Is LeBron Trolling Everyone? His Next Move Remains a Mystery | THE ODD COUPLE

[00:00:00]All right, Rob G.

[00:00:01]LeBron James.

[00:00:03]What you got?

[00:00:05]I mean, a whole lot of nothing, right?

[00:00:06]They're still playing the waiting game.

[00:00:07]This now has gone on longer than his previous three free agency years.

[00:00:11]>> I didn't like it.

[00:00:13]Well, that's a crying game. I'm sorry.

[00:00:15]>> And the ESPN has reported, "Hey, do not expect any decision to come today." And that's no surprise because Rich Paul on his own podcast that dropped this morning in response to Adam Silver saying, "Hey, we'd like you to make a decision."

[00:00:27]>> Poor? Paul now poor?

[00:00:29]>> No, he is rich though. He is rich.

[00:00:32]He's very rich.

[00:00:32]>> He dating Adele? You out here in these streets? Yeah, life is good.

[00:00:35]>> Adele? No, they Oh, they're married.

[00:00:36]What are you talking about? They're now they're married. They got married.

[00:00:39]>> Married to Adele? Look at that.

[00:00:40]>> But Adam Silver said last week, "You know what, LeBron? We'd like you to make a decision soon because we got to get the schedule finalized." And Rich Paul said, uh, "That ain't going to happen." Take a listen.

[00:00:49]>> I'll say it again. None of these people know anything. Nobody knows nothing. And I say that respectfully because we haven't made it to where anybody knows anything. So, I think it's important for people to understand, we're not making this about attention and a spectacle. It's not about a decision or anything like that. He has a choice to make. He has a business choice to make. We're not going to sit here and decide or allow someone else to decide when he makes that decision or that choice. It's a business choice that he's making. And I think as an athlete, why is it that an athlete has to rush his choice?

[00:01:27]>> Okay, I want to answer that.

[00:01:28]>> a business perspective, from a business perspective, you are making a choice between jobs, high-level jobs, and you've earned the right, you're a big-time executive that's with a unbelievable, arguably the best resume in the history of your job. Who's rushing you? Nobody.

[00:01:48]>> And I get that, Rob. I do get the idea that at this point, LeBron, you're 41 years old, be 42 in December. He has earned that right. What he's been the face of the league, carrying the league him and then obviously Steph over the last 10 years and being the being kind of the ambassador of the league. I get that. I We had this conversation with Aaron Rodgers. And Aaron Rodgers >> What a What a shocker that Kelvin is a LeBron apologist. Go ahead.

[00:02:11]>> No. And Aaron Rodgers Now Kelvin, see this is where you're wrong. I want him to come out so we can be done with this because despite what Rich Paul says or we're not trying to make it a spectacle, every hour that it goes by it is a spectacle because everybody wants to know because you got the dag on commissioner coming out saying begging and pleading, "Please, please, can you hurry up make a decision so we can make our scheduling?" And that's the most fascinating part of this to me, Rob, is that here we are year about to be year 24, 41 years old, be 42 in December, and that the league Adam Silver has put it on hold. He pressed pause with advertisers and games and and Christmas games and all that trying to figure this out and figure out what LeBron does. And a part of me makes me wonder is any of this trolling getting back at folks who were mad at him for the first decision where in his mind, "What? I just decided on what I was going to do. I told you where I was going. Tried to raise some money for kids and everybody was mad at me." And I'm wondering, Rob, is there a part of him that's like "Now I'm really about to take my time."

[00:03:06]Is there a part of him that's really I'm about to really milk this and sit on this because the last time I did it in a more, you know, timely manner in comparison to this, y'all had an issue with me. So I wonder if there is an element of trolling with this, but we do know that again he What he means to the league because if this is going to be it, this is what I was explaining last week.

[00:03:25]If this is it, let's say he comes out I'm one more year with Cleveland or one more year with whoever, Minnesota.

[00:03:31]Adam Silver cannot miss out on that.

[00:03:33]That Christmas game you If you're normally charging 250, 500,000 to advertise, you charge million, 2 million if it's his last Christmas game. That last game versus Cleveland if he goes somewhere else.

[00:03:43]>> I don't think anybody would pay that not knowing what LeBron's going to do. I wouldn't pay that.

[00:03:47]>> I'm saying, but I'm saying if he comes out and says I'm going to To I'm saying that's why all this is important. That's why Adam Silver's waiting. Cuz if he comes out and says, "This is my last season and I'm ending it where I started in my home turf of Cleveland." That changes everything for the NBA. Because now it's not a regular season, now it is a farewell tour for the guy who's been an ambassador for the greater part of a quarter of the century for your league. And that's why Adam Silver's pausing and that's why it matters and it shouldn't matter. Cuz if this was a 42-year-old Vince Carter who wanted to be a sharpshooter for a team and play 8 minutes a game, nobody would care. Kurt Thomas or Juwan Howard when they played when they were or Jared Dudley, but LeBron still matters to the league for multiple reasons and this is why Adam Silver's on pause and Rich Paul is telling him the man is trying to make the, you know, make take his time. But there's an element I'm wondering, Robert, there's some trolling some getback for the last time he made it 16 years ago and everybody gave him all the smoke for it.

[00:04:41]I wonder if he's milking it a little bit because of that, too.

[00:04:44]>> Yeah, I don't think it has anything to do with it. I I I just think if I'm Adam Silver, I'm going to do business as as usual and I'll adjust as you go on. You can make an adjustment with with uh some games, not all games, but some games and I just wouldn't do it. I mean, at some point you got to start to move on and move on without LeBron anyway.

[00:05:07]Um and there are games that you need to slot in and you know, you could play Russian roulette. It's not like there's 20 teams he can go to. There's a couple uh you could figure out and maybe try to do something, but the longer they wait, the worse it is for everybody. And at some point, you have to move off of him if he's not going to you're trying to do something uh respectful, I guess, right? Trying to figure out where he's going to go or whatever, but at some point, the league is bigger than LeBron and you'll adjust.

[00:05:39]If if you miss out and he goes to a team that's not playing on Christmas Day, so be it. Uh the last game will be there.

[00:05:46]I'm sure the last month, whatever games they can figure in and change the schedule or do you know what I mean?

[00:05:52]They have plenty of time.

[00:05:53]>> you're right. I just I I >> to adjust the schedule. Just because you come out with a schedule doesn't mean that those are the national you know national games. You know when days they're played. So I I would just be willing to to adjust some of them but not all of them because he hasn't made a decision.

[00:06:12]>> that this cuz I get your point. My biggest thing is if he comes out and says, "I'm going to fill in the blank and this is my last season." That is where I think it is key because of the change.

[00:06:22]>> that.

[00:06:24]>> That's I'm I I'm I'm I'm he talent-wise he still can play another two, three years. We know that. But I think that's the issue and that's the concern why Adam Silver is scared because not scared but why he's being cautious. He's waiting because if he comes out and says that, now you're about to milk this thing dry, right? You're advertise your commercials and >> there's only a certain amount but there's only a certain amount of national games anyway a team can be on even in that case. And I get you would like to try to get them on uh you know a number of them but it's not the bulk of your schedule.

[00:06:55]>> Which is also for advertising. Meaning if I let's say I'm Nike. And if this is his last go, well even to your point, okay, it's one of the already known get national games. But now I want to run four instead of one or two I was going to do, I want to run four or five ads, right? Cuz it's a big time game, it's national. I want to run all these farewell Nike ads.

[00:07:13]>> got plenty of time. What what why can't an ad the season doesn't start until October?

[00:07:19]Right? Late September, early October.

[00:07:21]>> I got budgets I got to plan. Come on now, Rob, you know this.

[00:07:24]>> No, but I'm just saying but I can allocate that money once I realize what's going on. I don't think it's the end of the world if you don't know exactly. You know what you're going to spend and I'll take money from other games that I was going to spend on your budget and move them to those games where LeBron is. I would just take from other places. You only have a budget.

[00:07:44]It's not like if I got a hundred thousand dollars to spend and I was going to spread it around and now I know LeBron's not going to play. Okay, 60 of it is going to go to LeBron's games, right? And the other 40 will >> But you know what's going to happen.

[00:07:57]That's what I would do. I hear you but that but the the difference is it's no longer a hundred thousand or 60 for this commercial. Now this slot during that game he's playing on Christmas, that's 250 minimum.

[00:08:08]>> Yeah, I don't I don't know I don't know if that late that that's going to be I I think at the end >> his fair. Think Jordan in 98, right? We didn't we didn't know he was coming back to the Wizards.

[00:08:18]>> Yeah, but I don't I just don't think that um the Christmas game is the one that I have to pay because he he still would be far away from retiring. I'm still going to see him. Why would I >> I'll give you that but I mean it could be a Monday it could be an NBA game.

[00:08:32]>> The last month, I'm with you. The last month or his last couple of games, I'm with you. Then then you could charge a prime uh for those commercials but Christmas or or every game, I don't think so. Most of the Most of the games are going to be local.

[00:08:47]>> What do you think at this point? Like we've all we Me and you have had at least three or four conversations about family.

[00:08:53]Your family didn't change at this point meaning you you you know you got two sons and a daughter, you know you got a wife and da da da.

[00:08:59]Nobody else is really adding to their teams now meaning most teams are at like 90% 95% what they are. At this point, I am wondering what what else is it? Like the season just ain't changing. The Cleveland Cavaliers are the Cleveland Cav. Miami is my like if it's the Warriors, you already know that team.

[00:09:15]You're very familiar with them.

[00:09:17]It is curious at this point, you know, several weeks past it now. What else is the issue? Like your family dynamic hasn't changed, the teams haven't changed. What else is there? And I'm That's why I said is there element of trolling or or milking this like >> Or make it like >> long I can make everyone wait. Is there a little bit of egotistical like I got I I cuz this is it is getting like what else is there?

[00:09:39]>> Maybe it's just the idea that um uh where the other teams are. You know what I mean as far as or being able to swallow the whole idea of taking a veteran's minimum to join one of these teams.

[00:09:52]You know, might be part of it. But all right.

[00:09:58]>> All right, Rob. So, they're watching us right now, which means another thing they could do is what? They could subscribe.

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