The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Hour 1: Count Orlok's D*** At 7:45 In The Morning
Mon, 24 Feb 2025
Tony kicks off the hour with his latest NBA hot take: The New York Knicks are COOKED. After Tony defends his stance, Dan and Mike lead the crew toward other NBA storylines: Jimmy Butler finding his joy in Golden State, Wemby's season-ending injury, and the mess with the Philadelphia 76ers. They also check out the personal auction of Adrian Wojnarowski. Then, Greg Cote wants someone around the studio to cut his hair with clippers he brought in from home, but he has some particular requirements that person would have to meet before he lets anyone touch his head. Plus, the myth around Michael Jordan continues to build, the link between vampires and mustaches, and Greg's thoughts on Al Golden and the Cincinnati Bengals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chapter 1: Why does Tony believe the New York Knicks are cooked?
Tony has proclaimed, and I don't know who else has done this because this was a season of great expectations. Tony has proclaimed, and I don't know if he's first. the New York Knicks are cooked. Cooked. That you can watch Boston and Cleveland play and know that that team can't beat those two teams.
And it's stark to see because when the Knicks had Mitchell Robinson, they destroyed the Cleveland front court in a way that took me totally off guard. The changes between those two franchises, when the Knicks have indeed elevated to see Cleveland elevate that much more, where you're like, holy shit, Boston's having all sorts of trouble keeping up with Cleveland.
I don't know if it's just because Mobley's usage rate is something that they're working around more, but the New York Knicks have a better team than they've had. This team is better than the last two Brunson-led teams. Like, I'd rather have Carl Anthony Towns and Bridges in this kind of offense, but they're not as good as the top of their conference. That part's obvious.
It's not just that they have some problems at home. Those two teams, Cleveland and Boston, look better than them.
Dan, the Knicks are officially cooked. Confirmed. Thank you. Here's the thing, right? They're 0-7 against the top teams between OKC and the two teams in the East, being Boston and Cleveland. They got spanked by Boston, got spanked by Cleveland. The issue is this. They have an elite offense between Jalen Brunson, between Carl Anthony Towns, who's been playing amazing, Bridges, Hart.
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Chapter 2: What are the current NBA storylines discussed?
All these guys are very good on offense. Their problem has been defensively, Carl Anthony Towns might be the worst defender in the NBA. They're drop-coveraging on everybody. Luka was like the worst defender. No, no. Statistically, if you look up some of the advanced stats on Karl-Anthony Towns, he is legitimately the worst defender in the NBA.
So when you have guys like Porzingis, when you have guys like Mobley, just in the East, that are going to give him trouble, it's like this Knicks team was supposed to be built to beat those teams. They're, what, 38-19, 38-20, whatever they are right now, and they are not even close.
I don't know how many people do sort of the defensive metrics required to understand what Gobert was doing for Carl Anthony Towns in Minnesota. Everything, Dan. Well, but made that the best Minnesota team of my lifetime. Minnesota has fallen back, at least in part, because they can't pair those two guys together anymore, and they had to just get out from under salary.
Like, Minnesota, how often do you see that happening? in today's day and age, where a team doesn't feel like it could keep its best team together in basketball because Carl Anthony Towns got traded and all of us were like, we know he's a very nice player and that's exactly the kind of player that New York would want, but also that's a hell of a lot of money and I think he's a number two.
Well, we just saw Dallas do it with Luka. So that's kind of the most extreme example where they're like, I don't know if we can keep this team together with Luka going forward as our supermax player.
But when you look at some of the stuff that Gobert was taking off the plate of Carl Anthony Towns, he was able to kind of make him into a three where he didn't have to really worry about playing defense. Now, if you're the anchor of a defense like... Hartenstein was a couple of years ago where you let him walk and then you're waiting on Mitchell Robinson. I love that you said it that way.
That's how you say it.
I know. I love that you did. Thank you. So you're hoping that Mitchell Robinson, who hasn't played in two seasons, is the lifeline that's going to save the defense that Tom Thibodeau puts his hat on.
Mitchell Robinson, who Mike Ryan calls trash.
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Chapter 3: How is Jimmy Butler impacting the Golden State Warriors?
Stephen A. Smith has said the Jimmy Butler trade that he dismissed as a nothing trade, he has tweeted, I may have been wrong. Whoa. It's been only five or six games. Only five or six games. And now he threatens to be wrong both times because he's willing to walk back based on the strength of six performances. They're four and one since requirement. And they're blowing people out.
Yeah, they just destroyed Dallas.
They're winning. They're winning easily. But it's five or six games. And you're talking about they're getting into the 130s and 140s. And the game looks like it's being made easier for Steph. That's interesting to watch, right? Because when... I don't know if when you were watching the Warriors, if all of us to the eye could tell how or where Klay was slowing.
I don't know where the prime of careers are anymore because Ovechkin doing this at 39 is wildly confusing to me. Three goals yesterday, he's going to break a record I never thought was broken. He's 39 years old. How is any of that possible?
He's going to do it in a season where he missed extended periods of time. It's unbelievable what Ovechkin is doing.
I can't understand how all of aging has changed in sports that makes it so that I would think that Jimmy Butler going in there at that age isn't going to have all that much left in the tank, but maybe 35 with all that mileage. Thibodeau mileage, just all the mileage on that body. Maybe there is something there that Golden State has not had as it tries.
The final furnace of fumes that there are on Draymond Green, on whatever all of that is, that Jimmy Butler can bring something to that team it hasn't had.
I think that's the part that you're hoping Draymond can somehow recapture a little bit of his old Draymond ways because you've got Steph who now can kind of take a step back, let Jimmy take some of the offensive load off of him. The problem is they're a really small team.
If you look around like who the Warriors have, it's like how are you going to compete with the big teams out west that have Jokic, that have like a Gobert inside? There's just too much where the Warriors are like, all right, we're just going to play small ball and Draymond hopefully can recapture something, but if not, eh. Jamie, get us a bucket.
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Chapter 4: What is the issue with Philadelphia 76ers management?
And you're like, oh, I'm home. Oh, we work here. And then like you'd go in and you'd save like $35. I have not done it since I've left. So I don't know if that is something that still works or not. I don't know if any of my coworkers here are bold enough to tell us that they've done this or not. But $250 could get you free parking at Disney for life.
I just need to understand more details. Is Woj selling some of his personal memorabilia in order to raise money as part of fundraising for his new venture as general manager of the Bonneys? Yeah, you got it.
That is correct. You understood it. His personal effects.
How many of these are Darren Revell going to scoop up?
Ooh. Can we find out what some of the prices are on some of these things?
I can tell you all the prices. What do you want to know? The Paul George Kawhi to the Clippers phone is currently being offered for $350. You could buy all of Woj's stuff if you wanted to. NBA suspending the season due to COVID, $525 is the high right now. That's a big phone. Now, his 2023 NBA draft credential. Didder. Also known as the Wemby draft. $200 right now.
What's dinner with Woj going for?
That just says limited available. Let's click it here. Oh, the offer price right now. It doesn't say, but the example is $2,000 to have dinner with Woj.
He's picking up the tab, right?
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Chapter 5: Why is Adrian Wojnarowski auctioning personal items?
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Chapter 6: What are Greg Cote's haircut requirements?
I just thought that it's a self-shaving kit. You could do this for yourself. It's supposed to be something that you're doing for yourself.
No, it's impossible to do it yourself. Hold on a second. Because then you'd be going like this. Hold on a second.
I think I can help you, Greg, because Roy has told us that he shaves his own head. Roy gives himself his own haircuts. So Roy's used this equipment before. Yeah, but I shaved my head. He's not going to want a bald head. Well, he didn't say.
No, I want to start with a one or a two on the side and work up. That's a lot, by the way. One is what I have on the side. One is really short. Start with a two or a three. A little higher.
And remember, fade is the word you use.
The fade. Fade it up. I need a fade expert.
You want somebody to give you a fade?
Tight fade.
I'll call my boy Lucas. We'll bring him back. All right. We're going to do this or not.
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Chapter 7: How does Greg Cote's podcast rank its guests?
Well, batting 100 is bad. 100 out of 138 is not batting 100.
I was told we were all threes in this room, which is not great.
But all the threes are making it. That's proprietary information, first of all.
All the threes are making it. What do you mean it's proprietary information? The podcast is out. No. That's next week's episode. We're previewing the talk.
You broke the news.
You leaked it. I'm sorry. Furman's going to be pissed.
No, Furman's not on it. Confirmed. That's a very abrupt trail. Everybody who makes the list, there's a reason for it.
That was a hastily produced... The confirmand needed more echo. How do you not hear the confirmand needs to be bassier?
Confirmand.
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