This is I on the Wall with Steve Rivera and Jakonsalis on Fox Sports fourteen
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R two SID and i Heeart Radio Station. Yet the good afternoon, everybody.
Welcome to I on the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm
Steve Rivera, He's Jakin's also got a guy Jason in today working machines.
Hopefully everything will go okay today. We did okay yesterday though, didn't we
except for the stepper didn't come on at the start. We didn't know what
one of the buttons was not pressed. Okay, cool, Cool, It's
Wednesday. It's hot at the beginning of the summer. Yeah, it's getting
hot. Sucks, it is what it is. Let to see you.
Jason. Wasn't sure you'd be here after last night's Denver win. Yeah,
I'm not worried about it, so I am. Yeah, I am.
Good game last night. Yeah, but you know, um, you know,
Denver got out on them big. But the you know, the Roaring
Back, the Lakers stayed with it and gave themselves, gave them was a
chance to win. Darn hand man. Some adjudgments. So that was good
to see some in game adjustments let the Lakers come back into the game.
So you kind of feel almost like, even though the Lakers are down you
know, one zip, it was almost a win a win win situation for
them because the Lakers, you know, they were getting blown out then didn't
get blown out. So certainly they have to feel good about that. You
know, you're supposed to lose on the road in the playoffs and so,
um, you know, I'm I'm thinking the Lakers feel pretty decent about themselves
the way they came back, and then obviously Denver feels good because they won.
Yeah, I would say so. Obviously there's no more victories than playoffs.
But I think all things considering, the Lakers feel pretty good about where
they're at. Um, they were able to you know, close the gap
in the game to make it a you know, respectable loss, and so
I think they feel pretty good. They beat the point spread. I bet
they feel good about that defense. Who better. Yes, Yeah, that's
why you didn't bet it unless you guided at six, right, because it
was the line was six and a half that I saw right before the game.
I didn't do anything with it. Steve. I, I you know,
I let you off the hook. I figured with about two minutes stuff.
I said, Damn Jay, he probably pulled the trigger on something.
He's got some bad mojo. I know you thought that, dude, Jason,
Yeah, I thought it might go out my favorite but you know,
yeah, well you were hoping for the way. Yeah, the kiss of
death hit one of my fantasy pictures. Today, Dust and May for the
Dodgers, came out, came out with a he had you know, he
had Tommy John surgery last year, and he came out with a painful right
elbow. So haven't said, you know what the deal is. But he
came out in the first inning, so he can even last long. Another
another one bites the dust, another one bites the DUTs. Okay, okay,
so we got two minutes. If you want a call. We have
a pretty good show today, eclectic show. Uh should be fun. It
should be fun. Jan Yeah, we talked to him about three four weeks
ago. Right, we talk about the season opener. Now, I'm interested
about being an owner in the FC two song. Right, they put a
thing out on social media that you can invest in the team, you can
be a part owner. Well, ask him, you know what do you
get with that? Right? Right? And uh, you know and and
and you know what's really what's the purpose? You know, what are they
doing this? You know, is it a Green Bay Packers thing where they
just want the community to be invested in it. Yeah, you know,
it's probably not an opportunity to you know, make any money if you're an
investor, but it's an opportunity to raise money for them because people say,
you know, all these people who are part owners of the packers, they
don't make any money off. Yeah, they don't get any pro They can
just say they've got a you know, I want a thing on the wall
that says I'm a part owner. They get discord of tickets something we'll check.
I don't know, we'll see, but we'll see what all that means.
But yeah, he's uh, they're listening, uh for people to invest
in in a FC two soon. Also ask him about this, this women's
pro soccer team and does FC two soon have anything to do with that?
Uh? USL women's Pro team coming to coming to Tucson. Okay, I
didn't know that. You didn't see that. I got announced At the same
time a couple of days ago. I don't, I don't, I don't.
I don't think you got put out as an FC two song, okay,
or if it is, that's not how I read it. It's just
I don't know if it's a separate franchise or we'll ask okay, cool,
cool. And then in the second hour, we're gonna have the Jay Perry,
a female. She runs the committee to the CEO, the female jed,
I made a mistake when you know, um Andrew Andy. Uh,
he's a friend of but forget to beg now Yeah, okay, So so
he's ahead of a PR guy. So he sent me this note. Do
you want to have her on? I said, oh, jay on?
I think sure? Let him know. No, No, her name is
Jay Perry. Yeah. So former of the Super Bowl, right, she
ran the she ran the last super Bowl host commedie and now she's running the
final four host commedie. So you know, just continuing to work. You
know, how do you get that job right? How do you get right?
But that's what's the career ladder jobs they do that The super Bowl is
pretty big deal and this one. See what they have planned because she was
in town today to talk I guess maybe do some pr stuff in the in
the community. So we'll see a ball all about that. She's gonna call
him maybe ten minutes or so. Yep, Um, so that'd be fun.
That'll be fun, and then we'll take your calls. A lot of
interesting breaking news locally that has some local stuff to it. Uh. You
didn't go to the baseball today, did you? There was a they had
a press cover with Chip Hale, Uh to talk about what's going on.
Um, maybe maybe we'll see what's going on tomorrow. They got a big
series against the USCA. Again. You gotta win. They gotta win.
They got they're just trying to get into the packed off tournament because there's only
nine teams get in and they're tied for ninth place right now with Cal you
know, so, uh, you know, they gotta get They just gotta
get in the tournament to have any shot. But you know, I I
think you know, I think it's pretty as they gotta win the tournament.
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, you know to do it, they're not
gonna get in that kind of like probably the women's the women, Um,
I always we're gonna have hikey on tomorrow. I don't know how all couches,
but I probably asked ask you the questions like how we do um,
And I've said this to you, Jane, I think you've agreed with me.
I thought the fall sports were the anchor sports and made this universe.
She kind of come back feeling a feeling of a nice comeback right over the
last few years, right, not this year. No, it's been a
struggle, you know, um, you know, I mean the basketball team
did great but then left a bad taste and everybody, yeah, and women's
women's as well, and then you know, again the you know, the
signature spring sports baseball and softball haven't done well. Tracks done okay, Golf,
tennis, Yeah, all those teams did okay. But you know when
you hang your hats sort of on baseball and softball in the spring and then
they don't do well, that's kind of how people see it, right,
right, So there you know what happens. You know, I can't.
I always have a bad hair day every now and again. Well you don't
have much left though. It's a bad hair days. You know, you
can't look good all the time. Well you can. We don't take well,
we don't, right, we don't. It's hard it's it's it's hard.
I'm pam way past that. That's what SI would admitted a hat exactly.
Okay, so we'll talk to he keep about it tomorrow. Anybody want
to call in, please do. We didn't getting calle yesterday. But what
are we talking about yesterday? Baby? Ask you? Uh? Or you're
a fan, You're a kid, you have all the he loves everything.
Uh, like I'm not a sports fan. We talked about that Jay's a
fan. We had that. We had the discussion about, you know,
what's the definition of a sports fan? And do you are you a sports
fan of what teams? Kind of you don't what I'm saying that sports are
you not? Or are you not because you don't want to meet your heroes.
That's what I kind of explained to people what we can what we're at
think where we settled was it Steve said, he's he keeps saying he's not
a sports fan, but because he's not a fan of a spe specific team.
I said, but if you watch sports and you have fun watching sports,
and you fall, you watch college football, you watch NFL, you're
a sports fan. You're just not a sports fan of a team. I
don't have an NFL team that I'm fan, but I'm still a huge NFL
fan. Yeah, because he's got juice. He's got juice, right,
well, yeah, but still you have no Yeah, I was a huge
fan. You watch games because you have to put juice. Oh, I
would still watch the NFL. Okay, Okay, I have said the story
that I really wasn't a big fan of the super Bowl until we started.
Okay, going to a sports book and making bets on proposition, bet your
honor, I rest my case, the defense rest. I give you that
much. I give you that so you understand. Yeah, but you're I
used to love I got into this, miss because I was your age.
I love this stuff. You get to go games for free to feed you.
But yeah, and then all of a sudden, I met my heroes
and I sell crap. I don't want to do this anymore. Okay,
I guess that's un terrible. But you're you're you know you're a fan though
even yeah, you don't feel like you're a fan. I don't need to
be a fan of a specific team. I think if you just love the
sports in general, it could be a sports fan. You don't have to
which I again I submit that you would not be here doing this show if
of course, big of course, that I have all that, all that
to be us in my back, in my head that I have to get
if you and I both know neither one of us are making enough money in
us for us to put the time and effort we do into this. Sure,
if we didn't love sports. Sure, And you know, we talk
a lot of crap, and we talk a lot of crap. People know,
we talked a lot. Had some fun conversation with my legal team talking
about, oh yeah, the Delora thing, what are the varying we are
the varying No, they just they you know, the question is what the
hell happened in Hawaii? Oh right, And that's always going to be the
case. If you have if you have you know, you have one side
saying that he pleaded guilty to a sexual assault. You have another side saying
he did not plead guilty and he was not convicted of a sexual assault.
You know what's going on. And then the discussion was, you know what
we already said. Unless somebody unseals the record, you're never gonna know,
correct, And so everybody just got to get used to it. This is
how it's gonna sit. You watch enough dating lines, I DS all these
channels to know that there's two sides to its story and the one that can't
be told is the sealed right exactly, And so it's just gonna stay the
way it is. And uh, if you're unhappy with that, then you're
unhappy with it. And there's that's you're just gonna have to suck it up
and be unhappy with it. And I think a lot there's people are unhappy
with the people because what did I mean, Steve, something did happen?
Oh yeah, yeah, right, well you know something did happen? Question?
You know the question? You know, it's it's really semantics. Well
did he plead guilty to a crime or not? Right? So we'll see.
But yeah, I think it's just gonna hang out there. And you
know, we had that conversation that a smart thing to do would you just
come out one time, answer all the questions and then that's gonna wrap it
up into a little box and put it and put it away, Yeah,
without question, without question, And maybe that happens, maybe it doesn't.
We'll see what happens. Okay, So if you don't talk about all that
with sports being a sports fan. Blah blah blah. Uh, give us
a call. We're gonna have um um John Jonathan Perlman on the end about
ten minutes or anything else going on. We started, I don't want to
get into your breaking news start, uh, because there's a lot. Yeah,
yeah, there there is. Well, you know, okay, I'll
leave I'll leave that one out. Funny conversation too, we had about Jordan
Geist when you asked him about and I am, oh, yeah, yeah,
yeah right now. He said, I didn't really get anything and how
we call him how? He said, oh, that's a football and basketball
thing. I thought that was a very telling comment about that, because arguably
Jordan Geist is the most accomplished athlete in the Arizona athletic program. Right,
well, I totally agree, right, I mean you can talk to Laney
Chanelle's you know, an olympian. Um really, who who else is up
there? Yeah? Individually? No? Right? Even football? Yeah,
yeah, in any other sports, you know, arguably the most. And
yet you know, you hear rumors that guys like you know, uh Cresn
and Tabellas and Cedric Henderson and Gordon Raemy were getting hundreds of thousands of dollars,
rumors, rumors, rumors, rumors, and yet a guy like Jordan
Guist, who maybe bringing as much in terms of honors to the program is
just kind of like not anything. I'm going totally get it. I totally
get it. So so Jason, if we're playing football, you're the center
on the quarterback, you're blocking for me. I get fifty thousand dollars,
you get five. You're a little pissed, of course. Yeah, totally.
We talked about that. Yeah, yeah, and that you wonder if
that's gonna happen, if that's gonna kind of be a growing thing in the
NIL world, you know, and then what what you know, does somebody
like Jordan Guist right who he's finishing up his careers, you know, but
I just use him as an example. Let's say he's two years into it,
he's let's say he's won a national championship, a bunch of pack wall
championships, and he's really not getting anything, and all of a sudden,
here comes Oregon, you know, says hey, you know what, come
on over, our program will get you, you know, twenty five thousand
dollars per semester. Yeah, who would you take that. Why do you
think the girls, the girls maybe have left UCLA and other and those guys
who went to USA. Would you blame them? No, No, I'm
gonna give you a raise to go from IBM to Z Rocks whatever. Yeah,
I've talked. My resignation has been tendered. I'll be right there.
I couldn't get out of the door fast enough at the Star when I got
two weeks better job. Don't worry about it. I've done that. I
mean it was like a Tuesday, and they said two weeks from Tuesday?
Is it right? Right? You know? Right? I didn't even let
it go to a Friday or something. Yeah, no, of course,
because you don't what They're gonna replace you, and they'll find somebody else.
You know. That's just the way the world is. Right in there.
No, that example, it fits it perfectly. I don't blame them,
especially to the to the guys like the guys and the tennis players who have
been fantastic, and you know, and and Kenzie Foller said it without saying
it that Oklahoma has a stranglehold on college softball. And why is that right?
Because they've got resources to uh, you know, to pass around and
and other other programs do not who knows what softball is getting if anything?
Yeah, right right, so and if you you know, if you can
go to and an LSU or you know in Oklahoma or Texas or somewhere where
even if you're gonna get just a little bit, jay, you're gonna go.
There's a reason why Kendrea got out. There's a reason why Rudio got
out. Uh and coach Slope has got out way before all this. But
he probably he would not have a deal with this crap. He would not
have come on, would you you? And then you have a quarterback or
whomever position players saying I just hated the fact that when I was coaching high
school baseball, one of our best baseball players didn't come out because he just
wanted to play basketball, you know, twelve big ball, one side of
the year, Like, what the hell? Well, you know, I
got I got a chance. I said, you don't have a chance at
anything. Okay, you're five foot six, you're Mexican, and you can't
shoot okay, which means you can't jump. Your dream crushing you, you're
a dream crushing Yeah. How do I know this? Because I'm that guy.
I was you you look what I'm doing. All right, let's get
out of here. We're gonna come back with Jonathan Prolo, who's going to
talk to us a little bit about the things going on at FC two.
So you want to buy part of the club, here's your chance. So
we'll talk to him about what they're doing with that. We'll be right back.
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Steve Rivera and Jagnzalez. They have their eye on the ball on two
Sons Sports stage yet Fox Sports fourteen fifty streaming live. I mean, I
heart radio warm. Hey, welcome back to Why the Ball, you know,
Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera, He's Jaganzas. Then there's
the music. We got Jonathan Perlan on now from FC two. Soon Jonathan,
how are you hem great to talk to you and Jagan. Yeah,
we've we've found you intriguing and what are you doing over there? FC two
song? First of all, you've already played one or two. We've played
three, actually two families in one league. Okay, how did that league
match? Good to draw on the road, very exciting game one Mond in
front of a good crowd at Redlands, which is a good new team,
and we were happy. I mean, obviously going on the road, it's
always great to get a point or three. Um, I think we had
some opportunities to win, but definitely for us early in the season going on
the road and getting a tough point against actually a really big crowd there,
which was great to play in front of. We're really happy with that result.
Okay, cool, So John, We're we're curious about where are you
going on? What's going on with these selling pieces of the team. Yeah,
I mean we've done a lot going on, so you know, basically,
what we wanted to do is give people the opportunity to you know,
be not just a fan and be an owner. So lots of local teams
do this and it's done been done across the world. So we're offering a
you know, up ten percent of what we've done at FC two, son
Um and our in our company Arizona Soccer holdings to people who want to be
uh, want to be connected in that way. So I mean again,
our fans, you know, are so important to us, our long time
supporters, and you know, if they want to be part of that,
they can check out the rays we're doing there um on start Engine UM.
So we're very excited about that. And all those details are right there on
our website and on the start Engine website. So give us a quick rundown.
What do investors get? Yeah, I mean so because of SEC final
filings, I can't really talk too much about that kind of how that works.
Everything is detailed very clearly on the on the site, but there's some
some perks. There's some opportunities there. But what they do is they're again
they have you known, official stake in the team, UM, which is
exciting. And again you know, fan ownership is something that uh, you
know is done across the world. And you know, what we're trying to
do is again strengthen our our ability to uh do business and help all the
organizations and help our team be as good as it can be. So I
mean, really that opportunity laid out there for our fans is uh something that
we were We've been sure, we've been striving towards and uh we're excited to
offer that. You know, we we've for years we've always heard about you
know the Green Bay Packers are you know, uh owned by you know,
their fans and stuff like that. Is this similar to that or how was
it? How was it the same and how is it different? I'm not
sure exactly how the packers set it up. UM. This is UM this
is a little bit different. It's structured in a way. And again what
I would the best way I could say a Jay is, uh, you're
investing in the future of the team. UM. With investments like these,
like any type of you know, risk you might take on a new product
or on somebody that's trying to expand their business. I mean they're there's certainly
uh, you know, opportunities there, but I mean I think the Packers
may be different and there's a set of voting rights and they might have some
decision making, but ultimately, you know, we wanted to give a chance
for people to have a piece of the team and not just be you know,
just a season ticket. Over where that goes we can't say, and
we're actually not allowed to say, but all the details of every fine I
detailing you can imagine is available at the link that we have on our website.
I'm sorry to be sounding on there and and not really being direct.
It's it's kind of set up in a way where you know, we have
things that we can talk about. What it is is a great opportunity.
We'd love people to check it out. Every point in detail and piece of
that is laid out there and you can ask further questions on the website.
But most importantly for us, we love our fans. People have asked about
us doing something like this. Each each one of these within teams has done
differently. I mean the Sounders can you know, can vote out there their
chairman and do things like that. It's not set up that way, but
um, you know, suddenly there's an opportunity to be deeperly, more deeper
involved in what we're doing NFC. Well, that's gonna say. It's just
basically a chance to be a more part of the team than otherwise, you
know, than like you said, than just being a season ticket holder or
whatever. And listen, we're very happy to have season ticket holders. We're
very happy to people that come to a couple of games a year because they
loved sports entity. Obviously, on Saturday, we're doing Teachers Appreciation Day,
so we're excited about the fact that we were able to give, you know,
five hundred tickets away to all various school districts across Pema County. And
you know, we just want people to know how much we appreciate our teachers
and appreciate our fans, and obviously we'll look to get another win. So
I was going to buy part of the team only because I want to tell
you know, Jonathan, I owned part of the team, and that striker
wasn't in the right position. Yeah, I think that's the big challenge when
you do something like this, and obviously there there are you know, different
levels of investment in this piece, but I hear that anyway, give you
one to pony up down and demand justice for me. I'm very accessible.
I stand in the crowd. People do that with doing best in anyway.
People yell at, yelled everything you could costly imagine me. And all I
care is that three thousand people show up to yell at me everything, and
if they do, I'll do my best, get pelted whatever it needs to
be pelted with, to answer every question possible, and if they demand justice,
I'll give it to them the best. You ever feel like a little
league coach or a high school coach with that stuff and the parents are just
yelling at you all the time. Well, I think it's almost worse if
they don't, because then there's no passion, there's mistaking. But it's always
the balance, isn't it. I Mean, nobody wants to see ultras going
and attacking their coach, jumping on the field. Nobody wants to be booed
out of the stadium like that can happen if the Yankees are red Fox.
But again, it's that past, it's that connection to the community, elicits
that reaction. So while you don't want to taper down, you want to
control it in a way where it's uh, you know, positive and it
makes you know. I want to be challenged all the time. I'm challenged
by you, guys. I'm challenged by the media. I'm challenged by my
own self, my own drive, challenge d But ultimately, listen, I'd
rather have overly passionate fans to complain than fans that are just in different and
don't show up. Yeah, apathy is the killer of death. So you
want to ask him about the women. Yes, So we saw the announcement
that there's a pro women's soccer team moving into Tucson. Does that have any
connection to it to you guys or what's that? What's that all about?
Yeah? So for us that what that's about is Jeff Arnold and I,
who both own FC two Soon, have bought a franchise for the USL Women's
Super League and it's an incredible moment um. We own both FC two Son
and the WPSL fctwo Son. But this is a effort denture with of course
a lot of connection that will be made later, but just to clarify that
it is a New Denture. But it's one that we've been focusing towards as
an ownership groups, as a team, as a partner, and there'll be
other people being added to that group as well. But this moment is a
key moment for Tucson where Tucson will now have a team of a women's team
and we haven't had a women's pro team for about twenty years. And you
talk about the Arizona Heat Softball and I think not that many people remember that,
but we're talking about a women's team that's competing at the Division one sanctioned
level, and that's the intention of the league, which means that our team
is playing in the most popular sport in the world at the highest level you
can be sanctioned. And with Phoenix Rising having a team in the league as
well, we're going directly against the pro teams from Phoenix. We're not a
Triple A, we're not a level below. We are going against playing at
the highest level and have a chance to play any team across the world that's
at that same level, whether it's Chelsea women or Club America from Mexico's women's
team, or you know, any of the other teams that you're that are
well known with national team players in this country and be able to complete at
that level and have that in Tucson is an opportunity that we think we couldn't
miss. There's one hundred and three professional men's soccer team in this country and
this twelve women's team, So it's not equal. That doesn't provide enough opportunity
for the number of great players, considering the number of World Cups that we've
won and how great we do in the world stage. So we just see
an opportunity, and we know we have a community that has incredible female sports
history through the uf A, incredible female leadership throughout our government and our state,
and we just felt the time was right. Well, what's the timeline
for this team? When when will we see that? That team will take
off in August twenty four and they're on a what's called the international schedule al
they'll run from September the way through June. There's a break in the winner
because some of the markets obviously don't have our fantastic weather. But the great
news for us is we can continue on. We have our fantastic preseason.
You know, we have opportunities to host friendly games and we really are just
going to dig in deep to a market I think that's been sorely understood in
this country and in this community. So it won't impact the FC two soon
women now or moving forward. No, the best thing you can do is
support FC two some some women. We're always going to have a platform that's
plea pre professional so that you know, in the clubs here, players that
are from two Son that are playing college soccer can come back and represent their
city and do well. That's never going to change where we decide to play
that as an ownership group, you know, may alter a bit, but
there's always going to be that opportunity to both on the men's and women's side,
and as we pursue men's professional we will always keep that as well.
Because what you need really to be successful in the long term is that full
integrated pathway where you can start playing soccer and two son at three and finish
his career playing at the highest level possible professional Lewson should that be their dream?
You know, looking at I'm just sitting here thinking about all the you
know, all the local well the local sports that we have, right,
You've got that, You've got you guys got the Sugar Skulls, You've got
the Bowl Game, the Tucsons, Saros. You know, baseball, you
know, they bring some Mexican baseball up here. Soccer seems to be you
know, I growing up here, I felt like Tucson was a baseball town
when it came to professional sports. But what you guys are doing with soccers
really seems to be overtaking that. Partly because there's no spring training year,
but you guys have seen maybe seeing that as an opportunity to kind of be
the ones leading the way out there a little bit. Yeah, we really
believe, I mean, the growth of the game in this country, the
growth of the women's game in this country and across the world, and you
know, the weather we have in the our proximity to Mexico, the fantastic
fields that have been essiting by p MC County in the city. You know,
we really see that opportunity and again getting it right and getting it perfectly
right with local owners and local partners and local support. And really I think
it's just so critical and I'm so lucky, and I tell you guys,
among them, the media has tried to cover us and tried to tell the
story the best thing can you guys ask such insightful questions, And my job
is to make sure I'm telling people why this is special, why this opportunity
is great for the community, what it gives back to the community. And
again, we're just We're just happy to tell the story. And we have
so much more to tell on this new piece, but you know, we're
really focused on right now. We'll be doing a lot of work behind the
scenes for that team, but for the summer, it's supporting these fantastic athletes
that we have on two so an FT two some women who are currently unbeaten,
and the women get to kick off on the second and the third,
and we're just we're just trying to do great summer programming that people can enjoy
for a reasonable price. So, so, Jonathan, you and I have
known each other for a long long time, obviously with the kids, But
did you ever imagine I don't know how old are you, about fifty forty
something, I'm I'm drinking milk, Stephen, pretty good, good for you.
I did do that. So when you're in your twenties, when you
knew each other, did you ever imagine this getting to this point in your
life. No, you know I didn't, Steve, and I'll tell you
this, and it's it's true. I'm also still going out there and coaching
this year, you know, I'm back to coaching a U twelve team in
the Old Club. The realities. I came here originally from law school and
I ended up getting my teaching certification. I love working with kids. I
love working with young people. I like inspiring them. For me, that
so that was always enough. But when opportunities knocked and I thought I had
something to offer, I've always pushed myself to do as much as I possibly
can for the people I care about in the community that I care about.
So ultimately, it's not really personal ambition so much as my ambition for the
community. I mean, certainly I want to be good at whatever I do,
but I'm what I love doing is facilitating opportunities for talented people. And
there's so many talented people here in Tucson. There's so much opportunity that Tucson
needs to realize of itself. I think it's not even operating at the full
capacity of the kind of city that it can be without having growth. It's
un control and making it like Phoenix which we're so different from. But I
think there's a place for this sports team. I think there's a place for
pro soccer. I think we have to do it thoughtfully with people in the
community. And again I'm a huge it can be in conjunction with these other
great sports properties like the Sugar Salls, like the U of A, and
in complimentary moments, it's us elevating each other and promoting each other, and
that's what we intend to do. Yeah, okay, nice Nice. Next
is running for office, Like I say, incredibly well said, you gotta
you know, you know, get yourself a stadium and yeah, you know,
oh yeah, listen, these these things are all in process and for
us, the announcement was critical for the league, but you know, for
FC Tucson in this new Super League property, we were very much focused on
what we're doing, you know, micro with the team here, making sure
that's excellent. But you know, the announcement came down, I wanted to
make sure I was available to everybody. But yeah, all that stuff is
in processing. You're gonna start, We're gonna reach out again as we get
into August and September. S we sort through these things so we can tell
people, who's going to be on the team, where, what's it called?
Where we're gonna play, because those are the questions that are reasonable.
But all those things are being worked on. But when the league is making
the watershed announcement likeness like the USL did, obviously we want. But we're
planning thoughtfully and carefully, and there's so much more to come. And h
I'm always happy to get on the radio here at fourteen fifteen and tell you
guys about it. Great and Okay, thanks so much, John, thank
you, Jonathan. All. I hope to see everybody out there's on Saturday
after the teacher sad O can't tell me time by time again? Sick more
time gates eleven thirty this Saturday. So looking forward to fantastic. Okay,
thank you, Jonathan, appreciate you. Jonathan Perlman noting for a long time
I didn't know he's going to law school. Smart dude. Smart dude can
tell you, smart dude. Yeah, and some lawyers aren't smart dude because
he's a smart dude, right, And it doesn't act like he's the smartest
one in the room. Right. That's that's that's the cool thing. Yeah,
A humble guy loves coming on herselves. Yeah, I was talking about
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This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera and Jay Gonzalez on Fox Sports
Sport Team fifteen. Hey, welcome back to watching about here on Fox Sports
fourteen fifty. I'm Steve jas here with us today a Wednesday. It's funny.
We stand here, it's kind of cool. We got outside of it,
you know, it's funny like yesterday and we walked out. It was
like because that when you walk out from coal to Hotti, you get those
tingles. Yeah, it's really weird. But then you get by the time
you get to your car, your sweating and saying all you're shiny and stuff,
and we're saying, what the heck is going on exactly? Hey,
if you don't want to call, please do. If you want to call,
you do five two oh foe seventy four forty. We promise we'll keep
an eye on the call. We haven't heard from Howard, so I think
we're who knows. I don't think Howard's doing well. No, he might
not be. He probably changed the subject on us anyway, Yeah, or
Nico, who knows Nico couldn't be in the desert. Nico takes it easy,
you know, he just be just went and got a little, you
know, a little lettuce and took it out into the desert and he was
fine. He's chill, He's chill, Okay. I don't worry about Nico
like that. I do worry about Howard sometimes you just wonder what what makes
him tick and or what we'll make his tick or stop, you know,
and losing like the way the the Suns did. So I don't know,
just weird stuff. But you know, a lot a lot of discussion about
where these coaches are gonna go because four good coaches got fired. Yeah,
so you know, there's a bunch of teams that don't have coaches as good
as the four they got fired. So you wonder, you know, where
are they just gonna gonna you know, you know, just kind of shuffle
them around and are they gonna be coaching it? Sure, it's just places
and change your address, change your address. That's how it is. And
I'll breaking news about the locals that maybe possibly going to another school or to
another program. Yeah, so that's interesting. Um, just a lot of
a lot of things going on all right, so we were talking about the
game time. What's your take on the game, Jason, because you're a
resident expert in the room. Yeah, honest, I'm not to be sure
about this one. I know the heat has has some time off, so
they might come out a little bit rusty versus the Celtics just came off in
Game seven, right, So I think the Celtics probably win Game one because
it's in Boston. It's a you know, more game ready. I feel
like then the heat and I like the heat well, you know, want
to kind of feel it out, see how Boston is playing seat there no
intensity level and kind of just feel it out. So I think I think
Boston takes Game one. But the don't you think at this time of the
year, though, that the rest that the heat have gotten is better than
not having the rest and as you say, you know, being rest.
Wait wait, wait, we've had this When you said that, I was
gonna bring this discussion up because we've talked about it just depends to me,
rust doesn't. It's a term we're using. It's like moments, not because
this is what they do for a living. You're good at your night right,
two day rest, one day it doesn't really because it's right, but
I think you know, the feel of the game, the pay is like
it's what they do, but like practicing and like actual game, you know,
speed and everything is different. Right, So I think they're gonna be
ready for the game obviously. But what you said, and I think this
is why I went the way I did. Yeah, Boston's at home,
right, that's why they should That's a big deal. That's in the NBA.
That's a huge deal. Right, Denver hasn't lost at home all all
see Yeah, play playoffs, Ye, I don't think this has happened.
Lakers have. I think they haven't, so Okay, so there's a rub,
right, So if they go seven, you'd go with Denver realistically,
but one of them is gonna lose, Yeah, I think at least.
Yeah. Um and and I we don't know enough about heat, do we.
You know, Boston's pretty darn good, right, I think they eat
it pretty good. But but they've been fantastic in Milwaukee. But they always
go on this role at this time of year. Yeah, and then forget
about December, January or last time. This is the time they play.
Yeah, I mean they plug you know, they've looked great in the past
couple of years in the playoffs. Um, they've not got over the hump.
You know, I'm winning the finals, but they've they've got there.
So dude, okay, so let me give you this, and we're not
look at the calls, uh five best players in the five best players in
the league right now maybe the players Butlers could be top three. Yeah,
he's definitely top three. I would say that right now. Who's one who's
doing I think I think Butler. I think Butler is playing bad than Jason
Tatum right now on the playoff. Oh Davis see him? Yeah, okay,
where is Lebron fitting this smith? Lebron's you know, maybe five six
yeah, five six probably yeah, because Murray's done good too, I would
say, yo, kid, um, Anthony Davis, Butler, Jason Tatum.
So yeah, yeah, I mean I think Lebron is, you know,
kind of in the distance. Yeah, he's still doing what he what
he does. Yeah yeah, and you know what, he's thirty eight years
old. I mean he's doing what he and he's he's gonna go off for
one of these games. Yeah, so he'll say I'm thirty eight, but
watch me. Yeah, yeah, I still think and I think I said
this to somebody last thing, the keyta Lakers is gonna be Davis. Oh
yeah, for sure, Lebron can do this. But if Davis doesn't,
and he had a forty, he had a great game. I think if
the small guard lineup they had in the first half was really what lost in
the game. They just started off way too slow and then the Nuggets went
up you know, twenty or thirty points whatever was in the first half.
The Lakers were just fighting back the entire game, so they never caught up.
You never caught up. So I think they'll make the ad judgment like
they did in the second half, and they'll be much better. I used
to like your Lakers. Yeah, yeah, you don't like them anymore.
The Lakers. No. I love my Denver. I love the Denver.
Yeah, I think both fan bases. No, I feel pretty good.
Yeah. Yeah, And like you said, if they hadn't lost at home
yet, well that tells you how tough they are, right exactly. So.
Yeah, so you know, the Heat are plus four hundred to win
the series. That's a good number, that's a that's a fair price.
It's a good price. I think if you bet if I were you,
I want to give you the twenty so you have some series. I don't
know. I just have Boston, uh tonight in a party. But but
I think Boston's a better team. So I so I bet Denver to win
it all a long time ago. And I think realistically, if Milwaukee was
is not there and they're not, Boston would be the next team up after
those two. I couldn't tell you after that, right, Okay, it
doesn't make sense. The interesting thing is that any anyway, any of these
four teams can win it. Yeah, because you know, I mean,
while while while the Nuggets have been really good, they're not unbeatable by these
by these the Lakers can beat him, that Heat can beat him. The
Celtics can honestly beat him. Yeah. What what I think? And that
you were playing the the one of the clips from this morning? Yeah,
I think what or maybe I saw this today on TV? What people are
finding out because no one watches Denver, right, no one watches, not
until now? And what people can say that guy can play yeah, when
everybody else knew that guy could play. Yeah. I think today it was
the first time I've ever heard on like any national media that jokers got actually
like the recognition he deserves and he was called the best pay on the planet.
Was the first time I've ever heard ever, like today on TV and
he's MVP on MVP and like, how you really get recognition for it?
How somebody, Yes, somebody, somebody recognizes it. Right. I think
you're right. Like fans in general, you know, when they think about
the best players in the league, they think of Lebron, they think of
they think of Steph. Yeah, they think because they see the vind because
they see them. I'll give you a perfect point of how we deal with
it. And during the NCAA tournament, we watched the Dukes, we watched
the Houston's, we watched the kansass we never watched n fa U, Right,
we never watched it. Who are they? Right? And then they
show up and kick your ass? And you wonder who are these and they've
been going thirty four and three all year? Yeah? And he said,
oh, oh, I didn't know that. Yeah, So whose fault is
that? That's the person not watching right? Right? Yeah, I think
it's you know, den veris in the big you know New York, right,
Boston, La Market, So you know they don't get like the media
visibility. Yeah that you know, some of those other markets get, but
I feel like as experts who covered the support, they should you know,
be familiar with like every all the stars at least on all the teams.
And one of the things when I when she went with Denver is because Murray
has been hurt the last two or three years. So everyone's saying, oh,
they're just gonna do the be the Buffalo Bills and fall apart at some
point. Right, Well, there's the guard that who has been around.
Now he's around, yeah, and he's pretty darn good. Yeah, when
he's healthy, he's one of the best guards in the league, one of
the best players in the league, honestly, and he's showing that right now.
So so it's not just a one guy punch. No, it's a
one two punch with Porter coming out though playing well. Yeah. And then
who's the guy who's the double name guy? Uh, they played really well
last night. Um, I think he might have been with Sons. He
had twenty one points, twenty two points. Name not coming to my head
right now. Okay, so that guy, Yeah, I don't have that
guy. So but all those pieces don't. Yeah, I know the nuggets
that up like everyone could played well honestly likes to have to get that has
to happen. Like they were making like crazy shots like shot. I'm like
they were making everything mry like so, I mean everyone played well. They
look like Princeton. You know what. We don't need any more of those
chiefs from Okay, we really don't. I wanted to see your face.
Yeah, well there's your finger too. You know. It's funny, Steve,
because we sit here every day and I see the dig coming and then
I still get I still get hit by it. I see it coming and
and it's still like it still gets there. Right, I can't get the
gloves up in time. It's all right, Okay, A lot of good
a lot of a lot of things happened. I can't wait to get to
breaking a lot a lot of good breaking news stuff. If PJA starts tomorrow,
I'm excited about that. You know, I love I love the Majors.
Um PJ is sort of the I don't pay attention to go ahead.
It's sort of always been the step child of the Majors, right like the
fourth one. But you know they've moved it up. You know it used
to be played in uh In in August, and it was the last one
now you know, to put it to get a major in each month,
you know, from April, May, June, and July. It's now
played. You know, it's it's it's coming up this week and it's you
know, it's a major where a lot of guys who get their first major
at this time. Jason Day who won last week for the first time in
like several years, you know, um doubts his only major. Uh,
you know, it's kind of like a place to get your first one.
And so it's gonna be at Oak Hills and in Rochester. I love the
majors, I really do, and I pay attention to these. So I'll
be talking a little with you guys next. So well, how I rudely
interrupted you. I want to ask about to live Is that kind of is
that kind of falling to the It's still something something going on with there because
they didn't they lost some publicity. That's where you can a bunch of weird
stuff. You know, they got on the CW and like they got some
bad publicity because uh, they were getting to the end of a tournament and
they cut them off so they could put the Flintstones on or whatever is the
you know whatever is on the CW programming um and and actually, uh that
tournament when it went to a playoff and nobody got to see it, isn't
that Remember how they have the football game, the game, the Hidie game
years ago, So those there's some of that. There's still a lot of
friction between the between the two tours, although the the live guys can play
in the PGA, so they're you know, some of those guys are in
the Brooks Keptuf, Phil Nicholson, those guys are Dustin Johnson, are all
in the PGA. You know. It was funny, it's kind of anticlimactic
when all those guys played in the Masters. People the people were thinking,
oh, they're gonna be at each other, you know, they weren't.
No, Yeah, they're they're friends and they know some guys disagree with the
fact that these guys all went to the live tour, of course, but
in the end they're gonna get out. It's a gentleman's game. They're gonna
play and nobody's gonna give each other any crap. And and so I think
that's kind of settled a little bit. There's a lot of different things.
There was there was some rumblings for a while that Greg Norman was gonna get
get the boot. They started talking about doing a woman's live tour. That's
conversation is out there. There are guys who are leaving the Live Tour because
they're getting kicked off, you know, because they're not performing performing. Um,
well, the DP Tour, which is basically the overseas tour, the
uh it's not just Europe, it's you know, it's it's overseas. They've
they've gone steadfast. And they're saying, if you want to be in the
DP, in the in the live tour, you owe underco because of your
contract with the DP Tour, you owe us hundreds of thousands of dollars.
And they're saying, I'm not paying, and so they're not they're not getting
to play. Stuff like that. There's just still a lot of friction like
that. But you know, uh, brooks Kep guy I think I saw
is the is the third favorite, just behind behind Scotti, Scheffler and and
uh and Ron wrong. Wrong. So the guy I was talking about is
called Will Pope. Oh okay, he's by the Lakers. Yeah, Well
he used to be with we used to be. Now he's with. He
had a good game. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you know too,
So it should be fun at least I think we should be fun. Yeah.
Um, it's what it's what keeps us interesting because we don't want to
do in the regular season. We don't and and you know, and I
feel like I should, but I mean it's as far as we can catch.
Well, I think did you see that kur Kur talked about that the
punch and it was very obviously, very obviously how they didn't get along.
They played, they played, but they didn't get along, and how that
kind of was the key to the whole season. Well, well, Draymond
Green came out and said that, he said that he thought that they lost,
that they got eliminated at this time. It dated all the way back
to that and what the hell did you do it? Well? Because he
is who he is and and and pull pissed him off, I mean,
pull us a little punkish, you know, how do you how do you
get through that? That'll be interesting to see how the Warriors changed things up.
I mean, they won a championship just last year. But it's funny
how things have changed so quickly. And then you know, maybe you gotta
you gotta get rid of a couple of guys, you know, discussion about
James Harden. You know, people saying, okay, you gotta fired,
you fired the coach. You know, well you gotta get rid of James
Harden too. So worries James Harden go back to Houston. Yeah, okay,
first hour almost complete. So we're gonna have some breaking news by you,
Jason, yep, and I'll probably all of us. We have a
little get some little things. And thanks to John Promer for joining us and
telling us how we can buy part of them. Yeah, well we have
to go do some research. Well don't we always. We have to invest
money, I know, do our work for us. All right, let's
let's take our break. We'll come back. Jason will be on with breaking news.