Local Hour: He Had The V
47:38 Share

You're listening to DraftKings Network. Ryan Reynolds here for, I guess, my 100th Mint commercial. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I mean, honestly, when I started this, I thought I'd only have to do like four of these. I mean, it's unlimited premium wireless for $15 a month. How are there still people paying two or three times that much? I'm sorry, I shouldn't be victim blaming here. Give it a try at mintmobile.com slash save whenever you're ready. For

$45 upfront payment equivalent to $15 per month. New customers on first three-month plan only. Taxes and fees extra. Speeds lower above 40 gigabytes. See details. Now's a good time to remember where the story of tequila started. In 1795, the first tequila distillery was opened by the Cuervo family. And 229 years later, Cuervo is still going strong. Family owned from the start. Same family, same land. Now's a good time to enjoy Cuervo.

It's hard to say that a waddle feels like a storm, but Stugatz waddled stormed through the room there. And when he got to make up,

He said, those kids don't know how to take. I don't know what he overheard that made him dismiss the room. But who wasn't taking correctly for you as the arguments broke out all around with Amin al-Hassan in town? Well, someone was saying my stick the landing on the vault take during the Olympics was a terrible take.

And I said it got a reaction from you. And that's all I'm looking for. It's a bad take, but it's a good take. It's a bad good take. You can't be afraid to give a take. That's right. The hallmark of a good take isn't whether it is accurate or smart. It's whether it got a reaction. And that's what Stu Gatz got. He got a reaction. I did. That was a good take.

uh it was a bad take but you're saying that there's a spot in the middle stugatz between the good take and the bad take and it's the bad good take which is if you have an opinion that gets you called a fool i've told you this before colin cowherton knows there's money in wrong some people will take wrong as the lane and stugatz is saying if currency today is just attention

If all that matters is did you say a thing that got attention, you see how the take master evolved in old age. He's just going to keep pushing it further and further into the places that no one else is willing to take. Dan, let me give you an example of the opposite to give you the contrast. A good bad take, like LeBron is one of the best players to have ever played basketball.

Duh. Like, it's accurate, but it's a bad take. It does nothing for me. It does nothing for me. Nothing, right. As opposed to LeBron, not even one of the 50 greatest players to ever play the game. Now you're talking. What? What? What is the difference between a bad good take and just a bad bad take?

because you can say anything to get attention. There are any number of ridiculous things you can say to get attention. I don't know where this line is. This is the line that Stugatz dances on like a gold medal gymnast. A bad good take is I know it's a bad take as it's coming out of my mouth.

but it gets people talking. I don't agree with what it is I'm saying, but it gets the people to talk. Wait a minute. That doesn't make any sense. What do you mean you don't agree? What do you mean you don't agree with what it is you're saying? Wait a minute. That is... It makes all the sense. I don't like the words that are coming out of my mouth. I agree with them, Dan. Let me rephrase this. Yes, I know. I agree with the take...

I'm not saying it for any other reason than to get people talking. That's all. I don't really care. Stick to landing, stick to landing. You don't, you don't. This is what I believe happens. Stugatz gets out there and he does the equivalent of...

Licking his finger and holding it to the wind. Tell me where it is that started, Chris, please, as an action, the licking of the finger and holding it to the wind. Where it started? Yeah, I want to know like where in... Origins. Yeah, the origins of why it is that that was something that started. Prehistoric time? I mean, I think like the first man probably did that because it's like, oh, which way is the wind going? Yeah, but the licking of the finger seems... Yeah, so you could feel like the...

Are we really doing this? You don't know? When you lick your finger, the precipitation on your finger, you have a different level of sensation of things like that. So when you do that, you can feel the wind better. That didn't start in the 80s. We have an expert. It started in the Netherlands, apparently. In the past, when the Dutch wanted to know the direction the wind was blowing, they would lick their index finger and raise them. Hmm.

The Dutch. I don't believe that. You tell me the Romans were like, which way is the wind going? I don't know. If only there were a system that we had. We created aqueducts, but we don't know how to lick our finger and do this. Put it on the poll, Juju, at Levitard Show. Did the Dutch invent licking your finger to see which way the wind is blowing? This is the Dan Levitard Show with the Stugatz Podcast.

Today's episode is sponsored by DraftKings. Stay tuned because you'll hear more about DraftKings and all it has to offer throughout the show. DraftKings, the crown is yours. I've been telling the audience for a while to keep an eye on how your favorite media members, the ones who have dominated the last generation...

how they age and the way that Stugatz is aging is super interesting because he just said to you, and this is absolutely not true as with many things that come out of his mouth. Stugatz does not make things up that he doesn't actually believe. He might turn it up from eight to 10, but Stugatz later in life, what I have noticed as the climate has changed all around us is

What he does is he starts the take.

And then there's a version of horror that emerges from the shipping container. And then from within that, he decides whether to hit the gas or hit the brakes, depending on what it is that he's talking about. But he's absolutely looking for the response. And so when everyone jumps on him with Simone Biles, he's absolutely thinking, yeah, she needs to not hop when she lands on the dismount. That is not something he made up. That's something he felt

when it happened. And so when you guys react by jumping on his neck, what ends up happening there is, no, I'm going to press the gas because I know it doesn't matter whether or not I have an opinion that she hopped a little bit. I don't care which Simone Biles people I make angry because the shipping container is now sour and now he goes to the controversial place. He speeds up to the controversial place where...

where the dangerous takes are. Amin came in here. You tell me if this is a bad, good take. Amin flew in here today upset because yesterday Stugatz spews so much shrapnel in so many different directions that none of us even noticed that he had said that

that if there were a bronze medal game in football for the number one draft pick, it would get better ratings than the Super Bowl. To be clear, he said some years. Yes. Depending on who the prospect is. It depends on the prospect, like Caleb Williams, and it depends on the Super Bowl matchup. Of course. No. No, it doesn't. The Super Bowl will always draw more. Always. It doesn't matter if...

Here's the best part about football. I can't even name two teams that I'm like, oh, nobody cares about those two teams. Totally.

to play the Super Bowl? I can name one. Jacksonville. Jacksonville versus what? Jacksonville. No one ever cares about Jacksonville. Jacksonville, Carolina? Do you think that would be a Super Bowl no one would care about? That's not true, Dan. Their fans are super loud these days. They're very into it. I would not say Jacksonville. I would have said it 10 years ago. I won't say it now. Okay, and I'm going to remain totally stubborn in that take, and when Jacksonville does something that matters, you guys inform me of it. We'll go viral. I might change it. Miami, Paris.

You get a Carolina Jacksonville Superbowl. I mean, versus versus what's the process. What's the process. Caleb Williams. You think the Caleb Williams bowl would draw more than Jacksonville versus Carolina for the Superbowl. Yes. So God, you know, I love supporting you in all of your endeavors, but I cannot follow you down this path. Wow. I mean, that is, that seems crazy, but I need to know whether your assessment, is that a bad, good take? Because I think that what he's saying is insane. Uh,

And I don't think it's a good take that's bad. I think it's a bad take that's bad. Well, thank you. I think it's an excellent bad take because it got me. I told everybody, this is a new phone. The phone that I had when I was listening to this yesterday, I shot it. I just unloaded with a Gatling gun and just shredded it to pieces. Not that he said it. I won't lie. You know what, Stugatz? It's an excellent bad take. Thank you. It's not because you said it that made me mad. What made me mad was that

Nobody even flinched. You guys just kept talking about whatever the conversation was. Like, whoa, did you hear what this man just said? I was so happy in the moment, I must tell you. I mean, you're right. And this is how I age, okay?

Playing whack-a-mole with him for 20 years, I've slowed down. I can't clean up everything. I'm going to miss a few, and it's going to be some obvious ones, and it's going to feel wrong to you because I missed it. It's my job to correct him. They don't care about correcting him. To the audio audience, he just waved a dismissive hand at the entire shipping container. Correct me on what, though?

I mean, what are you correcting me on? It's my opinion. I'm just giving an opinion. But Stugatz, it's an asinine opinion. There is nothing that football can create, real or imagined, that would be bigger than the Super Bowl. I just gave you something. I'll tell you how it would be better if Mahomes had to play in that game. Then maybe that game would outrate the Super Bowl. But Dan, it's not just the dominion of Stugatz, the same ridiculous things that nobody pushes back on. Yesterday,

You waxed poetically. You mused how you could not imagine a scenario where America would gather around a television to watch sports in today's day and age. And you guys said, oh, my God, these Olympics have been different. And I said, Dan, NBC paid $8 billion. That wasn't just on a whim.

Everyone was like, these Olympics were different. You know why they were different? Because the ones before them were a year off and in Tokyo and were suppressed. Suppressed by COVID, suppressed by the time zone difference. But if you go back to the Olympics before that, 2016, we were

absolutely doing this. Remember doing Ryan Lochte getting arrested and making up a story about how he got robbed by gunmen in the Rio kind of favelas or whatever. There were so many incredible stories from those Olympics and we were

We're all doing exactly what we're doing right now. There's nothing. This show was not. Absolutely. We didn't talk about Ryan Lochte every damn day. You're mentioning one thing about Ryan Lochte here, and we did not spend the time talking about Michael Phelps that we did about Simone Biles. We absolutely did not. He's right, I mean. Not this show. You guys didn't talk about Michael Phelps?

Phelps? We did. No, we did not. No, man. I was here. What are you talking about? I mean, yes, we talked about Michael Phelps, but this show did not obsess with the Olympics. It absolutely did not. There's literally zero content, specific content that anyone can remember from that time period done by this show because we did nothing memorable during that time period. Kevin Durant and Draymond Green and Kyrie Irving?

Speaking of memories, you also said on Monday, and I didn't check you for this, that Kevin Durant and the USA squad might remember that game against Belgium for the rest of their lives, but you won't. And dare I say, if I catch your ass at 90 and I'm on your bed at the end at the hospital, like, Dan, remember when the USA beat the Joker in them? You could be like, yeah, what?

You know what? That'd be an odd time to ask. I'm saying I'm proving my point. Loved ones all around him. Hold on, I want to paint this picture out. Dan's there. There's like a, you know, everyone, Valerie's there holding his hand. We're all there. We're crying. I'm old and gray. I've lost all my hair. And Juju walks up and Juju looks exactly the same because Juju doesn't age.

He says, hey, Dan, remember that Serbia game? And then Dan's eyes widened like the welling of a tear. And we thought, oh, we thought he was non-communicative. He's reacting. And then he looks at Juju and says, no. Beep!

Sounds like a wonderful ending, honestly. I hope that all of that happens. I hope that I last till that long. But what I'm going to say to you then is no, I don't, Juju. I don't remember. Tell me what happened in that game. I'm an old man, and you told me 40 years ago that this would be the case, but I don't remember anything about the end of that game because I did not experience the bronze medal game that way. I'd just be there for the will.

And fiddling with the machines to make sure that I die quicker. Do you have, like, as soon as he dies, the will is just read out loud to everyone in the hospital room? Crack it open. You got it lined up. Dan's the opening act.

The headliner is the will reading. Am I alone on this amongst all of you when I say that I don't believe that the I don't believe that the Serbia game will even be as memorable as the one that was played after that.

Like, you can't tell me that, like, OK, but so you guys are saying now you're going to make it two games for all time were just played during the Paris Olympics by a team that was an overwhelming favorite. I might pair them together. Like, I might just remember this Olympics and those two games because the other ones weren't all that memorable. And so when you look back at it and you say, like, oh, man, they had to be Jokic and Wemby.

Because ultimately, Wemby will be remembered that way. And so in 10, 15 years from now, it'll be like, oh my God, how did they go through those two players in those close games? Because they had 12 of them. But it'll be even more memorable at O.

at the end of their careers, LeBron and Stefan Duran taking down the MVP and the future best player ever. We'll remember it even more 20 years from now. Jeremy's right. We absolutely will make Wemby way better than what he actually was. In the same way they say, how did LeBron and Dwyane Wade and Melo lose an Olympic gold? How did they win bronze? Because they were seven years old when they played in that thing. How could they possibly beat a 20-year-old Wemby with a team with so many stars that Jason Tatum couldn't get on the floor?

Jason Tatum, I saw, was 0 for 16 on jumpers during the Olympics. Semantics.

Put it on the poll, please, Juju. Is Jason Tatum being 0 for 16 in the Olympics on jumpers semantics? Yes or no. The women's gold medal game, you guys saw the number, the rating that did it, 930 in the morning on a Sunday, starts at 7 million and gets up close to 11 million by the end. Some people were objecting to my assessment that

that women's team, does anyone in this room object to the assessment that that women's team to me was the, for me, was the equivalent of the 92 men's team for women. The first giant team of stars that everyone is overwhelmed by and paying attention to. Wasn't the 96 a women's team? That's what I was going to say. They started a league because of that one. Definitely 96 was like the moment for that team. But I think this was a,

like a really exciting game because you're never going to get the chance to play the home country's team on their home court the evening after they just lost in heartbreaking fashion to the NBA stars. There was so much energy in that building from all the accounts of all the reporters and fans that were there that I've heard talk about it that that was a really unique kind of...

mashing of all these different emotions. And so, I mean, that game was great. I thought, I mean, I was super nervous watching it because I really wanted the U.S. to win, but it was super exciting. I'm never going to forget that game. There, beat that. The reason that I make the assessment that I do on it is I'm not making it about the team as much as I'm making it about the

interest. There has been no time in my lifetime that a women's Olympic basketball team would get 11 million people for a game on a Sunday morning because everybody deeply cares about the result and is also watching because they know it's a loaded team and they're more familiar with the players than they've ever been. There's a stardom on the team that wasn't associated with players who were less known in 96 just because fewer people knew to pay attention and were ignorant about what they were watching.

I do think there were more people that watched the Tokyo women's gold medal game though because it was on during prime time. I think it was a 10:30 Eastern start. So I would disagree with you there. I think Brianna Stewart and Asia Wilson and Diana Taurasi and Brittany Griner,

There were pretty big stars three years ago in that game. And I think that shows via how many people watched that game. Were there bigger numbers for that game in Tokyo during primetime? I think it was very similar, but maybe slightly more. And I think that attributes to the time change, too, because 630 a.m. on the West Coast for a gold medal match on Sunday, like a lot of people are not going to be able to get up for that.

Summer's the best time to run the way you want. Dial it up with new challenges and programs and bring your workouts with you to make the most of outside sunny days. Stugatz, guess what? What? You know what you can do with Peloton? What? Get the app, go outside, ride a bike. Well, I thought you ride Peloton inside. Well, you do, you can ride Peloton inside if it's a rainy day or if it's cloudy or you just don't want to get outside, maybe it's too hot.

summertime go outside i record a lot for my office with you and you've noticed it's sitting there yet it hasn't been used well now's the time summer's the best time to start that push right can we do it together not on the same bike but we could join a class together i used to do that we just have guillermo tan i'd invite people we'd all take a class together okay time so i think you're starting to get concerned about my health and my age billy i i sense that with you we're beyond starting okay

Whatever road lies ahead, your training starts here with Peloton Tread and Tread Plus. It's not just a bike, a treadmill too. I'm going to go outside. I'm going to get in shape. I'm going to do it with Billy Gill. I want to be in your class. I want you to be my instructor. You know what? I won't be your instructor. You don't want to spend more time with me. No, I can schedule a class and we can ride together. I won't be the instructor of the class. We can have Camila could be our instructor. I like the Grateful Dead class. My daughter, she uses the Peloton. Mm-hmm.

She was on it once, and an instructor who was playing Grateful Dead tunes. Let's do that. Okay. Why don't we go for a run? Outside. Guided run. Peloton. Me and you. That's something we can do together. Okay. Turn on the app. Me and you. Go outside. Enjoy the summer. Call yourself a runner with Peloton at onepeloton.com slash running. All right. Don Levitard. I don't like smutty either. Stoogatz. Women stay home in the kitchen where they belong. This is the Don Levitard Show with the Stoogatz. Stoogatz.

Getting back to what it is that Stugatz was saying about trying to whack these takes that are bad good takes. Do you have any of those today? Do you have anything that you've sharpened up today? Or is today a slower day for you? You can't throw fastballs all the time. You need days of rest. I don't force these things, Dan. They just have to come to me. I will let you know. I'm marinating on a

you, and I will get back to you ASAP on this. Does Amin have any? Maybe Steph and LeBron? Do you have anything related? It doesn't have to be basketball, I suppose. Do you have a bad good take or a good bad take? I think I have a good good take, but maybe I'm just being biased. Because we did this on Oddball and we posted it, and the reaction, I was kind of staggered that I don't think people really listened to what I was talking about. I said...

Like, look, we've had NBA players since 1992 play in the Olympics and great players have played together. Grant Hill and Shaq played together. And, you know, obviously Kevin Garnett and Gary Payton played together in 2000 and so on and so forth. Obviously, 2008 is the most famous one because we got the actual joining of LeBron and Wade and Bosh because of that.

But I've never felt in my life in any of those Olympics, I did walking away like, no, no, these two people need to be on the same team together for basketball, for the sake of beautiful basketball. And it's LeBron and Steph. I never thought it could ever look this good. I was just like, it was a lot of people said it online. It was like, it's like Draymond supercharged. I'm like, no, it's like Draymond. If,

freaking Galactus came down and gave him superpowers and called him one of his heralds. There's no way in hell that you can tell me there's ever been a more perfect match of two great players than LeBron and Steph. It was amazing. And I said, I realized right then and there, any sort of

petty kind of biases that we might have. Oh, I hate the Lakers. They should never play together. Or like, oh, the Warriors get too much. Doesn't matter. Oh, LeBron always plays in a stacked. Who cares? I'm not even talking about playing on a stacked roster. I don't care if the rest of the roster is Stugatz and freaking. Brawny. Brawny and Chris Cody, right? Yeah. I'm saying that LeBron and Steph. What would our record be? So.

62 and 20. Me, Ronnie, Stu Gots, and Stephan Lombardi. That's a starting five. Boy, I'll ask to be 0 and 70. Hell no. We have LeBron and Steph, man. Hey, Juju, welcome to the good bad take. Yeah.

62 wins. That's what they'd win. Put it on the poll, please, Juju. Better combo together for beautiful basketball, Shaq and Kobe or Curry and LeBron? I left here yesterday thinking something that I regret not saying. Jordan and Pippen?

Way better. How about that? Way better. Not just better. Way better. You've got Curry and LeBron being way better? I've got 40-year-old LeBron and however old Curry is, 37 or whatever, better than Jordan Pippen. Boy, do I have a proposal for you, Amin. That is a good bad take.

After just a couple of years on their contracts, LeBron James and Steph Curry, both free agents. Guess who has a ton of cap space in those seasons? Your Miami Heat. What's the matter, Dan? Just Jeremy. Stephon Marbury said yesterday, because he doesn't like LeBron, that Michael Jordan, you shouldn't put LeBron James in the same breath as

Michael Jordan my man, and I can I get to what I'm saying or you want to say what you have small windows? I just gave him a my man. That's it. He knew what I was gonna give him there No, but I did the right thing there. I mean, I'm trying to set something. I'm not trying to derail it I just just really you're not you're not not I'm not just say real quick. So according to Paul Marbury, I gotta go Michael Jordan and

LeBron James. Yeah, I was setting that up. You could have given me the chance to set that up. The flow, I mean, you know. Good job. Minor penalty, two minutes, asshole.

- Yes, you're the asshole because you come flying in here, you sit in the seat and I'm trying to set something up and you're like, no, I've got something better even though I don't need to hear even what you're doing to tell you I've got something better than whatever you've got. - And he was looking around for the asshole, that's if it was him. - He always saying, I'm the asshole and he's looking like I should leave, yes, like I should leave. And I wanted to know first,

Where does that expression come from? Because I do feel like it is totally reasonable to say that LeBron belongs in the same breath as Michael Jordan. Oh, geez. I mean, we waited around for that? In the same breath.

I want to understand, did the Dutch invent that when they were holding a finger up to the sky after they had licked their finger? Because it seems like it'd be pretty easy. I don't know how long your breath lasts while speaking, but it would be pretty easy to give LeBron the respect that at the end of whatever that trailing breath is, it's okay to put him in the conversation with LeBron James. So you can't take a breath when you're doing it. I mean, technically, you're not allowed to. If you're going to put him in the same breath, you cannot breathe.

breathe while you're giving the take. I like this. Or you can't take a second breath while talking. I don't know how many names you think you can list on a single breath before taking another breath. Laughter

How many do you think, if because... It used to be a lot more for me. Yes, your lung capacity does diminish some with age. But the point that I was going to make about Kevin Durant that I forgot to make on the way... We were talking yesterday about his general happiness and how it seems like he's been fighting the internet for 15 years. Can you imagine, from this perspective, being Kevin Durant?

You're trying to be the best all the time, and you're a clearly unprecedented basketball player for any age.

But you happen to live in the time of LeBron and Curry, so you're always the bronze medalist and you're only the bronze medalist because you teamed up with Curry. Then you get to the Olympics, and we remember that first half when you went 8-for-8, but what do we remember? Oh, third place again on his own team all the time, and the Internet's always there to remind you what the real difference is, they think, between being number one

and being number three. And we will make all sorts of arguments. And if you're internet addicted and you think you know, you know basketball and you're great at basketball, you're obviously great at basketball. You're like, 15 years? I got to spend all this time fighting with all-time greats of my generation, two of whom will be remembered for all time because they have no precedent. And I'm always finishing third, except that one year where I joined Steph and I needed his help.

to do what I did. That'd be pretty frustrating if I was a person who was fighting the internet all the time and getting caught up in the stupidity of people, you know, spying

splitting hairs on sports arguments. I think what's frustrating, first off, I'll take third best basketball player in the world. Secondly, I think what's frustrating to basketball fans is you can obviously see the talent of Kevin Durant. We see it all the time. And when you see it, you say to yourself, that guy didn't need to join that team. That guy could have beat that team. And he chose not to. But Stugatz, you make that point all the time. And what I'm telling you is... That's a good, good take.

What I'm telling you, though, is in retrospect, I'm guessing that part of Kevin Durant's greatest frustrations is, what, Stugatz? I did the thing you guys were telling me for 10 years I needed to do. I needed to win. And then I give you the thing that you wanted and you tell me on the back end after I've won, nah, you didn't do it the way I wanted you to do it. Sometimes it's where you win, how you win, with who you win. And he made a bad decision.

I'm sorry. I mean, championships are different. Winning a championship with Golden State would not have meant as much to Kevin Durant's legacy as winning just one in Oklahoma City. My larger point is I would understand if I were him why it is he has a scowl all the time fighting with people like you over, oh, I tried to do it your way, but it wasn't the right way. No, it's not your way, but he was trying to please people.

by just winning. That was the only indictment on his resume. The reason we weren't putting him with LeBron and Curry is because he couldn't beat LeBron and Curry. Like, that's the reason we weren't putting him in that company reputationally. And if you're fighting the internet all the time, and the internet's always there for you to bother you about how you're not quite good enough...

I do understand how somebody would arrive at a place where he's just pissed off or bothered or less happy than he could be, less joyful than he could be. Are you basing that joy off of the slide picture? Because I'm with you there. That was not a we. He was not happy to be seen. But he did seem very happy after that game to get to the final. That seemed as happy as we've ever seen him.

Right, I don't think he's joyous at all. He just put out a mixtape and it sounded good to me. I know a couple of his friends in real life. Like, he's a fun guy in my opinion. He just ain't gonna let you talk to him any kind of way. Like me.

Put it on the poll. I think he is publicly, what are we putting on the poll? Is Juju like Kevin Durant? Let's not put that on the poll. Is Kevin Durant like Juju? No, my confidence is already shattered. I don't need more help. How about was that a we? Because it was not a we. I'm telling you. The arms are saying

The arms are, the arms for sure are saying we. That's indisputable. But Jessica, if we could do a little bit more of a close-up on Kevin Durant's face, if we have the capacity to do that. Only if you close up on his arms too. The arms are absolutely saying we, and it is wonderful to think of that's how Kevin Durant rides a slide. But it is the most joyful Kevin Durant photo we've ever seen, and he looks like he's not...

His face does not look happy. He may have just gotten some water in his eyes and he had to close his eyes for a second. A photo is just a snapshot in time. We can't really know definitively if he was saying we, but we do know that he put his arms up as if to say we. Do you think Steph Curry says we when he's going down a slide? Imagine Steph going down a slide. He would not have a bitter face.

WheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

on the team. Halliburton. Yeah, he didn't have to do anything. He's all refreshed. Drew Holiday might go down head first. I loved Tyrese Halliburton's tweet, by the way. What a great, when you are in the group project and you don't have to do anything and you get an A. Love that. I can't believe that Stugatz hasn't objected to the news I'm about to deliver to him. I am surprised he hasn't heard about it because I don't think that he has. Hoops Hype has now said, for the first time ever,

that LeBron James ranks ahead of Michael Jordan on its list of, weirdly, the 78 greatest basketball players of all time. How'd they come to that number? I mean, it's weird. It's a good man take.

Been hungry for some college football? Well, we finally get a taste this weekend. Don't miss any of the action. Jump in with DraftKings Sportsbook. It's a small but mighty slate of games for Week 0, including a big matchup in Ireland. This is going to be DraftKings' biggest college football season to date. Plus, all newbies getting into the college football spirit, here is something extra special. New DraftKings customers bet $5 to get $200 back in bonus bets instantly.

Score big with DraftKings all college football season long. Download the DraftKings Sportsbook app now and use code DAN. That's code DAN for new customers to get $200 in bonus bets when you bet just $5. Only on DraftKings. The crown is yours. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. In New York, call 877-8-HOPE-NY or text HOPE-NY 467-369. In Connecticut, help is available for problem gambling. Call 888-789-7777.

or visit ccpg.org. Please play responsibly. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino and Resort in Kansas, 21 and over plus age and eligibility varies by jurisdiction. Void in Ontario. Bonus bets expire 168 hours after issuance. For additional terms and responsible gaming resources, see dkng.co slash ftball.

Don Levitard. Your history with him suggests three years of heaters. Those are the heaters. Three years of heaters, but this Stugatz, my partner enlivened by a sports team. We're having sex, baby. And Joe Maurer, yes. Like, this is the best version of him. What? Stugatz. No, you are. Yeah. Feels good. This is the Don Levitard Show with the Stugatz. Did anyone in the room have a...

When you found out that the commanders have Martavius Bryant. I didn't know that. Hadn't played in six years.

That's a long way. That's a long time to be outside of football. And that talk about somebody who looked the parts to God. So I thought that guy physically, I thought, I know that name, not because of anything he did in the league, but because, oh, that guy's going to be great. Right. Look at him. How could he not be? And so he's great enough because this takes a special kind of athleticism to not play for six years.

And just end up being on a team. He played in the XFL, by the way, just to be fair. He was a great receiver over there. But I still feel what you're saying. Fair enough. I did not know, though, that Martavius Bryant was back in the league. That was not something that had come across my radar. I wanted to ask you guys something because I read something.

yesterday that had to feel like a big deal for GQ magazine. And I don't assume that GQ magazine feels like a big deal very much these days. I don't know that anybody in magazines feels like they're a big deal these days, but

They got George Clooney and Brad Pitt together in France, put them on the cover, interviewed them. And it was an interesting interview of two movie stars late in life who care less what people think than they ever had. And it made me think, right, because the demo on this is old, but...

it made me wonder whether these two guys are whatever it was that Clark Gable was supposed to be in a different time. Like, are people picking up that magazine and being interested because the, the, the dinosaur movie stars, Tom Cruise, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, they're not going to be around very much longer as giant movie stars. No, I'm not.

killing them. I just, I think in general, the movie star of that age, unless he morphs into an action star, doesn't get a long sustained run after this. I feel like Tom Cruise is just getting started. I mean, put it on the poll at Levitard show is Tom Cruise just getting started, but it felt to me like I was reading something from a different time. Do I have that wrong? The rest of you, would you be interested? Would you pick up? I guess what I'm asking you is,

Does George Clooney and Brad Pitt on the cover have the star power so that you would either make sure to search out a link or, and this is the greatest compliment you can give in a publishing age that is dying, buy a magazine? Does that make you buy a magazine in 2024? Dan...

The only way I can crystallize the argument for you is to say, okay, what's the opposite? If it's Timothee Chalamet and Tom Holland, do you think people are like, oh, we gotta read that one? Yeah, I swear. I just said that back here. I don't care. George Clooney, Brad Pitt, whatever. Give me a little Timothee Chalamet. All right, man, I'm in. Like,

Do you think Timothee Chalamet is an interesting person? I actually do. You do? Because he's just a Jewish kid from New York who's a theater kid who somehow became cool. And I don't know how to do that because I'm not cool. Well, you're not from New York. You are cool. Don't do that. You're cool, brother. You're cool. Also, I know who Clark Gable is, but I think Chris was asking around the room.

Who was that, brother? I'm talking about movie stars from a different time. Speaking of which, give me the stat of the day here. I want more stats of the day, and I want more people looking up stuff like this. Because if you thought Clark Gable was old, wait until you see what I drop on you now. Start of the day, start of the day. It is the start of the day.

Start of the day, start of the day, it is the start of the day. Start of the day, start of the day, it is the start of the day. Start of the day, start of the day, it is the start of the day.

I found this out yesterday. Don't ask me how. Bela Lugosi. What? The original Dracula was buried in his Dracula cape. What?

The original movie Dracula. Bela Lugosi. Bela Lugosi, the original movie Dracula at the start of movies. Bela Lugosi was born in 1882. That's right. Five wives. That's right. Five wives. Two of them named Alona. A terrible drug problem. Back to back. Alcohol problem. Rest in power, King. What are the chances? Hold on.

Wasn't there a Curb Your Enthusiasm episode where Leon was going to Japan with this girl he's dating? And he was trying to find someone with the same name. Because she broke up, yeah. Is that what Bela Lugosi did? This is like Stugatz being buried in his Travis Matthews hat and hoodie when he dies. Put it on the poll, Juju. If you were the original Dracula, would you want to be buried in Dracula's cape? I feel like I would. Did he have the teeth in, too? No.

Well, I also feel like you would in the event that you can come back to life and then have to be seen as presentable in public like a vampire. Yeah, I'll be able to turn into a bat easier. I wanted to ask you guys about something that happened yesterday here that I was surprised at the intensity of people who were simply saying,

That person is lying to you. That is a lie. The Levitard Show likes to just talk to people who spew bullshit. And it wasn't Nate Silver. Even though many of you had a problem with Nate Silver. It wasn't Stu Gantz. Yeah, a whole lot of people thought that Charles Barkley was full of shit saying that he could have had an offer at minimum $100 million more than what he's being paid 10 years, $220 million by TNT. And I'm like...

That's not surprising to me at all. I would think that NBC or Amazon might double his salary if they were trying to get a name like that, trying to get into sports. And I was just surprised by the sheer number of people. So Charles comes out. Think about this. Think about what's happening here. Charles says...

All the syrupy stories about there are so many people in this family of employees. We've all worked together for a long time. And I heard so many heartbreaking sob stories about mortgages and children that one day in the middle of the night on a network that wasn't appropriate for him to do it, he just retires. He says, I'm retiring because he's so fed up. And then he comes on yesterday and he says in the bidding for his services for NBC, Amazon, ESPN, he would have never gone to ESPN.

NBC and Amazon fighting for the rights to Charles Barkley. He says that the offers were at least $100 million better minimum.

And he did it at least in part because he wanted to go back and be with those people, all of whom had a contract for another year. They all have a contract for another year so that they would have some security for their future and he wouldn't have to hear more of those conversations. And so many people not only called him a bullshit liar, they said, why didn't you just take the hundred million dollars and create a fund for those 200 employees so that you can pay them?

And I just was mystified by an act of generosity spoken by Charles Barkley, not volunteered, in answer to a question, because he answers all questions, that people's immediate reaction, so many of them, would be, he's lying. That's bullshit. He also turned down to live people as well, right? And that was a big bag. So I believe him. I don't know how many people knew before he said it out loud.

that he was making upwards of 20 million dollars a year on this current deal that was not signed like this year right so i it for people like oh no way like did you know he was making that much already that's the part i think people are missing is that yeah this dude is the highest paid man in sports tv maybe all of television uh that's not like scripted tv right so the idea that he turned down that money like

Yeah, I don't even flinch. Of course I believe him. Oh, but I'm more interested in the examination of the other thing. What is happening there? What is happening? I know social media is an angry place. I know that we are less trustful in general of any information.

But what is happening that would create what I thought was a surprising reaction was, which is, oh, that's a nice story. That's a nice thing to do. Bullshit liar.

I don't really have an answer. All I know is that Lewis came in afterwards and started talking to me about his mortgage. I mean, it was uncomfortable. I sent him to you, by the way. I mean, I think, Dan, people are struggling with this. Right now, people are just struggling financially. So to hear a guy who's already making a lot of money say on the radio, hey, or on a podcast, say, hey, I turned down offers that were for...

At least $100 million more, which I believe, by the way, I do think that media outlets would pay Charles Barkley pretty much whatever Barkley wants if he was willing to leave Turner Sports. He's not. He's going to stay there. But I think people just don't want to hear that right now because they're struggling to make ends meet. They're struggling on a daily basis, and they don't want to hear a guy who's already making that much money say, hey, I turned down over $100 million, and I did it because I care about these people.

They don't want to hear it. The internet is always going to amplify the most extreme Stugatzian takes, too, by the way. They love a take. So you're going to see the unfiltered, angriest replies. But I do think since, I don't know, as long as I've been alive, people have been very cynical of wealthy people saying that they've done anything altruistically. So I think that that may just be what it is. As they should. But also, Dan, to her point...

He could have said, I took the $100 million and I created a fund to pay for the employees. And someone would have said, just $100 million? Right. Prove it. There's always another step. How much is each getting? Yeah.

They hated Jesus, man. Of course they're going to hate on Chuck. I think it's probably a combination of both of those things. Your timing's a little off today. This happens sometimes when you're off for a little bit. Your timing's a little off. Because you just steamroll past what he said. They hated Jesus. Of course they're going to hate Chuck. All I can think of is what kind of crucifix would they have to build to hold up Charles Barkley? That shit got to be...

Corrugated steel reinforced with adamantium. He's lost weight. What an unnecessary shot we're taking right here. Oh, man. The joke I could make would be so much more. Yeah, but you didn't make it. Oh, no, but I'm not going to make it. No, the joke he could make. That's good. That's good. I'm going to tell you all in the break. But we stopped Dan dead in his tracks. Oh, my God. Well.

Like Jesus. Or Jesus. We stopped Dan dead in his tracks because we had to stop. What I steamrolled was Juju saying they hated Jesus. Of course they're going to hate Chuck. A good point. Jesus has been used that way as an analogy wherever there's hate since Jesus. So we could have steamrolled past it.

It would have been okay. It's the comparison. See, what you're not understanding is there's a disparity between what we traditionally think of Jesus Christ and his build versus that of Charles Brock. See, Jesus is usually depicted as a fairly skinny man with great abs, by the way, I might add, right? Yes, yes. Six-pack. He has the V. Yeah.

Put it on the poll. Did Jesus have the D'Angelo? Chris is obsessed with this. No. Chris is obsessed with this day. Let me explain to everybody here what happened to Chris today. We went out to Dolphins Camp. Yeah.

Oh, man. Who put me in the middle? Hold on. Hold on. What a day. Hold on. You guys are over-eager today, man. You want to get in there before I set up anything for the audience. Excited. So we go out to Dolphins Camp yesterday, and Chris Cody is sitting between Stu Gatz and extraordinarily fit people on a sofa. Yeah.

And he's talking in his shirt and people, helpful staff is coming over and moving his shirt around. And he comes in today and he asks Danny, he comes, I heard this when I walked in. Hey, Danny, did it look like I have boobs is the question that I heard him ask. I was like, how fat did I look yesterday really? I'm not a middle guy on a couch.

I'm an end guy. Right. And they were like, get in the middle. And I was like, okay, fine. And the whole time I'm like having to sit with my arms like straight. And a couple times, Jessie, our makeup person, came over and like pulled my shirt out. And I was just like, she obviously is seeing something she doesn't like in the camera. Like she wouldn't come over here if it all looked good. And I'm just like, I just hate all of this. I got Jalen Phillips sitting next to me.

He's just like, impossible to look good. Wait, your shirt was getting stuck in your underboob? Yeah, like at one point she came up and like pulled my shirt out at my stomach area. Was it hot?

It was outside. It was hot. Little sweat patches. I don't know. Right here. Chris, I had the same concerns. There was one point where, you know, we spoke to some Dolphin players. One of them was two up. There was a good three or four minutes where you and I didn't talk. I was sucking my stomach in the entire time. And then he turned to us. He said, are you guys going to say anything? And I let it out. There's no way that's going to come out looking flattering for me and Chris. They couldn't even see you past me. They had to, like, move. I know. It was awkward. Yeah.

I'm sorry about that, Chris. Danny says I didn't look that fat, though, so we'll see. Stay tuned. But knowing your angles is important. That's why I always sit in this chair and I never sit in Stugatz's chair. Oh, the worst chair. Terrible camera angle. The worst. Dan's chair is pretty bad, too. The lighting just glares so hard right there. I don't like sitting in your chair. Also because it's kind of sunken for some reason.

Stugaccia from my friends over at SimpliSafe. If you're like me, you're constantly thinking about the safety of the people and things you value most. After a friend told me about a break-in in his home in which many of his most valuable possessions were stolen, I knew I needed to secure my home with the best. I've trusted SimpliSafe to protect my home for six years now, and the level of security and customer care has been incredible. I sleep better every night knowing SimpliSafe's 24-7 monitoring agents are standing by to protect me

and my home. They'll also send emergency help when I need it most. I want you to have the same peace of mind that I and so many listeners experience every day, which is why I partner with SimpliSafe to offer listeners 20% off a system. Just visit simplisafe.com slash DLB. What I love most is that SimpliSafe just keeps getting better.

Protect your home this summer with 20% off any new SimpliSafe system. When you sign up for fast protect monitoring, just visit simplisafe.com slash DLB. That's simplisafe.com slash DLB. There's no safe like SimpliSafe. A coach who knows the game can teach their team how to improve. But one who genuinely cares about each player can inspire them to win.

At Truist, we believe the same is true for banking. Because when you work with someone who knows a lot and cares even more, you're unstoppable. Truist. Leaders in banking. Unwavering in care. Start feeling unstoppable. Visit truist.com slash care. Truist Bank. Member FDIC. Leading based on top 10 U.S. commercial bank.