Should Team USA be compared to the DREAM TEAM? | Bob Ryan & Jeff Goodman Podcast
On this episode of the Bob RYan & Jeff Goodman Podcast, Bob Ryan and Gary Tanguay look ahead to the Paris Olympics, give their takeaways from the US's gamer against Germany, and discuss the comparisons this team is getting to the Dream Team of 1992. Plus, Bob has an idea for the basketball players who didn't make the team. All that, and much more!
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00:00T-shirts all around everybody, that's it, summertime, summertime, summertime.
00:22Bob Ryan, Gary Tag, we're here brought to you by Price Picks, the exclusive daily fantasy
00:26partner of CLNS Media Network. Pick more, pick less with Price Picks. What does your
00:33T-shirt mean? Is that French? This is a famous place in France, Place de Beuge,
00:40it's one of the great squares that dates from the 17th century in France, in Paris, and it's a must
00:49stop on any itinerary. You got it, it's beautiful, and this is where Victor Hugo had a home at one
00:57point in the square there. There are residences and businesses there, and it's one of our favorite
01:07places when we go to Paris. Well, it's right up there with Web Lake anyway, so we move on.
01:14Well, it's no Web Lake. I mean, come on now.
01:20Yeah, yeah, we're going to take up the road. We have an Olympic theme here, so you saw US
01:27and Germany play, LeBron showed up, and just share some thoughts on what you're seeing here.
01:33Well, a little concerned, you'd think that they would be imposing their will on these,
01:39first of all, the game before that, which I did not see, but which got everyone's attention was
01:45the Sudan, South Sudan, where, A, the youngest country in the world, but people don't know that,
01:52B, no current NBA players, only a couple of benchwarmers, deep, deep benchwarmers,
02:02deep dive benchwarmers, and well coached by Royal Ivy of the University of Texas.
02:07Royal Ivy, no kidding.
02:09Some of your basketball, our college friends here will recognize that name,
02:15Royal Ivy, and he was on a very good Texas team a generation ago, and we beat him 1-0,
02:221-100 on a LeBron basket with eight seconds to go when he went to the hoop, and we had to
02:26sweat out a couple of shots at the end, and that's just incomprehensible, frankly.
02:32So then I watched us play Germany, and we're sloppy.
02:39You can tell that they're trying to do too much or whatever, but they haven't figured out how to
02:45play with each other yet, and they're turning it over in these games, turning it over, and it's bad.
02:54The Germans looked better coached.
02:56I'm not saying Steve Kerr isn't going to coach them up well, but I'm telling you,
03:00the Germans were better coached.
03:04Bob, to your point, personally, I'm not surprised, but when you take a group like this
03:10and so many big names, and they have to learn to play together, there's definitely a transition
03:16period.
03:17What's Kerr going to do?
03:19What can he do, really?
03:20Well, he's trying to mix and match and find his best unit, and who'd thought there would be
03:28crunch times, right?
03:29I mean, you figure, well, they've had two crunch times already, and they survived both of them.
03:34The second one, though, in Germany, against Germany, LeBron James, he went into the phone
03:41booth and put on the cape and came out, and first of all, he scored the last 11 points in a close
03:48game.
03:49We were trailing late in the game.
03:51He scores the last 11 on one sequence, and it's a combination of going to the hoop, bowling his
03:57way to the basket, and drilling a three, but he had one sequence where he made a basket.
04:03They went down and quick turnovers, quick transition.
04:07He went back, intercepted a pass after just scoring.
04:12This is 39-year-old LeBron James, and then making a spectacular acrobatic save of the pass
04:19that he just deflected and stole.
04:22Went down the other end and scored again.
04:24It was a spectacular sequence.
04:26It was a leadership sequence, and he obviously has taken it upon himself.
04:30I'm not going to be some ceremonial, they're not just carrying me so I can get another
04:33medal kind of thing.
04:34I'm going to lead you to that medal.
04:36That's clearly his mindset.
04:39Now, it's the same day he gets named flag bearer, which has already gotten some naysayers
04:44on that one.
04:45Why do you think so?
04:46I don't understand.
04:46Well, one reason is, and someone pointed out, his China and Nike connections irritate a
04:52lot of people.
04:53Oh, right, right.
04:55A lot of people.
04:55Right.
04:56That was cited.
04:57He doesn't even like America more than he likes China, so that's out there.
05:00He's going to have to live with that.
05:01Right.
05:02I think he's a very interesting choice.
05:06I'd love to know how that works, by the way.
05:08He was nominated by Steph, apparently, in a video, okay?
05:12Okay.
05:12Steph video, but Steph nominated him, I believe, in a video.
05:16I don't know what kind of conclave they have with 600 Olympians.
05:21Well, half of them, women have one.
05:24The first time ever, we have a women's flag bearer and a men's flag bearer.
05:28Right.
05:28In the previous year, you've only had the one flag bearer.
05:30We had two women, Dawn Staley and, help me out, somebody else very famous, another famous
05:36woman.
05:36Oh, yeah, I forgot about that.
05:38I've got to look it up.
05:39Anyway, but now we've got two.
05:42There's going to be a women's flag bearer who hasn't been named yet and a men's flag
05:45bearer.
05:46Now, how that's going to manifest itself when you're floating down the Seine, I don't
05:50know.
05:51You're just going to be standing up in a boat like George Washington.
05:53Are you at the Valley Forge?
05:56Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:57Are you crossing the Delaware?
05:58Washington's crossing Pennsylvania, right near my own neck of the woods, okay?
06:04I can't wait to see this, how that's going to work.
06:06But anyway, he's the flag bearer.
06:09He saved us.
06:09I always work with LeBron.
06:11I mean, I understand the political and the economic and the labor.
06:16I get that.
06:17I mean, China, it's not a good situation.
06:20No question.
06:21I mean, I understand that.
06:24But I've always liked LeBron.
06:27I understand people's point.
06:29I think his basketball heart's always been in the right place going back to high school.
06:32I keep going back to that, when we were at King's documentary, when they followed him
06:38around from his senior year, junior and senior year at St. Fitz and St. Mary's, and they
06:42did not win as juniors.
06:44There was a whole season of senior year was, you know, here, get it back, revenge.
06:50And you got the impression that everybody knew who the king was.
06:54Sure.
06:55But he was still just one of the guys.
06:58He never big-timed his buddies.
07:01And these are some players that he had played with back in fifth grade on.
07:05And he was happy not just to win the state championship again, but to win it with those
07:09guys.
07:10Right.
07:10And that came out loud and clear.
07:12And that's when that was a 17-year-old LeBron.
07:14And I always thought he's been a team player.
07:16Okay.
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09:14Okay, let's go back to the Dream Team, where you were there for that.
09:17From the get-go, they had it down, right?
09:20Well, they needed a couple of practices.
09:22You know, they had that famous one where they lost to the first time out.
09:25They lost to the select team.
09:26And Bobby Hurley kicked their ass.
09:29And that got their attention.
09:31I'm sure that was a happy day for Chuck Daly right away, because now he's got something
09:35that, you know, he's got a coaching point to make.
09:37And they come back the next day and they destroy the kids after they were beaten by them.
09:43And then after that, you know, it was upward all the way.
09:48They were never threatened.
09:49They never trailed one time in all the games for one possession.
09:55In the gold medal game against Croatia, Croatia took like a 15-14 lead.
09:59Blackwood came down, made a three, and they went off.
10:02That's the only time that they ever trailed in any game in exhibition season or
10:07at the Olympics.
10:08And Chuck Daly famously never called a time out.
10:11You know, and that leads me to another story, but that's for another day.
10:15And no, that was, but that was 32 years ago, you know.
10:20And the only question was-
10:21The world has changed, Bob.
10:22The world has-
10:23You know, when I, I don't, like you mentioned the first game for the United States team,
10:32how they struggled, or against Germany.
10:33I mean, as we have discussed on this program, that if you took an international all-star
10:39team against an American all-star team in the NBA, the international would probably
10:43win right now.
10:43Well, it's a game I want to see.
10:46Yeah.
10:47I mean, so, you know, when the U.S. struggles, because I've, we've been around too long.
10:52I've seen all-star games.
10:53It's hard, man.
10:55It's hard to get these guys all to adjust to certain roles.
10:58And it's not because anybody's being uncooperative.
11:01It's just hard to make the adjustment.
11:02So you couple that with the fact that the international competition has gone since that
11:08year.
11:09I mean, it's increased, what, Bob?
11:10Three, four, five-
11:11Well, of course, it's, you know, it only took 12 years for us to get our comeuppance in
11:1894.
11:19Right.
11:19Right.
11:1923 years.
11:20I'm sorry, 20, we-
11:22Well, still-
11:22I mean, 20, it took, let's see, that was 92, 60.
11:26It took three Olympics before we got in trouble.
11:29And by 2004, we did not win either the world championship or the Olympics.
11:35You know, we lost, and we were beaten by 20 points by Puerto Rico.
11:39And we lost to Greece.
11:40And, you know, we started losing in Indianapolis in 92.
11:43We finished sixth, and it all started in 92.
11:47So it took, excuse me, in 02.
11:50So it only took 10 years to catch up.
11:54Yeah, I mean, it's an international game.
11:56Quite frankly, like, I think it's awesome.
11:59Look, when it comes to the Olympics, I was patriotic as the next person.
12:03And I will watch Miracle.
12:05I probably watched the hockey movie Miracle 100 times.
12:08And I will, and I love it.
12:10But, you know, the world has changed.
12:13So, you know, I mean, Argentina, Greece, any of the Eastern bloc-
12:20Well, especially Europeans.
12:22Yeah.
12:23In fact, it was always, in the beginning, it was Lithuania.
12:26They were the court of the Soviet team that won in 88.
12:31It was thanks to those Lithuanians.
12:33And that's why when everything happened between 88 and 92,
12:39and they were able to play as themselves as Lithuania,
12:41and Croatia was able to play as Croatia in 92,
12:44they were so fiercely proud.
12:46It was unbelievable.
12:47And, you know, they wanted to show the world, you know,
12:51that they're Lithuanians, not Russians.
12:53You take somebody like Greece, right?
12:55So you get the free, and then maybe you get four guys
12:57that know how to play together.
12:59That can cause problems, you know?
13:01Well, in this case, they've got a point guard that ain't afraid.
13:05It's Dennis Schroeder.
13:07Now, he's on the seventh team now, by the way, with Brooklyn.
13:10He's on the seventh team, including us.
13:13I was there one night when he had a 20-point game.
13:15I had to be at that game, okay?
13:17And for the Celtics, he played 50-some games that year.
13:21But point is, he's a seasoned 30-year-old professional
13:24who ain't afraid.
13:26He's loving trying to kick an American ass, you know?
13:30And I'm not sure he's not...
13:32Like, he's played...
13:34I know he played with LeBron.
13:36Now, I'm trying to think if there's anybody else
13:37on this particular team that he actually might have played with,
13:39but probably, I think, just LeBron.
13:41But it just so happens.
13:42But point is, they have a legitimate leader,
13:47and they've got Franz Wagner, who's a good player,
13:51and Moe, who, as Bill Raftery pointed out yesterday,
13:54is getting better and better.
13:55And of course, he and the brother play together great.
13:58And then they've got these guys.
13:59This guy, Andreas Obst, O-B-S-T.
14:02I don't know anything about him.
14:03He can shoot the damn basketball.
14:05He's 6'8".
14:06And when I look him up, he's 30 years old.
14:08He's got a lengthy international resume, you can imagine.
14:12You know, it's just...
14:13He's a nice player.
14:15But it happens...
14:18I think somebody drafted him once.
14:21I don't know if he'll ever come.
14:22He's 30 years old now.
14:23A little late to come.
14:24But anyway, he can play.
14:26And the point is, they were drilled,
14:28and they were smart offensively.
14:30I want to tell you something.
14:32Every time they look for mismatches,
14:34every time they caught Derek White,
14:35who is, as we know, as much as we love him,
14:37but we know what a great shot blocker he is,
14:39he is 6'4".
14:40And if you put him on a guy 6'8", he's in a handicap, okay?
14:44It took him, boom, the minute that there was a switch,
14:47and they found him, boom, his guy got the ball,
14:50and they laid it in a couple of times.
14:52They played a smart game.
14:55And of course, they make threes.
14:56All the Europeans always make threes.
14:58And they had one stretch at the beginning of fourth
15:01when they came down.
15:02Oh, did I mention Daniel Tice?
15:04Daniel Tice, you think he's afraid?
15:06You think he's not enjoying this?
15:09And he's making his threes, he's playing.
15:12I wondered, going into this Olympics,
15:15what country, if any, had enough players on one team?
15:19We know that there's great talent scattered all over the globe.
15:22Point is, in 08 and 12, there was a team that had enough
15:26to give us this major scare, and that was Spain.
15:29Well, it's not Spain anymore, okay?
15:31Gasol's done, and all that.
15:34But in Germany, they beat us last year in the Worlds
15:40with the team we put out there.
15:41We got a better team now,
15:43and we're damn lucky to beat them yesterday.
15:45I'm wondering if they're not...
15:46I mean, to me, they look like a sure medalist,
15:48you know, at least.
15:50And so there's going to be competition,
15:52which I'm looking forward to, you know?
15:55I'm looking forward to us,
15:56and I'm looking forward to see what Canada can do.
15:58Very much so, you know, with that backcourt
16:00of Murray and, you know, SF.
16:04I don't want to say SF, I want to be...
16:06Yeah, you want to see...
16:09So now another takeaway, do we need...
16:14I'm asking, this is a rhetorical question.
16:16Do we really...
16:17Do we need Kevin Durant if we're going to do it?
16:20He hasn't played yet,
16:22and he's the all-time American scorer international,
16:26you know, in all this competition of Worlds and Olympics
16:28since we started in 92.
16:30He's our all-time scorer.
16:31He's lifted some of his teams before.
16:34It's almost starting to look like we need him.
16:38Whoever would have thought we needed anybody.
16:40I know, I know, but we shouldn't.
16:42But we'll see.
16:43I think over time, chemistry will come together.
16:47But it's entertaining nonetheless.
16:49By the way, I got...
16:51Not about the Olympics, John.
16:53I'm just...
16:54Did you see...
16:55Are you aware of the Celtics exhibition schedule?
16:57They're opening up in Abu Dhabi.
17:00I did not notice that.
17:01They're playing two games with Denver Nuggets in Abu Dhabi.
17:05And the NBA is marrying itself
17:06because, you know, they had the two exhibition games
17:09in Abu Dhabi on the way, the USA team.
17:11Right.
17:13So that'll be another sore spot
17:15for certain politically-oriented people that we're...
17:18Yeah, I know.
17:19I can't...
17:19Yeah, it's an international game.
17:22It's an international game.
17:24I mean, look, you know, just a quick side note, though.
17:28Amazon wants to bid on the streaming rights for the NBA
17:32and now TNT is back in.
17:34They're back in, although I...
17:37Is it not fully consummated?
17:39The NBA still got some kind of a...
17:41Yeah, it's NBC Peacock is in,
17:46but then Amazon was getting the streaming rights.
17:49But now TNT is saying that they have the right to match.
17:52Yeah, right.
17:53They're gonna do it.
17:54They wanna match.
17:55But I think what Amazon is saying,
17:58you had this opportunity before
18:00and it's streaming the same as cable.
18:03So, you know, I mean...
18:05Way over my head, I'm sorry.
18:08But it just goes to show,
18:10you know, the international game where Amazon is where you can,
18:16you know, you can buy your soap,
18:20watch Midge and catch the NBA.
18:22You know, I mean...
18:23One other technical point about the games observed.
18:28You know who appears to be our most current
18:32indispensable player at the moment?
18:34Anthony Davis.
18:36Interesting.
18:36Yeah.
18:37We need him on the floor.
18:38Yeah.
18:38Both ends of the floor.
18:39The Lakers did too.
18:40I'm telling you.
18:41He...
18:42Embiid is iffy in a sense, you know.
18:46But Anthony Davis, he's been reliable.
18:50He's gonna have to be out there and make big moments for sure.
18:53So, Hauser got paid.
18:55Yes.
18:56He got paid $45 million.
18:58The going rate for subs has really escalated some...
19:02Man, Scott Wedman is somewhere going, what?
19:07Oh, it's Steve Kaburski.
19:09Steve Kaburski.
19:10My old pal Steve Kaburski is sitting there and going,
19:13wait a minute, you know, what is...
19:14This is...
19:15That was me.
19:16And it was him for a while, you know.
19:18And yeah, well, I'm happy for Hauser though, you know.
19:21Vine, great.
19:21Good for you.
19:22But it's interesting is that, you know,
19:25he knows that he's not gonna get any more minutes, you know.
19:31And he knows he's not gonna get any more minutes than he got
19:34or unless somebody gets hurt.
19:35And yet, you know, he's got a job.
19:38He's got job security and...
19:40Well, it just goes to show, Bob.
19:41I mean, we just talked about the television.
19:43I mean, you take a look, it all comes down to the money,
19:45you know, as we're following the presidential elections
19:48and so forth.
19:49And I always, you know, when it comes to fundraising
19:51and who's gonna be in, who's gonna be not,
19:52I go, well, wherever the money goes, that's who's going in.
19:55You take a look at the money.
19:56We just talked about Amazon.
19:57And we just talked about NBC and Peacock,
19:59which wants to get back in the game.
20:01We're talking about billions of dollars, right?
20:03So for a team and, you know,
20:06WIC and the Grosbecks, they'll sell their share
20:09for 2.5 billion, probably, on ballparking.
20:13So to pay a guy 45 million,
20:15who helps you win a championship...
20:17Can you take a hold on this?
20:20Can we do a hold?
20:21Yeah, stand by.
20:22Yeah, I got it.
20:23I have to answer.
20:24Thank you.
20:27So my point is, if you look at the math,
20:31it makes sense where a guy that can shoot threes
20:35and help you win playoff games, not all of them,
20:38but some of them...
20:39Oh, he made a contribution.
20:41He made a contribution.
20:42So make a contribution to your team
20:43that wins a championship and a half,
20:46and your team is valued at $5 billion.
20:48The 45 million makes sense is what I'm saying.
20:51Well, I mean, all the numbers just, I mean,
20:53we've been living with boxcar numbers
20:54for 50 years in sports by all our layman standards.
20:58But sometimes you just, you know,
21:01but you want it to go to good people.
21:04And he appears to be that very much.
21:06And, you know, they have a bunch of good guys
21:08and they're certainly being rewarded
21:10and the Celtics are doing the right thing,
21:12you know, and, you know, good for him.
21:16And you're right.
21:17He made his contributions.
21:20He's actually turned out to be a better defensive player
21:23than people think.
21:24Well, I guess my thought is,
21:25he didn't have any delusions of grandeur.
21:27They had to go somewhere to buy a start.
21:29I mean, you know, now somebody might hold it against him.
21:32He doesn't have a drive or ambition.
21:33No, I think he's being very realistic.
21:35I don't know.
21:35I'm just thought it out.
21:36Yeah.
21:36Or am I?
21:37I mean, no, no, no, no.
21:38I mean, if anybody, I'm agreeing with you, Bob.
21:41I'm saying if anybody criticizes him
21:43for not going somewhere to be a starter,
21:45see, if somebody does it, you can't win.
21:47The guy wants to win.
21:48Like, hey, you want to win?
21:49You want to ring?
21:50Maybe he could probably get another two or three rings,
21:53make 45 million after taxes down to 25 or whatever.
21:56But, you know, I mean, still,
21:58and he serves a purpose, serves a role,
22:00has a great career.
22:03And here's another thing.
22:04This is another reason why Hauser's valuable.
22:06You know, as well as I do, you know,
22:07during the regular season,
22:09you need guys that can fill minutes, right?
22:12Yeah.
22:12And, you know, his minutes and, you know,
22:14are going to go down in the playoffs.
22:16They're not going to be as much, they'll be important,
22:18but they're not going to be as much
22:19as during the regular season.
22:20During the regular season, you know, guys need a break.
22:23You need guys to fill the gap.
22:24And he's important there too,
22:27where he can give you quality regular season minutes
22:30when it gets to be a grind for your big guns.
22:34As an aside, I forgot before we, yeah.
22:38Do you know who the German flag bearer is?
22:42I have no idea.
22:43Dennis Schroeder.
22:45Oh, we forget.
22:45We go back to him.
22:47Dennis Schroeder is the German flag bearer.
22:50And I mean, he doesn't strike the Aryan concept
22:55of previous German regimes, if you get my drift.
22:58Oh no, I understand exactly what you're saying.
23:00Yeah, Hitler, Geronimo.
23:02I love it.
23:03And of course, it's great.
23:05Good for Dennis.
23:06Herr Schroeder, I love it.
23:07He's the, he's the, he's the German flag bearer.
23:10So he and LeBron, that's great.
23:13Okay, Bob, how many Olympics have you been to?
23:1611, six summer, five winter.
23:20What do you, tell me why you love summer.
23:23Tell me why you love winter.
23:24I love, I love it all.
23:26I love the international flavor.
23:27It's such a great getaway.
23:29And the summer, it's in the middle of a summer.
23:32You're getting away from the American baseball,
23:34the football training camps, you know, and all that.
23:37And see something entirely refreshing and new
23:40with an entirely different experience, you know.
23:44And you're seeing international people.
23:46You're getting this, you're seeing it.
23:49It's just, it's just a wonderful free vacation as a writer.
23:53My God, you know.
23:54Yeah, you gotta work.
23:55But, you know, still, I looked at it as incredible respite
23:59and, and, and, and, and alternative.
24:02And I love the international competition.
24:04I love the international flavor.
24:06And, and, you know, I tried to go to as many
24:10different events as I could as time went on,
24:12you know, just because, you know.
24:13And didn't make them all, always.
24:16But I, even over the course of six summers,
24:19I mean, I never went to whitewater kayaking.
24:21I have to tell you right now, you know.
24:22But, but I tried to go to some Meso-Turk ones.
24:25And some of the stuff you see, it's just priceless.
24:28It's wonderful.
24:29And in the winter, you know, the only,
24:33when I first went to my first winter one
24:34in 1994 in Lillehammer, truly the only sport
24:37that I could have remotely commented upon
24:41with any degree of any knowledge was hockey.
24:45And you know, that's not my strong point by far.
24:47But that's the only one I had.
24:49And I had to start from scratch.
24:50And of course, that was the winter of Nancy and Tanya.
24:54That was the, that dominated the American consciousness,
24:58of course, for the two weeks.
25:00But we had so many people there.
25:02Mike Madden got stuck as the,
25:03he was basically the beat person on Nancy and Tanya.
25:06I did, you know, I did some of it,
25:09but he got the bulk of it.
25:11And, you know, but, and I was there
25:13at a famous night of the, you know,
25:15when they were skating for the medal
25:17and she breaks the skate lace
25:18and the whole thing and reaping.
25:21And then Nancy got robbed and Baksul got it.
25:24And people thought that was a rehash
25:27of the old East German bloc, you know,
25:29the Soviet bloc voting.
25:31And I think it was, frankly.
25:33I think Nancy outskated her and I didn't know much,
25:34but I knew that much.
25:36But anyway, I just loved it.
25:40And I found a sport that I became
25:43to admire these people tremendously.
25:45And that's cross-country skiing.
25:47And the cardiovascular exuberance
25:50and expertise of these people,
25:52extraordinary and most amazing event.
25:54I saw the men's 50K.
25:57Trivia.
25:59Who is the legendary Olympic cross-country course designer
26:06that designed multiple cross-country courses?
26:10You got me and I was there.
26:12Chummy Broomhall of Rumford, Maine.
26:14Oh, I'm not kidding.
26:17No, Bob, listen to this.
26:18Listen to this.
26:19Ray Broomhall, okay, you love this stuff.
26:22Like, I mean, you go up to my neck of the woods.
26:24Ray Broomhall, whose daughter Lynn Broomhall,
26:27I went to the dance with in eighth grade.
26:30Ray was the janitor, was our high school janitor.
26:33We called him Raisin.
26:34Wonderful man, wonderful family.
26:37All the Broomhalls could cross-country ski.
26:39They were all built for it.
26:40Lynn, Phil, I mean, they were amazing cross-country skiers.
26:43And Chummy, I don't know if he made the Olympic team
26:48or he was close to making it.
26:50But anyways, he was the guy.
26:52He went all over the world.
26:54And he lived in Rumford, and I believe he ran a logging business.
26:59But when the Olympics came, Chummy, I don't even know his first name.
27:02I don't really know.
27:05And his brother Ray and his guys, Lilleham, wherever, Lake Placid.
27:11I think Lake Placid was his first one.
27:13They went, and they set up the cross-country course.
27:17Wow.
27:18Maine.
27:19I don't know.
27:20I think they did four or five in a row.
27:22And I don't know.
27:23But the cross-country ski courses at Black Mountain and Rumford, well, obviously,
27:27because the guys that did the Olympics did those, were phenomenal.
27:32But from Rumford, Maine, who knew?
27:33You know, cross-country skiing, the great rivalry with Norway and Italy in the relay,
27:40the 400 men.
27:43And over three Olympiads, they traded back and forth the gold and the silver.
27:48And the length of the final margin, total margin of victory over the three was about
27:54a length of a ski over three.
27:57That's how close the three races were, and they're phenomenal.
28:00And the thing about going to Lillehammer, you know, you go to a country where
28:05this is their world.
28:06This is their sport.
28:08And it was so good because their great rivalry is Sweden.
28:13And it's like Duke and Carolina, okay?
28:16And they were both winning like crazy.
28:19The Norwegians were winning.
28:20Swedes were winning.
28:21Every night, there was this big beer tent that's a big one, giant tent set up.
28:28And you would go there at night, and if they won, they would sing.
28:34And if they lost, they would sing.
28:36And everybody knew all the words, I'm telling you.
28:38It was just a two-week fairy tale, those Olympics.
28:44Yeah, I grew up skiing.
28:47I've cross-country skied.
28:48It is the best workout alive, if you do it.
28:51And it's beautiful.
28:52My dad was a terrific cross-country skier.
28:54Oh, wow.
28:55Yeah, he actually did the, what was it?
28:58I can't remember, the telemark, telemark.
29:03And that's hard to do.
29:04But I mean, yeah, to watch cross-country skiing, I agree.
29:07The ones that are exceptional on it, it's beautiful.
29:09There's a rhythm.
29:10There's a music.
29:11There's a melody to it.
29:12It's amazing.
29:13And they're extraordinary athletes.
29:16But the competition was terrific.
29:17I really got, they used to kid me at the Globe after a couple of,
29:22about my interest in this cross-country skiing.
29:24Oh, yeah.
29:25Anyway, but I went to, winter and summer.
29:29There's a sport that I, I quote, discovered, I mean, it was there,
29:33that it frustrates me.
29:34We still don't do it.
29:35We don't do it.
29:36We're no good at it.
29:37We didn't, the men don't even qualify.
29:39Or I don't even know if the women did either.
29:41Team handball.
29:42We ought to be great at that.
29:43It's natural.
29:44It's made for us.
29:45It's a combination of basketball and soccer.
29:48And there's fast breaks.
29:49And, you know, if we just, all these six foot five inch,
29:54washed out, not good enough to make the NBA basketball players,
29:58took up skiing with the team handball,
30:02we'd be awesome.
30:03But they don't.
30:04Nobody here, nobody in America cares about team handball.
30:06And Trump's too bad because, yeah, it's a, it's a metal sitting there,
30:10but not for us.
30:11We don't even, we don't even, our team didn't even qualify.
30:13We never do.
30:14We can't be bothered, Bob.
30:16Can't be bothered.
30:17Well, listen, enjoy the Olympics.
30:20Enjoy everything.
30:21I'll talk to you again later this week.
30:23Look it up.
30:25Jimmy Broomhall.
30:26Who knew it, Bob?
30:27Another piece of Rupert trivia.