Rice on the Mics
Welcome to "Rice on the Mics", where sports talk comes with no script, no filter, and just the right amount of chaos. Hosted by Ian Rice, this is the spot for real fans who love the game but aren’t afraid to call out the bad takes, blown calls, and overpaid benchwarmers. Whether it's a legendary performance, a brutal choke job, or your fantasy team crashing and burning, we’re here to break it down like it’s last call at the bar. No corporate PR spin, no forced debates—just unfiltered sports talk with passion, personality, and maybe a little trash talk along the way. If you’re looking for stats read off a teleprompter, you’re in the wrong place. But if you want bold opinions, real conversations, and the kind of debates that might get a drink thrown at you, pull up a mic and let’s go.
Rice on the Mics
Brunson's Game Winner: Knicks Drama and MLB Showdowns
Jalen Brunson proves he's "that guy" with a clutch 40-point performance to push the Knicks past Detroit into Round 2, but is Tom Thibodeau the coach who can maximize this team's potential? The Game 5 coaching meltdown raises serious questions about Thibs' ability to make adjustments when they matter most.
Around the NBA, the Bucks face an uncertain future after being eliminated by the Pacers. With Giannis watching his championship window potentially closing and Dame Lillard recovering from injury, teams are circling like sharks. Could we see Giannis become available? Meanwhile, Denver looks increasingly dangerous with Jamal Murray heating up and Jokić controlling games like he's running Saturday morning YMCA pickup.
On the diamond, Aaron Judge continues his torrid pace, hitting an astounding .427 in April as the Yankees set MLB history with back-to-back games featuring three consecutive home runs to open the contest. The Mets may have dropped their first home series, but with the best ERA and record in baseball, they remain formidable even without Juan Soto hitting to his full potential.
NFL draft fallout includes the shocking tumble of Shedeur Sanders to the fifth round. Was it NFL teams sticking it to Coach Prime or legitimate concerns about his football IQ? The reports suggest Sanders struggled badly in team meetings, including being unable to draw up plays on command.
For Jets fans, there's cautious optimism that the team finally has a coherent plan. The bar isn't set high – just make the playoffs and end the drought that has lasted through the entire tenure of the recently deceased Pope. With a smashmouth football approach and improved discipline, there's reason to believe this could finally be their year.
Have thoughts? Call the show at 732-588-6869 or slide into the DMs @riceontheradio – you might just find yourself featured on next week's episode!
I guess there's only one way to find out. Let's do it to it right. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0. All engines running Liftoff. We have a liftoff. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, welcome, welcome.
Speaker 1:Soto's finally lighting up City. Two home runs. Unfortunately, the Mets dropped their first home series of the year. But you know what? There's a lot of games left to be played. Brunson yeah, he's him. Game winner, 40 points. Sends, sends the pistons to aruba, drags this team into a round. Two celtics, buzzsaw, pacers, calves, please. We already know where that's headed. We're firing on all cylinders tonight, boys. Fibs deserves a good chewing out. Mets and yanks are cruising right along and we're breaking down how the team's post-draft made out. I got it all today. Welcome back to Rice on the Mics. Let's go All right, let's get right into it.
Speaker 1:Jalen Brunson, the godfather to some of my friend's kids. Game winner, 40 points, absolute ice in his veins. He dragged the Knicks out of Detroit into round two. When the lights were the brightest, his heart slowed down. Brunson showed up Special, just like Tibbs called him in the postgame. But here's where I want to flip the script and really talk about it. Get into it, tom Thibodeau. Listen. Knicks fans enjoy the win. Okay, it's great, but let's not ignore the bigger picture here.
Speaker 1:Game five was an absolute disaster. It was a meltdown. You held the timeout in your pocket for over two minutes, while your clutch player of the year, jalen Brunson the guy who leads the entire league in points in the final three minutes of the game stood on the sideline next to Josh Hart waiting to check in. Meanwhile, you're funneling the offense through fucking Mitchell Robinson Okay, like he's the go-to guy over Cat, over OG, over Bridger. What are we doing, guys? And what happened happened? The series slept. It gave detroit life. You forced the team into an unnecessary game. Six on the road. You haven't closed out in new york since 1998. I was seven years old.
Speaker 1:Tonight. Look at the difference. Brunson was on the floor for the final three minutes, taking the game over, closing the door and delivering when it mattered the most. That's what great players do and don't get it twisted. Nick fans, we have a great player in Brunson, great coaching, great coaching. Make sure the the best guy on your team is on the floor when it player in Brunson Great coaching, great coaching. Make sure the best guy on your team is on the floor when it matters most, not stuck at the scores table waiting to fucking check in. Looked like he was sitting next to Anne Hathaway and Tracy Morgan, and that's the deeper problem with FIBS.
Speaker 1:Okay, it's not just about the timeouts, it's about the adjustments, the flexibility, the feel for the game. Spolstra adjusts, missoula adjusts hell, even Bickerstaff adjust this series Thibs, he's stuck in his way, man. I know the guys play for him and they love him, and this is going to be a hard conversation in this offseason to have with Knicks fans. But is he the guy to take you over the hump? Okay, is he Spolstra? Or is he Buck Showalter? Is he the guy that builds the culture and gets you set up, or is he the guy that pushes you over the hump? Because Brunson is entering his prime and this core is in place? You can't afford to be the team with an old school coach in a new school league.
Speaker 1:Boston's up next. Celtics are deep rested and ready to go and the Cavs probably run through the Pacers. So the East feels like it's on rails. But hey man, look, if the Knicks want to punch above their weight, it's going to take Brunson going nuclear and Big Cat stepping up like he's supposed to be, and also Thib's getting the fuck out of the way. Okay, if not, don't be surprised if it's Celtics in five. They give a fun game at home or something.
Speaker 1:But this is going to spark a very, very real conversation about future roster moves and potentially future coaching moves. Mike Malone was an assistant on this staff a little while ago. You're going to tell me his offensive prowess wouldn't fit in great with this team. Now moves would have to be made, and who knows what those moves could be. But you're going to tell me his offensive prowess wouldn't fit in great with this team. Now moves would have to be made, and who knows what those moves could be. But that game five was alone enough to spark the conversation of.
Speaker 1:Thanks for being here, julius Randle, thanks for being here, tibbs, but we got it from here. Wouldn't be the playoffs if we didn't swing around the league a little bit, because the trauma has been ridiculous. First off, the Bucs gone, like I called Giannis and Dame, all that star power bounced by the Pacers and here's a side note that nobody saw coming. Bounced by the Pacers. And here's a side note that nobody saw coming Halliburton's dad walking onto the court and getting nose-to-nose with Giannis. Look, I get the excitement, I get being pumped up for your son, but all bark and no bite against a 7'1 animal is crazy. Okay, I give props to the Pacers for stepping in and I give props for Hallie for stepping in. The post conference, right after the game, hallie basically said I don't agree with what my dad did. It's got to be tough to go to a press conference in front of basically the world and not have your dad's back. So now they're barring him from future games going forward. So that's a nice little tidbit, but the real takeaway here the Bucs are entering a dangerous phase.
Speaker 1:Okay, you got Giannis watching his window close right in front of him. Dame is recovering from a brutal injury now that he probably won't be back for close to two years which coincidentally happens to be how long Giannis' contract is for and they have no draft capital. You better believe teams are circling Giannis like sharks. And yeah, I said it before on here, miami or Brooklyn makes a bunch of sense if the wheels come off. I think Giannis has been Pat Riley's white whale and Brooklyn has so many first round picks and they're dying to have some form of shine or relevancy because they're sharing the town with the knicks, but, but, but. But in what world would it take for the knicks to get them? I mean, you'd have to part with big cat right away, and probably OG and Bridges. Well, I mean you gave up five first-rounders, but is it worth signing him right now? So those three in a package, maybe Deuce, maybe you get some people back. I look at it like this when I look at Brunson and Big Cat, I think, yeah, maybe this is the duo that can get me to the finals. But if I look at giannis and brunson, that is the duo that can have a parade down the canyon of heroes. That's the duo that screams promised land. Now, is it possible? Probably just pipe dreams, but worth a shot, right, worth a conversation.
Speaker 1:Meanwhile, in the West, the Lakers Done Out that CBS dream matchup of a LeBron Lakers team against the Celtics or hometown Cavs. Dead and gone, buried. Ant-man is the truth. Honestly, lakers feel like not gonna hit reset. But JJ Reddick's press conferences have gone from charming to a little douchey and I loved jj as a player. I not a duke fan, but I love him at duke and you know he was a great player. But he's trying this whole belichick kind of dickhead to the media thing. Maybe that works with the players but kind of doesn't in the NBA. And your team just traded for maybe the best player in the league, a guy that LeBron himself is willing to take a step back for, and as soon as you're eliminated you start calling out guys, calling out the guy about his conditioning and then also saying that yeah, we had a bigger hole than expected after trading ed, basically hinting that like half the roster is getting shipped out. They need size and they need shooting. They need a full makeover is what they need.
Speaker 1:And if you're, lebron, heading into your 23rd year, you're watching this offseason very closely. I I mean, look, he's always got a hand in everything roster related and he's 1,000% coming back. He can talk and play. Like, oh yeah, I don't know if I'm going to come back. I've got to talk to my team. You're coming back. It's probably going to be your last year for number 23 in your 23rd year. The All-Star game is played in LA next year. So he was played in LA next year. So who are you trying to kid? You're coming back, but it's a tough look.
Speaker 1:In Laker town and on the flip side of the West, denver just looks ooh, they got a tough matchup with the Clippers. But if they can get through the Clippers, denver looks terrifying. Jamal Murray is going off and Joker, he's basically coaching from the floor. I mean he looks like he's running the Saturday morning YMCA. He's calling subs, he's calling rotations, he's setting guys on out. He's just making everybody better, which he always does. So if they can make it past the Clippers here sorry, kawhi, but Nuggets might be on to something here.
Speaker 1:Circling back last to the east, here we've got Cavs Pacers and look, I can't stand, hallie, but I kind of like the story. The problem is that the Pacers are all offense, no defense, and offense stays good at home but doesn't travel on the road meanwhile, where the Cavs are like built for this. Okay, you got a spurn coach, you got Donovan Mitchell, you got all the guys. Seems like it's pretty much penciled in the. The Cavs roll through, celtics roll through and the Eastern Conference Finals is all set. So yeah, look, there's always chaos involved, but I get a sense we're barreling towards something pretty inevitable. Hey, man, that's why you watch, though you never know what you're going to get. Nba is known to throw a curveball or two at your way, but also it's also known to be pretty chalk. We'll see where things go. All right, let's switch over to the diamond Plenty going on in that league.
Speaker 1:Yankees first. And look, I said last week Carlos Rodon looked like he was finally getting together. And credit where credit is due, man. That's now three straight strong outings, six plus innings, just two runs perfect through five. Fifteen to three, blowout win over Baltimore. And the Bats Fifteen to three. Oh, my own Absurd Grisham Judge, ben Rice, shout out, rice on the mics, go back to back to back to open the game. Six total homers. And here's the craziest thing. It didn't even make sense when I wrote it down. The Yankees are the first team in MLB history to open two games in the same season with three straight home runs. I don't even get it after. I just said it out loud. But hey, god bless you know.
Speaker 1:But unfortunately, then came Wednesday night. Oriole stole the series with a 5-4 win, even though aaron judge, who stays red hot because, again, he is the premier hitter. I will give credit where credit is due. Everybody thinks I'm a yankee hater, and I am, but I'll give credit where credit's due. Judge is the premier hitter in this league, it's Aaron Judge. And then a big gap and then the list starts Okay, finishes with a two-run homer, two singles and he finished hitting .427. Guy's hitting fucking .430 in April Doesn't get much more impressive than that. But what wasn't impressive in that game is cookie caresco, someone who, to be fair, shouldn't even probably be in the rotation anyway. But hey man, you know what we make do with what we
Speaker 1:got right. The bullpen couldn't hold it. They had the lead, devin williams loses his closer role, etc. Etc. Look, I don't know. Look, it's fucked. Not fucked, but not great either. If Cole was here and Rodan and Freed were pitching how they are right now, people would be bowing at the altar of the Yankees. But he's not here and they're doing what they can. So the bullpen's an issue and even with all the firepower, you drop two or three to a division rival. That's what now scored 46-14 in the last four home games. 46-14 in the last four home games. That's fucking insane. How is Baltimore not worse? I mean, I know they're not living up to their potential, but Jesus, look, judge is carrying, not worse. I mean, I know they're not living up to their potential, but Jesus Look, judge is carrying right, rodon and Freed are locked in. The Yankees have some chinks in the armor that need to get addressed, but they're doing
Speaker 1:just fine. Let's talk about the big elephant in the room. Okay, stan, your boy, mike Giancarlo, staying giancarlo. No, someone, no parlo, just got put on the 60 dial. Okay, now, on paper, that kind of helps the yankees. They don't have to worry about a dh spot. If he's coming back, do we work him in? Do we have to send somebody down? They give him some flexibility. But that man is your best postseason hitter, without a doubt. Okay for, say what you want, but he's better than judge in postseason. He's better. He is your
Speaker 1:postseason guy. So in a couple months, when he probably needs to start getting back to normal and ramped up to major league pitching, who do you send down? Who do you sacrifice? Who do you take out of the lineup because you need a dh spot? Are you guys ready to get rid of ben rice out of the DH spot. Do you want to carry three catchers? Is Jason Dominguez going to get moved? A lot of big questions to be answered later in the season because he's on the hook for a lot of money and you guys aren't just going to not play him and you're definitely not going to not play him in
Speaker 1:the postseason. So going to be an interesting uh storyline to watch in the coming months here for the yankees with john carlo. So now let's take the seven train and flip it over to queens, go to the mets. Juan soto finally delivers kind of his city-filled moment, hits his first home run at City and then follows it up by yep, you guessed it hitting his second home run at City. So he gets that monkey off his back. But I think a lot of Mets fans would like to see him get the fridge off his back now and start roping
Speaker 1:some doubles. It was all for naught, to be honest, because the Mets ended up dropping the series and that's the first home series they've lost in a year. So that'll end a 10 straight home series win, including playoffs. But hey, man, look, look, look. They're 13-3 at home. Citi Field is rocking. They still have the best ERA and the best record in baseball. But you know what? This is a reminder. This is baseball. There's 162 games. You can't win them all. They're going to be just fine. In fact, let's be honest, they've been this good without Soto hitting to the back of his baseball card. If he starts to heat up, oh boy. Everybody better watch out, especially with McNeil back in the lineup and I was
Speaker 1:full disclosure. I was all for maybe trading McNeil for a big arm, but he looks like he fits right in with this lineup. The Antos are starting to get back at it. Alvarez boat's still out, but the bat is there and the catching is undeniable. The Mets are built to shake this off fast and they're built to shake this NL up. I'm not afraid of Philly, I'm not afraid of Atlanta, even though they have been playing better. I will acknowledge that they've been getting better from that horrendous start. I'm not afraid of the Cubs, I'm not afraid of the Padres, I'm not afraid of the Dodgers, sure as shit. Not afraid of the Giants. It's Mets all the way. Baby, oh boy, damn. I sound like a homer, but I don't care. They look good. I love this team Play with such energy. Go Mets, go Mets.
Speaker 1:Thank you. All right, let's close it out with the NFL. Some post-draft, post-chaos we got some things to sort out here First on the list. Post-chaos we got some things to sort out here. First on the list the meme of the week let's clear up the prank call mess. Now it doesn't directly involve the Jets, but this was former Jets interim coach Jeff Ulrich's son, who I don't even think he got an interview and then landed with the Falcons as the Falcons defensive coordinator. Then his son goes and takes sensitive draft info and prank calls Shador Sanders while he's
Speaker 1:sliding away. Here's the real takeaway of all this. No wonder Holbrook didn't know what the fuck he was doing on the sideline. He wasn't cut out to leave the locker room. Now look who am I to question someone as a father? But if you can't keep your own house in order, how are you supposed to build and shape and lead young men in the NFL? You want to talk about being grounded forever. Your own son doesn't understand the position you're in and that you're probably going to have sensitive material on the regular. And he thought it was just LOL. Look at this funny thing I do and just, it was okay to do this. That's the jets angle here. Honestly it explains a lot why last season was a mess after solid got fired. And then everybody's looking at rogers. Everybody's looking at Rodgers, everybody's looking at Ulbricht. Jesus, what a mess. We'll get more into that later, but let's keep
Speaker 1:it local. The Giants rumors are kind of heating up that they might sign Keenan Allen, which is not the worst move in the world. You would have neighbors, you'd have Slayton. You would have neighbors. You'd have Slayton, you'd have Keenan Allen. Allen would bring a nice veteran voice to the wide receiver room and that's something that can kind of go a long way. And then on the defensive side they just picked up Kayvon Thibodeau's 50-year option, which I don't know. In my opinion it's a little eyebrow-raising, considering they kind of just drafted his semi-replacement, abdul Carter. I mean they don't? You know, carter's more of an outside linebacker, not really a pure D-lineman, but it's a move worth watching. I mean, if Carter turned into a stud with Burns and now you don't need Thibodeau, you're on the hook for his 50-year option. There's no question the Giants front office knows this is a make or break window, so I guess they're just going all in with everybody
Speaker 1:they can. But it just seems like a weird move to me is all we got to talk about Shador. I mean. Look, he eventually landed in Cleveland, so I was kind of right. But in the fifth round, and that's after they had already taken a quarterback in the fourth. Oh, oh, oh. And oh yeah, they still have the ageless wonder Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett on
Speaker 1:the roster. It's one of the most bizarre draft tumbles we've seen in years. I mean, rodgers falling, Geno falling that's one thing, but this is something else. This is like either the league sticking it to Daddy Dion or he really is just not good. He really is just not good. The word on the street was that he sabotaged or didn't put in the effort with meetings with teams that he I guess he thought he wasn't gonna get drafted too, so that kind of tanked his stock. And then I the other report too was that when he did meet with dable on the giants, dable on the spot asked him to make a fly on the change and put a package in, and he was like I don't do that. I don't know how to do that, sir. What do you mean? You don't know how to do that? Fine, that's a learning curve, but that's why you fell, then they want quarterbacks that are ready to go. The days of sitting behind alex smith to become patrick mahomes are no more. You need to be ready to go and ready to kick ass if I draft you this high, otherwise my ass is grass,
Speaker 1:trust me. Joe Douglas is on podcasts talking shit about the Jets, of what could have been because he drafted Zach Wilson. That shit, don't play Shador. Before I get into the Jets, just a couple other teams I want to touch on here that commend the players they took in the first round. Raiders I think they hit a home run with Jante Circle his name come fantasy time boys, think B John Robinson upside because Geno Smith throwing the ball with Pete Carroll, with Brock Bowers, that middle of the field is going to be open. Pete Carroll knows how to work a tight end and Jante is gonna. He's gonna have himself a season, I think. So that's great. Happy for the Raiders. Sorry for them for their division, because what a fucking mess that
Speaker 1:division is. Pats I hate to give credit where credit's due, but the Pats that online got a whole lot better with Will Campbell. I'm an LSU fan. I've watched Will Campbell. He's a hell of a player Going to keep Drake May upright and with Vrabel coming in running the show, you can expect sharp, disciplined football going on there. It's going to make a little more toughness in the AFC East and the Panthers I'm going to get this name wrong until he becomes a star
Speaker 1:Tetratoa McMillan. I think that's close enough. He really might be the next Mike Evans. Question is does Bryce Young have the arm to make him a star? I mean, evans thrived for a decade with no strong quarterback, minus a year with Brady. So we'll see if McMillan can do it. But guys, 6'5" ball hawk can jump through the gym and he was a volleyball player before he was an NFL player. So if there's one thing I know about volleyball, these motherfuckers can jump through the gym. So corner of the end zone sounds like a plan to me and I really think the Jets did well in their draft. But I just want to touch on something else before I give Jets
Speaker 1:fans hope. Jordan Travis announced his retirement. He had a devastating leg injury in college and it crippled him, had to sit out the playoff. It was really upsetting. Jets took a flyer on him, they drafted him and he just couldn't get the rehab right. His leg just never went where it was and he was too early for the NIL money, didn't get a shot in the pros and now just an early retirement with a bum leg. It's really. It's a tough reminder how brutal this league can be and because he made the roster at one point, I really hope the NFLPA steps up and takes care of him, because this is the prototypical kind of player that the system leaves behind and he's a good kid. You really hope for the best of him. But we're moving forward. We'll close
Speaker 1:with this. Jet fans, I have heard the chatter oh, we should have taken Shador. He fell so deep. Why didn't we take a flyer who was Justin Fields? Enough, enough of that. That's the old Jets talking. That's the bullshit. That's the circus tent. For once, this team has a plan and, like it or not, the plan is smash mouth, run the ball down your face. Football okay, dump it off to garrett, maybe hit the rookie tight end m Mason Taylor, who, by the way, if you wanted a legacy player, there he is, you got it. Mason Taylor is the son of Jason Taylor. Yes, real Jet fans will know Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas beating the shit out of the Jets for years and years, and years Now he's
Speaker 1:wearing green. There's stability, there's a plan and for the Jets that's already the win. Okay, all we're looking for is to make the playoffs. Okay, go to the playoffs, go be the wild card shit. Go play the chiefs or something in the first round or figure it out, but just go to the playoffs. End the drought. The pope just died. Right, there was a stat or there was a graphic that came out that from the time the Pope got in to the time the Pope died, every single professional team in all four major sports made the playoffs except
Speaker 1:the Jets. So again, the bar is not set high. Just be smart, be disciplined, make the playoffs. That's literally all we're asking, that's it. And if that's all, the bar is set at. There's hope, jet fans, there's hope, I promise you J-E-T-S, jets, jets, jets. Well, all right, that's a wrap on episode 11. Brunson's the hero, thibs, is on the clock. The Mets and the Yankees are swinging big in the NFL. Well, there's never short on chaos there. Big thanks for rolling
Speaker 1:with me. You guys know the drill Rate and review the show. Follow it, hit me up with your takes. You can find me on Instagram, at rice, on the radio, at R-I-C-E, o-n-t-h-e, r-a-d-i-o. Vote on the radio at R-I-C-E, o-n-t-h-e, r-a-d-i-o. Vote on the polls. I put them out every Wednesday. Send me something spicy in the DMs. Pause Shit. Call the show if you feel up to it 732 588-6869 Nice. What's great is, if you're a shy bastard and you don't like your voice, you can text me. I'll always respond. You might fuck around and find out. Find yourself on next week's episode. As always, this show is nothing without you. I'm here for the listeners. Every single ass one of you is appreciated. Until then, stay sharp, stay fired up, spread some good energy out there. Man, good energy gets good energy. I'm Ian. This is Rice on the Mics and I'll catch you next time.