The Bill Simmons Podcast
Mavs Fans in Hell, Bleak NFL Situations, an Oscars Recap and RIP Gene Hackman | With Peter Schrager and Wesley Morris
Tue, 04 Mar 2025
The Ringer's Bill Simmons sympathizes with Mavericks fans after the report that Kyrie Irving will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL (0:00), before he is joined Peter Schrager to discuss the NFL combine, Matt Stafford remaining with the Rams, Aaron Rodgers’s next team, several QB-desperate teams, possible scenarios at the top of the NFL draft (8:55), as well as worst-situation NFL franchises, newly optimistic teams, the Bengals' quest to pay all four of their star players, and more (36:20). Finally Bill talks with Wesley Morris about the Oscars (01:07:35), before remembering the great Gene Hackman (01:45:06). Host: Bill Simmons Guests: Peter Schrager and Wesley Morris Producers: Kyle Crichton and Chia Hao Tat Get almost, almost anything. Order today in the Uber Eats app. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chapter 1: Why are the Mavericks fans upset about Kyrie Irving?
Welcome to the Bill Simmons podcast. Before we get to the pod, I want to talk about Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks and this crazy situation. Kyrie out for the year, tore his ACL, came out today. And Kyrie is, I've had a rollercoaster ride with over the years where didn't really like him on Cleveland.
LeBron showed up, really liked him, didn't like him as much, came to my favorite team, was all in. It couldn't have ended worse. Became probably my least favorite basketball player. Goes to Brooklyn. That goes terrible. Goes to Dallas. You guys are so stupid. And then over the last two years, or last maybe year and a half, I really grew to like him as a basketball player.
I liked how he talked about everything, how he took some responsibility. It was like everything I wanted from an athlete. I really liked watching him and I grew to respect and like him as a player. And they make this Luka trade. It is the least popular, most shocking, most indefensible trade in the history of the league. It's getting worse by the day. The fans are just so angry.
They are like scorn lovers multiplied by 100. They raised the season ticket prices this week. Everybody goes nuts again. This is the angriest fan base that we've had in a while. And here's Kyrie, who's, by the way, they're putting crazy minutes on him. He's in the 2010 draft. or 2011 draft. He's been in the league for a while. He's a point guard.
He's playing the last six weeks, 38.7 minutes, which led the league. So they're throwing this huge burden on a guy who hasn't exactly been Cal Ripken Jr., And they're talking about how they rebuilt themselves. This was about a title window. They trade for Davis. He gets hurt in the first game. They put this crazy load on Kyrie. He breaks down. It's after the trade deadline.
They have their first round pick next year. And what we've seen with this injury over the years is it's almost a two-year injury. You lose the guy this year. But even when he comes back, we saw this happen with Jamal Murray in Denver. Either they don't come back the season after or when they come back, they're not the same person. So you almost have to think you lose a year and a half.
They don't have control of their own pick from 27 to 30. And on top of this, They have to watch Luka, who's already rejuvenated. You can see it. When we talk about face of the league, face of the league, like Luka on the most famous basketball franchise we have, all due respect to the Celtics. You can watch the Celtics City documentary. But the Lakers, I think, are the...
the premier franchise in the league. The Celtics are the most successful. The Lakers are in LA. They've had the most stars. Luka's in there now. There's an energy that's completely different at these games. And the Maverick fans who already got kicked in the nuts with this trade in the worst way I think we've ever seen in basketball.
Now they have to watch this guy blossom as their team already just fell apart. And You know, I tweeted this earlier today and I really mean it. I went to those three 2011 finals games in Dallas when they came back and they beat Miami. They actually lost the first game, which was Dwayne Wade, I think the best game I've ever seen him play.
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Chapter 2: What are the latest NFL trade rumors and possibilities?
I mean, the movie seems like it's doing OK, but my point, my larger point is this is just me saying once again to you, Bill, that the IP is still I think people are now tired of the IP even. Right.
Like we did.
The IP is worn out. It's welcome.
We did Rocky for the rewatchables that went up last night. And Rocky won Best Picture.
Wait, you guys have never done Rocky?
We did three and four. Rocky is now a prequel for Rocky III. That was part of my case for not doing it. Rocky III is the best movie of the 80s. I agree. I mean, sort of. Rocky wins. All the president's men, network and taxi driver don't win. And then you go to the best actor. And it's just you're just looking at it like, oh, my God. And granted, it was almost 50 years ago. Like, oh, my God.
Look at the movies we were making. Go back to 2014. Right.
Was that the year that Gravity and was that the year of Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity, American Hustle?
Yeah, 12 Years a Slave, Captain Phillips, Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity, Her, Nebraska, The Wolf of Wall Street.
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Chapter 7: What were the key takeaways from the NFL combine?
Welcome to the Bill Simmons podcast. Before we get to the pod, I want to talk about Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks and this crazy situation. Kyrie out for the year, tore his ACL, came out today. And Kyrie is, I've had a rollercoaster ride with over the years where didn't really like him on Cleveland.
LeBron showed up, really liked him, didn't like him as much, came to my favorite team, was all in. It couldn't have ended worse. Became probably my least favorite basketball player. Goes to Brooklyn. That goes terrible. Goes to Dallas. You guys are so stupid. And then over the last two years, or last maybe year and a half, I really grew to like him as a basketball player.
I liked how he talked about everything, how he took some responsibility. It was like everything I wanted from an athlete. I really liked watching him and I grew to respect and like him as a player. And they make this Luka trade. It is the least popular, most shocking, most indefensible trade in the history of the league. It's getting worse by the day. The fans are just so angry.
They are like scorn lovers multiplied by 100. They raised the season ticket prices this week. Everybody goes nuts again. This is the angriest fan base that we've had in a while. And here's Kyrie, who's, by the way, they're putting crazy minutes on him. He's in the 2010 draft. or 2011 draft. He's been in the league for a while. He's a point guard.
He's playing the last six weeks, 38.7 minutes, which led the league. So they're throwing this huge burden on a guy who hasn't exactly been Cal Ripken Jr., And they're talking about how they rebuilt themselves. This was about a title window. They trade for Davis. He gets hurt in the first game. They put this crazy load on Kyrie. He breaks down. It's after the trade deadline.
They have their first round pick next year. And what we've seen with this injury over the years is it's almost a two-year injury. You lose the guy this year. But even when he comes back, we saw this happen with Jamal Murray in Denver. Either they don't come back the season after or when they come back, they're not the same person. So you almost have to think you lose a year and a half.
They don't have control of their own pick from 27 to 30. And on top of this, They have to watch Luka, who's already rejuvenated. You can see it. When we talk about face of the league, face of the league, like Luka on the most famous basketball franchise we have, all due respect to the Celtics. You can watch the Celtics City documentary. But the Lakers, I think, are the...
the premier franchise in the league. The Celtics are the most successful. The Lakers are in LA. They've had the most stars. Luka's in there now. There's an energy that's completely different at these games. And the Maverick fans who already got kicked in the nuts with this trade in the worst way I think we've ever seen in basketball.
Now they have to watch this guy blossom as their team already just fell apart. And You know, I tweeted this earlier today and I really mean it. I went to those three 2011 finals games in Dallas when they came back and they beat Miami. They actually lost the first game, which was Dwayne Wade, I think the best game I've ever seen him play.
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