Story Time #013 - This is a weird feeling

We are taking a brief detour to explore a completely different type of relentless suffering: being a New York Knicks fan. In this special Story Time episode, TheRealKingFish unpacks over two decades of pure basketball trauma. Tune in for a hilarious and tragic trip down memory lane, featuring MSG's Network's Al Trautwig, the dog days of buying $20 nosebleed tickets to watch historically awful rosters, and a strategic pants-wetting incident at a Barnes & Noble. Whether you bleed orange and blue or just enjoy listening to other people's sports misery, this one is a guaranteed laugh.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:22

We are back with another episode of Storytime with Fish.

SPEAKER_01 0:30

Uncle Fish. My uncle, your uncle. Everybody's uncle. Please welcome the one and only Jonathan Fishner.

SPEAKER_02 0:40

How's it going, bud?

SPEAKER_03 0:41

How you doing, pal?

SPEAKER_02 0:43

Pretty good. I forgot to introduce myself. That's how rusted I am. Um, I am the marathon. Continues.

SPEAKER_03 0:50

You use you used my real name. So I gotta be careful what I say today. I don't know if we've done that before. Have we done that before?

SPEAKER_02 0:56

I am just so rusty today, bro. It's all right. It's fine.

SPEAKER_03 0:59

Bull rust.

SPEAKER_02 1:00

It's like the beginning of the game. Game one. Exactly. Yeah, it's a long line.

SPEAKER_03 1:04

Exactly. That's right. You know? Um, I want to start off by saying, like, obviously, we're talking at a very tent, like a time for the Knicks. Like, we don't want to jinx anything. We don't, right? Like, that is correct. You know, like obviously we're not done here, but but it is, you know, uh, it's an unfamiliar position for for us, I think. Um a special moment. What a special. It's a special moment. I feel weird. Uh I feel weird. Like it's like I I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop, right? And and the flow of this has been, I mean, they're just so I gave up hope, you know, at the at the low point of that Hawk series. I really was like, none of them can come back, basically, except for a few. Uh, and everything has been different since then. But I I want to I want to talk for a minute about like, you know, I would say the in some ways the peak of our fandom, like almost from the ages of when we were 16 to the ages of that when we were 36. So since the Knicks mess last made the finals, and I think it's safe, you know, I don't I don't think the Cavs have any answers. The coach is talking about we won the math is telling us we're winning these games. I mean, that guy is not coaching in the NBA next year. He he can show himself out. They have no answers. I mean, putting Max Druze on Jalen Brunson is not gonna solve any of your problems. But uh I did a little research. The Knicks, the Knicks average since the Knicks last made the finals, from the time they made the finals in the 99 season until Leon Rowe showed up, they won an average. This is 20 seasons. We go from we go from 17 years old, 18 years old, to uh to how were you know to 20 years later, they won 33 games per year. They finished under 500 17 times. And two of the years they finished above 500 were the first two. So, like the next year they won 50, the next year when they won 48. And so if you take those years out, I I don't even know what we're talking about. These are the prime years of our Knicks fandom. Yeah, no. The last time the Knicks made the finals, I watched short story, I watched the them clinch against the Indiana Pacers in a laundromat, in a laundromat after my five-year elementary school reunion.

SPEAKER_02 3:30

First of all, we're having an elementary school reunion once.

SPEAKER_03 3:33

And it's not that yeah, it was a yeah, exactly. I just think about that. What is happening? And that was, you know, at probably, you know, Alan Houston, you know, they finally sort of slay the Pacers Dragon, but just think about how long it's been. How many hours do you think we wasted in that period? See, but it's not a waste.

SPEAKER_02 3:54

See, that I know what you're saying, because nobody can quite understand this feeling. You described it as weird, and I would second that. I I also am in this strange, like sort of like smirking place in my life where you know, most of the time I'm sort of smirking and nobody understands why. And it really is completely associated with this team. And and I don't think that you can fully understand this weirdness unless you've gone through the suffering that you're talking about, the all of the losses and the losing.

SPEAKER_03 4:31

I mean, the fighting about guys who suck. I um I was thinking about some of the names. Alonzo Trier. Do you remember him? Oh, like people were like, he's good, he's good, he's good, he's not good. Like pinning whole seasons of hope on Aaron Aflala. Oh god, that I remember. I've lost I lost more than one friendship over David Lee and my feelings about him. And and this is how we how we lived. Even Carmelo Anthony was uh, you know, a false prophet, a fake guy.

SPEAKER_02 5:05

I think in the it turned out that he was a false prophet, but I also think like he's obviously not as good as Jalen Brunson is. He wasn't at that time. But what I can tell you is if he had been given uh and I'm a stan, but if he had been given a better situation, like you know, if he if you put in with Leon Rose, maybe he's in a different situation. I think maybe they have a different situation.

SPEAKER_03 5:25

I think that's fair. So so I have a real I have two one one hilarious moment, I think, and one real low point in my life as a as a as a Knicks fan. Um all right, so the first one you might remember I had a blog in the blog, the Knicks blog, the real Kingfish, where the name comes from, something I really enjoyed, really, really started leading up to um the LeBron the decision, right? Like started during the LeBron decision. And the last thing I wrote, as I recall it, was that I was supportive of them drafting Chris Abs Persengus. So we are talking about dog days, right? I think the first thing I wrote was I thought they were gonna get Chris Bosch and Dwayne Wade. They did not get Chris Bosch and Dwayne Wade. No, no, no chance, not even close. So uh during that period, I went to a McDonald's, like uh some type of Knicks-related event at a McDonald's, Mickey DJ. And I knew that Steve Novak was gonna be there. Right, right. It was like I left my job at a corporate law firm, I went down with a tape recorder that I borrowed from work, and I saw fit to approach Steve Novak at a McDonald's, like while there's like all these kids around and balloons and things like that. And and he's just like minding his own business, he's like on the end of the bench for the next, and I saw fit to ask him what his answer was to the people who said he wasn't gonna be able to get his shot off in the playoffs.

SPEAKER_02 7:02

So I know about this, I know about this photo. Like I knew about the photo. Yes, but I don't know if it was completely like you had everything to do with it. Like, I don't think I realized I thought maybe it was some sort of official capacity in which you got this.

SPEAKER_03 7:20

I was so proud of myself for doing this, and he gave me a great answer.

SPEAKER_02 7:25

I thought I was he's really charismatic.

SPEAKER_03 7:28

I thought I was doing hard-hitting journalism. I was like, I'm gonna get this guy on the record.

SPEAKER_02 7:33

What did he say?

SPEAKER_03 7:34

He basically said, time will tell. It was like November. Right.

SPEAKER_02 7:39

Like oh, what an interesting time to ask that.

SPEAKER_03 7:42

Yeah, I was all over it. I don't know, I missed my calling. I did that. I um yeah, so I don't know. I I I I think about that a lot. His brother, I could tell, wanted to punch me. Sure, I can I can only imagine.

SPEAKER_02 7:56

Uh it was what a weird thing to do in the weird thing to do.

SPEAKER_03 8:00

It was a weird thing to do. Also, around that time, I was I was moonlighting, writing for free articles for Gothamist that they didn't like, but I I loved, and they mostly ran them anyway. I um that's nice. I went to watch a Knicks game. Sorry, I didn't go to watch the Knicks game. I went, they set me up to interview or meet Wally Serbiak and Alan Hahn. Oh do you remember they used to have a studio across the street from the garden? They tore the building down in the hotel. I went there, it was before the game. They couldn't have been nicer. Uh, I interviewed them, I recorded it, it was very nice. I thought that they were like ready to let me stay and watch the game with them. Like it really felt like they weren't gonna kick me out until until Al Troutwig showed up. And he made very clear that I needed to get the fuck out of there immediately. Oh, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:57

I heard is this this is part of my so like when I hear the name Al Troutwig, I knew that he was a dick, but I didn't know if I heard that from you or if I got it from Handel. Is there also the Handel stuff?

SPEAKER_03 9:10

Yeah, we went to a game, and this is a good segue. We went to a game. I you know, they all it all runs together. We went to a game once, and we were sitting in the top. I don't think the Knicks were particularly good. And as we were going up, like Al Troutwig was coming down. You know how they used to film Al Troutwick rest in peace, we should say. Yeah, I guess. Right? Uh best supporting actor nominee for cool runnings, didn't win, unfortunately. Um, you know, MSG network legend, Al Troutwick.

SPEAKER_02 9:41

Um, but seemed like a nice man on television.

SPEAKER_03 9:44

Really seemed genial on television. So he had definitely he was basically like, hit the fucking bricks, kid. You're not gonna hang out here. You're a fake journalist. Um crazy, dog. But then so we were going up to our seats, drunk, no doubt. Al was coming down. Remember, he used to film that little thing, like he'd be all the way up in the top, yep, talking about the game.

SPEAKER_02 10:06

That what's his name does now. I wonder if he's a dick, too. Um Francesa? What? What's the guy's name?

SPEAKER_03 10:13

Well, Mike Francesa is a dick, but it's not no, that's right.

SPEAKER_02 10:16

But it's the the little guy who's funny, who does the same thing. He like sits in the in the really high anyway. Sorry, sorry.

SPEAKER_03 10:22

Don't mess with pregame, post-game, halftime. Um, yeah. I don't, yeah. Like in any sport, pretty much. Um so Handel bumped into him. I shouldn't be, we should have Handel on to tell his own story. And I don't remember exactly what happened, but Al Troutwick really just told us basically was like, fuck off.

SPEAKER_02 10:42

That's so ridiculous. What makes him better than us as humans?

SPEAKER_03 10:49

Mike? Why?

SPEAKER_02 10:50

No, the this guy. This guy, Al Troutwick.

SPEAKER_03 10:54

Nothing.

SPEAKER_01 10:55

Piece of garbage.

SPEAKER_03 10:56

He's nothing without us, he's dead. You gotta beat it. That would be nice. Yeah. Um, so the the last story. Well, wait, hang on. Okay, so dog days, and this is this is I think before this is really in the peak, you know, college era after college. I remember I used to get these emails every season. We're talking about like in college, I wasn't even watching the Knicks. Right. Like, they were so bad, it was like peak Isaac. You couldn't then.

SPEAKER_02 11:26

It wasn't like you really like couldn't do that, like from far away. You couldn't. I was close.

SPEAKER_03 11:30

I could I had great thing about Lehigh. Oh, yeah. In at Lehigh, you would get it was actually nice. You'd get the New York and Pennsylvania and Philadelphia affiliates. So you could watch the Knicks and the Sixers, you could watch the Eagles and the Giants. It was nice, and the and the Sixers were good, like they, you know, it was Iverson, you know, post-finals, Iverson. Um, so definitely watched a lot of that. Watch a lot of I work with a guy as an aside who, as a child, quite young, uh, the first game as a seven or eight-year-old that he went to was the Malice at the Palace. And I think about it every day. What a wonderful introduction to the game basketball. Great sport. Uh sometimes the players just fucking kick the shit out of the fans.

SPEAKER_02 12:15

Yeah, jump in the stands. Yeah. You never know. Sometimes you jump in the stands.

SPEAKER_03 12:20

All right. So I used to get these emails, and it would be like, you know, the stretch of NBA basketball, like March, eight, like February, March, April, post All-Star. And it would be like $20 seats in the in the what's the top? 400, 300, 400. In the garden? I'm rich now, so I don't know even know how high it goes. I only fuck with the 200 if I'm feeling. Like saving a few bucks. So anyway, it would be $20 to sit in the top. It would be like Nick's Hawks, Nick's Grizzlies, Nick's Bobcats. I mean, these are teams that don't even exist anymore. Exist anymore. Not uh it would be $20 for the $400. I think it's $400, and $40 for the $300 level. And we used to go. Like you were there, I'm sure. Like we would you know, buy eight tickets. Like it didn't cost anything. And we would go go to the bar before, go to the bar after, Barney Cove, Barney Stone. I remember once we went, and I think I was with Sean, and someone was doing magic. Like these two guys were like doing magic and predicting like our thoughts. It was anyway, but that's not this part.

SPEAKER_02 13:18

Did he we all went to this?

SPEAKER_03 13:21

Yeah, Sean definitely paid. God knows I didn't pay. And I collected every dollar on the tickets pre-Venmo. How were people giving me the money? I don't know. Cash?

SPEAKER_02 13:31

Uh I remember you used to really you know assert yourself in situations. I remember that.

SPEAKER_03 13:36

Yeah. So we uh yeah, I had to get provided to pay money. Uh so we would go to these games, and I I remember once, I have a recollection of the Knicks playing the Bobcats with Adam Morrison and my Adam Morrison. I tried to find the games before this, I couldn't find them, like beating the Knicks. I remember like leaving a game that then went into overtime, being at Flannery's when David Lee tipped the ball in. Like we left the game, went to because we couldn't, God knows we couldn't stay at the garden an extra five minutes. And then we see a you know a game-winning shot. But what I remember distinctly was a little bit later, 07, 08, 09, whenever I was in law school, went to one of these games. I'm gonna alluded to this. And uh we went out, we got drunk, we had a good time, it's a really nice time. And I went to go to school the next day, law school, and I was going to the Barnes and Noble. There used to be a Barnes and Noble like textbook store. It was like the original Barnes and Noble on Fifth Avenue, and I shipped my pants on all the way there. Yeah. And I wasn't sure. I still went to the textbook place and bought a study guide. I I had like an obsessive I dep I developed like an obsessive compulsive uh like thing about buying study guides. I didn't use them, I just buy them.

SPEAKER_02 14:59

Just have them, just have them in case.

SPEAKER_03 15:01

So I still had to buy my study guide. Like that was very important to me. But I had already had the accident. I went to I went to school, I went into the bathroom, confirmed my suspicions. Confirmed, and I went home.

SPEAKER_02 15:21

Well, can't you just free ball the rest of the day? You just take the the uh you know, you wipe your butt, you take the underwear, you throw it out, and then you just free ball the rest of the day.

SPEAKER_03 15:34

I don't know, it just didn't work. How serious are we talking here? It wasn't that it wasn't like a Willetz level, sorry, uh Mike Pillitz level incident. Michael Phillips. Michael Phillips level incident. Um but you know, it was so that's the kind of life we've lived though.

SPEAKER_02 15:53

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 15:54

Like you, you you like you like the Knicks were a joke, and people would talk to you about the Knicks and they would like feel sorry for you. They would just be like, You're fucking crazy. Like fans of other teams would be like, I like the Knicks.

SPEAKER_02 16:07

That's one that always for y'all.

SPEAKER_03 16:12

That's I can root for my team and your team. Yeah, I get a lot of that, right? And it's like, please don't do that. Please don't. Like, you're not threatened by us at all. And now they're out here embarrassing, embarrassing people.

SPEAKER_02 16:25

Like, I mean, what could the record be? How far off of the record could they be for playoff wins in a row? Because what do you need to win the players?

SPEAKER_03 16:35

Well, I don't think anyone has ever gone undefeated, right? 16-0. Nobody's gone 16. I don't think anyone's gone undefeated. There were a lot of years that it was a five-game series in the first round, so you're gonna lose a game a lot there, right? The the Kobe Shack Lakers, I believe, only lost the game with the Iverson step over. Oh I don't think they lost another game. So they would have won, they would have won that's 12 in a row.

SPEAKER_02 17:06

11 or 12. Because the step over the step over game one.

SPEAKER_03 17:10

They had the that's like the quintessential your layoff is too long game.

SPEAKER_01 17:14

Right, right, right.

SPEAKER_03 17:15

You know, right? Um yeah, no, I mean all timer, you know, an all-time. Like one of the most although I keep bringing that up at work, and I work with people who they're too young, they don't remember.

SPEAKER_01 17:26

Even like they it's like some of that stuff is really upsetting for me. It's very upsetting.

SPEAKER_03 17:32

I was like, I don't know, layoffs too long. You remember the the Iverson stepover game, and they'd look at me like, what? Who's Alan Iverson? Yeah, basically. Basically, Alan Iverson is so old that the dude, there's that dude Acuff that dresses like him. Nobody even bothered to make the comparison because it's just like too long ago. It it wouldn't resonate. It's very upset.

SPEAKER_02 17:55

I can tell I can give you something about I think this sort of embodies how I feel about the Knicks and this weirdness. There was uh, I think it was two years ago, um, the Liberty, you know, the the New York Liberty. Oh, yeah, yeah. They won the championship. Yep. Yeah, and I didn't I didn't know, I knew they were in the playoffs, I didn't know. And it was like, I think it was probably like a it was a weekday morning, and I remember that they played and I watched the highlights. I was just watching the like YouTube highlights. And as it's getting to the end of the game, I literally start to cry. Like I start crying, and I can remember how I felt. I'm like, this is this is like this is that weirdness.

SPEAKER_03 18:40

This is like what I don't and you're aware they don't play at the garden anymore, right? Like that's you're aware of that. I'm aware. I'm aware. I'm aware of all of it. Can I say something? And it's just coming to me now. If the Knicks win the championship, the Nets should move to Seattle. Yeah, get the like what are the Nets doing in this place? Like, they will. This has been an unbelievable failure.

SPEAKER_02 19:00

You can go back to Jersey. Go back to Jersey.

SPEAKER_03 19:03

It's not far enough. It's not far enough. Seattle is perfect.

SPEAKER_02 19:06

I'll trout with them.

SPEAKER_03 19:07

Just get yeah, just what are we what are we doing? I've always said if the Nets won the championship, the back page of the post would have the uh something about the Knicks' plans for the draft, and they put the Nets championship like up at the top banner thing, like you know, like other stories that are covered in this newspaper. Oh my god. But the Nets should the Nets should just pack it in. What are they gonna do?

SPEAKER_02 19:29

They they um do they have was this the year they had all the draft picks? Did none of them pan out? That was last year.

SPEAKER_03 19:36

Yeah, they took five first-round draft picks last year. None of them have achieved any type of notoriety. There's a European guy that some people like. Um that's terrible. Yeah, it it's they should just just give up the liberty. When the liberty play, my neighborhood, the neighborhood's buzzing, people are there, the liberty can stay. Let's give the liberty the more surprise.

SPEAKER_02 19:58

Weeping tears of joy.

SPEAKER_03 19:59

Yeah, think about can we have some more concerts? Anything, literally anything.

SPEAKER_02 20:05

But can we can I get a little something from you? A little analysis. Would you let's say, you know, not no jinx? Oh god. But about you know, God, your mouth's God. Yeah. Um, if you had to choose who they get in the next round, honestly, why?

SPEAKER_03 20:26

Honestly, after what I saw last night, I I think I'd rather play the Thunder. Interesting. Like, I I do worry about the Knicks handling the like the blitz that the the guards on San Antonio could bring. Like, I think that they have scary had some, yeah, like look, they what they're dealing with, like something is going on with I think something's wrong with Donovan Mitchell. Like, yeah, he's I don't think it's I don't like just the consistency with which he can play.

SPEAKER_02 20:58

See, like this to me, you know, hold on. Let me just let me just insert this. This this this to me is the most bitch thing you can do. If you're hurt, sit out. If you're not, if but if you're hurt and you want to play, don't limp around whimpering, like like insinuating that you're injured. I get like fair enough.

SPEAKER_03 21:21

Don't do that.

SPEAKER_02 21:22

Don't do that.

SPEAKER_03 21:23

I'm trying to, I'm trying not to get too like judgy because I do like him.

SPEAKER_02 21:28

I mean I might want them on our team someday.

SPEAKER_03 21:30

Well, once they had Brunson, I did not want them to add him. I'm glad they didn't. Uh, but I certainly there are times I would have taken him. I like to watch him. I think he's you know, he's not perfect, but very few players are. But I do think there's something wrong. And people are like, well, he did this one play. It's like, well, the consistency of it isn't there. I mean, this team is there, they are uh they will tonight they will let go of the rope. I think. I don't see any.

SPEAKER_02 21:54

There was a layup. There was a layup at the end, and I think Ben referenced it. There was an end of the game layup. Layup, I think there was over two minutes left. Like both the starting squads were still on, and Brunson like was dribbling it up. And then he got into the just like what I was like, wait, there's not 10 seconds left, guys. Yeah, they just let him three minutes left. I agree.

SPEAKER_03 22:16

They're done. I was like, what? It wouldn't surprise me if Atkins, like I was like, the way he was taking it, I was like, this guy's gonna wake up dead.

SPEAKER_02 22:25

Actually, we're winning.

SPEAKER_03 22:26

I don't know if that is one of that is one of the crazier things I've ever seen a coach say in a press conference. That is like, get me a one-way ticket out of here. I was uh I liked him. I mean, he was, you know, I'm sure people know this. He was Jeremy Lynn's coach, like personal coach during Lynn Sanity. I wanted the Knicks to hire him at one of those junctures. I can't remember which one. He ended up with the Nets job. Blah blah blah. This one was bad. This answers bad. They have no answers. Like, do like yeah, they don't have there's really not any levers for him to pull. I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 23:03

Do you think do you think it would have been as easy to beat Detroit? Like, do you think they would have had to meet no? I think they would have had mu a much more difficult time beating Detroit.

SPEAKER_03 23:15

I agree. And so, and so to your point, I think that especially with Jalen Williams' health and all of that, I just think it's at this moment, based on like just like I do I could see that blitz. You know how it gets with it's like Brunson and then like Castle chasing him around and all that craziness, like just the intensity and the activity and the physicality of those guards on San Antonio, they make me very nervous.

SPEAKER_02 23:43

But I'll give you this you know, like I I watched the Knicks putter out the last two years, and it was due to lack of energy, right? Like they completely just ran out of juice. Yeah, like this year, you know, like you watch how Jalen Brunson can execute the end of that game one in Cleveland, it's due to you know, this leftover energy. Like, you know, they're much more prepared to deal with something like that than they have been. Like, you know, once they got to Indiana, they like didn't have any more juice. They were no more juices.

SPEAKER_03 24:18

They are finally doing the little things, like not having Brunson bring the ball up sometimes. Like, you know what I mean? Like all these little tiny things that throw at the cat, and there might be a position where he doesn't touch it even. Go get go give Clarkson. I was I had a I had company, and I don't want to go into the details. I usually watch these games alone, and I just had somebody with me that was talking too much, and he was like, What do you think of Jordan Clarkson? And I was like, Jordan Clarkson, I was like, I like Jordan Clarkson. Like, I think it's cool that he's like reinvented himself. He's not the player I thought he was gonna be when he joined the Knicks, but like he's given them time. He's like, I thought Jordan Clarkson played way too much in the last game, like all his minutes. Jordan Clarkson played seven minutes, yeah. Like, yeah, he's the eighth guy on the Knicks, the ninth guy on the Knicks. Like, but the point is, like, sometimes you and this is what Tibbs didn't do. It's like, yeah, you play the eighth, ninth guy seven minutes because there's a big difference between 38 and 34 for whoever, and they're doing all those little things, and it's it's great. Um, all right, before we're out of time, I was I was I spent some time also, this is this is a little bit incomplete. You can help me a little bit. Okay, I wanted to really start like saying who on our team, who on our f in our among our friends is who on the Knicks. Okay, and I only really settled on two. Oh, okay. So first there's no there's no Jalen Brunson, like, because there's no number one guy in this group. Let's just start with that, okay? We're everybody's great. Um okay, but no, so I got you two. I got you two. All right, and you can tell me what you think. The first one is that, and he's gonna he's gonna hate this, but I think Sean is is um is is Mikhail Bridges. And I'll tell you why I think that. Because when Sean, like if you get Sean going, like if Sean is good, if Sean is fun, if Sean is performing, it is fucking on. Oh yeah. Like it's unbeatable, right? Yeah, he even he even outshines you're gonna be able to do it like when Sean gets like just happy and he's excited, he's like in a good spot, it's like championship or bus, dude. Right, right. Here we go. Right. So that's one. The other one uh that I think, and and is that I think I I think I'm Carl Anthony Towns. No, I do because if I'm in a good mood and it's going well, we're having a good time, it's like, wow, this guy. Where's this guy been? Who is this man? But boy, every few times I'm in one of those moods, it's like, get get this guy out of town, get him out of here. I don't want to see him again. Hilarious.

SPEAKER_02 27:01

I don't I don't agree only because like he's way, way stupider than you are. Like the interviews in the game fine are just like not, he's so dumb. Like he says things sometimes. I'm just like, are you thinking at all? Are you doing any thinking?

SPEAKER_03 27:17

Yeah, and and I'd like to find a Josh Hart. I think I think it is I think Josh Hart needs to be uh we need to start talking about Josh Hart in the like Charles Oakley, like all-time role player character on a next team. Like this guy is fucking unbelievable.

SPEAKER_02 27:38

So Mikey he's unbelievable. So Mikey can't be Brunson? He can't do it.

SPEAKER_03 27:43

That's the closest I can get.

SPEAKER_02 27:45

Right? It's Mikey.

SPEAKER_03 27:46

That's what I would say. That's the closest, yeah. That's that's where I would tend to.

SPEAKER_02 27:51

You know, like if you don't, he's he's it's very like unbecoming, he's like mildly unattractive.

SPEAKER_03 27:58

Yeah. Is Josh is Josh Jordan Clarkson like just yeah, no, sorry, sorry, Posh Murfstein uh because because I think there's a drug component to it.

SPEAKER_02 28:11

Oh, 100% Jordan Clarkson.

SPEAKER_03 28:15

Shout out to whatever drugs, I'll give I'll give I'll give it a try.

SPEAKER_02 28:19

I'll give it a go. Let me give it a shot. Oh, this is fantastic.

SPEAKER_03 28:23

Yeah, I don't know who else.

SPEAKER_02 28:24

I mean, what about me? OG, uh, who am I? I I feel like I'm Alvarado. Um OG, who's OG?

SPEAKER_03 28:35

OG, see, so just I think maybe Sam Green is Alvarado because you really never know what he might do.

SPEAKER_02 28:40

Right. Like sneaky, like hiding, like sneaking up on you type of thing. I guess he doesn't really do that. We don't really, yeah. No. Um, I don't I guess it's much easier to do football players than it is basketball players.

SPEAKER_03 28:55

Um I think I think part of the reason it's easier to do football players is because like you don't really know them. Like it you feel it's part of the reason it's hard to do the next is like I I think I know too much. I think I know too much. Right.

SPEAKER_02 29:06

I watch them talk all the time. Like yeah, they're always like I'm watching the interviews and I, you know, watch them on the court. Like I've watched them very closely, so it does. It feels like I know them. I feel like I know them personally. I mean, they are they are but Mitch, who's Mitch?

SPEAKER_03 29:26

Okay, wait, I want to talk about so I was thinking about what the things that Leon Rose and them have done so well, and keeping this guy with all kinds of problems uh going and engaged and happy enough is really something. Not trading him, not trading him last was that last year or two years ago when he was injured was absolutely the right decision. And I love it. I want him to redo his free throw routine. I think it's terrible. I know he's not gonna make it.

SPEAKER_02 29:59

Okay, all right. This is you know, me and Sean had a conversation a long time.

SPEAKER_03 30:02

Three dribbles, no one's dribble the basketball, bounce it on the floor. Do something. Well, do something different.

SPEAKER_02 30:09

I think we can all agree, like, you gotta do something different. But like, this is like this conversation I had with Sean way back in the day. It's like, yo, like you know, if Mikey wanted to be an NBA player and he decided from when he was young, like he could do it. That was my thing, right? It's like, oh you don't really you don't think that anymore.

SPEAKER_03 30:24

Now that you've been around like God level 11-year-olds or whatever, you realize, yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_02 30:30

I'm like, yeah, no, he's not absolutely not. But I will tell you, I do believe that if a human being actually gave the sufficient amount of effort, they could make 65% of their free throws. Like I it's alarming to me if he made to get to a place if he made 70% of his free throws, he would be making double the amount of money next year that he will. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 30:56

And that is a fact.

SPEAKER_02 30:57

Why can't he do it?

SPEAKER_03 30:58

Why can't he do it? You I mean, I I think some of it is mental, and these guys are like very weird physically, but I agree. You know who is a great, uh, I shouldn't say great, but like I think shot in like the high 70s, and it really made like made him a different player, even though he couldn't shoot a jump shot for shit, was Tyson Chandler. Like he should be hugely valuable when he came to making free throws. And you see, I think Jared Allen shoots free throws pretty well, if I'm not mistaken. Like, what's really the difference between him and Mitchell?

SPEAKER_02 31:32

Mike Breed is so nice to him. Like, he can't be working that hard. There's no way it's a tough one. He's working that hard, shooting 35% from the free throw. I wonder, like, what does his practice look like?

SPEAKER_03 31:43

Like, what's the thing? There's gotta be a lot of like yes men sitting around and being like, yeah, but I'm a fan. I'm a fan. So you're Mitch. So I guess that he's not you're not him. I'm not Mitch. I I would say Ben is Mitch.

SPEAKER_02 31:55

No, Ben is oh gosh, I'm very very annoying.

SPEAKER_03 31:58

Oh boy. No? Oh boo. Oh my gosh. That's a bad call. Uh that was an insult. I think just based on where the conversation went to and how we got there, I do think that was you insulted him.

SPEAKER_02 32:10

Well, we're lucky. We're that's when we're I to me that's insulting Schmen is one of the underlying goals of this podcast, I would say. Um, you know, the the last thing I'll say about Mitch is it, you know, I'll give Leon credit, but I think it's one of those times where he's just a good deal maker and they wanted to deal him and they thought it was better, but they didn't do the stupid thing and force it. Exactly. Just like, all right, fine, I will keep him. You know, but they do seem like a team.

SPEAKER_03 32:44

And an or like like from a leadership perspective, from a front office perspective, where like they do understand that not making a move is an action. Like they they're not overactive, they're not hyperactive, right? They don't make deals just to make deals. This team has its first round draft. Um, other things I'm thinking about. Uh, are we prepared for a world where Isaiah Hartenstein transitions from like demigod to like most hated man in New York City? Because that could happen.

SPEAKER_01 33:13

Yeah, I think Caruso will be the most hated one.

SPEAKER_03 33:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:17

He might be. Well, we'll see.

SPEAKER_03 33:18

I'm still not over what's his face on the the white boy on the Pacers, man. Oh my god. Oh that guy will never be over him. McConnell? Yeah. McConnell.

SPEAKER_02 33:29

What a piece of garbage.

SPEAKER_03 33:30

That guy draws me, draw me free.

SPEAKER_02 33:33

This this this whole thing, like, you know, no disrespect to anyone who's ever been injured or trying to come back from an injury. But did Tyrese Halliburton deserve all this that he's getting now? Or is that just me as a Knicks fan who was actually that way?

SPEAKER_03 33:49

I think I need to see more of it from him before like he's you know, I think I'm I'm not a hater. It's basketball. There's style like style counts. Like this is not this is not baseball.

SPEAKER_01 34:01

Right, right, right, right, right.

SPEAKER_02 34:02

It's not like efficiency over everything else. Exactly.

SPEAKER_03 34:05

Uh parting thoughts from you?

SPEAKER_02 34:07

Like what's yeah, uh parting thoughts. I'm I'm looking, I'm hoping that this weird feeling that we have now evolves even further and it gets even weirder.

unknown 34:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 34:18

How about you? I think that's right. I think that's right. I I I am concerned that there's gonna come a moment of extreme like emotional outpouring for me, like for better or for worse. Tears. Um, like I the two big moments for me that I can remember, uh, I've talked about this many times, but when the Giants beat the 49ers in the NFC Championship game before Super Bowl 25, I I I remember having like a very serious emotional breakdown. Like, you know, um and um in 1997, uh Mariano Rivera gave up a home run to Sandy Alamar Jr., I believe it was, to lose like the game five to Cleveland. The Yankees had won the World Series, they then win the next three. And that I can remember laying on the floor of my bedroom like for an hour, like just like just laying there. And I'm concerned that one only one of those two things can happen at this point.

SPEAKER_02 35:13

Uh so uh I will we're tossing around the idea of if it gets real serious, turning up.

SPEAKER_03 35:22

So turn up. Oh boy, don't say that if you don't mean it. No, I mean it. I 100% mean it. Where else would I be?

SPEAKER_02 35:31

Where else can we be? We have to we gotta be together.

SPEAKER_03 35:34

Like I feel uncomfortable thinking about this and talking about it out loud, but I let's communicate telepathically about it.

SPEAKER_02 35:43

Okay, you'll know how I'm feeling. You'll know.

SPEAKER_03 35:45

Yeah, that's right.

SPEAKER_01 35:46

Just think about it.

SPEAKER_03 35:47

You'll all right. These are big time, these are like this is it. This this is big moments. We've we're we're heavily invested. Yeah, exactly. Oh, and another thing for the guys and for anyone, let me tell you something. I don't want to hear about emotional hedging, which is this term for when you bet against the team you like, so that there's money on the other side of it versus your feelings. That is bad karma. Do not do that. I don't want to hear about that. Don't do it.

SPEAKER_01 36:13

Don't do it. Shout out to you. Shout out to all the um all the people, all the schmikey farhams on the on the other end.

SPEAKER_03 36:23

Shout out to my my near my my my one of my dearest friends, Sean Purston, the Mikhail Bridges of the of the group.

SPEAKER_01 36:34

Um and uh I love you.

SPEAKER_03 36:37

I love you too. All right.

SPEAKER_01 36:39

Let's do this again.

SPEAKER_03 36:40

Go next.