The Dan Patrick ShowDP reacts to Ja Morant using another gun gesture in last night's game despite having already received a warning from the NBA. Will the NBA suspend him despite the playoffs quickly approaching? Chris "Mad Dog" Russo sounds off on Wilt Chamberlain's overlooked legacy, and questions whether the Dodgers are good for baseball. Memphis Commercial Appeal's Damichael Cole weighs in on Ja Morant's polarizing celebration and explains why the Grizzlies made a rare late-season coaching change despite being playoff-bound.
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We got the final four coming up on Saturday. Florida, Auburn, Houston and Duke. Duke was favored by four and a half. It went up to five and a half. I think that was two days ago. I kind of like Houston with the points there, Florida and Auburn. I'd like Auburn to win that out right now. Once again, entertainment purposes only if you want to hear the real professionals. Dan Patrick takes a Gamble podcast. We recorded that yesterday. Shayan Irving Bad, Larry Dylanographicsky of it Aboot, Danpatrick dot Com Women's Final Four Tonight, Texas against South Carolina, Connecticut against UCLA. The Raiders extend Gino Smith and the Cardinals locked up one of my favorite players and he plays for a team that's not very good. The Cards locking up Trey McBride. He's a tight end. I don't think he scores many touchdowns, but it feels like he is. He's all over the place. He had one hundred and eleven catches and I just kept thinking, damn, this guy just he never stops, keeps coming backs. Now he's one of those. He's good, but not that famous kind of guy. And you know, look, the league is littered with that. But when I watch the Cardinals play, I can't help but I can't take my eyes off Trey mcbrin just because he's involved constantly. But he got locked up by the Cardinals, so uh great, good for him. I'd love to be talking about Jahn Morant hitting a game winner, but I can't because it's Joamorant and he did it again, hit the game winner against the heat. And look, you're in a playoff push jockeying for position here both teams are, and jahn Morant had the game winner. Now this is the next game. After he did the gun gesture to Buddy healed, he got a talking to by the commissioner and then he goes out, and then last night does another gun gesture as well. This is similar. I think to hey, you got pulled over by the police and they give you a warning, Hey you're speeding, don't speed all right, officer? And then what do you do? You peel out and then you get pulled over again, Like what are you doing? I just told you I'm going to give you a warning. Yeah, I know, John Moran is forcing the NBA. He's forcing Adam Silver and he's really he's embarrassing the NBA. Now in a vacuum. Okay, is this a big deal?
Oh?
You know this? We have gestures, we have you know, unfortunately we have too much of that and this is but you were warned. You've already been suspended a couple of times with a real gun. So when you have priors and you have a history, I just don't want this to be uh ten years from now, you go remember that guy with Memphis Johnmer? Yeah, Lee, what could have been? I've seen phenomenal talents in all sports and then you just can't They can't help themselves. And I don't know if a teammate says, come on, do they have the guy who says, come on, your coach just got fired. I don't know what role he played in that. But you're in a playoff push, you've been suspended, and you point the imaginary gun again, like.
What are you doing?
You came in as a feel good story, this guy out of nowhere? How did people miss on this guy at Murray's State? Well, maybe we're starting to realize maybe why they missed out. Maybe there was stuff that was leading up to this. Off the court, he gives you highlights every single night. He's fascinating, phenomenal, But he's flawed because I don't know if anybody is really taking ownership of him because he's not. Is his dad or his dad just a cheerleader here? I mean, these are serious things because now you're affecting a career. Now are you going to get suspended the rest of the regular season? Now you affect other people? If he wants to do something on Instagram live with a gun. Okay, you can be stupid, but this is where you're affecting an entire city, a coaching staff, and your teammates.
Just play great basketball. You don't have to be a gangster. Just play be great. But you get to a certain point where he's over twenty five. It's like, man, when he was twenty two, he was Anthony Edwards. Well, now we're twenty five, and you wonder where are we going with this?
He's I don't know. Are you all in? Do you want to be a basketball player? Do you want to be a star, Do you want to be a leader? Do you want to be the post or child? Do you want to be first or second team all envy and maybe you don't. I could only approach this. It's almost parental that I look at this like somebody you got to grab somebody and say and if this you know, the suspension didn't work where it cost him millions of dollars because you had a gun and then you had a gun again, and now you're doing the fake gun and then you do the fake gun again. At some point somebody's got to help him because he's not going to help himself. And maybe he doesn't know got a big contract here, but yeah, I saw it again last night, and we should be talking about what a clutch play. Got the ball, you went on the road and then he does that, All right, Well come up with a pole question here. It's one of those where now the commissioner is going to have to act, and I don't know what he'll do. I mean, I think what he should do is say, I can't put up with this, given how polarizing this issue is in America with guns, everything that's happened, we can't be cavalier about this. It can't be all fun in games and it's goofy and hey you know bang bang No, Nope, Nope, no, no. I would suspend him and then see how the team does the rest of the regular season. But that would be you know, I go to the old school. I go to the David Stern school, you know. And then John Moran says that he doesn't care what people saying anymore negative comments. Yeah, he says, I'm used to it pretty much a villain for two years now. Who who made you a villain? You made you a villain. You were a feel good story. People loved watching you play. You made you nobody else did. And as I said when I came on, I'd love to be talking about man, I love it. Somebody wants the ball in a clutch situation and they hit a big shot and you're navigating your playoff seating here, but instead we're not. That's unfortunate. And I know you have NBA players say, oh, you guys, just focus on the negative stuff. Help me not focus on the negative stuff. Okay, I'd be more than happy to talk about how great Joker was the other night and Steph Curry was the other night, which I did. But then you get these resets where you're like, come on, and especially a repeat offender. That's the disappointing part of all of this. Did you learn anything? Apparently it didn't. See what's pole question today?
There's a fun one. It's not really a pole question, but it's a very fun fill in the blank if you will, from Paul Yer, which fan base has no sense of humor about itself or their team? We can populate that? Okay, is that I start with the Cowboys, then we might call this the Dallas Cowboys poll question. But teams that have no sense of humor about themselves?
Yes, we're trying to fill out a pole question about teams and fan bases that have no sense of humor about themselves. So when we put forth that name of that fan base, they're not gonna have a sense of humor by being on the pole question.
It's like a cycle inspired by the Buffalo Bills, obviously of Yankee Yankee fans. Yankees, sure we could do that.
Who else doesn't have a say?
I mean, I guess the Lakers too?
Really? Okay?
Who else fan bases that are defensive fan bases when you call them out, like, oh, I don't want to say their names. But there's some sec schools that if you critique them.
Wait, wait, wait, you can't come up with a pole question. Maybe I don't want to say it.
Okay, schools like Alabama and Ohio State, if you jab them lightly they go scorched earth back on and other schools as well.
But those are like peak, Yeah, what's gonna happen? You mentioned Ohio State? Yeah, are they sensitive? Yes?
Yes, Alabama, yes they are actually yeah, you know now that I think about a Michigan fans take themselves very serious.
Yes, well about the National championship and the cheating scandal.
Oh sorry, Michigan men take themselves very A Michigan man rich in line for.
Okay, yeah, we can do that.
Yes, Patriots fans over the years with the deflate gates, and there's stealing signs and manipulative things.
And there were Patriots were targeted with two of the most ridiculous.
Wait now you're me and a Patriot fan being defensive.
I mean they're obviously Roger Goodell. Both of those have been already debunked. The ideal gas law, and everybody knows the flight gates, everybody knows spiking you go here's stupid anyway, So I wouldn't put the play in the victims.
Yep, Okay, I'd put the Patriots on there. Okay, I thinks you want to have that as the pull question. I thought we were going to maybe, you know, kind of go positive today it's a Friday. You thought that, I did. I did that quickly changed here.
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Christopher mad Dog Russo, host of mad Dog Unleashed on Serious XM Channel eighty two, and one of the co hosts of ESPN's First Take, Chris Good to talk to you again. Let me let me start with this, why is it when we compare generations. We do it with basketball freely, but we don't do it with football, and we don't do it with baseball like noe. But why do we pick and choose and say Steph Curry wouldn't be anything back in the eighties, and this guy couldn't play, and this guy could play. We don't do that with baseball, and we don't do that. Nobody's says Bart Starr, he couldn't play today, or you know, Bob Greasie couldn't play today.
Yeah, it's an excellent point, Danny. Good to be on as usual.
I think you do a little bit with the quarterbacks because you do rank them, but nobody ranks Unite as lower.
Than the others because he played a hundred years ago. So you're right. You do it with the NBA.
You don't do it baseball because it's not a size thing and it's not physicality, and you know, you still got to hit it.
It's a hand eye coordination. You got to hit the pitch.
You know, Coofax do as fast as twoe hundred miles an hour, just like the guys are thrown today.
So you're right.
You know, I think there's a little I think there's a little baseball because of the field conditions, the you know, Pride to nineteen forty seven with no African Americans, So I think people.
Do a little of that. But overall, the sport that does get looked at from.
An ear to ear basis is definitely the NBA. You know, I think there's Celtic City thing, which I'm sure you've kept on. I think that contributes to it a little bit because you.
Know it's coming out in March.
The NBA season is winding down, so you're wrapped up in the Celtics. They're great again, So you're watching those nine episodes. So you think of Bird, you think of Parish, you think of Russell, and I think that contributes to it this period right.
Now, this time of the year. But I don't know. I don't have the answer for you.
I mean maybe because the players are so identifiable, you see them, they feel like they're part of your family. The football players got the helmet on, so you don't have the same feel there. You don't quite understand, and it's harder to analyze the football player. Now, how do we know who the best offensive tackle is of all time? You know, you gotta look at film. Basketball's right in front of you. You can, you can analyze it. Maybe that's got something to do with it. But you're right, the NBA does do the year of stuff more than the other sports.
Why is it we acknowledge Babe Ruth stats that they're believable, where we don't acknowledge Wilt Chamberlain's stats Because we'll go, nobody saw the one hundred point game and he averaged fifty you know, in a season almost he had fifty five rebounds in a game. We don't acknowledge the almost mythological like figure that Wilt was, but we do that with Babe Ruth.
Yeah, maybe because there weren't a lot of great centers. You know, he was, he was outside of Russell. He was a freak. He was so good, so athletic. It sounds so crazy to average fifty points a game. You know, baseball, you know, there was a feel in baseball where you can identify a little bit more with the Garrick or the Ruth era than you can with the basketball. When you watch the highlights of Chamblain, you see the players he's playing against, it looks like he's he he dwarfs them physicality wise. You don't sense that necessarily with Ruth. You know, it's not like he's six to eight and everybody else's five eight. I mean, he's essentially the same, and he's heavy. He doesn't look like a great athlete, So I think from an athletic perspective, it looks a little bit more legitimate. And Ruth, you know, Ruth is just you know, I mean, the Alt Howard leagues, I mean Ruth, I mean, and plus the ballpark was so much bigger, and it was five hundred and fifteen feet to straight away center field in Detroit. Five hundred and fifteen feet. I mean that's a polo grounds. I mean it was miles out the center field. It's not the same with the but the Chamberlain thing. But you're right Chamberlain, I think, And maybe because he didn't win as much either, maybe that has something to do with it, the fact that Chamberlain only won the two titles, and you know, Ruth was in a million World Series, so maybe that's got a little something to do with it. We kind of look at Chamberlain's records as a little overrated because he wasn't able to do that in the postseason and he you know, he always lost, so maybe you think the regular season is a little.
Mythical. Maybe that's got something to do with it. But you're right, world average fifty.
Points a game in that sixty one sixty two season and that is an incredible and then they lost to the Celtics in Game seven, So what did it actually actually mean Ruth at all runs in the World Series. Maybe that's got something to do it. But that's a very good that's a very interesting question.
I don't. I don't think it's a direct answer.
Yeah, but Oscar averaged a triple double that same year. I think that will average. I think you did okay, So that's not freakish, right, I mean people look at that and go, oh my gosh, look at what he did. Like we acknowledge the big O average a triple double, and then it didn't become a big deal until nobody had done it until Russell Westbrook, and because we like nice, neat packaged things where it's a triple double and then well you got it. And I think they were the sixth seed and Westbrook won an MVP based off getting triple doubles.
Yeah, he had a forty they only won forty four to forty five games.
Yeah, I mean maybe because you know, nobody's averaged fifty cents, maybe that's got a little something to do with it. Wilt's numbers are so astronomical that that's got something to do with it.
But you know, wild had his warts too.
I mean, you know there's many a game and a big spot you all know about taking himself out of Game seven in Russell's last year, which bothered Russell to no end. Looking around to see if Willis Reed was gonna play in Game seven at Madison Square Garden, why is he worrying about Willis Reed?
For crying out loud?
And then, as Halicheck used to the Halicheck once told me this that the year they lost to Philly, to lost to the Celtics when they were the defending Champson Russell's first year, second year as the head coach's first championship, he didn't take a shot in the fourth quarter because he.
Had five fouls and he didn't want to foul out. Remember that in a game? What is he worrying about? Put the first round the official?
So Wilt's got some He's got some peccadillos, there's no question about it. But you're right, we don't look at Oscar as freakish, and we do look at Wilt as freakish.
And what Oscar did thirty one, eleven and eleven.
Maybe it's because people had averaged thirty points and people had averaged ten rebounds, and people had averaged eleven assists, and so we didn't think it was that big a deal. And the fact he did it all in the same year, I kind of forgot about it. And because he get a little underrated, interesting, interesting questions.
Danny.
He's a Christopher mad Dog russo you'll listen to him on Mad Dog Unleashed and Serious x M eighty two, and also you can see him on First Take. What do you think the feeling of morale is like at the Home office with the commissioner today? With what happened with John Morant again last night?
Yeah, I mean Morent just doesn't get it. I mean, he's gonna have to suspend him.
I think Silver is at times very very soft, and I think in this particular situation, he's We'll see if he gave him a warning and then basically he did it the next day for crying out loud. You know, Moran doesn't get it. He's always getting himself in hot water.
We all know.
This is not the first time be easting to see what Silver does. Would he suspend him for some I mean, maybe he suspends him in the last six seven games of the regular season. Does he do that and leave him alone for the playoffs? It's probably what he do, right. I don't think he's suspend him for a playoff series. Yeah, probably suspended for the rest of the regular season. Twenty five games. Don't you think that's what to do it, Danny.
I think because it's commissioners don't like when you embarrass them publicly. You know, Tom Brady lied to the commissioner. Therefore, it felt like he came down harder on Brady because he lied. This is a case where Jaw just did this. He just got verbally spanked by the commissioner, and then you do it again the next night, and you do it right in his face. I think he's basically calling the NBA's bluff to say.
I think you're right.
Let me see, and if Silver doesn't do anything, he's gonna get pounded. Yeah, he's going to have to do something. I think the question is what the discipline will be. I don't think he'll punish him in the postseason because I don't think he wants a tarnish.
Memphisis chance to be.
In the postseason and they will be in any way, it's a question of playing or what have you.
I guess it is do you take six games away from him?
Is that what you do at the end of the year.
Is it a one game thing? What do you want to give him the next hea days off?
What do you want to do.
Yeah, but I want to punish him in a sense that he's punishing his teammates, because if you just punish him, he'll be like, all right, whatever, I lost some money. You're going to suspend me for twenty five games to start the season. This is now going into the postseason. So now this affects your city, your coaching staff. You just got your head coach fired, and you're jockeying for position. This maybe if it affects his teammates, maybe then it resonates with him in a different way.
Well, theoretically, it would affect his teammates because they're trying to stay out of the play in, and if they do suspend them, they'll probably be in the play in. Is that enough of it you from a punishment standpoint? Or play in and being the sixth seed is not a big deal.
That's an interesting question.
I don't know.
They seem the player's team seem to care.
About not having to play in that play in.
Would that be enough in Silver's mind as a team punishment that because he loses the next six games, they're stuck playing Minnesota to see if they get into the main body of the postseason.
I don't know, will he look at it that way? You tell me?
Huh yeah. I don't know what's going to resonate with John Morant. But if you're the commissioner, you know, you may be at the end of your rope and just say, oh, you gotta do something. Yeah, yeah, I think so.
He's not gonna suspend him for the whole playoffs.
No, No, are the Dodgers great for baseball?
Yeah?
They probably are. They're great right now middle of August, you know, when they're a twenty game lead and they're on the way to you know, they're on the way to one hundred and thirty and thirty two. Uh, you know, maybe then we'll get a little bored with it because there won't be any suspense in the divisional race. There won't be any suspense as far as the one seed is concerned, you don't think.
And the Giants can hold on here and make this competitive in the West.
Yeah, maybe, and that the vision's pretty good, Yeah, diego.
You know, Arizona's good, Padre the Giants, But I mean even the Padres are seven and all, and there still be hards.
I mean, think about it that way.
I mean, you know, the Dodgers will well, they're calm down a little bit, they have an injury, they're gonna get bored. I don't think the Dodgers will care one way or the other about winning one hundred and sixteen games. I mean, no, they might get it just because they're that good and it just happens to be. But if you think Dave Roberts, you know better than anybody, Danny, Dave Roberts with five games to go, needing two wins, He's not gonna sit there and let Blake Snow pitch eight innings so he wins. The breaks the regular season record for wins. They are not gonna care about that under any circumstances.
And Seattle didn't win a World Series anyway.
They lost the Yankees the year they won one sixteen, so and the Indians lost too, when they have won one hundred and eleven, they lost. So I don't think the Dodgers are gonna be that wrapped up and trying to break any regular season record. But they might be so dominant, and I mean, I mean their backup team is great. I mean, so as a result of that, their reserves of that great, they might win one hundred and twenty just winning one hundred and twenty Is it good or bad? That's probably good, right, everybody likes the villain. We'll keep an eye on him because the Dodgers have a lot of pressure on that. They go through that regular season one one hundred and twenty games and then they.
Lose in the first round of the playoffs, it's gonna be this.
They have to win the World Series, yes, and so osby result, they'd be a little bit of that that.
We will keep an eye on.
Whether they can sort of make good on a regular season season.
We'll have to wait and see on that.
The torpedo bats are the torpedo bats performance enhancing?
Not to me?
No, I mean, how come Hoose Travino can't hit. I mean, you know he hits two hundred. He used a torpedo bout last year. Judge doesn't use the torpedo bout and he's got a million own runs already.
I don't think it's that big a deal that baseball.
I'm gonna trust them when they say it's in the rules, so I know.
It's the rage of the sport. The first week of the season. I think the biggest thing in the sport right now with the Braids.
I mean, there's no team that's ever made you know, there's no team that's ever made the playoffs starting zero to seven, which I did not know, and throwing the idea they have so far out he's not going to be able to play. They gave him forty four million dollars based on last year. Maybe last year is a mirage because maybe he was juicing all year and that's why he had a great season for the Padres.
So they get no recourse out of that. They don't have them for eighty five games.
Who knows what, Kunya, and they're already owned seven in a good division.
I think that is interesting.
That to me is more interesting in the torpedo bats with the Dodgers is Atlanta went to the West Coast and to win a game. You know, they let Narris pitch in the third game of the second game of the year. He blew, a saved and a dfaate him two days later for coming out loud. So that to me is interesting, is what Atlanta has done in the sport. And then of course you got a good college basketball weekend this weekend too, so it's a good weekend.
And the next week the Master have you.
Made any money during March Madness.
No, I've gotten killed.
The two that were terrible, Danny John Arkansas, you saw it right, Yeah, I had Arkansas in the money line that blew a thirteen point lead. And then Michigan State and the old miskid threw the ball in the basket. It rimmed in in the past minus three and a half in seventy six seven.
Hey, I've struggled. I'm gonna pass this weekend. I think Duke and Florida, though, will be there on Monday night. I think Duke and Florida. I think that'd be a great game. I think that'd be a great game.
I would take the five and a half with Houston. You would, and I would. I'd take Auburn straight up.
Oh you would?
Yeah, yeah, Well let's do the second one first.
How come Houston's just gonna ugly it up, and I don't I don't think that you're going to see Cooper flag go off. That's a that's a that's a veteran team, veteran coach, and they they're going to keep it low, feels like, and and they're going to be physical that it'll be an ugly game esthetically.
And lose sixty three sixty and you and you win your back.
How about the Auburn game.
I just think we kind of moved past Auburn. Being good is as long as Broom is healthy to play, you got a really good coach. I haven't been impressed with Florida. I mean, I love Clayton. He's awesome, he's great, he's so much fun. But I watched a couple of games because everybody said, oh my gosh. You know, Seth Greenberg said, it's like Noah's Ark. They got two of everything, and I went, Okay, I think we've we moved on from Auburn quickly because they lost what three or four at the end of the season. That's still a really good team, tough team, and once again veterans there. The only team that's really had freshmen who have had an impact is Duke, and that's rare. In March badness, Like, you don't.
Buy the idea. You don't buy the idea that Florida's.
Tough physically and mentally because they came back and won two games against Yukon in Texas Town.
Yeah, but they could have lost those games. Chris, I mean, we could look at it that way too. They could have easily lost the those games.
Oh absolutely.
They were down ten with three minutes to go against Texas Tech. They think you can go either way with that. You can say they learned something and uh, you know, nothing is going to phase them if they fall behind, or you can say that's a sign that they're a little overrated.
Now, don't bet on my information, Chris, I don't know.
I don't bet on mine either.
No, I know that, I you know, I do think.
You know, Florida went easy at Auburn in a regular season late I think Florida and I think Florida Duke. I think any combination is pretty good because these are all one seeds.
I think Florida Duke on Monday night would be a great game. That's what we get.
I don't think people will enjoy. Uh, if it's Houston and Auburn, you're probably right, Yeah, they probably.
I probably should.
That game will have problem problems you are used to. Houston and aubur would be a tough watch. Southern part of the country ugly, but Florida Florida Duke be Yeah, we do.
They need open The final Dupe bring brings eyeballs they need dupe to the final.
What's it like when you have a big loss. Do you have to tell your wife how much money you lost?
No?
No, no, I don't.
She knows. She hears me scream about it, but no, she and you win some too, you know. It's not like I lose all the time.
I know.
I tell you what's really bothered me. I had the Nuggets.
Over fifty one and a half.
They've lost the Wizards twice, the Bulls, they lost to Minnesota where they blew the game with Westbrook, and then they don't play anybody against San Antonio when they're playing for something.
I mean, that's ridiculous.
I mean, come on, I mean, I understand the players today make a big deal about well we were much better and physically and all that nonsense.
Here's here's what I want to Here's what I want to play to do.
Bird played any two games every year, eighty two freaking games.
They were sixty five and seven fifteen.
And he's playing in game eighty three against US eighty against the Nets. Murray's played sixty five games, He's takes seventeen games off.
How about playing a full schedule?
And you know, and Montico commercial instead of playing charter and play three games in three different cities on commercial aircraft and sitting in the back of the plane and getting up the next day to play a ball game. I mean, munch do that and then we can find out from a standpoint of staying mentally into it.
I mean, he's players there, hot stuff taking these games off. I mean it is ridiculous. I mean, let's face it is stupid.
It's stupid.
I mean, Denver's playing the stay out of the playing Danny and they bench everybody on when they get him all the night off against the San Antonio Spurs.
I mean, you must be kidding me. That's ridiculous.
And your favorite player, Kawhi Leonard, you know, he's never played. Now he's back. Now he's he's back, and now they're dangerous because Kawhi is back.
Until he played, he's played thirty one games. You know.
Juminski had Jaminz in the studio for the NCAA. The Great Jaminski played fourteen years in the NBA, twelve coaches. His career high was forty one points and twenty two rebounds. He did it on April eighth, nineteen eighty six, against the Celtics. That was the Celtics season sixty five and seventeen. They were sixty five and fifteen, two games to go in the season, and he did that against the Celtics. Bird played thirty seven minutes, Nichale played thirty four, Parish thirty one, and wal who couldn't walk?
Wait twenty three minutes and it's game eighty.
One and they've onay won sixty five games.
I mean, holy, that's basketball. That's past.
That was basketball. That was all right. Good to talk to me. I love you, Dady, keep goodbody. Thank you. That's a Christopher maddog. That's Christopher Maddog Russell.
Be sure to catch the live edition of The Dan Patrick Show weekdays at nine am Eastern six am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio.
App Demichael Cole covers the Grizzlies for the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Demichael, thanks for joining us. John Morant sounds like he's a victim here that he doesn't care about the criticism. Feels like, you know, maybe he's being targeted here. Help us understand the local feel of John Morant and what he's done in the last two games.
Yeah, Dan, the number one thing when kind of peeling the curtain back here is this isn't anything new. Actually, this is a celebration that John Morant and several of his teammates have done over the course of the season. So when you talk about John Morant feels, you know, John Morant being the victim here, I think that's the feeling internally, especially specifically.
You know with him, you know, this is a celebration. I've seen him.
I mean I could at least go back to the beginning of the year him doing this celebration, and he does it pretty much after every mad three pointer. Now you know Johns and Steph Curry, he's not making four or five three pointers a game, but you know he's made a decent amount of three pointers. And we've seen this celebration time and time again. I think what stood out in this particular situation going back to that Golden State game.
It's number one, it's Grizzlies Golden State.
Over the last two three years, that game has always had increased significance. And then number two, it happened and it cost the technical foul. So in the past we see it and in this game, you know, the recent game that was on you know National TV against the Miami Heat. It's harmless. It's coming after, you know, made three point baskets. And he's doing it towards the Grizzlies bench. She's doing it towards the opposing bench. He's going it towards the players. He's just doing it in the general direction. And in the case with the Golden State game, it was him and Buddy Hill, you know, gesturing towards one another, which led to the official stepping end and calling the technical foul. So I think that's kind of what's brought this increased attention onto it. But locally, I think that's the main point here is this is something that he's been doing for months.
What do you think the commissioner does this time around.
I don't think the commission does anything until it's something that leads to you know, a greater you know type of I guess altercation or something, if that makes sense. So in this case, let's say, you know, if John Morant gestures towards an opposing bench and a guy gets up and walks in his direction, then I feel like that's when you know they'll have to step in. But if you go around the league, this is not just a celebration John Morant's doing. This isn't just a celebration that the Grizzlies players is doing. It's one that's League Watts sort of in a way. And even Lebron James, you know, he did kind of a little bit of a different version of it yesterday against the Warriors, but he made a shot in the corner, the corner three pointer that he made, and he turns towards the crowd and does kind of a similar celebration. But again, you know, you have to understand, we understand why with John Morant there is increased intention on what he doesn't. You know, that has happened because of how the last two years have have kind of played out here. But in this case, I don't think the commissioner will really step in and, you know, uh, do anything of significance unless it leads to something greater, because you're really what we're saying is there's a May three, he does the celebration and they go back to playing defense.
Yeah. But see what I worry about to Michael is if I'm the commissioner, I want to be proactive. I don't want to be reactive. I don't want to go hey, until there's an altercation. We've already seen job and be very immature with an actual gun a couple of times, and he's still doing that. I as the commissioner, it's just it's a bad look for the league and a bad look for him, and now it feels like he's embarrassed the commissioner publicly by you're going to do it again and he already had a If the league doesn't have a problem with it, then why do commissioner to talk to John Morand.
I think I think in this case it was more so because inquirant minds wanted to look into the situation that that's that's what it was in this case, because if the league had seen an issue with the celebration, that's my point, they would have reached out in January, they would have reached out in February.
They would reached out in previous national televised.
Games where he's made three pointers and did the same celebration. There would have already been an instance where the league said, joh rethrowm. Yes, some other guys may be doing this celebration, but you, specifically.
You probably shouldn't be doing this. But that hasn't been the case.
I think in this in this situation, going back to this Golden State game a couple of days ago, I think what what happened was when people saw it, when it led to a technical foul and all of that, inquiant minds reached out to the league. You know, people like you know, reporters reached out to the league, Hey, is there anything of significance going to be done about this situation?
The league said, we'll look into it.
The League looked into it, and I think it was a situation where the league pretty much did their due diligence. I don't think the warning, so to speak, was a big hey, don't you do this again, or we're going to do We're going to do something. I think it was more of a read the room type of situation, if that makes sense. So I do think with the commissioner, he needs to be proactive with this and with some other situations that have been similar with players around the league. But at the same time, he's been sort of reactive all throughout this time with John going back to March of twenty twenty three, and I think that's kind of the case here.
Most teams don't fire their coach when they're heading into the postseason. So why did the Grizzlies fire their head coach?
Uh, he wasn't connecting with the players the same way anymore.
And Pelo Jenkins, this has been here six years, so his voice players, you know, kind.
Of connected with Taylor Jenkins on a whole other level.
The big thing we talked about at the beginning of the year with Taylor Jenkins, John Moran, Jeron Jackson, Junior Desmond Bank, the leaders of the team was he talked about the need to be against brutally honest, you know, with those guys critiquing the players, saying telling John Morant, look, we need you to be better defensively, Desmond Bank, we need you to be better defensively. And they had good, honest conversations and those seemed to be received well. Early on in the season, the Grizzlies were doing well. But what we saw Dan take place was when the Grizzlies schedule got tougher. You turned the count to January, you go to February, when the schedule got tougher, the Grizzlies start to struggle and it was like they're not beating the top tier teams to the point when Taylor Jenkins was fired, the Grizzlies were eleven and twenty against teams with a record above five hundred. So if you look at the record, you know on the shell, and you say, and that's a good team, just you know, the top five seed the West. Six seasons with the team. But the bigger picture is is pretty simple. Actually to me, the Grizzlies want to win. Their core is in place. They believe in John.
Moret, Desmond Band, and Jared Jackson Junr.
They believe that that trio is enough to take them to championship contention. So they have their core in place. The next thing you have to realize is the financial situation. Jobs on his second contract pretty much a MAX deal. The Desmond Band is just you know, a few million dollars below a MAX deal. Jared Jackson Junior is potentially in line to receive a significantly a bigger deal this summer if he makes all NBA. So when you factor in all of that, the financial dollars are about to get tight and they need to win really soon. So I think that's a part of it. It's the urgency of the situation, and then you factor in the urgency it's a reality that, hey, we're not beating top teams. We're eleven and twenty against the best teams. Especially since the All Thar break, you haven't beaten a top team the league all of it, and they lost.
Four out of five, you know, before he was fired.
So when you factorate all those things, the writing was kind of on the wall that hey, this season isn't going anywhere.
It's time to make a change.
Demichael, thank you. I'm sure you got a busy day. We appreciate your time.
I appreciate you. Dad, thank you.
That was great.
