Greatest Ever NBA Finals Shots, Caitlin Clark Controversy & Hanging Out with Joey Mulinaro

I think when you look at the young Matt Leiner right there, the lot of potentials of left tackles.

Two red flags.

He's been stuffed in his face too many times on Thanksgiving.

Denner played too many deserts.

Red flag there.

Here's a guy that wants to play quarterback, but he just can't find himself off the buffet line.

He's got the size, certainly the width, maybe not the height.

Welcome to the show, everybody.

Thank you for being here.

However, you're taking in the show today.

Matt and I appreciate it.

Subscribe on YouTube.

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We will respond.

Matty Ice, how we doing today?

By the way,

you always got something for me on the top of the show.

Just, hey, we're just, we're toying with some merch ideas, okay?

So

anybody that's watching, let us know what you think about this Throwbacks hat.

Got a a couple

couple ideas going okay we're gonna start oh a little rope hat yeah if you're listening yeah we got stuff going on you know i mean if you're on audio only matt just threw up some nice throwbacks merch some hats that he's been messing with and um i gotta get that how do i get that white and black one you got an extra one for your boy

not yet not yet i gotta get some more hats made bro i got you though this is just the test run this is just the test run fitted fitteds are tough do people like fitteds anymore i mean i still like a fitted but i'm a seven and an eighth i got a small ass head by the way i'm seven and five eighths dude i'm still although my i think my head circumference is shrinking as i get older which is sad um well i i went to go buy the boys t-ball helmets and stuff and my four-year-old has a bigger head than the six-year-old he has a bigger helmet Oh, that's all right.

Yeah, dude, some merch.

What's up, buddy?

How is it?

How's the, how's it going?

Well, I want to tee up our guest today because this is someone who we've been chatting with for a while, Joey Molinaro.

If you don't know much about joey you should definitely check him out on instagram at joey molinaro he does amazing i want to just call him impressions because there's so much more to it because he actually writes sketches but yeah impressions sketches i mean everyone from some of my favorites obviously he did the seinfeld one he did do a good entourage one go check that one out and then i like he goes after the the cult the freezing cold takers like Colin Cowherd, Nick Wright.

Those are some of the things that I'm talking about.

Yeah, he's got some strong takes on some of these media personalities that are pretty funny.

Yeah,

I remember he kind of blew up

when the TikTok started storming right now.

He just started.

All over COVID.

Yeah, and I remember I did an old podcast.

He's got a new podcast now, but I did his old podcast with Brady Quinn like eight or nine, like, gosh, six or seven years ago at least, because I was in studio still before Big Noon kickoff and just absolutely.

taking off, just tearing it up.

Has just fun, super creative.

And yeah, he's a great writer.

I think that was something that we learned from him.

But yeah, Joey's awesome, man.

We love the people who are doing good sports content that's not just the X's and O's.

Those are always the guys and girls who get me when you're giving us something that's relevant to what's going on today, but it's not just like, yeah, he's got to get off the block here, you know.

And we even have a fun surprise.

So you don't want to see me breaking down a

shallow cross route?

No, but we're going to give a little teaser.

He does break down something about you and your career in a voice that is not his own.

And also.

Let me paint this picture.

I won't give it away, but let me paint this picture.

This was a real, real low time in my life.

This was a low time.

Okay.

This was a younger version of myself.

And Joey just absolutely knocks it out.

It's almost a road.

And also, he does have

two times in the episode.

Well, one time he's even called for the picture to come back up.

So I think the picture, yeah,

the picture will live on social.

And gosh, once it goes on social, never goes away, which is.

And he's got a brand new show, too, that I'm excited about.

Just premiered on Vice last night.

It's called Sports Gone Wrong.

And even another one of my favorite comic buddies, Paul Verzey's on there, where they kind of highlight all these crazy sports clips.

So Joey's great.

You're going to love him.

If you don't know about him already, we're happy to introduce you to him.

And the other thing with Joey is he's a big Pacers fan, and it's a big night for him as we set up for game six.

Now, I will point out we did the interview with Joey a little earlier, and then right as we wrapped in typical fashion, the Halliburton news broke, similar to the Thibodeau firing for us.

So

we talked a little bit about it, but we had not known at that point that Halliburton.

Have you ever had the strained calf that Halliburton?

You've had a lot of injuries in your career.

You played a rough sport.

Have you ever had the strained calf?

Yeah, I've had it twice in the past two months.

Oh, wait.

Is that what you hurt when we played?

Bro, when you came out in LA and we played on that Monday night or Tuesday night with Cole, strained calf, just it just balled up, right?

Like the left side balled up.

And then it happened to my right side probably two weeks later and it was a little lower towards the Achilles.

That one actually like made me a little nervous.

It wasn't the Achilles, but it made me a little nervous.

But the thing about a strain, and again, I am not a high-level athlete anymore like Halliburton.

So, but I have like just pulling a calf, I know how it it feels, and it is, it's not fun.

Whether it's a grade one strain, a two or three, like whatever.

I mean, my guess is, is you can do as much as you can to make sure that thing is feeling right to go give it your best, but it is not like to push off and like to lift and to like, you need your calf, you know, yeah, just dragging your foot around, yeah, like, especially for like he's a very explosive athletic, he's a point guard, fast switch, yeah.

It'll be uh, it'll be interesting, um, to see.

I'm actually honestly more interested to see if joey uh got the call is he is he if he's going to the game is it because he was at he was at an earlier game and he was a part of those i think a part of the knicks pacers series i really want to see the pacers win and i was going to ask you what do you think yeah well i'm not even supposed to hate them because i'm a knick's fan it's hard to hate the pacers i don't hate the pacers they are they are definitely uh now

we talked a lot about on the show about rivalry and stuff i could now say the knicks pacers at least in the east for sure is a real thing.

They own us.

We can't say anything about, but I just really wanted a seven-game series.

More than anything, as a fan,

first time I'll ever say this too, I will be happy when basketball's done to just be done.

Like, okay, I don't have to stay up till midnight watching a game.

I could use the couple of months off.

Just as

three days in between games, like, what are we doing?

It is hard to keep track, but I would like to see a a game seven for sure.

I really think that the Pacers blew that game four.

That was the one they had at home.

You know, they would have went up 3-1, which would have been almost insurmountable.

I think the Thunder could have had the team to do it.

And now we're seeing a lot of the, you know, the Jalen Williams game.

It's like, yeah, I have a take for you, Matt.

And there were some bad takes about Halliburton.

I won't call the person out.

I won't call the person out particularly, but saying Halliburton's selfish for playing injured.

It's like, isn't that what you want from your all-NBA best player to just leave it all out on the court?

But

also, with like the, oh, this is the Jalen Williams game.

He dropped 40.

It's like, can you say that about a team's first or second player?

Like, oh, this is the game that they arrived.

I feel like that should be reserved for the random, like the Obi-Toppin' game.

This is the OB Toppin game.

Like, Jalen Williams is a stud, easily almost a top 10, 12 player in the NBA.

And after the finals, he might be, and he might be finals MVP.

Well, it was, I mean, it was a moment for him, right?

To kind of, I mean, I think a lot lot of people know who he was, but in the finals to have a game like that, because even, I mean, to be honest with you, I actually asked Cole the other day, I was like, I was like, is Jalen Williams good?

Like, where'd he go to?

I was like, you know what I, you know what I asked Cole?

I said, we played the game, where do these guys go to college?

College game, yeah.

I couldn't name any of the players on the Pacers where they went to college outside of TJ McConnell.

And no, and then like even Jalen Williams, like, where'd he go to college?

I think Cole's like, oh, he went to Santa Clara or something.

Santa Clara, yeah.

Yeah.

I was like, what?

So, but it was a moment for him.

I, it was like, for me, I was like, holy, like, this kid is, this kid's the real deal.

You know who we're going to see a lot more of, though, probably in this game?

Tell me.

TJ McConnell.

TJ McConnell.

Yeah.

What a

he really is the perfect bench.

Is there any other bench player?

Obviously, there's better bench players, but just in terms of a guy who understands their role.

And when he gets in, he doesn't need time to find the flow.

He just gets in and it's on.

It's just

and he impacts the game in a positive way.

Like he doesn't, like, it's pretty.

You could tell he was a coach's son, right?

I think his dad is a coach.

You could tell.

Well, he's got some great, he has some great,

let's spend two minutes on TJ McConnell.

He's got some great clips on social talking about how he's grinded 10 years in the NBA by just outworking everybody.

Like you have to, because he's not a great athlete.

I mean, he's a great athlete, but to some of those guys, he's an undersized point guard.

And I mean, dude, the dude has a role there and he's a a beast and he's not

let us not forget.

And here's why, as much as TJ McConnell has tortured me as a Knicks fan, let us not forget, and Andrew, our esteemed producer, will probably shiver at this thought.

He was the point guard for these Trust the Process Sixers.

When they were winning 12 games and just outright tanking and

just not even trying to win intentionally, that was the guard.

Like that guy was kicked around early in his career being on those teams that they wanted to lose.

They were designed to lose.

Is there outside of Lobb City and the Clippers?

Is there more of an underachieving organization with stars than the Philadelphia 76ers?

See, that's what I'm here for, Matt.

No, honestly.

Yeah, yeah, 100%.

What you're saying is true.

Like the Clippers,

they built the team and they just sucked.

The Sixers continue to build and get players.

They just can't win.

I think, and again, I don't want to irritate.

I love to piss off Sixers fans, but again, I stick to what I said last year when the Knicks were playing the Sixers.

No fan base has ever hurt my feelings more than the Sixers.

They just say some real money.

They're just nasty.

They just really know how.

It's not even trash talk.

They know how to cut into your soul.

That being said, yeah,

it's definitely disappointing.

You know what I saw that got me thinking before we bring Joey in?

It's yesterday when this airs, yesterday would have been the anniversary of the Ray Allen shot, which I know well.

I remember watching those games.

Ironically, we were shooting Think Like a Man 2 with Gabrielle Union.

So I was watching D-Wade play in the finals with his wife, which was bizarre.

She was freaking out the whole time.

I just had to reminisce watching that clip just how truly fucked the Heat were in that scenario.

That was like their basically, their only out was either LeBron hits that pull-up three he took, which did not go in, or the exact sequence that happened.

They were fucked.

There was 18 seconds left coming down the road.

If he doesn't make that, it's one of those things where, listen, if Vince Young, if his knees, if they call it, Vince Young, we went a three-peat.

It's never been done before.

If Drew, the biggest what if is Drew Brees, Miami Dolphin, I think he was supposed to go to Miami.

Go in the Miami.

They went and passed him for a shoulder, goes to Sandy, goes to, I think then he went to the Chargers at that time, right?

Yep.

became a Hall of Famer.

Like the biggest what if the Dolphins, if they would assign him.

What if Ray Allen doesn't make that shot like lebron's legacy is completely probably different than it is now which is crazy because he just dropped a podcast with steve nash talking about why are we doing the ring culture stuff like what so if a player doesn't have a great a ring and look i do think the ring culture stuff is a little messed up because that's a team accomplishment i don't know how you put it on barkley that he doesn't have a ring yeah he takes a lot of the heat because he was the best player on the team but you know there's so there's so much if you put barkley in the jordan spot does he get a ring probably one of those six rings but also but also a lot of these a lot of these guys getting rings are on super teams true that barkley what barkley was never on a super team barkley had good no they tried it in like houston but those guys were already too old yeah i mean but like all of these teams like i mean outside of golden state i mean i know they got kitty but building through clay and draymond like they obviously like that's a like they had some great teams like miami would like it's just it's just a different era, you know?

Well, what got me really thinking about seeing that Ray Allen shot,

which is, was what are some of the best finals specific, not playoffs, finals shots?

And I went through, all right, we have like the Steve Kerr shot, which was huge, John Paxson, huge, the Jordan,

Byron Russell.

However,

I would like to think even if Jordan misses that shot, and I think that was game six.

There's no way the Bulls are losing game seven at home to the Jazz, right?

That's just

not happening.

I feel like I know, but still, huge shot.

I really just boiled it down to the two shots.

I think it's got to be that Ray Allen shot and it's Kyrie, isn't it?

Like, what else did I miss?

Did I miss anything?

What game was?

Well, Kyrie was game seven.

Yeah.

Yeah, that was ridiculous.

I know it was a tie game.

So we were talking to Andrew off the air, like, all right, if he misses, it's still a tie game but you got golden state with the ball and a chance to win the championship i don't like that spot was that the year they were down down 3-1 yeah yeah

so i would say i mean yeah i mean go back like magic's hook shot against boston i think when was that the game that kareem i think didn't play or something happened where he was artist your your laker lore artest has a huge three kobe actors

because yeah

kobe actually has like kobe had any

i don't know if Kobe ever had like a, he might have, I would have, I might not be right on this, but like a game winner in the NBA, in the NBA finals, right?

Like, or, or one that put him up with third.

I'm sure.

2000 there was a big one, I think.

I'm sure.

But they were never going to lose that series.

But the one where he passed to Ron Artes on the wing from deep, I was in Europe watching that.

And that was against the Celtics freaking squad.

And that was just, that was one that like sealed the game.

And that was incredible.

And I think Kobe just went up like this.

And that was when Artest afterward like thanked his doctor and he thanked his therapist.

I keep saying Kobe passed the ball because I think when he walked to his presser, as he's walking in, he's screaming like, he never passes me the ball.

Kobe passed me the ball.

And it's true.

That was not a guy you would have said, hey, I want him to take the biggest championship deciding shot in the game.

So God, that was a big, that was a big shot.

Go, go re-watch it.

The anniversary was yesterday.

Go check out that Ray Allen shot.

And then if you just do overall playoffs, of course we got there's so many, too many coming through.

But your boy Robert Horry is big shot, Bob, against Sacramento Kings.

I think Vlad Diva pushed the ball out, or Shaq, they were going up for it, just patted it out.

Those Lakers-Kings series back in the day, I was eight, 17, 18 years old.

Man, those were that Chris Weber, Vladimir.

Do you feel

are you on the conspiracy theory with the foul situation?

I never really asked a Laker fan.

I talked to a lot of my basketball.

Well, there was like the game, I think the Lakers had 170 free throws.

I never, I guess, Laker fans.

I mean, we're still talking about ref conspiracies to this day.

So,

true.

I'll take those rings.

All right.

Well,

I don't even know.

I'm going to be happy for basketball to wind down.

I will, before we bring on Joe, I'm just going to leave.

You know, I have to get my Knicks talking real fast.

Everyone's panicking, and I get it.

The Knicks have been in Cancun for two weeks, dude.

No, no, but like the coaching stuff is certainly a bizarre thing.

I'm only going to just say

I feel like the Knicks have been moving so smartly for years now.

I think all the stuff you're hearing, I don't buy for one second, Matt.

Oh, let's talk to Jason Kidd.

Let's call this team.

I think that's all smoke.

What do you think those teams are going to say?

They're going to tell you to go fuck yourself.

How it's got to be intent.

Leon Rose is not dumb enough to say like, all right, let's go talk to every coach who's under contract, have them publicly dismiss us and say no.

And then, oh, I guess our strategy didn't work.

But what is the strategy?

Why?

I just think the why is number one, stoke a little discourse amongst the league, get people, maybe make someone unhappy in a situation.

And then, two, I just think, look, hey, we did an extensive search.

We did an extensive search.

Here's Johnny Bryant, or here's Mike Malone, or here's Taylor Jenkins.

We exhausted all options.

We did an extensive coaching search.

That's why I see public.

You're going to get Mike Malone.

Mike Malone, or I do.

All right.

You're going to hear a little more Indiana Pacers basketball at the top here, but the Joey Molinar interview is a good one.

Lots of impressions even.

So here's our boy, Joey.

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All right, we got the great Joey Molinaro joining us.

Joey, first of all, look, we've been circling each other for a while now via, well, via DMs.

Like, Joey, we want to get you on the show.

We love what you do.

We're going to get into all of it, but first of all, show us the t-shirt, right?

Stand up a little bit.

We got a Pacers t-shirt on there.

Oh, it's Indy 500.

Oh, Indianapolis 500.

Oh, okay.

I saw Indy, and that's a Pacers hat, correct?

Of course.

All right.

Yeah, the Finals Edition, 2025 Finals Edition right there.

I know you've been going.

Will you be in the building for game six?

Fingers crossed, man.

I'm sure you both have had situations like this.

Probably not to this level because you guys are way cooler than me and just get the invite.

But I had a company reach out before the finals even happened.

They were like, hey, would love to have you in our suite.

I know you're a big Pacers fan.

This would be great.

I was like, I'm there.

Tell me when and where.

Game three or four.

Let's go.

Then all of a sudden, we get after the Pacers won game one and they ghosted me for a couple of days.

And then they were like,

we've actually allocated everything for game three and four, but if game six comes around, we'll be in touch.

And now I'm still waiting to hear back.

Oh, no.

Fingers crossed.

Yeah.

I feel like you got to be in the building, man.

I feel like you have to be in that building.

Similarly, I'm a Knicks fan, as you probably know.

And I got the invite live on air to go to game two, Knicks Pacers in New York.

And like my face, so I'm hoping maybe the same thing happens.

Like, I want you to get that text.

Be like, hey, Joey, we got room for you in the suite Thursday night.

Will you be there?

Man, I tell you, it's a real hit to the ego.

I'm not going to lie.

Like, you're really, you go from the highest of highs.

You're like, damn, man, I'm getting the invite to go in the suite.

This is so sick.

I'm really doing it.

And then all of a sudden, they're like, actually, yeah, you're not that cool or famous or well-known.

So we're booting you for both the games.

It's tough.

What's it like watching a Pacers game with you?

Depends on what audience I'm with.

I know when to keep it in check a little bit.

However, I did watch game six against the Knicks in a Tennessee cabin with my grandmother, or with my wife's grandmother and grandfather, and I was throwing all sorts of nonsense out there.

So

I guess the scenario is definitely a factor, but the crowd typically, I know when to rein it in, but yeah, game six against the Knicks, probably tonight.

Game six, it doesn't really matter who I'm with.

I could be with Pope Leo.

I could be with

Mother Teresa.

And I'm letting all sorts of crazy things fly.

Regardless of the result, is this one of your favorite Pacer teams of all time?

Regardless of, like, if they have, if they go on to win the championship, of course it's going to be.

But if for some reason, even they fall short, is this just high watermark for the Pacers fandom, right?

Absolutely, bro.

I mean,

it's such an annoying team on the other end.

Like, it's so annoying.

Just know on the other end, it is so annoying.

Like, you have so many guys on that team that annoy me me in a good way, meaning like they're good, they're tough, they play hard, they hit these incredible shots, even going back to last year at Nemhard's 30-foot bomb.

And

I found myself being swayed now.

Like I want the Pacers to win because I want to see this go seven.

I'm dying for a NBA Finals game seven, which we haven't had since that crazy LeBron versus the Warriors season.

And hey, who was the road team coming back in that one, right?

It's true.

Someone was on the road and in a situation that they, yeah, a lot of people were doubting that it could happen, right?

You're a bigger man than I, Jerry, though, because I would never root for, I would never hope the Knicks win ever in anything, at any time.

So good for you.

I appreciate that.

Yeah, man, this is, I mean, I was six years old the last time we were in the finals.

Six.

It's going into first grade.

I had no idea what was going on.

That was against my Lakers.

Yeah, my dad was just pissed about Shaquille O'Neal the whole time.

Fucking Ricky Rick Smitz, baby.

Yep.

Yep.

Rick Smitz, and those guys have been out all the games, so it's been super cool.

But yeah, I was six years old, and we've been waiting so long.

I honestly never thought there's, I mean, really, I never thought that I would see the day that the Pacers were even in the NBA finals again because you had those Paul George teams that you thought maybe

you had the late Reggie days that you thought maybe, and it didn't happen then, and it didn't happen then.

And you're just kind of looking at the landscape.

You're like, man, this is just not how the NBA works, having a team like Indiana go to the finals, man.

So absolutely, easily a top two favorite team of mine, regardless of of what happens tonight or in game seven.

And I've really just been trying to drink in that journey, man.

Everybody always talks about, you know, the old cliche, but it's not the destination.

It's the journey.

And I surely have been drinking in my fare of all sorts of stuff in downtown Indianapolis leading up to these games.

And I'm just enjoying that.

It looks bananas down there.

The vibes in the city downtown seem like they're incredible.

Is tonight's game in Indy?

Yeah, it is, right?

That's when Mike beat, you're still waiting.

Okay.

Yeah, I'm still waiting to get get that

place is gonna be

fucking nuts.

I hope so, man.

It's gonna need to be because it was nuts in game four when I was in the building.

And then all of a sudden, you know, my friend, he's a DJ, he was DJing at the bar right across the street from the field house right after game four.

And so we're sitting there and we're up 10 late in the third quarter.

We're up seven to start the fourth quarter.

And we're like, this has potential to be an all-time night.

Like, I'm getting ready to text my wife, like, see you tomorrow morning.

It was right.

I'm coming home.

Cam's DJing.

We're going to be up 3-1

night.

It's Father's Day weekend.

You're in the DJ booth.

I'm in the DJ booth.

He already said that I was going to have to crowd surf if we won.

Like, these thoughts are going through our head.

You know what I mean?

And then all of a sudden, the air just completely went out of the building.

And, you know, I just like Eeyore walked my way home from because I live downtown Indy.

I was just dragging my feet, so depressed.

You're welcome for Obi Top.

You're welcome for Obi-Topping for two second-round picks that I think we sold for cash.

That one still hurts as a Knicks fan.

I miss Obi every day.

What's so funny is I don't know if this is how it is in New York or for Knicks fans, but I swear, Obi-Toppin is every mom's favorite player here.

It was like that in New York, very much so.

Why?

I don't know.

I don't know.

My mom, she randomly, her birthday's coming up.

My dad texted me.

He's like, hey, your mom, she really likes an Obi-Toppin.

Can you get some Obi Toppin gear?

I was watching

with my neighbors across the street.

They're, I think, like 10 years older than me.

But yeah,

the wife, she's just like, hosh, I tell you what, Obi's definitely just my favorite.

I'm like, what is going on with this?

Are you guys all of that?

TJ McConnell, not McConnell.

Well, that's the thing:

it's Obi, and then McConnell is definitely right.

McConnell is all the grandma's favorites.

The moms all love Obi.

The grandma's all love TJ McConnell here in Indiana.

I truly hate TJ McConnell because he's good and he's the nick killer.

But however,

being an undersized point guard myself back in the day if i was to describe my pickup game it was tj mccant that's how i play i used to have to try to get to the sneaky inbound steals yeah because we're all not 6'5

like uh like maddie is or i would have thought i thought you more like jj berea i there were jj berea comparisons

that that is a poll well last thing on the pacers can you give us we like to play this game i can give you one give me your favorite random pacer i'm gonna go i'll go first that I used to love.

I used to really enjoy Danny Granger.

Oh, yeah.

Yeah, Danny Granger.

Yes.

Carrie.

Paul George befall Paul George.

Then they had a good, and he just like, as fast as Granger came in, he kind of came out really quick.

Those were some dark, dark days, brother, for the Indiana Pacers.

It was coming off Reggie's retirement.

It was coming off the brawl.

They're just trying to figure everything out.

You get this guy to New Mexico, and he was your lone bright spot for, yeah, like six years before Paul George and everybody came in.

I mean, these teams were like 30, you know, 30 and 52 or whatever.

Oh, yeah.

Bad, bad stuff.

But Danny Granger was making all-star teams.

So we're like, hey, you know, we got that.

And then, yeah, it kind of ended, it ended really weird with him because he was hurt.

And then they traded him to Philadelphia for Evan Turner, trying to make like the final move.

Oh, I remember that.

Oh, yeah, that's right.

Yeah, to get over the heat.

And then Evan Turner was just a disaster, dude.

Oh, man.

He was so bad here in Indiana.

So it really ended weirdly for him.

But Danny, he was at a game, I think maybe one of the Knicks games or game three of the finals or something.

He's been in the building.

So that's cool to see.

Good poll.

Good poll.

I was going to say, this,

I'm going to give you guys a hint.

For your random pacer?

For my random pacer, because I thought about this.

I'm about to be on the same team with him coming up here in Manhattan Beach in about six weeks.

Dual sport, Phenom.

tall, white.

Yeah, that's gonna, that's gonna be Austin Crochier.

Good pull.

I feel like I know who it is.

No, he's, you know what he's talking about, Joey?

Come on.

He's talking about beach volleyball.

Oh, Chase Buttinger.

Chase Buttinger.

Buttinger.

Good pull.

Yes.

Good pull.

I'm on a text chain with him.

We play in this Manhattan Beach Six Man, which I don't know if you've heard of.

It's like Christmas for volleyball on the beach here in August.

And

Chase just looks the same.

Yeah, you don't get that in the Midwest.

You guys are playing hockey right now or something.

But Australian Crochet, I just thought we're just screaming a bunch of white racers.

I mean, hey, he's another Southern Cow guy.

Hey, Tyler Hansborough.

Let's go.

We had his brother Ben Hansborough, too.

That might be the most random pacer of all time.

Dude, at one point, we had a Plumlee.

We had both the Hansborough brothers.

I mean, it's like, hey, you guys looking around.

TJ McConnell.

TJ McConnell is a rookie.

That's like the Looney Tunes team in Space Jam before Michael Jordan teamed up with them.

Oh, my gosh.

Yeah.

Not to mention, we drafted TJ Leaf over OG Ananobi.

So there you go, Jerry.

I know he didn't start with New York, but we slew.

Is that your random pacer?

Because that could be that you could win right with TJ Leaf.

By the way,

I remember that.

But you said your favorite random pacer.

Your favorite random pacer, yeah.

Another Knicks tie here.

Man, the place went crazy here when we signed Chris Copeland.

I thought Chris Copeland was going to save New York, Joey.

Let's not get it twisted.

I thought Chris Copeland was the savior.

That's how crazy I am.

Well, yeah, because

in that 2012 series, Copeland was that guy who would come in and he was like Wiggins right now for OKC.

Like everything he threw up from Beyond the Ark was going in.

We're like, this Copeland guy, dude.

And then he signs with us in 2013, going into that next year where we're like, all in.

We need a three-point shooter off the bench.

Boom, Chris Copeland's here.

Everybody loved Chris Copeland.

Didn't do squat for us, but we loved the signing in the summer going into the season.

So there you go.

Well, hopefully we're going to get a game seven for you.

But I want to talk about how I look, I

was very aware of your comedy and your impressions and the stuff you were doing, but we're really like where my phone blew up is when you did the entourage impression, right?

You dropped that on the Graham.

I have like 400 messages on my phone.

I'm like, okay, who's dead?

That usually means someone died.

And I'm looking and it's like, have you seen this?

Have you seen everyone I know sent it to me?

And then I'm like, okay, look, I've seen some entourage impressions over the years.

Some good,

some not so good.

To me, the secret to an entourage impression, I want your take on it because you're the professional.

I feel like you gotta net, you gotta land Johnny drama.

If you could land Johnny drama, you could get over it with an E, with a turtle.

Vince is a little tricky too.

You to land Johnny Drama.

Well, I appreciate you saying I'm the professional considering you're fucking turtle.

So you're the

one.

It was spot on.

Wait, I want to.

I didn't hear it.

I want to hear.

Who did you do?

Well, he did everyone.

He did a whole section.

I did a

following.

Yeah, that was last September, by the way.

Uh-huh.

Yeah.

Okay.

I said that to him a hundred times, too.

That's not true.

No, so I do, you know, a lot of a bunch of the ones i've had success with you know the modern seinfelds the modern office and so i was just like you know what i mean i think i was on my second or third rewatch of entourage at the time and so i was like let me try this out i think there's something there you know it's such an iconic show one that you know like i said i've watched many many times i was like i think i know these characters well enough to

do a modern you know what i mean a modern spoof like i do those other shows and you have a great point about drama because and and that's something that with my impressions, too, people ask me like, how do you come up?

Who do you try to?

It's distinctiveness.

So, yeah, the drama is the distinctness and a little bit of the RE too.

And an Ari, just because you can say such off-the-wall, like crude, ridiculous shit that I was like, okay, drama and Ari and then fill in the blanks with E and Turtle.

Turtle, obviously, you had such a

East Coast New York accent and feel.

And I was like, you get the backwards hat going.

Everybody will know who that is.

Um, but then again, like with everything else, with all those other sketches that I do, whether it be the office or Seinfeld, it's not so much about the impressions themselves as it is, in my opinion, like the scene and the writing, the writing of the scene together, you know what I mean?

Absolutely, um, because it's like when I do the office and I do Seinfeld, like I have a pretty good Kramer.

I have a pretty good Kevin

from the office.

Those are all ones that people are like, I knew exactly who that was, Jim too.

Uh, but so much of it is just like it's the writing of it and what is going on in the scene not what the impression of the character is and so that's why I really tried to encapsulate there and I am a huge Star Wars fan so I was like Star Wars is constantly going today there's always series and rumors and stuff happening it's like drop that right into the entourage world and there you go and yeah that was good because drama would be a hundred percent against Vince doing a Star Wars movie and but it's like low scene because he's like jealous that he you know what I mean there's always that like undertone of like he deep down he might be trying to steal the part.

Right.

Exactly.

What, what is, what, Jerry and I were talking about this, what does, when you're doing an impersonation or, or when you're like, you know, you're dissecting a scene for Montourage or these characters or just in general, what does a rehearsal process look like for you?

Because Jerry was like, like, do you like, do you put it on camera?

Well, yeah, like, what's the final tat, like the, or is it a person that you do it for?

Or do you just put it on camera and see it?

When do you know, all right, this one's ready to go?

This is, this is Instagram proved.

Fully built.

It's a weird balance because, and I do.

I, I, I, if there's something that I want to try, uh, whether it be a voice or

when it comes to the office and the entourage and the Seinfeld, like I said, as long as I feel good about the script, I'm like, I don't really care how it sounds because the script's going to carry it.

Like, the writing of it's going to carry it.

But with an impression, 100%.

Like, put it on film.

I record myself.

I tinker around with things.

I play it back.

I just listen to it with not looking at it or anything.

I'm like, okay, do I feel like it's close?

Do I feel like I can, you know, drop down a level?

Do I feel like I can hit this word particular a little bit more?

And then, like I said, that's where it's a, it's an interesting,

there's not like a quantifiable way that can be like, yeah, this is exactly when I know, guys, because it's just like a when you know, you know, type of thing.

Yeah.

When I feel good about it in my gut, and I'm like, okay, if I were watching somebody else do that, I'd be like, damn, that's pretty good.

You know, damn, that's solid.

And then that's where I feel good enough to go.

Have you ever had to not scrap one, but just like one you were working on and just like, you know, it's good, not great.

Like, I like, did you ever have to walk away from something?

Yeah, I've walked away from a bunch.

And then there's also some that I play out that I put out there that because like, you know, I always talk about like, you know, when I did the first Sabin that I did, it was just an experiment.

I just threw it out there as like, I thought that the bit was funny and I think the impression's like pretty close, like passable and then it just took off and so like from there i kind of learned that i'm like hey you know sometimes if you feel okay about it sometimes just put it out there and if it flops

who cares it flops go to the next thing yeah go to the next thing and and and come out with something better next time so um that's just always been my approach for like six years ongoing now and then like the you know i do like the the the manning cast you know i'll do like sketches of that with the manning cast where it's payton and eli and like they'll be talking to Collinsworth or Gronk or something.

And usually I try to have the guests come in and like really carry, but then even then it's like there's enough there with Peyton and Eli both that you can make a parody of something.

Like, kind of too, I look at it and I'm like,

can I see this living on like an SNL, right?

Where you watch, you're like, oh, that's funny.

It may not be like a nail-on, dead-on impression, but like you get the gist and it's a funny spoof.

Andrew, can you put, can you put up this photo really quick?

All right, dude.

so

that's not me by the way so by the way i know that is that is me joey that is that is big boy over there and apparently we all were we all we might have all been a little overweight on this video i don't know someone told me joe i definitely you lost a lot of weight turtle was fat as back in the day um i was obviously fat i would love to to hear your analysis of this kid

I want to say in your Mel Kuiper voice, I know I think you can do a Mel Kuiper because there's no way in hell this kid was going to play in the NFL.

So he wouldn't fucking Heisman.

Just give me what you got here for Mel Kuiper and a young Matt liner.

Yeah, sure.

I think when you look at the young Matt Liner right there, a lot of potential as a left tackle is Philip Beefy, maybe moving inside the left guard.

However, there are a few red flags.

He's been stuffed in his face too many times on Thanksgiving dinner played.

Too many desserts.

Red flag there.

He's not going to be a quarterback, not a skill position type of guy, but he's going to come in, snap the ball as a center, maybe kick out the left tackle.

He works on his feet enough, should be a number one overall player overall.

Listen, what I love about that,

Joey, so many,

first off, right?

And this is something I wanted to get to, but my favorite Mel Kuiper quote of all time is when he was analyzing Lamar Jackson.

And he basically said, this guy has no future in the NFL if he does not switch to wide receiver or cornerback.

We could have said the same about Leiner.

Like, this kid thinks he can play quarterback, but let me tell you, that's your left tackle right there.

I was on the line at flag football, man, in fifth and sixth grade.

I was about, I was a quarterback and O-line.

I still had to go to the next one.

Was that you in fourth grade, right?

Would you say you were like 5'8, 160?

That was sixth grade.

You're my exact size now.

Yeah.

It was rough for a couple of years, boys.

It was rough.

No, I remember Matt.

I remember that because it's so funny because my mom, she always like, she would reference you when I was like in middle school.

And she'd really Matt.

Yeah, she'd be like, Matt liner he was she would be like look at him he was he was not he did not have it all going on when he was in middle school because those stories about you would be on like

you know what so i was and you had glasses and then all of a sudden you blossomed to the handsome heisman the winner i was uh i was born cross-eyed dude so i had strabismus so i was did not know that yeah so i wore these big uh joey's right they did a couple stories i got these big ass bifocals

So I had surgery as a baby.

I had surgery in eighth grade, but also in that, you saw the picture, there's about three years there where I was just, I was just ginormous with

bifocals.

It was like the worst combination of all time.

The only thing I had, I was good in sports.

I was still a good athlete.

I was just big.

So like, that was like my whole, that was like, my, my whole story was like, sports saved me and all this kind of stuff.

But yeah, it's a movie.

It's like the modern version of she's all that.

We could have remade she's all that, but didn't.

My mom, my mom, God bless her.

She used to always say, my brother, my brother used to tell me, he goes, dude, I used to cry to mom and be like, why is my little brother so fat?

Is he going to be fat his whole life?

All this shit.

My brother's kind of an ass.

And so my mom was like, he's fat his whole life.

Yeah.

He's like, no, he'll grow.

He'll grow.

I promise you he'll have a growing.

My mom was so sweet.

And sure enough, I did.

So.

Yeah, dude.

And you don't got to worry.

My mom listens.

She's one of those moms.

I'm sure like your mom, like.

everything that I'm ever on, ever have, ever done.

Like she will.

Oh, yeah.

She'll be listening to this today.

So shout out to your mom, man.

Shout out.

Yes.

Does she get like my mom to this day?

I've been in the entertainment business since I was like, well, trying to be since I was 19.

Even to this day, if I do something, if I go on to promote or if I do a spot on another pod, she's like, why didn't you tell me that that was dropping today?

I'm like, mom.

Oh, yeah.

It's been 25 years.

Do I still need to tell you when there's like a little blurb about me and some low?

She's like, yes, you still need.

She's like saved.

Every magazine or anything I've ever been mentioned in.

She has boxes and stacks of just random stuff that I've been in over the years.

And that's why you love moms to always support you.

Now, the entourage episode where Vince brings all the moms out.

The moms.

Is that your mom?

No, that is not my mom.

And

if you ask my mom about that, she's going to say they should have cast me, meaning her.

She's still mad to this day.

I actually did a fake audition with her.

I have this video somewhere.

And let's just say I did not get my acting ability from her.

It did not come from her.

I was like, mom, you can't act wet in the pool.

You're terrible.

You're horrible.

She was like trying to drop her accent.

I'm like, the accent is the best part of you.

Why are you?

Don't lose the accent.

That's the character.

Yeah, my mom, in that situation, she would have been offended that it didn't happen, but she wouldn't have wanted to do it.

Like, she just would have wanted to

offer to say no.

My mom is very like Larry David Costanza-esque to where like she would not want anything to do with it, but at least

wants to be invited to the party, but would never set foot through their door.

Here's something I wanted to tell you.

Similar to how you just did your Kuiper spot on and you had a take on that picture of Matt, my favorite of your, I mean, I love Seinfeld because like there absolutely would be a fantasy episode, like fantasy league episode with those guys.

But my obsession, because I do, I used to enjoy first take back in the skip days.

been on that show a bunch of times, but now I really think there should be some, and we're going to talk about your vice show in a minute, which is not this, but like, I think there should be some bad take show, like a freezing cold, someone who keeps track of the freezing cold takes that these wonderful people give us that you have now impersonated.

So you're Colin Cowherd and you're Nick Wright are not only good because they're good impressions and they're what your

takes are actually better than their takes in

life.

Like the Yankee losing the beards,

your takes are more smartly written than whatever their takes are for that day.

So cheers to you because those guys, I lose it sometimes when I see some of the stuff they say.

I can't control myself that they are saying this stuff into a mic in front of millions of people.

I know.

It is.

The worst of them, though, is McIntyre.

He's definitely on my shit list.

Matt and I just talked about it.

Should I FaceTime him right now?

Because we're on a Monday night basketball league together.

You know, I think that's a good thing.

He had a rough one last week.

He had a rough one last week.

I retweeted.

Oh, shit.

I think

his takes are terrible.

I tell him all the time, I said, what are you talking about, dude?

And that's seriously, what the fuck are you talking about?

That's what pisses me off, though.

It's like, I know what you're doing, dude.

Like, that's what I just want to see him in person to be like, look,

I know what game you're playing here.

Okay.

But, like, nonetheless, it is really, really mind-numbing listening to him talk about the Steelers, listening to him talk about the Pacers, et cetera.

But yeah, that was always my goal is like, I would, for a while there when i didn't have two kids and like you know just a bunch of different going on and it was just me and maybe my wife like that would be my goal is i would try to beat cowherd to the cowherd take so like i would i would try to i would try to get the video and his take

granted a spoof and like going over the top with it but i would try to get as close as i could of what i thought he was going to do and make fun of him before his show went live noon eastern time um just because i just like to stick it to him a little bit.

But I met Colin out in LA a handful of years ago, and he was uh, he was super cool.

That's another question that I get a lot: is like, Have you ever met anybody that you do impressions of?

And uh, yeah, I met Cowherd, and he has he has he seen the impressions.

Was he like, You did good, kid, what are these?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, he did a he did it way long ago.

He did like one of those when he's coming back from break, and he was like, So, Joy, there's uh, this guy does this in person to me on the internet.

Uh,

well, it's pretty good, not gonna lie.

And

so he did that.

And then I saw him and he turned the corner and I went up to him.

I was just like, hey, man, I just want to apologize.

Like, I hope you know it's all just in good fun.

He just goes, oh, impressions are the most sincere form of flattery.

And I was like, yep.

I think he's right.

That's coward.

That's coward.

Yep.

So it was great.

Is there someone that you like you just you want to get down?

Like, is there like, like, how do you, like, how do you go about picking people or picking guys?

I always try to do, like I said, about like drama, just try to pick like some distinctiveness, you know?

Like, there's got to be a distinctiveness.

There's got to be a mix of like, are they around right now?

Like, are they topical?

You know what I mean?

That's why, like, I don't really do Order on anymore.

I don't really do Luck anymore because they're not around.

So good, though.

And I miss, I miss.

doing coacho videos and I miss doing luck videos, but you just, you can't really do them because what do you, you know, um, gay to bait, gay to bait.

He did, I'm sure you guys used to come at you.

Like I said, roll tide to him recently.

Oh, yeah, he's run on the beach, and he did not take kindly to that.

Did not love it.

No, did not love it, but yeah, that's where it's like, Mahomes has been like such a saving grace for me because I'm like, I mean, that guy, like, who, who doesn't know his voice, you know, who doesn't know his voice, right?

So that's been great.

I don't think he really cares for me too much

from what I understand.

May have made a joke about his wife on Twitter.

Dude, you're just burning a lot of bridges over here, dude.

Throw that picture up there again.

I'll make fun of that a little bit more if you want to.

Oh, now

here's a guy that wants to play quarterback, but he just can't find himself off the buffet line.

You look at him and say, there's some potential there.

He's got the size, certainly the width, maybe not the height.

And I think if we whittle him down a little bit, a promising young player that matt linard could be there is no doubt about it there we go little colin for you you're so good fat liner i never thought in a million years fat liner's getting a lot of burn today a lot of yeah can't wait for that one to go online you just had a new show drop on vice sports gone wrong which i have to say is it's the idea you know when you have those ideas you're like I hope someone does this.

Not that I had the idea, but I always thought, like, there's so much going on in sports.

And I know we all kind of go through Twitter, which can break your brain at some point.

But can we get some talented people together to talk about this in the right way?

And I feel, and I know a few people involved on the project, so how does that come to you?

Because the first episode just dropped, pretty much, and you got 10 total, right?

Yeah, yeah, I love how you're kind of like trying to

dad now, Jerry, that like you're trying to say that you came up with the idea for this show.

No, my dad, my dad says he came up with the idea for red zone

with Scott Hanson.

He's like, every day.

The witching hour was mine.

He says that.

My grandpa said he came up with the idea for mobile grocery shopping.

So this is just like, you're fitting right into my world.

There you go.

They've all thought of every idea no matter what.

Yes.

No, man.

So it's, it's, it's, yeah, it's super great.

It's just this.

hilarious hodgepodge of sports history and all sorts of sports.

You know, it goes through.

We have like an episode about cheating scandals.

We have an episode about athletes who have have gone into music, athletes who have gone into acting.

There's one about the mouse at the palace, the brawl, like fights that have happened in sports.

And yeah, it's just like you said, like I narrate it.

And so I'm in and out and setting the scene and doing the voiceover for everything and getting from scene to scene.

So I narrate all every episode.

And like you said, there's 10 episodes and they air every Wednesday, 9 p.m.

Eastern on Vice TV.

And then, yeah, you got John Sally, you got Jesse Matana.

Yeah.

You got your boys, Greg.

My boy Paul Verzee.

Versey, you got Godfrey.

Godfrey.

It's just a loaded, loaded cast and a lot of stuff that like you've heard about, right?

Like, you know, there's stuff about like streaking, right?

And you're like, yeah, obviously streaking, but then it kind of goes into the origins and like the first people who did it.

And so you're, you're, you're getting a chuckle, you're getting a laugh out of it, but then you're like, oh, damn, okay.

Like, I didn't know that I learned something here, too.

So it's a fun mix of that, man.

And it's, yeah, it's just a super high-energy, fun, easy-to-watch show, and you'll pick up a few things along the way, too.

Since I came up with the idea for the show,

can I pitch you a few that maybe could find its way into season two?

Absolutely, yeah, let's do it.

First of all, you gotta do

your boy, probably one of the biggest stars in Indiana right now.

John Halliburton talking shit to Giannis, I feel like needs to make its way in there, right?

You could do a whole one on sports parents, dude.

Yeah,

John Moran's dad, John Moranstad,

Todd Marinovich.

Todd Marinovich, yeah.

Like I said, I don't know.

It's a pretty local one here, but Jeff George, like his mom running on the field when he got hurt back in the day.

A personal one for me, because we talk, and Matt knows him well.

We talk about Orlofsky on this show, who's had some pretty polarizing takes, but him running out of the back of the end zone, I feel like that could coincide with any football player that spikes or drops the ball before crossing the goal line.

We've had a lot of people.

Oh my God, dude.

That happens like

twice a year now.

Yeah.

It's unbelievable.

There's got to be

two of the worst kind of those things to, or two of my buddies, or Lofsky out of the end zone.

It's just like the gift that keeps on giving

and the butt fumble with my family.

Oh, I love that.

That's my personal favorite.

I love that.

Those are like the two, I think, when you look at quarterbacks, just the all-time, like,

just fuck.

You're going to be a meme for the rest of your life.

Like, those two.

And that's crazy is because that was before memes even really existed.

Right.

You knew you were just done for.

Oh, yeah.

You knew you were just toasted Matt how does that happen how does that happen with football players where they like you're watching yourself on the screen you know where the goal line is and like they're still just dropping do you just black out when you're about to score is that what happens what are you at about Orlaski or no dropping the ball before the dropping the dropping the ball is the dumbest most bonehead play I don't under I don't I don't I I don't understand that

I think you see the goal line and everyone and then a lot of times when these guys I've never

I wasn't a runner, so I never really had the opportunity.

But

show the picture.

We know.

I know.

Show the picture.

I was in my stance like this growing up.

I was two-stepping at the right guard.

You're wearing a bed sheet for a shirt there?

Or what's the...

That's, yeah, that's from.

Sorry.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

That might be from Gap at the time.

Gap large.

Banana Republic.

Dude, I shopped a big and tall, dude, for two years.

for kids.

Honestly, it's fucking crazy.

Dude, you're like far as gone.

You've had so many different things.

You shot the big and tough.

But by the way, great flow.

Look at that hair.

The hair is solid.

That's one thing we could highlight.

The potential was there.

I'm still keeping it together for the most part at 42.

Matt, I love.

Sorry.

Sorry.

Sorry.

Sorry.

Keep them coming, Joe.

Keep them coming.

This is so cool.

The crossing the goal line thing,

I never understood.

The Orlofsky thing, honestly, it sucks, but like, I get it, dude.

Like, that's when you're on your own one-yard line as a quarterback and shot.

Running for your life, it's fucking, it's, it's nerve-wracking and it sucks because you can't move.

You got guys chasing you.

Then, when you're running, you lose track of where you're at.

Like, I get it.

Like, that one just like I get it, you know.

And maybe do the Houston Astros briefly having a hill in center field, which I don't know why on earth.

I don't know if you might have been young for that.

There was used to be a hill.

Oh, no, I remember center.

What?

What are we like?

Who thought that was a good idea?

Speaking of Houston Astros, that's I may, I texted you.

I said the role that you need to play.

That was on the mail.

Yes, you you texted me yes you said jerry i need you for a role so uh do you have something cooking that you need me to do altuve do you need me to start working on it when the when the when the inevitable uh fx um

houston astros cheating uh trash trash cheating clipper show but the astros version i mean yeah dude get your glove and head out to second base because yeah work on your accent because you're you're you're outuve well dude thank you so much good luck with sports gone wrong and also i mean i know you got the pod going these guys podcast which so good dude i love it i love it because you could drop in on any one of them you could just drop in you pick right up you're up to speed and obviously if you if you don't know go check out all of joey's impersonations and impressions and sketches that we just talked about congrats on everything man yeah thank you so much

i uh yeah it's good to talk to you guys and and thank you so much for having me and i've been a fan of you guys for so long and truly just insane to be talking to you guys here.

So thank you.

Well, you've made two fans with us.

So keep going.

All right, man.

All right, everyone.

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All right, while Matt winds down from getting uh roasted a little bit by Joey Molinaro, it's time for Flavor of the Week presented by Wendy's.

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Possible flavor of the week topic, I was thinking, and then was confirmed by your amazing tweet that you released with one letter.

Matt tweeted something with one letter, everybody, that has gotten a million views at this point, which was G

in response to everyone just wanting to beat Caitlin Clark up.

Well, it was in response to Sophie Cunningham just coming down with a hammer in response to how Caitlin Clark was literally just body checked for no reason.

So yeah, the Indiana Fever posted something on their X account and it was just a picture of her or whatever.

And I just literally put like G, like gangster, like, hell yeah.

Like you want to see that because Caitlin Clark is just continuing to get just absolutely destroyed in the WNBA.

And I just, like, we've talked about her a lot.

And again, this is like, this is just, it's, it's kind of becoming the same narrative, but it was just nice to see one of her teammates finally show up and just say,

it's like when you throw at someone in baseball, my pitcher's going to go out and throw the next inning right at the first hitter.

It doesn't matter.

Like, hey, like, we're sending a message.

Don't, don't mess with my girl.

Don't mess with my teammate.

I'm just completely, I just continue, Jerry, to be astonished with the way she is being treated.

And like, everyone can talk about all these different things, like the just the jealousy or like the hatred that people have for her.

And it's blatant.

Like, you can't even, you can't even defend it.

I didn't have a problem with the eye poke.

Like, that happens that's

caitlin pushed her back they kind of shoved like that's that's sports that's fine but then the body check out of nowhere and by the way didn't even get a technical foul like didn't even get a foul so for sophie cunningham to

uh what one of the girls was on a breakaway and she just completely bear hugged her and just threw it to the ground which by the way like you can't do that's not a basketball move either but at some point like you got to defend your girl so i thought it was i thought it was pretty fascinating uh it was fun to watch i like when there's some scuffles and people get into it.

But the fact that like this is the face of your league, she is the reason why people are watching this and she continues to get treated this way is just mind-boggling to me.

A couple of times.

Which is mind-boggling.

And

I do love, like, you, you've definitely,

I've always watched the WNBA and obviously I watched Caitlin Clark.

And I've, if anything, too, this, this sort of treatment and things that are happening are making me watch even more.

So there's a result to it that I don't know if it's intended or unintended.

I don't even want to say Michael Jordan because then you get brought up, oh, you think Caiton Clark's Michael Jordan.

I was just trying to think of a player who's been physically targeted

similarly, like, and whatever.

Again, it's part of the game in some respects and a lot not.

And like what the Pistons were doing to Jordan seems different because that was designed to like, hey, we don't want the, we want this guy almost hurt.

We want him by the end of the game to be in so much physical pain that he can't score.

It's the Jordan rules, right?

Like every time he comes in the lane, knock him on his ass.

It's not quite what's going on because this doesn't feel like it's a strategic physical play.

It feels like it's just like, fuck this girl.

Like, it's personal for whatever reason.

Yeah.

So, I think it's like a lot of people.

Could you imagine, like, she is one of the biggest stars on the planet in sports?

Like, she just is.

And she's one of those where, even if you don't

like women's basketball,

even if you don't watch the WNBA, even if you don't don't know half the players like she's becoming so big in my in my opinion that you don't need to watch to know oh, I know who Caitlin Clark is She's the best.

She's like like she's becoming household name.

Can you imagine like like uh I don't know LeBron.

I mean LeBron Steph like some of the biggest names in our sport right Mahomes and like getting like this type of like just try like can you imagine if if football players try to intentionally hurt because there's late hits in football.

I've been a part of them like you're trying to intentionally hurt patrick mahomes just because you don't like him because he's the face could you imagine like what good would what they would do to those players that player would be fine millions of he would be out of the league like they just would because you protect your stars and the wnba does not protect their star they have great asia wilson's fantastic they have great players in this league they really do and i've become a big fan but she is the reason why people are watching and you're not protecting her so tiny sidebar, I don't even know what she's doing.

And then she hit a three in her face and just got him fired up, which I love.

But also, you know, I've never played sports on that level.

And I've learned this from a, this was a professional head coach in the NBA.

I'm not going to say their name, but there's just people that you don't do that to because it doesn't help.

And I think doing this to her, like, I don't think it gives you a competitive advantage.

I think, if anything, you fire her up more and it's probably going to backfire.

And the player this coach was talking about at the time that i got a little insight to was like don't talk to russell westbrook back then it was like just don't like if he's kind of like going through the game and doesn't have his usual intensity lea don't right even if you're up 10 12 don't say just leave him alone let him if he's sleepwalking let him sleepwalk and i feel like you're not even getting a competitive advantage from doing this kind of stuff because it's only further awakening, you know, a beast.

So I just don't, I would just cut it out for that reason.

It's not helping you win the game whatsoever.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I mean, look, I think it's, it's, it's very simple.

She's not intimidated.

She's not, it's not affecting her.

It's very simple.

The WNBA has been around for a while.

There's been absolutely unbelievable players.

Diana Taurasi, Lisa Levi, I mean, just the list goes on.

Sue Burt.

Like there's phenomenal players.

But Caitlin Clark has brought the, has elevated this game to a stratosphere that they would, they, they were never at and they were never going to get to.

Let's just be honest.

They were, they, she's selling out arenas and that's, that's okay.

like she's she she's the reason and and all these other women are like embrace this the competitive like competitive being competitive and hard fouls and talking shit hell yeah but like when it's blatantly because you're just like you're probably tired of like someone like me or people talking about oh she's the reason why but she just is like she just is if if caitlin clark isn't playing basketball if she just leaves the w you think like could you imagine what the numbers are going to be like even when she's not on playing a game she's sparked an interest in millions of people around this country to watch the to watch that game of basketball and i don't know man she like i was only going to wrap it up with you you you you tweeted one word about a clip involving her shout out to silly

cunningham who's the g yeah but that's kind of the point like that that one letter got a million views because it was a issue and topic that people care about so we'll see where it goes we keep monitoring the situation.

We are going to do

a little mailbag.

I don't know if this is like a dickish question for me to ask because

I don't know.

I wonder, because you probably have been asked this in your career before.

Okay, we're going to go Keith in Wisconsin.

Shout outs to Green Bay.

We were there not long ago.

Matt, I assume that the Rose Bowl versus Texas was the toughest loss of your career.

Probably a good assumption.

So removing that from the equation, that game doesn't count.

What would you say was your toughest loss after that?

Yeah, I would say,

well,

we lost a Super Bowl.

I didn't play in.

I was a backup, but that was pretty tough.

Stuff ring is a ring.

We like racing.

I would say this.

I would say Monday Night Football, Chicago Bears, rookie year.

The one

Denny Green.

I had a good game.

Denny Green, the We Are Who They Thought They Are, whatever, that game.

And the reason why I think that is my first start was against Kansas City Chiefs the week before.

Good team.

We missed a field goal to lose.

We could have won in last second.

So that was my first ever start.

My second start was against Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football the next week.

And the only reason why I look back now, because I didn't lose a lot of games in college, fortunately, is that game was a

game where it was kind of a coming out party for me.

It was on Monday night football.

Kornheiser was doing the game back then.

I just wonder, I always wonder if we would have won that game like shifts, like football, like it's just football is so funny, man.

It's a difference of two or three plays in a game.

Like the Chiefs, before that, we make a field goal.

We're probably three and three, or we're two and three at the time.

We beat the Bears.

We're three and three.

All of a sudden, you just kind of create momentum, right?

Yeah.

And so I always like tough, it was tough, but I always wonder if we would have won that game like how we would, because we only won five games that year.

We're five and 11.

And at that point, we were one and four.

So three and three and one and four are two very different scenarios.

Three and three and three and three,

you're in the playoff hunt.

Like one and four, you're, you're screwed.

Like, you know, you're going home early.

So I just always wonder like that game was tough.

And then looking back, you know, as

looking back on my career, like, oh, maybe that would have helped shift some things.

So, um, and then obviously the Cow game in USC was the only other game I lost.

Um, that game, that game stings too, but not as much as Texas.

By far the toughest game.

Thank you, Keith.

We like to rip open wounds with the mail.

This episode is just taking daggers at me right now.

This is a tough Maddie ice episode.

Next one will be a lot easier on you.

Well, we'll turn to an uplifting one for me.

CJ in Maryland, Jerry, was there ever an actor out there who served as a mentor to you or took you under their wing in some way?

I don't know the answer.

I can't point to one person,

but I'll point to a few quick scenarios.

One is

when Entourage came around, I was the baby of the group, right?

Not only age, but experience.

You had Dylan and Piven, who've been acting since they were teenagers and were in Oscar movies, Platoon, The Doors, Piven with all his stuff.

And Connolly, who's not that much older than me, but Connolly's been acting since he was.

seven years old.

He actually,

if you go on his Instagram, he went through a week run where he's getting access to all his old commercials.

Connolly did like a hundred commercials before he was 10 years old.

And all the ones you grew up with, like the Nerf commercial.

What a beast.

And like the, you know, power wheels, like unbelievable.

He was, he and Seth Green were in every commercial.

at that age.

So I would say just watching those guys in terms of how to be a professional actor helped and how to conduct yourself.

But then I just had a lot of good, you know, Wahlberg was always a super positive presence and woke me up out of a, you know, I was essentially blowing my final audition for entourage until he came out and told me I was blowing it and said, You need like, you know that he said to me,

because he knew he saw talent in you, or he came up to me at the network test, like halfway through, and I don't think the decision was still even made.

And he basically pulled me over, and I hadn't even met him at this point.

I didn't even know he was pointing at me.

And he pulled me over and he said, you know, that moment where everyone

says, I knew in that moment,

this is the moment and you're blowing it.

So for you, the story will be, yeah, I had my moment, but I blew it.

So there's still time.

Do something.

Yeah.

I mean, he gave you the, I mean, think about, go back to that moment.

That's crazy.

If, if he doesn't go out and say that, your whole life is completely.

It could be a

we're probably not doing this show.

It could be like you said, if you go three and three and have some momentum and maybe for me, if he doesn't come out there and snap me out, maybe I just stay.

Cause I was just very nervous and I was trying to play it cool.

And he basically was like, don't play it cool.

Go just die it if you have to.

Like, go leave it all in there.

And I did.

It's telling me life,

sports, life, anything, it's about opportunity.

And then when that opportunity comes, what do you do with it?

Yeah.

You got to go one way or another.

I've had quite a few people, though, just over the years who have done that.

So good questions.

Certainly appreciate it.

And next week, we'll make sure the question is not nearly as,

you know, ripping open some open open wounds there.

Oh, that's fine.

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Obviously, big talk in the MLB world with the Devers trade.

You know, I don't quite know what the Red Sox are doing, nor do I really need to worry.

I'm not worried about the Giants.

My Dodgers are just fine.

Dodgers are just fine, but it did bring a question for me when I was thinking about an all-time adventure.

You know how I like to relate things in sports to things with like acting and entertainment.

And I have a fun story.

Before I dive in, though, for you, trade-wise, was there ever a teammate, someone you were close with or a surprising trade?

Were you ever in rumors?

So I was in a rumor once.

And I've never told you this.

So I never was a part of a team where like we had a blockbuster trade in the NFL.

Like an offseason, offseason, maybe there was, but I just, I don't remember ever being like, holy, I can't believe we just traded him.

Like, free agents walk and stuff, you know.

But 2000, the camp that I got cut from Arizona, I knew I was gone.

They brought in Derek Anderson from Cleveland, who's my boy.

Like, we competed.

I thought I, at this point, I was just, I was out of favor with the coaching staff.

They wanted me out.

They were just figuring out.

There were rumors because I remember going up into Coach Wiz and Hunt's office.

They were trying to trade me to the new york football giants stop you serious i i just remember this to back up eli

this was 2000 and this is a whole different shell if this happened six seven eight nine two thousand and nine or ten now i ended up getting cut and i signed with the texans like two days later or three days later that's when i went to houston but there were conversations and i'm almost positive about this that he was like hey we've been talking to the giants about potentially trading you um which the better for the organization is just releasing me and then me signing with you signing with the right i mean that for the team that makes sense too so um but yeah it was the giants they they my agent was like they liked me you know um they were interested because i was i i might be making this up now but like eli you know we're similar quarterbacks drop back quarterbacks didn't move you know like it was it was that type of deal at the point i wanted just to be released so that i could go anywhere or have you know have options so that almost happened dude so i was almost traded to the giants instead two days later, I got a call.

Actually, this is another good story.

Same type of thing.

In that same period of time, Kyle Shanahan called me.

Kyle Shanahan was with the Redskins, and I was on the phone with him.

He was with the Redskins, and I think he was the OC at the time, and he wanted me to come.

They had like five or six quarterbacks, but he's like, you know, he.

Again, thought I fit well in that system.

He's like, dude, come out.

You know, you compete, whatever.

And then Houston, which was basically Mike Shanahan and Kubiak, like Kubiak's system, the same system, it was much better.

And that's when I signed with Schaub and Dan Orlofsky.

And then Orlofsky left and I became the backup for a couple of years, but that's how that all went down.

Interesting playing behind Eli because he played so many games in a row.

So that must, like, I guess signing with the team.

I probably would have picked the Giants.

I could have been only because like Eli doesn't really miss fucking games.

By the way, I could have been a backup there for like eight years.

And in New York as a backup.

how do you you would have probably had a good time in new york as a backup and a ring in 2011 yeah see

that ring still stands

never know man the only thing i could think of that rivals this in hollywood is especially a part of a tv show you know that was similar to game of thrones with power in the sense where so many main characters at any time can get killed so I want to say it was like season five of power.

I'm living in New York.

I'm a regular on the show.

There was like two episodes I wasn't in in like five years, right?

How you get killed off in power, you don't really ever know what's coming.

Similar to like hard knocks, Courtney Kemp will call you up and say, can you come to my office real quick?

Bring your script.

And you walk in there and she's like, so, and you immediately know what she's about to say.

And you.

You're like, holy, I cannot believe it's happening.

The table readings at power were always a very big deal.

Like you had to go, you had to give it up.

Like 50 would always come, all the cast, everything.

And every time a character would get killed off you they'd get to say a speech and you'd clap them off and show them love so i had one episode off and when you don't when you're not in that episode you don't get that script because that's how you know mysterious they wanted it to be and so i had my week off and i show up to the next table read the episode after and like four main characters were killed off i won't even say la la anthony i think was one of them are they reacting in real are they reacting in real time like i remember in the game of thrones that famous clip where they're reading the script and they're like

like or do they know they're being written off before the table i think at this point the person no the courtney always would call the person in and have a long talk with them of like the why it's happening and it got to be a place with the show because like you always think it's cool to watch an episode where a main character gets killed off but that person is losing i was about to say that's got to be a shitty feeling going into that you're getting cut you're getting you're getting cut um and it's not because you weren't good it's just it's the best thing.

So, yeah, I showed up to the table reading.

I was like,

where's JR?

They're like, oh, you didn't read the, no, I didn't get the script.

Where's JR?

JR is dead.

I'm like, what?

Oh, where's Lala?

Where's Lala?

Oh, you didn't know?

Lala's gone too.

So you don't even get to say goodbye.

So I assume that's what surprising trade is like.

And then

I do remember, spoiler alert, when I...

My run on power ended, I always said, like, I'm going to treat it like business and I'm not going to get all emotional and do this.

But when they gave me my speech at the table reading, shit, I got emotional.

You have to, man.

I said I wasn't.

And everyone stands up and claps for you.

But then also, you know, you like leave the show and the show does go on.

So when you get, when you, when you found out you were getting killed off, like, when you're done, do you call Bri and you're just like, Bri, I got bad news.

Pack up, pack up.

We're out.

Proctor's dead.

I don't know what's next.

It has to be.

Yeah, it's a great, that's a great comparison to like, or getting, getting cut in football, the final cut.

Cut or surprise treating.

Oh, man, like, what next?

Yeah, because

the other thing, too, is it happened to so many main characters on that show.

It really wasn't a knock to what your performance was or whatever.

I think it's almost a credit.

Like, the more the audience loved your character, I do think it was the more

enjoyable it was to kill you off because it got such

reactions from people.

That's for sure.

Well, there's people to this day who still come up to me that's like, man, when you got it on that show and again go watch it even if you haven't seen it they're like we cried well you're you're you speak to multiple generations because you're ever when i've been with you i would say

i want to say almost the majority is like proctor it's it's weird it depends on where you're at yeah but like yeah because turtle is way more iconic, I think, but older.

Whereas Proctor, like, like, even guys we've had on the show are like, oh, Procter, man, like, they love power.

Like, it, you know, know like and power's still going on there's still all the spin-offs so it's like the universal entourage now i feel like it's more just like uh a real nostalgia play for people you know whereas i think power and proctor it's all still going on so

that's it for this week buddy

we'll see are you gonna watch are you gonna watch game six tonight uh be honest what am i doing uh yeah i mean look i got my my oldest got football practice so cole's got a little football um

uh

Probably going to make a.

You'll check in at halftime.

If it's a close game, you'll throw it on.

I'm going to make a little Costco run today.

I mean, yeah, just, you know, just another day.

Just another day at the Liner Technology.

That's a very dad.

That was

one of the most dad things I've ever seen.

But I'm not lying.

I actually got to go to Costco for a trip coming up.

But no, man, I will watch this game.

I'm hoping Halliburton has enough.

If not,

we'll see the mighty TJ McConnell step in.

Selfish player, that Halliburton.

Selfish player.

How dare you do that?

All right.

We will.

Uh, I think we might be off for uh some time, but we got we got some more coming out for you guys.

Thanks, everybody, watching, listening, and we'll see you soon.