Pardon the Interruption | Falcons not to trust Bill Belichick during head coach interview - Wilbon

Surprised that the Atlanta Falcons didn't hire him, Belich reportedly felt his two meetings with Falcons owner Arthur Blank went well, but the story goes that Belich didn't finish in the top three when Blank and his key people met to choose a new

coach

. the story tells you about Belichick's training of Future Tony, it's kind of surprising, maybe there isn't one. Just a quick note, this leaves more time for Belich to come to Evon, Illinois, where he has been attending women's lacrosse practices and games and and and and paying tribute to the only

coach

Kelly Ammani Hiller at Northwestern who has more championships than him, so that I had to put that aside and belich, okay, Tony, you don't think I would do television.

I don't know, then, when he did it. one thing on NFL Network I thought was great about that, the history of the game, no one seems to have a better handle on that than belich, but Tony, if people don't seem to like him and Atlanta wasn't the only one they're just the subject of this report in particular, maybe that says something: belich che's record is like 20 games under 500 in the NFL Cleveland and New England without Tom Brady 20 under 500, so maybe people are saying, ah , it will be worth it if we don't do it. have Tom Brady and his who has Tom Brady, no one Fox Sports will have him, so I look at this and I think okay, people are not willing to come out, it's tough, he has demanded, he will want to change every single thing in the organization and What end?

So I said this several times on the show: If I had owned the Cowboys or if I had owned the Eagles or if I had owned the Bills after the most recent playoff loss, I would have gotten rid of the coach and hired belich but no one did here are the new coaches that have been hired in the interim Raheem moris Jim Harbaugh Gerard Mayo Dan Quinn Antonio Pierce Mike McDonald Dave Canales and uh Brian Callahan I don't know a couple of them with total Super Bowl wins in their Career

head

coaches are zero and B has six.

I'm sitting here in disbelief that he doesn't have a job, that he's unemployed and I don't even like him, as you know, but I can't believe he doesn't have a job with the Atlanta Falcons. who sucked last year didn't hire this guy, his owner Arthur Blank danced on the bench during the Super Bowl, except Bill Bich's team came back and beat him with the biggest comeback of all time and didn't hire him and like you pointed out no one has hired him, apparently there are some people who won't look for attribution and will say that's Bill Bic's age, he's 72, this apparently makes him too old.

I'm older than him and I would point this out, um, than Dusty. Baker won a World Series when he was 73 a couple years ago Andy Reed just won two Super Bowls at 66 Bruce bchi won a World Series he's 69 um Dre papovich I think he's 75 Gino orm is 70 so I don't know that 72 is disqualifying. I'm surprised, I'm surprised if people think they hired better coaches to listen to, but if also Robert Crab is telling people things that they feel are harmful if that's the case. Robert Craft is no small figure. in the sports world and specifically in the NFL so I mean no and maybe that's true maybe he sunk it but he couldn't sink it with everyone no one seems to like the guy let's take a break if we expect more from Jimmy .

Butler or Joel are in their game tonight and the Hawks or Bulls have more at stake tonight. Did you know Belich was at Evon going to women's lacrosse? Did you know that at Northwestern you knew that I just heard that I heard? that's time to shoot two men come in one man leaves the show ends celebrate with some shirtless selfies in the bathroom mirror that's a lot of fun then dig into The Leftovers what's the first shot of which star player are you looking forward to the most in the game of tonight Jimmy Butler or Joel embiid I might surprise you with this Mike.

I'm going to say Joel Embiid Joel Embiid has been very, very good since he returned from injury. Jimmy Butler has been in and out for most of the year. um embiid is the MVP. He is a different player. now that in the past he is not burdened by teammates like Ben Simmons and James Harden, it is his team, he understands that he has never won a championship, he has to do it, I'm not saying they are championship caliber, but Yeah. saying they are championship contenders when Joel Embiid is at his best this is a home game for him he has rested he missed the last game I think he is ready I think they win wow wow you still have the ability to stun me with this quality program Tony No I know where to go with this, so just as a point of interest Jimmy Butler's averages I think are 21.7 points per game over the last four years in the regular season, you know, averages in the playoffs 27 28 that's huge, it's a huge it's a huge leap it's better Jimmy Butler is great in the playoffs we've seen him do this in a bubble outside the bubble at home on the road Jimmy Butler is one of the great playoff players in modern times , he just is and yet, Think about why Embiid is rested, you know, Jimmy Butler has been, if not my favorite player, one of my favorite players in the last 10 years in the NBA, but Tony, for all the reasons What you said, I think tonight it's Embiid and he has the team's help.

Mr. Maxi, who some people are going to consider the most improved player in the league, not because he was fantastic last year, but Tyrese Maxi is a great player and I think they are going to win that game in This night at home even though look, if Jimmy Butler throws up 40, plus we'll come back and feel stupid tomorrow, but I think we both think Embiid lives up to the moment Mike. I feel stupid every day, so I'm not going. to feel stupid tomorrow is no different what's next, decide which team has more at stake tonight, the Hawks or the Bulls.

I'm going to be completely honest. I couldn't care less about this game. I know you root for the Bulls, God. God bless them, I hope they wait for you, but Mike, me and I love to play. I love playing, but Mike, I don't think teams with losing records should be in the playoffs. It's as simple as that for me it's an 82 game season. If you can't win 41 games, get out of the playoffs, I mean Chicago is 39 and 43, the Hawks are worse, they are 36 and 46, so if you ask me who has more at stake, my answer is who cares if you tell me. the Hawks lose and get rid of Trey Young, so be it.

I know there's no rule in any league that if you're under 500 you can't be in the playoffs, but I think there should be, it's like the NFL teams in s and n when they had a 16 game season, I think that happened once or twice Tony, neither of them have much at stake because neither of them are seriously playing for a championship, you just didn't mention Trey Young being traded, it seems like the Hawks are going to do that or need to do that either whether they win this game or not, and even if they win this game, they will still have to go to the loser of Miami Philly and win there and then make the playoffs and get blown out. by the Boston Celtics in the mission, so I don't know if any of these have much at stake.

I'll say this also about less than 500. I think one of Michael Jordan's teams, I think maybe the second one missed 67 games. year, I think they were nine games under 500 and made the playoffs and put the fear of God in the Celtics, but none of the Tonys, I mean, none of these teams are going anywhere unless it's after the draft and be lucky in the draft, not in the. lottery, you don't need one, two or three to improve your team like Tyrese Halberton, but you have to explore it, have a little luck and be good at the draft, and the draft won't come before tonight, that's it, we'll take one.

The last break is still to come, a wild sequence of eliminations in the NHL and NBA is very hard on this Raptors player Jonte Porter for betting, yeah, well, like you knew he was influencing the games, He was influencing the bets on himself, you know you've got it, that's come. You have to go out I have a different take for us I'm Tony Kornheiser April Reigns I feel sad we wait forever for Joy like watching the Bulls you know correct me if I'm wrong but I think the Bulls have won let's see 1 2 3 4 five six championships since your Knicks just tell me if I'm close to that yes no I think you're probably right How have they been doing lately?

I think that's what we're talking about lately, better boys and girls these days. episode, the Lakers Advance Zion come out and the Falcons reportedly blindsided Bill Bellich, but we start today with the Golden State Warriors shaved 24 points last night in Sacramento, the Warriors are now out of the playoffs basically before they even begin. Steph Curry took only 16 shots Klay Thompson took 10, he missed them all Steve Kerr says he wants free agent Thompson to return to Wilbon, where do the Warriors go from here to Tony, just like all the other great championship teams that have Had streaks going back to the great Celtics now that they had? more championships and the Magic and Kareem Lakers mostly Magic Lakers and then Jordan's Bulls and then Papovich's Spurs, you know Duncan, Robinson, Parker and Jobi, all of them, all of that will end, no matter how big you get and it seems. be over for Golden State Tony.

I watched it with a little sadness last night because I love going there. I have run all this during these nine years. I've been able to sit in the front row and watch them and it's been like an Honor, I don't want to be too cheesy, but these great players come around so often and you can't always have them, so they got Steph Curry and they're still going to get him because Steph Curry It's not going anywhere. He's not going to demand his release, he's not Kyrie Irving, he's not going to do that, but you don't make moves in a vacuum either, so even if the Warriors made a bunch of big moves, Mike Dunlevy and his staff have now replaced Bob Myers.

Even if they make the right moves, Oklahoma City won't go away, Minnesota won't go away, Denver are the champs, chances are they won't go away, the West is loaded, the Warriors are done, done, what, what, nine games, eight games over 500. and they came in tenth, so Tony, it seems like it's over and I don't even know if I'd try it with those same guys, God knows if it's me, if it's them, and Steph Curry voiced this and so did J. Green and Steve K we also want to do this together, you should applaud them. You can't tell the story of the NBA without talking a lot about the Warriors and how they did it and how they changed basketball, but Tony, it's over, yeah.

I'm going to impart a little wisdom that I learned over 40 years as a sportswriter and that is that coaches always keep a player one more year and general managers always want to get rid of a player one more year. They will soon not reach the finals again if their key players are Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. I think it's your friend Shaq who said Father Time is undefeated this time next year. Steph Curry will be 37 years old Draymond Green and Klay Thompson. There will be 35. I think it's over. I'm hoping they give up on Klay Thompson, of course they should, but this is already done, let's look, you know, he microed this game last night, okay, and this is an elimination. game a game full of pressure Klay Thompson goes 0 for 10 for only the fifth time in his career 793 games in which he did not score a point Steph Curry takes 16 shots, that's not enough if you have to get 50 and he had to get 50 last year to be able to beat this team, Draymond Green can't stop the people underneath him, he's not big enough, he had three rebounds all night, there's a quote here that's concerning, even though we're at the bell, is by Steve Kerr, we were overwhelmed.

They were dominated, all the offensive boards, fumbles, they beat us at all of that, in quotes, so Mike tells you it's done, it's done, Tony does it and again you know we're talking about look, the Bulls had a Last Dance, a documentary that you know took everyone by storm during the pandemic, of course, when the documentary was released, it ends for all the best and the Warriors are among the best the league has ever seen, that's right, and I applaud all those guys . I particularly love Klay Thompson and I think he, along with Scotty Pippen, are Two of the most underrated players in the history of the game as much as praise, so I don't know what you do, you almost start over, you start with Steph Curry and you see what you can do in the meantime.

In last night's first game, the Lakers advanced to the main draw, but it wasn't easy, a dominant Zion Williamson of the Pelicans had just tied the game at 95 with three and the change to go, when he left, he landed awkwardly towards the left with a left. hamstring injury that will keep him out indefinitely, the Lakers then withdrew. Tone you think the Lakers would have won this game if Zion was still there if he hadn't gotten hurt so this is a great question because this is the essence of sports. If everyone's healthy, who's going to win, I don't know, that's why you try to watch the games to see who's going to win, but what this talks about is that's the key moment in the game where Zion Williamson gets hurt and when you see it.

NoYou think nothing happened, I mean, he doesn't look like he's injured, then something happens in his body that he feels like we can't see and he walks off the court, lifts his shirt a little bit and goes into the tunnel and I keep thinking, well, He's coming back because I have no idea what this is and he's having a great game, he's having the kind of game you thought he'd have in the pros and it's only his first playoff game in the NBA, he's got 40 points for the season. Maximum, he has 11 right rebounds and this is the kind of game where you say that's why he's the number one overall pick because, to be fair, people have used the word disappointing more often than spectacular. in his NBA career up to this point he's having a spectacular game and then he's gone, he's gone, he was so cool he was going at LeBron and Anthony Davis right at him and he gave them 40 and this is at home after being so disappointing .

In the season-ending tournament last night he was not disappointing. He came out as if to say, "Okay, let me show you why I was a sensation in Duke's one eye and why people wanted to pick me number one overall and him." He did it and then he left, Tony. It reminds me that Charles Barkley talked about this very eloquently about guys that size and how 20, 30, 40 years ago they weren't expected to run the court the same way when Charles came out. guys like Zion R and their bodies, you look at all these guys, Tony, they have to weigh less, you know, like Joel Embiid, he is another, they have the size and the athleticism, what they are expected to do, they end up getting injured very often and I listen to Charles' words and I think you know where he's right and I wonder if Zion can be there to the point where he'll show us more of that, but coming to the Lakers very quickly, Tony, they survived. and I'm not one of those people who thinks the Lakers are going to get swept or overwhelmed by Denver.

I'm not, if LeBron James is the goat and we know that he thinks he is, then you already know what LeBron James' superpower is, he is the best at diagnosing every game, every half, every quarter, every possession and taking the best of himself and his teammates. He is so good that there is no sweep coming and I hope the Lakers take this six games or seven games and give Denver a decision. I'm crazy, but that's what I expect from the Lakers in that upcoming series. Well I might call you crazy because I think I heard this morning that in the last calendar year for for for for for for wee hello foree spee forign for speech foreign speech speech fore spe foreign speech spe speee fore foreign speech 2 speech fore spech spe spee you , here you should stop