The Ryen Russillo Podcast
Jay Bilas Talks Final Four, Flagg Vs. Zion, Early NBA Draft Thoughts, and the Future of College Hoops
Tue, 01 Apr 2025
Russillo is joined by Jay Bilas to preview the Final Four and share his thoughts on each team, break down what makes Cooper Flagg so good, and discuss the future of college sports (1:11). Plus, Life Advice with Ceruti and Kyle (1:00:25)! How hot do you have to be to run shirtless? Check us out on YouTube for exclusive clips, livestreams, and more at https://www.youtube.com/@RyenRussilloPodcast. The Ringer is committed to responsible gaming. Please visit www.rg-help.com to learn more about the resources and helplines available. Host: Ryen Russillo Guest: Jay Bilas Producers: Steve Ceruti, Kyle Crichton, Mike Wargon, and Jonathan Frias Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chapter 1: What teams are competing in this year's Final Four?
I was reading like, Hey, these are four historic net rating one seed teams. And if you want to go chalk with your bracket, it might not be a bad idea. And it ends up being the right idea. So I just want to start with Duke because I think they've been the most impressive. We could talk roster and all this stuff. Um,
You know, whether it's Cooper, you know, sign James being the fourth option at times like I watched him going because I'm late to it. I get into the conference championship stuff, but I've been really, really excited about this tournament, even though we haven't had the buzzer beaters. But I think I just start here with impressive as they are. How do you attack this Duke team?
Well, you'd better be big and athletic and deep in order to handle them and skill. I think Florida is in a good position to be successful against Duke. Whether they win or not, we'll see. Uh, and Houston's got a chance because they are really tough and rugged and tempo control and they can shoot it. That's a big difference from last year's Houston team.
I think, I think Houston would have beaten Duke last year. If Jamal shed hadn't gotten hurt in the first half of that sweet 16 game, but, uh, Duke is way different this year. Um, they're the most talented team. Uh, they're as deep as anybody, uh, And their athleticism and length on both ends of the floor is really difficult to deal with over a 40 minute period.
Uh, but look, all these teams are capable of winning this thing. Um, usually don't say that when you go to the final four, like I didn't think last year, um, I didn't think anybody was going to be Yukon once they got there, even Purdue, but I didn't think NC state or Alabama could do it. Um, This year, I think each of the four teams has a legitimate shot to walk away with this thing.
They have to play well and have things break their way. But there's nobody that I think stands head and shoulders above, even though Duke has played the best since the tournament started.
I don't know if it's me jumping into it late and not being with it all the time, but when I think about the consistency of a team's effort and the consistency of their communication, like Tennessee did it really well. There's others like Michigan State's always going to be prepared for this kind of stuff. I think Houston is in that category.
But watching the communication still with college players here of understanding how they want to switch things, who's helping where, Is this new? To see guys just be this locked in at this level, I don't know if it's better coaching.
I don't know if it's better response to coaching, but I find it to be really, really impressive at the college level to see a team locked in for 40 minutes the way we've seen from a handful of these teams.
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Chapter 2: How does Jay Bilas analyze Duke's team and Cooper Flagg's impact?
and wasn't really recruited for basketball. So he goes to Iowa and plays for Patino, played in the NCAA tournament against UConn. They got beat, and then he transfers to Florida. And he was almost this good last year offensively. But he's a way better defender now. Their whole team has taken a leap from being in the 90s in defensive efficiency to being top 10.
Like your point about the four teams, all four teams in the Final Four are ranked in the top 10 in both offense and defense, which is really unusual to have that many teams that can do that. But I think Florida, with their size, their offensive rebounding, their big guys are skilled. And they're they're physical and tough.
They're they're going to be if Duke played them, that would, I think, be probably the toughest matchup for both that they would see all year.
Is there anything to take from the Florida matchup then when they beat Auburn at their place by nine beginning of February? Is there something that you would see from that game? You're like, hey, that's fluky, but that's repeatable.
I don't know if it was fluky. They didn't have Elijah Martin. So I did that game with Dan Schulman. And going into the game, we were thinking, God, I hope Florida is going to be competitive in this one without Martin. And he had like a hip thing going on, if I remember right, because it's been over a month. Um, and then they wind up, I think Florida got down early.
They were down like nine or something and they wind up winning. They dribbled out the clock. They like one by nine or 10, whatever the score was. And I remember going, man, these guys are legit. Uh, Denzel Aberdeen steps up off the bench and, uh, urban club char their Serbian guard or excuse me, Slovenian guard. he can really shoot it. And he's a good handler, good passer.
He's not a great defender, but that's the only knock you can have on him. But their big guys are, are tough to deal with. You know, they're like this, the way they seal off help. If you drive, they'll basically seal off a shot blocker and they do it better than any team I've seen other teams do it, but they don't do it as well as Florida does.
So look, they've got, they've got everything you need to win. But so do the other three teams. That's sort of the challenge of this thing is I think both the semifinal games have a bit of a coin flip feel to them. But I do like the fact that like for Auburn, I think having been beaten by them at home gives them an edge in prep, not in play.
Like, I don't think that stuff matters once a game starts. I think it matters in your preparation, your mindset, all that stuff. I think that's really helpful. in that week, in the days leading up to the Final Four. And Houston has something similar because they lost to Duke last year and they felt like they were better. And this is kind of their opportunity to prove it and prove it on this stage.
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Chapter 3: What makes Florida and Houston strong contenders in the Final Four?
Yeah. I think there's probably four guys. And like I've said, I, I have much more to do. I don't know that. I don't know if Derek queen goes one last year. No. Yeah. Uh, I don't think fears would. Right. Cause I think you're still talking about research with a shot making in that size.
Um, and by the way, like as he's closing, I mean, you're starting to realize that cause I remember doing all the research stuff. I'm like, this guy's going to go number one. And at least now as he's played out his rookie year, like, okay, this, this makes sense. Like,
They, you know, where Saar, it almost felt like, are they just taking this big guy because he's really mobile and he thinks he can shoot and, you know, look to Saar's credit, he's put up really good numbers. He's consistently kept shooting the ball and he's had some really good splits on, on certain months. You know, who I think is like fascinating is Danny Wolfe. Because he's so different.
I don't know that he'll measure at seven feet. I know that it's what he's listed at. But he's basically a guard in a big guy's body in the strangest way that I think I've ever seen it. It's not, oh, hey, he's Dirk or he's Porzingis who had some nice perimeter skills or somebody who's north of seven feet.
But watching him at Michigan this year and seeing like how comfortable he is just getting into the triple threat dribble drive stuff. And he's basically playing outside because they have golden. So it's not like you're going to post him, but he starts at Yale and he has this year at Michigan.
He should be a first round pick, but he's a, he's a really interesting, I hope whatever team takes him, like understands what you need to let him do to be him as opposed to like, Oh, we have this seven footer with some ball skills.
Yeah, and I think anybody that takes him would value what he can do. And, look, if I've seen it, I can't remember it. I don't remember, you know, middle, third pick and roll with two seven-footers. And Dusty May ran that a lot with those guys. And, you know, you got Vlad Golden rolling down the middle with Danny Wolf handling it. And he's a legit passer.
He turns it over a little more than you would want, but that's not something that – that can't be overcome. And, uh, but I, I like him a lot. And, uh, and I think he'll be able to, he'll, he'll continue to refine his shooting and he'll be able to play in more space. Like there's just more space in the NBA, um, because most everybody they put on the floor can shoot it.
And in college, that's, you don't see as much of that. That's one of the fun parts to me about watching the NBA is like, man, they make every open shot. You give them an open shot, they make it. In college, you can leave some guys open, and they're not going to make those, certainly as often. I mean, the best players in the NBA came from college, most of them, except for the international guys.
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Chapter 4: Who are the key players to watch in Auburn's lineup and the NBA draft?
And if you're running next to Jocko here, full tats at like 10 to 15, if he's at 10%, like, I think the difference between 10 and 15% body fat is like significant. At least like it's not I wouldn't say it's a health thing or your weight thing necessarily, but it is going to be something that looks a lot different. That would just be my guess from 15 to 10.
You're going to look like a completely different dude. So if you're running next to that guy again, bring it back to Jamaica. I remember DJing there. Dudes tarps off all the time. There's a jack guy in the crew. It sucked and I don't want to stand next to him. I think somebody even said something like, Hey, I'm going to make sure I stand next to her solo and not that guy.
And then that planted the seed to one day be like, you will be jacked one day.
Yeah.
I never, I never want to be the guy somebody wants to stand next to if we have an option in the grill. Um, so yeah, I, I think it's, um, I think guys are pretty supportive.
It sounds like guys are, I don't think we're, there's a judgment free zone from the guys.
So who are any of us to say, Hey, put a shirt on. I think it, I wouldn't say it. You're right about that. Okay. All right. Uh, wrongfully paid bonus, five, 10, 200 pounds, no NBA comp, no gym stats, but it'd be a hell of a hang at the frolic. The subject line says it all. I was wrong. I've wrongfully paid my urine bonus. I manage a sales team in the alcohol industry.
My team works on a 100% commission while I make a reasonable salary and have a few opportunities a year to trigger a bonus. Uh, The portfolio we represented is fairly sizable, so most of my reps make more than I do unless I hit my bonuses. That doesn't really bother me as it incentivizes them to always be looking for opportunity because I don't have the world's most fragile ego.
I also came up working in bars and restaurants where the jump to management always means a decrease in pay. I'm sure Ryan can attest. Yeah, I mean, that's always one of the best things about managing a bar. You're like, cool, now I make less than... Everybody that's bartending here and I have all the responsibility.
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