In the latest episode of the Bob Ryan and Jeff Goodman Podcast, Bob and Gary Tanguay discuss the recent stretch of poor performances by the Boston Celtics, including a head-scratching loss to the Toronto Raptors. Bob has gone from annoyed to angry, and he doesn't hold back on Boston. Later, they remember the great Gus Williams, who recently passed away.
0:00 - Intro
0:32 - Celtics' recent struggles
2:45 - Defensive issues highlighted
5:03 - Need to snap out
7:24 - Writing as a fan
9:05 - Best guard in league
11:49 - Worthy NBA Finals
14:14 - Clippers Historic Win
17:29 - Nets Tough Season
19:57 - Championship with Sonics
23:58 - Seattle team dynamics
26:02 - Gus's health struggles
29:49 - Jimmy Butler's suspension
32:01 - Veteran player discussion
34:37 - Coaching career highlights
36:58 - Fun stories about Vrabel
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#celtics #NBA #BostonCeltics
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0:00 - Intro
0:32 - Celtics' recent struggles
2:45 - Defensive issues highlighted
5:03 - Need to snap out
7:24 - Writing as a fan
9:05 - Best guard in league
11:49 - Worthy NBA Finals
14:14 - Clippers Historic Win
17:29 - Nets Tough Season
19:57 - Championship with Sonics
23:58 - Seattle team dynamics
26:02 - Gus's health struggles
29:49 - Jimmy Butler's suspension
32:01 - Veteran player discussion
34:37 - Coaching career highlights
36:58 - Fun stories about Vrabel
CLNS Media is Powered by:
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Download the app today and use Code CLNS when you sign up & Get $50 instantly when you play $5!
🎫 Gametime - https://gametime.co
Take the guesswork out of buying NBA tickets with Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code CLNS for $20 off your first purchase. Download Gametime today. Terms apply. What time is it? Gametime!
Elevate your style game on and off the course with the PXG Spring Summer 2024 collection. Head over to https://PXG.com/GARDENREPORT and save 10% on all apparel.
Nutrafol! Get results you can run your fingers through! For a limited time, Nutrafol is offering our listeners 10 dollars off your first month’s subscription and free shipping when you go to Nutrafol.com and enter the promo code GARDEN.
With HelloFresh, you get farm-fresh, pre-portioned ingredients and seasonal recipes delivered right to your doorstep. Go to https://HelloFresh.com/CLNSFREE and use code CLNSFREE for FREE breakfast for life! One breakfast item per box while subscription is active. That’s free breakfast for life at HelloFresh.com/CLNSFREE with code CLNSFREE!
Visit https://factormeals.com/NEWSFEED50 to get 50% off your first box! Factor is America’s #1 Ready-To-Eat Meal Kit, can help you fuel up fast with ready-to-eat meals delivered straight to your door.
Right now, you can get 10% off your first purchase by going to https://ArenaClub.com/HOOPS. Wow, that’s a crazy offer.10% off a $400 Slab Pack, that’s $40 right there!
#celtics #NBA #BostonCeltics
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SportsTranscript
00:00Hey everyone, it's Bob Ryan, Gary Tangway, time for our podcast on CLNS Media brought
00:23to you by PrizePix, the exclusive daily fantasy partner of CLNS Media Network.
00:28Pick more, pick less, with PrizePix.
00:31Hey Bob, I understand that it's just the regular season and that's what I've heard from many
00:37people.
00:38I've also heard that championship teams have the hangover and so forth, but the Celtics
00:43are 7-7 in the last 14 and they just lost at the time of this recording 1-10-97 in Toronto.
00:54I'm kind of speechless and I'm probably an alarmist.
00:57Where are you here on this?
01:00I'm officially out there saying, don't panic, the only time I'm going to get excited or
01:06worried is when you're down 3-1 in a playoff series, okay?
01:11That's what I said before the Toronto game.
01:14I might want an amendment.
01:16I'm moving, I'm shifting from annoying, I said they're annoying.
01:21They've been annoying this whole stretch, 7-7, all right?
01:26I'm getting to the anger stage.
01:28I'm going all Cher and Moonstruck on you.
01:32Snap out of it, guys, okay?
01:36Snap out of it.
01:37I'm tired of this.
01:39There's not technical reasons.
01:41They do not need any technical help.
01:44They need mental to play the damn game the way they know how to play and have played
01:50it.
01:51I was at the defensive end, okay, where they were exemplary at times last year.
01:57Of course, we're not going to win any battle trying to change the world in a three-point
02:02shot.
02:03I can't change the world.
02:07I'm Sancho Panza with Don Quixote and the windmills.
02:12I'm never going to win this one.
02:14I know that.
02:16You just hope that they recognize that there's more to the world than three-point shots,
02:21no matter what their own reasons.
02:22Bob, you've even pointed it out when you say the defense.
02:26You're right with the three, but they went to the basket and were scoring in the perimeter
02:31against OKC.
02:33Then their defense fell apart in the fourth quarter, and they still lost.
02:37We saw examples of them going to the basket against New Orleans, and they barely won that
02:43game because their defense was awful.
02:45I mean, New Orleans is a terrible team, but there were players, if you leave any NBA player
02:50open for a considerable amount of time, they will kill you.
02:55I think you're right.
02:57We'll put the threes aside.
02:59Defensively, they are giving up too many easy baskets.
03:04I remember writing about this really 30 years ago, or maybe 40 years ago, about the NBA's
03:11incessant rotating double teams, which invariably leaves somebody open if you're going to double
03:19team.
03:20You've got to have a balance in how you work all that out.
03:27I'm tired of seeing, as you just said, wide, wide open.
03:33Most guys and people in the NBA now can make it three at some point, but no, it's not good.
03:38I'm tired of it.
03:41It shouldn't be struggling to win with the prayer that the last shot doesn't go in against
03:47New Orleans, and you shouldn't lose to Toronto, period.
03:52This is the bet.
03:537-7 is speaking for itself now, okay?
03:56That is speaking for itself.
03:58We don't want to hear, I'm not going to give them an injury thing.
04:01They were playing quite well in the beginning, 16-3, without Prisingas.
04:09I'm not going to, I don't know how hurt, or if he's not the same, he's certainly not the
04:15same, how it is, he's not the same.
04:20That's very astute.
04:21He's been very quiet.
04:24White is in a slump, and I'm not, that's a slump.
04:30I'm not going to panic about his recent abysmal three-point shooting, but that's part of the
04:37deal.
04:38And they're not, you know, Pritchard can't save their ass every night, you know, from
04:43the bench, and some nights he's mortal.
04:46And he's kind of leveled off a little bit, a little bit lately, from that stretch where
04:51nobody was handing him the six-pointer.
04:53So I'll say maybe he came back to earth somewhat.
04:56Yeah.
04:57Yeah.
04:58Well, yeah.
04:59So anyway, it's, they've got to, the thing is, they better snap out of it before they
05:04get out on the West Coast.
05:06Well, that's right.
05:08I mean, because the schedule.
05:09You better.
05:10Maybe.
05:11Now, we can give them, we can offer them this, you know, they're going to put on their championship
05:16hat, and they're going to show the world how good they are when they play against real
05:20teams, you know.
05:21All right, fine.
05:22We'll see.
05:23We'll see.
05:24If they're going to adopt that stance, fine.
05:25If you're going to talk that talk, or imply that talk, then you've got to walk it.
05:29So see if they do.
05:30Well.
05:31That is.
05:32Meanwhile, forget about the division games behind Cleveland and the loss as we speak.
05:38Right.
05:39Well, we've talked about this before, is I think, I think it's harder to turn it back
05:44on once you've shut it off.
05:45And I think they're finding that now the teams of the past never really turned it off, maybe
05:50a game or two, but they never took their pedal.
05:54They never took their foot off the pedal.
05:56And when you say, you know, they go out West, so they'll show.
06:00I think it's hard to all, when you go, when you go seven and seven and 14 games and lose
06:05on the road to Toronto and play the way you've been playing, I mean, in the last three games,
06:09they haven't busted a hundred.
06:11If you're going to go in and play Golden State or Denver or whomever, I think it's hard to
06:16turn the switch back on for that one game.
06:19Sure it is.
06:21This is going to be a test.
06:22And once again, it's a test.
06:24And I'm not, you know, I'm not declaring panic or anything else.
06:29I'm angry, but I know it's fixable because it's fixable.
06:32And I got to believe they're going to wake up sooner or later, you know.
06:35So you know, yeah, that's okay.
06:38So as a citizen, as you're more of a member of the media than I am, but as a citizen,
06:46I just, when I sit down and watch a game, I just want to see a good game.
06:50I don't want to see them lose it to run.
06:52That's all.
06:53That's all I really want.
06:54Well, I mean, I'm, you know, I've always been a fan.
06:57I've never shied away from it.
06:59I'm not one of these, you know, I won't even use that, the standard writers that, oh, I'm,
07:06you know, I'm above it.
07:07I don't care who wins and loses, blah, blah, blah, blah.
07:09You know, that's not what I'm into it for, no.
07:11My whole career and writing is built on being a sports fan first who happens to have had
07:17this wonderful privilege to write about it and cover it and talk about it.
07:21So, but I'm a fan.
07:22Yeah.
07:23So I watch it with both, you know, both hats available.
07:28So, but when I, you know, when I sat down to write in my day, I tried to, you know,
07:32try to be a respectable journalist, but I always respected the fact that I was writing
07:36for a certain audience and people, you know, and I think when you're writing in a city,
07:41you try to reflect the attitudes, you know, I mean, you have to pay attention to the mood
07:46of the fan.
07:47So anyway, anyway, I'm a fan.
07:49I've never said I wasn't a fan.
07:51And so I get angry, you know.
07:54Good for you, Bob.
07:57Just getting angry keeps us young.
07:59Okay.
08:00You were keeping an eye on the Cavs and the Thunder.
08:01So the Thunder returned the favor.
08:03We've got a rivalry going.
08:05Well, that was when I was, when I went to bed, it was at the end of the third period,
08:11they had, their 42 point lead had just dribbled the 38 at the end of the third quarter.
08:17So if you saw the final score this morning, you would have mistakenly thought that there
08:21was some possible semblance of a game because the final spread was 20, which means the fourth
08:27quarter was classic, classic garbage time, you know, classic in which the losing team,
08:35you know, cut the deficit to something that looked a little more respectable than it really
08:39was.
08:40Okay.
08:41Well, I am now saying, I understand, it's not a bandwagon, well it's a bandwagon, this
08:48is an acknowledgement, all right, as opposed to jumping on a bandwagon.
08:54Shea Gildas Alexander is right now the best guard in the league.
08:58He's clearly playing the best two-way basketball of any guard in the league.
09:03And so his, and if people want to start talking about MVP, because they've been talking about
09:08it since Thanksgiving, and certainly even then, yes, he is right among the major candidates
09:16at the top of the list.
09:18He's really good.
09:19He had another great game.
09:20He had 40 points to less than three quarters last night.
09:22And by the way, if you watched it, you would have thought it was 20.
09:28I mean, it was a nice, easy 40.
09:30He's really good.
09:32And I was ready to discount this game because Hartenstein didn't play.
09:36If they lost, they'd have a good excuse.
09:38Oh, really?
09:39They're 42.
09:40They're good.
09:42And here's the most interesting thing this morning.
09:46I happened to run into the clip from Kenny Atkinson, the losing coach, heaping praise
09:53on the Thunder.
09:55He said that it was like playing seven pitbulls, not five, seven.
10:05They clawed, they fought, and he said, I mean, it's in a good way.
10:08He wasn't, you know, he wasn't whining about it.
10:10No, yeah, they had something to prove.
10:13He said they toppled us.
10:14They overwhelmed us.
10:17And that's seven pitbulls.
10:20I love it.
10:21But that was an honest assessment.
10:22Their defense is good.
10:23They're good.
10:24I mean, they are definitely, totally, utterly for real.
10:28And oh, and by the way, Alex Caruso is back now after missing 18 games.
10:33The most indispensable, innocuous player, you know, I mean, he's just fascinating.
10:40There's nobody quite like him in the category, you know.
10:43He looks like an accountant, you know, and he dismissed this, dare I say it, 6'5 white
10:49guy, you know, and he's a hell of a smart defender and he makes threes.
10:56So he's back.
10:57They're good.
10:58They're really good.
10:59I mean, Cleveland, you know, they've got to just shake it off.
11:01That's just one of the nights.
11:02Bad night at the office, bad day at Black Rock, you know.
11:05That's the attitude they've got to take.
11:06If they do this again, okay, maybe their fans can start worrying about them.
11:10But that game was on the road, OKC was totally and completely ready, and Cleveland did not
11:15respond in kind, that's all.
11:20Just to play the game of looking ahead, if the Celtics don't bounce back or they don't
11:23make the finals, is a Cleveland-OKC series going 7-for-sure?
11:28You know, I mean, Cleveland, you know, much better than we saw last night.
11:35We know that.
11:36Oh, yeah, no, no, no, no.
11:37Of course it is.
11:38But what we saw from OKC lends to the flammability of this rivalry.
11:48It would be a worthy finals.
11:49It would be a very worthy NBA finals, yes.
11:52I mean, sure, I would applaud it.
11:55And of course, you know, you'll be hearing, oh my God, you know, they're not marquee teams,
11:59they're not, you know, glamour teams, and they got the wrong thing on the front of the
12:03jersey and all that.
12:05And I'm sorry, it doesn't concern me at all.
12:09I don't care where the team comes from, you know, from Peoria, if they're the best team,
12:13they're the best team.
12:14So anyway, I've never worried about that.
12:16But I'll never forget the one year, circa 1990, when Larry was still coaching Indiana
12:23in those three years, and there was a possibility if Utah had beaten the Bulls, which they should
12:29have by the way, at that year, Carl Malone came up small as usual, don't get me started
12:35on him, it would have been a Utah-Indiana final.
12:41And I was picturing a lineup of TV execs on the highest buildings in New York jumping
12:47off, you know, on that one.
12:49But OKC and Cleveland, you know, will not, you know, that will be a non-glamorous.
12:55It should not matter, but what's wrong with people?
13:04Well, here's one of the things, Bob, I understand, but now we have an international market.
13:12And I think that that, I'm not going to say it negates the issue you're discussing,
13:20but it changes things.
13:21Because you're going to have people all over the world, China and so forth, that are going
13:25to watch the game.
13:26They don't care.
13:27So the NBA is not going to get the numbers, but you're right, I remember, you know, it
13:31always had to be Boston, LA or New York, LA and so forth.
13:34And, you know, they wouldn't pay attention to these small teams.
13:37And I think it would be a great series.
13:40I think it would go seven games.
13:41I think it would be knockdown, drag out.
13:43I think it would be fun basketball.
13:46I don't think it would be, I think, unfortunately, if that happens, the most talented team is
13:51still Boston and they would be at home.
13:53So that would be a shame if that happens.
13:55The international audience has changed.
13:58I have not.
13:59Fortunately, I got out of the business before OKC moved from Seattle.
14:04So I've never been to OKC for a game.
14:07And I tell it, I take it's a really good atmosphere.
14:10It's a very good collegiate time.
14:11It's really, really good.
14:13All right, Bob, we got more coming up here.
14:16Bob's going to talk about some numbers from the Clippers games and also remembering a
14:21champion in Gus Williams.
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15:47All right, Bob, back to it here.
15:50I'm going to let you explain the numerical anonymity.
15:53Anon-da-da-da-da-da.
15:54He was trying to say anonymous.
15:55I can't even see.
15:56I just didn't know.
15:57The Clippers…
15:58Every once in a while, the game just jumps out at you, you know, and it's worthy of
16:04just comment.
16:05Now, for people who don't know, because it was a late night and I didn't know about
16:09it until later in the morning, I didn't, you know, after the Clippers beat the Mets
16:17the other night at home, 126 to 67, which if you have your calculator, it would tell
16:23you that that's a 59-point spread.
16:27And it was, in fact, the largest spread in the Clippers' history.
16:30The NBA record, I think it had to do with the Lakers and the Warriors back sometime
16:35way, way, way, way back, but 60-something.
16:37Anyway, 59 is a lot.
16:39Celtics won three games by 50 last year, but 59 is a lot.
16:43And my favorite fallout from it, in the second and third periods alone, the Clippers stats
16:49scored them 81 to 40, just in the second and third period.
16:54That's all.
16:55It's just an anomalous night.
16:56The Clippers, you know, who we don't pay any attention to anymore, really.
17:01Do you?
17:02Do you think about them?
17:03You don't.
17:04Oh, no, no.
17:05I don't think about the Clippers anymore.
17:06Tyree is always her, and they made trades, and, you know, they broke up the…
17:10He's still that hard, man.
17:11He's putting up, you know, his numbers, you know, all the time, but kind of in a vacuum now.
17:16But the Nets, you know, the Nets have been beset.
17:18Their season is a wipeout from the start.
17:20Injuries, injuries, injuries, injuries, all right?
17:22All the time, you know.
17:23And it's just, it's just, anyway.
17:26Anyway, 126 to 67 does get your attention.
17:29When an NBA team doesn't score 70 points, you know, it's, you know, it's just worthy of…
17:34It's sad.
17:35That's a sad situation.
17:36Tough year to be a Nets fan, I can tell you that.
17:40Especially with Kenny Atkinson on his way to coach of the year, or at least, you know,
17:45one of the prime candidates, and they dumped him, and, you know, but again, that's not
17:50so unusual in pro sports.
17:52I don't want to make too big a deal out of that, because we've got a billion examples
17:56of that over the years, so.
17:58But anyway.
17:59Well, it's amazing how good a coach can become when they have better players.
18:03Yeah, you know, I think there's a lot of people…
18:07But like you said, though, Atkinson learned from it.
18:09You said he's kind of a changed guy, though, right?
18:10Yeah, he did.
18:11It's always good.
18:12Yes, Atkinson apparently did learn from it.
18:14He's got a lot of respect for this league.
18:16I do know that.
18:17That was a nice matchup between he and Mark Daniel last night.
18:21Our Mark Daniel, who, of course, is from Lemonster, can't always have to point that out.
18:25That's right.
18:26And I believe went to…
18:27Oh, no.
18:28He's from Lemonster.
18:29It's the GM who went to Emerson.
18:30Oh, Sam Preston.
18:31Yes, Sam Preston.
18:33Unfortunately, Bob, at this time, you and I are always talking about a player who you
18:38covered and I first watched growing up.
18:40And I remember Gus Williams with the 75 Warriors.
18:43You mentioned to me he was a rookie.
18:44Then went on with the Sonics.
18:46But he, unfortunately, has passed away.
18:48He was a hell of a player, man.
18:50He was a hell of a player.
18:52Gus is the next level below Hall of Fame.
18:55You know, he's an excellent player.
18:57He's a great player.
18:59He's not in the Hall.
19:02But he had a 12-year career in which he averaged…
19:06Career average…
19:07Let's see.
19:08I got it here.
19:0917.1.
19:10He shot 46% from the floor.
19:13Just some cool numbers here.
19:16His primary years were with Seattle.
19:18He became a free agent after the 76-77 season and signed with Seattle and immediately made
19:26a mark.
19:28Made a mark with them and gave them a tremendous backcourt with Dennis Johnson and Slick Watts
19:36and downtown Freddie Brown.
19:40That was a potent backcourt.
19:42I remember he was as fast up and down the floor as anybody in that time.
19:47He was a rocket ship.
19:486'2", out at USC in Mount Vernon, New York.
19:52And Paul Westfall said to me, he said, he doesn't have a green light.
19:57He has no lights.
19:58I love that line about, you know, shooting.
20:02Interesting.
20:03People forget.
20:04He held out and missed the entire 80-81 season.
20:09His agent was the then notorious Howard Slusher.
20:13There was a point in time when Howard Slusher was the Boris of basketball.
20:21Okay.
20:22And so he was the Boris of basketball.
20:25I got to know him because of my friendship with Paul Westfall.
20:28And Westfall was one of his clients.
20:30I actually once stayed at Howard Slusher's house.
20:33And so, yeah, a really interesting guy.
20:40He held out on a contract dispute the entire 1980-81 season, which is, you know, how many
20:49times has that happened in our experience?
20:50Well, you lose a year of salary, man.
20:52You know, that's a lot.
20:55So he was a member of the 1979 Championship Sonics.
21:01And that team, starting lineup, that team should have accomplished more than that.
21:08They lost in 78 before he got there.
21:11No, I'm sorry.
21:12He lost the first year to the Bullets, the then Bullets, now Wizards.
21:18And then in 1979, he won and beat the same Bullets in a rematch.
21:24During the 79 playoffs, Gus Williams averaged 26.6 points a game for the entire playoffs,
21:3017 games.
21:31That's good numbers, very good numbers.
21:34So he was a two-time All-Star.
21:36He was a one-time first-team All-NBA, 81-82.
21:39The year after he held out, how's that?
21:42He came back and beat first-team All-League.
21:46And, you know, was a really worthy player.
21:49And, you know, that team had a chance.
21:54They had a run there, guys.
21:56From the time, 78-79, they had a run.
22:00In 1977-78, Bob Hopkins, who was first cousin of Bill Russell, by the way.
22:05Bob Hopkins was the coach.
22:07He was fired after 18 games when they were 5-17.
22:10Lenny Wilkins replaced him.
22:12Right.
22:13And from that point on, they went 42-18, and they finished at 47-35.
22:18And then in the next year, and that year, they went to the finals.
22:23That year, they went to the finals after starting off 5-17, because Gus had a lot to do with that.
22:28Next year, they win.
22:30They're 52-30.
22:31The year after that, they're 56-26.
22:34Setback in 80-81.
22:35Guess who didn't play?
22:36Gus Williams.
22:37They went 34-48.
22:38Talk about proving your valuable nature as a team.
22:42And then 81-82, it goes back to 52 games.
22:44So it was a nice little run.
22:46By the way, for people who, a lot of fans, of course, do know this, he's the older brother of Ray Williams.
22:52And, of course, we did have Ray Williams for part of the 84-85 season.
22:57Ray Williams was a stat filler, which included quadruple stats, which included turnovers.
23:05I got to tell you, I'll never forget this one.
23:08He's playing for the Knicks, and Hubie Brown is the coach.
23:11And there's a playoff game in which he has a quadruple double, including turnovers.
23:17Or at least he had a triple double, including turnovers.
23:20And Hubie Brown is throwing me the stat sheet, and he's saying,
23:23bleepin' guy, bleepin' guy, thinks it's the Rucker League.
23:27That was Ray.
23:29And here's a little oddity that I just found out today.
23:33Gus was born October 10, 1953.
23:38Ray was born October 14, 1954.
23:43Mrs. Williams had a rough year.
23:46She was busy. She was busy.
23:48How about that?
23:49Yeah, yeah, yeah.
23:50Two kids in 13 months.
23:53God bless her.
23:56So that Seattle team that had, well, Westfall was on that team, right?
24:02Lonnie Shelton, Jack Sickman.
24:05The starting lineup that won the championship.
24:08Jack Sickman.
24:09This is after they got rid of the human eraser.
24:14The eraser, yeah.
24:16Lonnie Shelton, who we'll talk about in a second.
24:19John Johnson, who was the Al Horford kind of presence on that team.
24:26He wasn't at that point.
24:28He was the only one.
24:29Four starters were 25 or under, and he was the only one who wasn't.
24:33He was the Al Horford of that team.
24:35D.J., who was in his second year.
24:37Remember when D.J., famously in Game 5 in 78, shot 0 for 14.
24:42In Game 5 in 78 when he lost.
24:45And then this year, D.J.'s the MVP.
24:48Yeah.
24:49And the favorite number of D.J. ever.
24:52In that series, Dennis Johnson, 6'4 guard, blocked 14 shots in five games.
24:59Wow.
25:01Eric White, eat your heart out.
25:03That's some shot blocking.
25:05Well, you know...
25:06D.J.
25:08Go ahead.
25:10Well, D.J., I once said, more than once said, was the most destructive guard I ever saw.
25:16He was a destructive physical presence in a guard position.
25:20That's imposing your will on a guy.
25:2214 shots, blocks in five games for a guard in the finals in 79.
25:27And he had his 20 points a game.
25:2920 points a game in that series, and he blocks 14 shots in five games.
25:32Okay.
25:33And Gus.
25:34And coming off the bench, downtown pretty.
25:36That was a damn good team.
25:38Very good team.
25:39Damn good team.
25:40And they kept it going for a couple more years.
25:42But, you know, they weren't as...
25:45But guess what?
25:46The Lakers were around.
25:47Right.
25:48You know.
25:49That's the arrest.
25:50The Lakers were around.
25:51The magic in the play.
25:54Yeah.
25:55So, there you go.
25:58So, R.I.P. Ray.
26:01Ray did...
26:02His life didn't end well.
26:03He suffered a stroke in 2020 and spent most of the last four years as an invalid, apparently.
26:10Really.
26:11Seriously, it's sad.
26:12And...
26:13But he's...
26:14They'll be trying to return him to Mount Vernon.
26:17You know, Bob, it's been...
26:19You know, I didn't know if you want to discuss it, but I'll bring it up in general terms.
26:24You know, Gus, it appears, didn't have a lot of money.
26:29What happens to these players?
26:30I mean, we know...
26:31Don't know what...
26:32What happens to these guys?
26:33NFL has had a problem.
26:34You know, I don't know.
26:35In this case, some just irresponsible.
26:36Look at what Antoine Walker did.
26:37You know, he squandered all his money until he realized.
26:38Now, he goes around giving motivational speeches.
26:39Don't be like me.
26:40It's...
26:41It's...
26:42It's...
26:43It's...
26:44It's...
26:45It's...
26:46It's...
26:47It's...
26:48It's...
26:49It's...
26:50It's...
26:51It's...
26:52It's...
26:54Don't be like me.
26:55It's Antoine Walker's speech.
26:56Maybe in a speech theme.
26:58I don't know about Gus.
26:59Frankly, I don't know the details about Gus.
27:01They didn't make the money.
27:03That's my point.
27:04I mean.
27:05Like he's got 70.
27:06so those guys didn't make any money.
27:08I bet that holdout brought him 200 grand.
27:10Maybe.
27:11You know, maybe.
27:12Maybe 250.
27:13Maybe not.
27:14Yeah.
27:15You know.
27:16Maybe it's gone up by a letter.
27:17Those athletes.
27:18I mean, you know, I remember, this is the only example I can come up with.
27:20Petrocelli used to tell me, he bought a gas station. You know he was pumping gas in the
27:24off-season. I mean these guys, they didn't start making money until the 80s.
27:29MR. KING It was still the era of looking for a second job for the most part,
27:37for some anyway. Yeah I don't know what he did but Gus will be fondly remembered in many places,
27:45and especially SC, where he's a Hall of Famer at USC, and then his hometown of Mount Vernon,
27:52which was a really good basketball town. So yeah.
27:55MR. KING One more thought coming up on an unhappy Jimmy Butler in just a minute,
28:01but first I have to tell you, it's game time. Game time, you get the app on your phone,
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29:35create an account, use code game time for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again,
29:41create an account and use the code game time to get $20. I want to know with Jimmy Butler.
29:50So here's a guy that was suspended for seven games by the Miami Heat. He doesn't want to play
29:55there anymore. He's 35 years old. And maybe he's just trying to shoot us way out of town because
30:00they're not going to pay him. He's due to get $100 million over the next two years.
30:05And they didn't pick up that option. So he's not going to get that money.
30:10He averaged 17.6 points per game. Is there a home for this guy?
30:18People are throwing around some teams. One team that people talk about is Phoenix.
30:22But what they're going to get back, I don't know. People would like to have the talent,
30:28but of course, along with the talent comes the attitude. And he's a perpetual malcontent.
30:35He was not happy in Chicago. He was not happy in Minnesota. Now he's not happy in Miami.
30:43His talent's unquestioned. How many times two years ago did we talk about our guys and how
30:49they need a dose of Jimmy Butler? Our friends, Tatum and Brown, they need that kind of a grit.
30:55He's a noted big game player. And that's built to an extent. I don't know to what full extent
31:01he's 35, but he can help with content. He could help put a team over the top if he went in there
31:06with the right attitude. But the problem is, to what extent do they have to rob their Peter to
31:13pay this Paul? I don't know. It's not easy to bring in. So it's a complicated thing. But when
31:21you do bring him in, boy, you better make him happy. Everybody knows that this is not any secret.
31:31It's no secret. Everybody knows. No, but I was really surprised. But the only upside, I think,
31:37is if you can swing a deal somehow, and obviously there's a financial albatross involved here.
31:42But if you somehow make it work, he seems to do okay at the beginning. So if you brought him on
31:50a contender, like I'm not saying the Celtics don't need Jimmy Butler. But if you brought him on a
31:55contender, like Phoenix, you mentioned, or as a veteran, I think he would be okay for a year or
32:04two. And then it's see you later. Because at the beginning, it's fine. I mean, Bob, I always knew
32:09who he was. And I thought he was a good player. Quite frankly, he surprised me in Miami. I didn't
32:14know he could take it to that level. I'm not sure. I won't disagree with you. I think he showed us all
32:21a lot there. No question. He showed him on a certain level when he proved that he was worthy
32:28of being on a higher level. That's fine. I agree with that. But he's just so specific. Everybody,
32:35you think about him and you think about two things, you know, the clutch play and the fact
32:40he's never happy, or seldom ever happy. So you know that's, but we're talking about a Hall of
32:47Fame talent. I mean, I can see him, you know, someday having to make that speech in Springfield.
32:53Bob, before I let you go, I want to- He goes and wins another one.
32:59What's that?
33:01If he ever goes and wins another one, he's definitely going to Springfield.
33:04Right, right, right, right. Bob, I'm going to change gears a little bit. Just your thoughts
33:11on Braybill becoming the head coach of the Patriots.
33:16Mike Braybill, I happen to have, well, I'm very happy. I'm very happy about it. I think he was
33:23an ideal choice for them. And I'm really looking forward to it. But this guy's
33:31whole career path, going back to Ohio State, is so consistently positive, is so consistently
33:41upward trending. He's a special guy. Funny you mention this, because I was reminded,
33:50and I knew I had written about him at one point when I was, you know, when he was with the Patriots.
33:55And it turned out, somebody posted this on Exeo today, the column, and I went and looked it up
34:00myself in 2004. And the things that people were saying about him are worth repeating. People
34:06should know how far back it goes, that he had this enormous respect, enormous, positive, you
34:15know, curated. Everybody loved him and respected him. The word intelligence and character and
34:22perspective and all, it was, oh, it's always been there. So he's, he's, he's, and he's far
34:28from through. Obviously, he's in a prime of coaching life at his age. And we're really
34:33lucky to have him. And I think a lot of teams would have liked to have had him. And what
34:36happened in Tennessee, a lot of it was a falling out with a GM. He wanted another guy. So he's got
34:45a strong opinion. Everybody's wondering, where does this leave Elliott Wolfe? I don't know for
34:50sure, frankly, about, I don't know. And I don't want to downplay the guy at all. But God knows,
34:57Ray Wolfe's father. If you can get brave of the players, you're going to be a contender.
35:02That I know. Yeah. Because he did it in Tennessee. And he did it with a quarterback
35:06that no, I mean, the quarterback was just okay. I mean, he took an okay quarterback and went to a
35:12conference title game and won coach of the year. If you get brave of the players, which he's
35:18obviously going to be involved in, you will be a contender. That it's going to take, but you will
35:24be a contender. It's certainly it that coaches need to be totally successful. And he has, I don't
35:34think anyone doubts that he has it. So we're lucky to have him. I'm happy. They're not going to go
35:39out and win 10 games next year. Oh, no, no, no, no. But you're going to enjoy having him as the
35:46coach. Yes. A quick story before I let you go. When Bravo graduated from Ohio State, he went to
35:52Pittsburgh and he kind of got lost in the linebacker thing there, defensive end rotation
35:56in Pittsburgh, even though he was the guy that blocked, forced the Drew Bledsoe fumble. But
36:03supposedly the Patriots, the players never watched Sports Tonight, you know, when we were on. What we
36:10learned during that time when the Patriots became very popular, we were the only show on television
36:15every day, like locally. So the Patriots watched us all the time. Everybody did. And if a particular
36:22Patriot wasn't watching, their friends were. So they make the deal and they bring in variable.
36:27And I wasn't a big college football fan guy, but I was like, who's Mike Vrabel? I mean, what's his
36:32key? And it turned out to be a great pickup, obviously, because Bill got him for short money
36:36and he was kind of lost in Pittsburgh and the guy needed a new beginning.
36:40So I said, who else is Mike Vrabel? You know how we can be snarky. Larry is a records it.
36:46And puts it on Vrabel's voicemail. So here I come to the locker room. Vrabel busted my chops
36:55forever. Yeah, good way. I mean, this just I mean, everybody loves it. I mean,
37:01Vrabel bust balls. I mean, that's what he does. Yeah. But he never let me forget it.
37:07He was able to deal with Belichick in that way. Right. There's a story about
37:15you know, Belichick was forever like as is Parcells. They were forever talking about
37:20how the wonders of Lawrence Taylor, you know, what a great, great player Lawrence Taylor was.
37:26So Vrabel comes out the next day with a giant helmet on.
37:29Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That was great. Bill loved it.
37:32Not many guys would have that, you know, had cojones to try to make fun of Bill,
37:38you know, and he did. And then you fast forward to that Tennessee game where
37:45Vrabel outcoached him. Yes. Oh, give me that. Oh, God. What a mental matchup that was.
37:52You know, the crime killer that that. Oh, yeah. He saved that with his backpack.
37:57Oh, no. We're lucky to have him. Yeah, there's no doubt about that.
38:00All right, Robert. Always a pleasure. We'll talk next week. We'll find Mr. Goodman,
38:04see what's going on there. Brought to you by PrizePix, the exclusive daily fantasy partner
38:08of the CLNS Media Network. Pick more, pick less with PrizePix. For Bob Ryan,
38:12I'm Gary Tangling. We'll see you next time.