I would be a fool and a troll to bash LeBron James. And I'm not doing, even though I'm older than my upbeat delivery suggests, Jordan versus LeBron.

19:34And if you don't track media, and I can only think of the tens of millions of dollars NBC is throwing at Jordan to have him be a special correspondent for the return of the NBA on NBC. that's coming this fall the minute Jordan says something anything people are going to try to break it down like there's a Bruder film as a shot at LeBron and who's been better at keeping his name front and center than LBJ I mentioned when I was here on Monday he was on social media on July 4th because he lives for engagement and I think this is going to be another Another middling season for the Lakers. You're telling me DeAndre Ayton is going to make that much of a difference?

20:19And I keep going back to my Arizona connection. I remember when he was dynamic in college at the University of Arizona. I remember when he played a huge role on the Suns' unlikely journey to the NBA Finals, but everything changed after he got that second contract after that great season in 2021. One, feuded with coaches who are perceived to be amicable like Monte Williams and Chauncey Billups in Portland. It spiraled out of control in Portland. No showing practices, not getting along in the locker room. Remember the ice game? He took a snow day because he couldn't get to the arena because of a bizarre ice storm in Portland.

20:57And Ayton has millions of reasons to be a responsible and productive player because even though Portland paid him$25 million to go away and he's getting eight from the Lakers, now it's a show-me portion of his career. So, yes, he'll be a marginal upgrade over the lousy options they had in the paint. But as Steve pointed out, and we've been going through with granular detail, OKC is going to run it back with everybody. Houston will be better. Denver will be better. Should I keep going all the way down? The Clippers will be better. Even though I can't believe I said that. Lakers, to me, are playing at best, but LeBron's going to keep on hanging on.

21:42I think he goes all the way to 2028. Maybe he retires the year before, but he's going to play in the 2028 Olympics just to get another gold medal and go out on top under his terms with the games coming up here in Los Angeles. 844-204-7424, the number to call. Straight ahead, back to the NFL. I was trying to come up with nice verbiage as opposed to saying, who's getting whacked this year? Which coaches are going to lose their job? Because I'm upbeat, and I'm in a positive frame of mind, but let's tell it like it is. Coaches that need to look over their shoulder heading into the season, that's coming up as I'm in for Rich.

22:24Rich 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. It 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. NMLS 696891. Fast Fund's terms apply at SoFi.com slash DebtPlay. Rich Eisen here for Gusto. On my shows, we talk a lot about what happens in the spotlight, the games, the highlights, and the moments that get replayed and debated.

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23:48Plus, you get unlimited payroll runs for one monthly price. No hidden fees, no surprises. Try Gusto today at gusto.com slash rich and get three months free when you run your first payroll. That's three months of free payroll at gusto.com slash rich. One more time, gusto.com slash rich. The greats don't shy away from change. They attack it head on with confidence, preparation, and a clear strategy. KPMG LLP and their transformation professionals work with organizations across industries using their advanced AI to help them move faster, work smarter, and adapt with purpose. Because in today's business environment, winning teams don't react to change, they shape it.

24:30Learn more at visit.kpmg.us slash velocity. 844-204-7424. If you don't want to interact with me, that's cool, but give my friend Dan and Schwartzman to call tomorrow. More to the point. Rich and the guys back on Monday. You can also slide over to the X platform. That is B.W. Weber. Weber with two Bs. Appreciate Steve Ashburner from NBA.com taking the time to join us a few moments ago. And then looking ahead to the final hour of the program, one hour from now, more NFL when we check in with Ted Wynn of The Athletic in 15 minutes because it's all about forward promotion. I need one more minute, two more minutes, That's five more minutes out of you.

25:14As you know, this program, or if you don't know, you should know, is typically a Emmy award nominated simulcast. It's been streaming and the partnership with the Roku channel is a wonderful form of business engagement. I noticed yesterday as I was trying to maximize my time on Hulu because the days are coming off the calendar and I'm too cheap to renew. now that I've gotten caught up on the bear. Max is back to being HBO after it was HBO Max to start off with. So that's another marketing genius move. But I'm always looking for a hook. Here's the hook for this program. What are the worst branded teams in sports after that branding exercise?

26:03Got a ride. That's coming up in 15 minutes. I'm mentioning in passing because it's not a topic. It's much more of an acknowledgement, a historic development today at the All England Club. She's from New Jersey. She's 23 years old. The 13 seed. If you're a double-digit seed at a major tournament, you typically feel very fortunate just to make it to say the round of 16. Instead, Amanda Asimova finds herself now getting ready to play in the singles final coming up as she took down top-seeded Arena Sabalenka. And to give you more context about how big a win that was beyond the nationalistic linkage to the United States a year ago, as Amanda, like many players, went through a rough patch mentally.

26:58Tennis is the most demanding sport from a mental standpoint of them all. It's me and you and the net and the ball, and coaching is a gray zone. But if you have the goods, typically it's the mental side of your game that ebbs and flows with confidence, especially when you're in your late teens, early 20s. Amanda saw her ranking plummet all the way to 189 and failed to qualify for the main draw. Wimbledon and a year later she now has a chance to win it all waiting the outcome of the match going on between the Swiss Miss Belinda Bencic and Iga Sviantec that's how you say it that is your tennis update now the audience is running away so hey I have football where are you going I have football right here with the Chargers having their rookies report coming up two days from now getting ready for the kickoff of exhibition play on July 31st.

27:56It's the Chargers taking on the Lions. Got me thinking about coaches who should be renting or leasing, not buying anything. We know there's a lot of turnover. You know what was weird in college football? As we talked a lot of college football the last couple days, and Rich will do likewise when he gets back because SEC media days kick off on Monday. That is now a four-day event. Well, I understand the conference has expanded. Four days of coaches and players being shown their way to the podium to spout cliches, and we had the big 12 media days last couple days in Texas as the foundation of a lot of college football talk.

28:39College football last year, for whatever reason, only had a handful of coaches get fired. just a weird aberration, maybe because of the portal and because the rosters are changing to the tune of about 75 % every year. Maybe coaches have a little bit more latitude in college football, but the NFL, to quote the philosopher Jerry Glanville, when I think of philosophers, it's Socrates, Plato, and the man in black. NFL stands for not for long. So who's entering the season in a tenuous position. Well, how about we start at the bottom and work our way to the top? There's a reason why the Tennessee Titans had the opportunity to draft Cam Ward with the number one overall pick.

29:28They will be better. Cam Ward, we're back to storytelling. I keep throwing it out there because I don't think it got enough attention. Many of you think when you heard from the University of Miami. It's Cam Ward. Cam Ward started his career at Incarnate Word in Texas. Then he went to Washington State. Then he went to Miami. So this guy has earned every opportunity on his way to the NFL's premier opportunity now to be a potentially a franchise quarterback. Dare I say it? It's been a minute since the Titans had someone to fit that bill. You want to go back to Steve McNair. I realize that Ryan Tannehill played in an AFC Championship game, but you get the point I'm making here.