- 3 months ago
Will LeBron James make a shocking return to South Florida? Zach Gelb, Channing Crowder, and Alejandro Solana break down the latest LeBron free agency rumors and the massive news that Tim Hardaway Jr. has officially signed with the Miami Heat to provide some much-needed elite shooting alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo!
Plus, the guys react to the breaking news of franchise legend Sergei Bobrovsky leaving the Florida Panthers for a major deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs
Plus, the guys react to the breaking news of franchise legend Sergei Bobrovsky leaving the Florida Panthers for a major deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs
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00:00and oh yeah by the way his son Tim Hardaway Jr. did sign with the Miami Heat yesterday to kick
00:06off
00:06free agency so you got Giannis coming to Miami you got Andrew Wiggins staying in Miami there's
00:12LeBron speculation Norman Powell screw him F him he's out right as Crowder would say the other day
00:19he's off to the Chicago Bulls so Hawk will have someone to cheer about this year when he watches
00:24his decrepit basketball team but let's start with the Heat instant reaction to Tim Hardaway Jr.
00:30signing with the team I love it old Pat's in his bag in his 81 year old bag old Pat's
00:36trying to get
00:36this thing done one more time man and I love it I love the activity I always talk about it
00:40as long
00:41as we're moving as long as we're a part of the conversations different conversations I love it
00:45and it's it's looking very good for LeBron to see two bigs behind him and now you got two shooters
00:52as well it's just I don't know I'm I don't know what LeBron's thinking Rich Paul talked but it's
00:58looking good and then also the other thing you have to factor in here you talk about the shooting
01:03ability because now Tim Hardaway is approaching his his mid-30s so he's not a spring chicken anymore
01:09in this game but it's extremely encouraging to me and I was talking to Solana as I was doing a
01:13deep
01:14dive on Tim Hardaway Jr. last night you know obviously knew who he was going back to Michigan
01:18and what his name and his family name does mean in this town but to see him getting older and
01:24he just
01:24came off a career year with the Denver Nuggets most three-pointers made in the season a highest
01:30three-point percentage in a season getting over that 40 percent threshold that's music to my ears
01:36because like you said Crowder they got Giannis they got Bam Wiggins is coming back they got to fill
01:42this team whether they get LeBron or not with shooters shooters shooters and we all know Tim Hardaway
01:48Jr. one thing and probably the only thing he could do is shoot the damn rock tell me if I'm
01:52wrong
01:53Solana I've read this book before because I remember Shane Battier was 416 Ray Allen was 149
01:59years old but they could shoot that rock and they had they didn't have to do a lot of things
02:03because
02:04we had the big three I've watched I've read this book by the way you just mentioning that did you
02:09see
02:10that evil like happy smile that just went across the face of Solana like you basically just tugging at
02:18his heart and and that pit bull has been locked up in the cage for like six or seven years
02:24and he's
02:25ready you know screw his little dog that that you know he needs a little tougher dog that dog that
02:29he
02:29has Solana's getting ready to come out of that cage and just pounce because he's sick and tired of the
02:35heat not competing for a championship again what you got Cujo I mean Celtics in 24 Knicks in 26
02:43man I needed this bro I needed this my initial reaction gelb was thank god when Tim Hardaway Jr.
02:51was announced that he was signing with the heat because over the past 24 hours or whatever it's
02:56been 18 hours I'm looking around at all the names that were I'm not saying reported they'd come to
03:02Miami but some of the names floated that would potentially take less to come to the Miami heat
03:08one for example Quentin Grimes um just a ton of names right that we've talked about over the past
03:15week or so none of those guys a are coming to Miami none of those guys took less by the
03:21way in general
03:21to go anywhere like they're all signing some pretty lucrative deals so my first reaction was well thank
03:27god we got a shooter and yeah spacing is going to be a major issue not major issue but something
03:32that
03:32needed to be resolved for this heat team Simone Fontecchio you're happy to have him back on that
03:39minimum deal but to meet Tim Hardaway Jr. gelb just mentioned it the the season he's coming off of
03:44the fact that he already had the the Miami homecoming video ready to go so you knew he wanted to
03:51come play
03:52here with Giannis Antetokounmpo where his dad's number is retired I mean I saw this dude play in high
03:57school literally I saw him at Palmetto play in high school several games and to know that a he's a
04:03high
04:03school legend in Miami grew up here and he's gonna suit up for the Miami heat is just an awesome
04:09story
04:09I have breaking news breaking news it does not have to do with the Miami heat but we talked about
04:17right
04:17how Brady Kachuk came to the Florida Panthers and then you also saw Giannis Antetokounmpo come to the
04:24Miami heat oh well yesterday Kawhi Leonard uh you know gets traded to the Toronto Raptors
04:30according to Pierre Lebrun um it's a three-year seven million dollar a year contract I'm assuming
04:40for Sergei Bobrovsky in Toronto so the Bob era and they made the two moves for the goaltenders uh in
04:48the last few days the Florida Panthers this was inevitable but we bid adieu to Sergei
04:55Bobrovsky as he's off uh to the Toronto Maple Leafs listen Bob go do your thing Bob gave us some
05:01great
05:02years I have no problem with Bob leaving Bob Bob really brought us some damn good hockey
05:07only seven million a year though right right I mean I thought it would have been more for him to
05:12leave
05:13like I get it they made the aggressive moves the Panthers they're basically saying we're going to put
05:18an all-star team out there and we'll figure it out with the goaltender just like what the Avalanche
05:22did in 2022 um I know this past year uh you know Anderson had a really good first two rounds
05:29but then
05:29he got replaced in the Stanley Cup final uh this is Bill Zito and company just saying hey guys uh
05:35we're good with whoever's in net we just need average goaltender play they got the best team in
05:40the league on the ice if you just get average goaltender play and I believe in relationship equity
05:45Bill Zito has some of the most equity in my mind of anybody that I know because what he's done
05:51with
05:51this Panthers team remember the Patriots get rid of Tom Brady early he goes and wins another championship
05:56but they thought it was the end if Bill Zito believes I don't need to pay this man seven
06:01I don't want to give him seven Gab I'm on Will Wido's side well there is a a better analogy
06:07there you
06:08mentioned the Patriots with Brady how about the Patriots with everybody else while they had Brady and all the
06:14guys that they let go uh Willie McGinnis Ty Law you could just go on and on and on all
06:20the players
06:20they let walk out like Bill Zito gets the benefit of the doubt that the Florida Panthers this takes
06:26nothing away from the high expectations with the Miami Hurricanes it has it takes nothing away from
06:31Solana and what he's going to envision with the Miami Heat the Florida Panthers this year out of all
06:37the South Florida sports teams have the best chance to win a championship it doesn't mean the other
06:42teams can't but they have the best chance with Bob or without Bob and even Edzo Eddie Olchek uh said
06:48it when he joined us uh right when uh the Brady Kachuk news came out with or without Bob they
06:54should be
06:54the favorite in the Eastern Conference that even has the reigning Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes
06:59to get to the Stanley Cup final what's the guy's name they just got Losterinen uh well Etu Losterinen is
07:06back uh the Panthers signed him yeah but Markstrom is the goalie that that they're starting his career
07:12here you did he came back and then the guy Brady Kachuk got Matt Kachuk yes Barky's coming back off
07:18the
07:18injury come on man we rolling this year yeah I'm not really too concerned but Solana you you are right
07:25like I get it it's going to be a big drop off with with not having Bob in net and
07:29and they just got
07:30to be average but they couldn't find a way to to make the numbers work and only I know it's
07:35hockey
07:35it's different uh like but like a top goaltender gets paid 11 12 13 million dollars a year seven
07:42million dollars a year you you couldn't find that to work uh for Bobrovsky but three years is a lot
07:49of years with a goaltender in his you know in his late uh you know 30s yeah I'm really interested
07:54you know to know like what happened behind the scenes between Bob and the Panthers because I was
07:59expecting when they ended up pivoting elsewhere I was expecting him to get something along the lines
08:03of an uh of an eight and a half nine nine and a half average annual value I thought maybe
08:09two for
08:0920. Yeah I mean I and and I would understand why the Panthers are looking at their roster saying all
08:16right let's move elsewhere because we're just not going to be able to make that work and by the way
08:20I
08:20don't think it's a massive drop off from from Bobrovsky to Markstrom and I don't mean that to as an
08:26indictment on Sergei Bobrovsky but he wasn't the same guy last year and yes injuries played a factor
08:31in that I'd be an idiot to to just write that off but he clearly wasn't the same guy I
08:38don't think he
08:38was worth nine million dollars average annual value but to see him go to Toronto like I had he gone
08:45I
08:46don't know uh uh to Washington had he gone to Nashville like whatever man go get paid but to see
08:52him go to Toronto for I think only one or two million more yeah but those bugs can't win anything
08:57in Toronto they bring in all these great players year in year out and and it's heartbreak after
09:02heartbreak after heartbreak and by the way Markstrom last year had a bad year a bad year so they're
09:09banking on him not being as bad as what he was uh with the Devils a year ago or the
09:13second half of
09:14the season uh that team uh there are bad teams in there what the Devils were in the second half
09:18of
09:19the season and I always bring this up about like you I thought about it because you said the internal
09:23conversations what about the internal knowledge Paul Maurice was around Bob every single day for
09:29the last what four years with uh Bill Zito saw him every single day for the last four years they
09:34know
09:35more about it nobody knows in Atlanta radio that Jimmy goes to sleep every day nobody knows Solana
09:41wears you know nut hugger pants they don't know that we know that internally so they know more about
09:48this situation and I trust them with it the other thing too I will compare this to LeBron
09:55LeBron was gonna have to take less to stay with the Lakers and LeBron was like I'm here
10:03like you're not making me take less to stay I'll say I'm breaking up with you and go take I
10:09know I'm
10:09gonna have to take less I'll go take less with somebody else it seems like that's from afar what happened
10:15here with Bob and the Panthers the Panthers pivoted just like how the Lakers quickly gave that deal to
10:21Reeves the Panthers made the move to go get Brady Kachuk to team him up with his brother uh you
10:26know
10:26brother Matthew and then it was like okay you're gonna have to take less to say and I think Bob
10:31was
10:32like I just won two cups for you yeah I'm not taking less to to stay I'll go elsewhere and
10:36take less
10:37elsewhere just out of principle yeah well it ends up being you get marks from two years six million
10:45dollars a year Bob clearly looking for that extra year my opinion Gelby um and he's only getting one
10:52million dollars more per year but he gets the extra year in net as well uh so maybe that that
10:59could have
10:59been kind of like the determining factor where the Panthers weren't willing to give him that that third
11:03year because the reality is at 38 years old yeah I mean this is a guy getting his final big
11:09contract
11:10in the NHL and I'm not saying it came down to this but if the choice was to have Brady
11:14Kachuk on this
11:15roster or Bobrovsky you would be a fool to say not Brady Kachuk because he's 26 years old and he
11:23is a
11:23great player in this league nothing against Bob but at 38 I'm not paying a contract for what you did
11:30um in the past I'm paying for what you are in the future and sometimes you have to make those
11:35difficult decisions with franchise legends and that's what Bob was here he's a franchise legend
11:39because of what they won here with him in net the first Stanley Cup I'm watching the post game when
11:45they're skating around Brady Kachuk is taller than half the team and they have skates on I want this
11:51monster on my side I'm not gonna lie and he just looks mean man we're gonna be some bad sons
11:57of
11:57guns on that ice this year you know what's funny the aura of the two Kachuks too it's like like
12:02the
12:03Panthers were arguably the most hated team in the NHL already because of Matthew Kachuk now you're
12:08adding Brady Kachuk to this team like the Panthers are going to be the biggest villain in the NHL for
12:13the next three four seasons if I start with Matt I know guaranteed his brother's coming and busting me
12:20in the back of the head if I start with Brady I know this crazy little one's headed this way
12:24nobody wants to deal with that on a nightly basis it's funny to me like if you would have asked
12:29me
12:29three weeks ago hey the Heat are gonna get Giannis and the Panthers are gonna get Brady Kachuk
12:35which jersey would Crowder most likely get I would say Giannis I don't even think it's close I think
12:40you're getting a Brady Kachuk jersey over a Giannis Antetokounmpo jersey you know what I just started
12:46getting jerseys because I had to get a Ruben Bain Buccaneer jersey so I had to get that I'm gonna
12:51I
12:51haven't got a you know bad admission three Stanley Cups appearances two Stanley Cups I haven't bought
12:59a Panther jersey and all that success I'm gonna get me a Brady Kachuk jersey because I like this
13:04big old son of a gun if my guy Vinny Viola is listening and we are the home of the
13:08Florida
13:09Panthers Channing Crowder needs a Brady Kachuk jersey what the puck go get him a Brady Kachuk jersey
13:14I think all right I think that's what Crowder has been waiting for me too by the way I was
13:19on a bit of a
13:19holdout to see if the Panthers would hook us up the reality though Gelb I mean the Panthers
13:23are constantly hooking us up I think those jerseys are a little too pricey to be handed out for free
13:30just a little too pricey it's like a drop in the bucket for for Vinny Viola it will be he
13:36won't even
13:37it won't even matter to him if he gets Channing Crowder or Brady Kachuk I didn't ask for Solana Hawk
13:42and Jimmy to get jerseys just one double XL uh sweater for for Channing Crowder with the Kachuk
13:49jersey I stopped by the gas station this morning and they have the little empanada stand and the
13:54little tables and somebody left two untouched empanadas there and I was on the verge of just
14:00grabbing one because they're but they were free nobody was sitting there was empty I was gonna grab
14:04me a professional athlete you are a podcast and radio star once again I will say there's a sea in
14:11Channing a sea in Crowder and a sea in cheap you are el cheapo I saw a free empanada yeah
14:18I I'm not
14:19gonna lie Crowder that's a that's a heady play by you man for empanadas that's better than paying
14:23for empanadas when Solana's agreeing with you that's what I know all right and then I'll jump on I've
14:30been doing this for 10 years I'll jump on and we'll start arguing together and then he goes on
14:35these rants and I just totally regret it every time all right the Antoine Walker coming up at 225
14:40let's get some quick headlines in with Alejandro Solana it's not the only Panthers news by the way
14:46because we mentioned Etu Losterainen is coming back on a great deal in my opinion plus Radical
14:52Gutis the butcher is officially signed back with the Panthers as well your headlines they're brought
14:58to you by Doral Volkswagen home of the priceito our lowest price visit us at Doral Volkswagen or at
15:04Doral Volkswagen dot com the heat did have to use part of their mid-level exception to sign
15:09Tim Hardaway jr so it ends up being a one year six and a half million dollar contract for Timmy
15:17jr
15:17that means there's only five million dollars or so maybe a little bit more of that mid-level exception
15:23left which is what we all assumed Miami would be doing to add LeBron James to this team so gonna
15:30be
15:30very interesting there's a lot of conversation about where LeBron's going I don't know about
15:35you guys but from what I've seen most reported it still feels like the heat the Cavaliers and the
15:42Warriors however you want to kind of shuffle those three in terms of the favorite those still appear
15:47to be the three teams that are most in play for LeBron and I see the three dark horse options
15:52the
15:53Spurs that I mentioned yesterday I saw Windhorse throwing out the Denver Nuggets and then I also did see a
16:00little Minnesota Timberwolves imagine LeVar Ball watching his son LaMelo Ball play with Anthony
16:06Edwards and then LeVar going after LeBron James anytime he misses a bucket he'll be like that old
16:13head needs to retire that would be something isn't this the time if we're ever gonna spend money I'm
16:18spending Mickey's money now so I don't care it's not mine to go into the aprons and all that stuff
16:23Solana like you have LeBron for one more year go go spend some of your own money and then you
16:27get out
16:27of it but but cap cap restraints and and the way that the aprons work you can't just say oh
16:33we're
16:33gonna be in the apron it doesn't work that way the way that the the the cap rules work like
16:38when they
16:39trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo and that becomes official um that actually limits you because you're
16:45gonna be over the cap to spend certain amount of money so like it's not as simple as hey NBA
16:51we want
16:51to be in the second apron this year and tax the hell out of us it actually restricts you going
16:56from the
16:56first apron to the second apron depending on how your transactions end up working out but I saw
17:01Sean say today that uh LeBron James will take the veteran minimum so it doesn't even matter right we
17:06all believe that right I'm not buying that for a second man yeah I'm not buying that for a second
17:11LeBron a briefcase full of cash man we just sold just somebody was getting business deals
17:16you could endorse uh this uh tree company that I'm starting uh we're calling it aspiration 2.0
17:22you
17:22you