Gus Johnson on the Dan Patrick Show Full Interview | 7/10/24

[Music] [Applause] [Music] Gus Johnson will be on the call with Bill raftery Christina Pink for USA Basketball the matchup against Canada that's tonight at 10:30 Eastern on FS1 Gus Johnson the Fox Sports play byplay announcer joining us on the program Hi Gus how are you wow man I feel like uh I'm coming in from the Wilderness now that I'm finally back on The Dan Patrick Show I mean it's been literally I haven't been on your show because you don't love me anymore Dan I don't know what happened man we ain't folk no more it's been over I've been at Fox for 14 years and this is the first time I've been on your show since I came over the fox so I was just letting you know that today is just like such a wonderful day to me I feel like I've accomplished so many things and I just feel like I'm on my way up some kind of beautiful ascending mountain and I'm going to reach the peak and have an opportunity to look out over the entire landscape because now I'm back on I don't know Gus I think you need to get a better researcher fritzy will you do the homework and tell me the last time Gus Johnson was on the program I'm on the case okay we're going to bet and me and my friends we have bets we call we're going to bet a mystical dollar me and you one mystical dollar that I'm going to beat you in this bet and it's been over 14 years I uh I'm going to take the under Paulie would you uh locate the last time Gus was on we're all over but I know we had them on college basketball related within the past 10 years okay okay that mythical dollar is coming my way you might be the Drake you might be the Drake of bets uh with announcers so you're GNA lose this hold on hold on hold on hold on hold on hold on I gotta stop you right here no no no no I would never be the Drake of anything you know what I'm saying I'm an American I not the Drake no not me don't say are you going Kendrick Lamar here Hey listen listen you're you're diving into a pool that you really don't understand don't say that okay don't say that to me I'm an American I'm not a don't compare me to Drake let me get in the pool let right now over the next one to one to two years or compare me to anybody but Drake right now um tell me what you're expecting with this Olympic team and is it on par or for or is it more talented than the dream team which we've been led to believe with recent articles here well I just got some information today that Kawaii Leonard will not be playing in the Olympics yeah because he is uh injured and uh is it better than the Dream Team I wouldn't agree I wouldn't say that you know no um I think that they got a good team but I think they have an older team that has injuries uh Kevin Durant's got a little Nick LeBron's 39 years old stuff's getting older now kawai's not playing I don't think they have the uh the same Firepower as the Dream Team no I wouldn't say that at all well they don't have a Jordan and they don't I don't think they have a Jordan or Barkley and and those two were you know Charles I think won the MVP maybe the year after the Dream Team and we of course Mike was in his prime now that was a that was kind of a banged up roster too you know Larry bird wasn't Larry Bird at the time but you know that was that was a pretty good all I know is I still had Mike going out there every single game and they they don't have Michael Jordan well nobody does but well not not not they don't have the LeBron James in his prime I think maybe that's what you're saying so yeah you're right you're right they don't but they have a good team a great team the Hall of Fame type roster um if they can you know if they can stay healthy and get through the entire Gauntlet of the games at the Olympics I think they can win the gold medal um but I don't think it's going to be easy at all this team Canada the squad I've watched them in practice the last two days and they're very enthusiastic and confident with their uh speed and and and Agility um and also with their talent level with SGA leading the way so uh they're going to be good and you know Serbia and a number of different count countries around the world France with all the great young talent that they have out there so but I think the United States you they got Steph Curry LeBron James Devin Booker all these Stars hopefully Kevin Durant he can get healthy and uh and they'll put on a good show and come home with another gold medal what would be more embarrassing for Team USA to lose to Canada or lose to France in the Olympics well they lost the Canada last year the fever World Cup it's a different roster totally different roster for the Americans couple of holdovers um I don't think anything is going to you know I don't I don't think it's embarrassing anymore because these are NBA players playing against NBA players a lot of times or these are pro players playing against Pro players I think that uh losing to either one of them will be a hit uh embarrassing I wouldn't say that but I I I think they expect to win it and um but they know they're going to have to play their best basketball to win it so it's like uh six on one hand half a dozen on the other we're talking to Gus Johnson Fun sports playby play announcer frequent guest in The Dan Patrick [Laughter] Show Paulie when when's the last time Gus was on the show now I can confirm Gus spring of 2011 and you said 14 years that would be 13 years right I got to win you know what goes to the [Laughter] runner I don't know if we had what happened D what happened man you fell out of love with me when I was in CBS you love me man now you know well you know I ain't talked to you in 14 years we're going to round that up to the you know highest number because it just sounds better 14 better sounds better than 13 was this back when Northern Iowa when Ali faruko Manesh was starring is that when we had G was on that call were you on that call Northern Iowa I have no idea remember I'm following your career I don't remember what I did last I remember what I did last week 14 years ago you know what I'm saying come on where's the strangest place you've been recognized with your voice strangest place I've been recognized well I would myself if I actually told you the truth but just look at it this way in some very strange strange places that you would never expect you know I have uh had you weren't you weren't with James Harden in Houston were you where you got recognized okay never no not me you know I travel a lot um you know I been traveled a lot for the last 35 years so I've uh I've had some experiences and I have been recognized in places uh and places that uh that I didn't think people even really knew I existed so I'll just leave it at that all right Magic City yeah I understand that too expensive for me we're seven weeks out until college football what do you how do you prepare for what you think college football is going to be like or when will you prepare for the the shifting landscape I mean I don't think you ever I mean let's look at it like this dad our jobs are the easiest jobs in the history of mankind for people like us that love sports so prepare what does prepare mean that's an interesting word because you're always interested in it be in college football you never kind of stop preparing because you're always interested in what's going on and last year we had such an exciting season with Dion and he started out in Colorado we had a bunch of his early games and he beat TCU first game on the road and then we segue from you know Dion to Jim Harbaugh and what was going on with him with the big 10 and the NCA investigation and then Harbaugh getting suspended and then Chiron Moore coming in as the Michigan interim head coach and leading him all the way to uh the Big 10 championship more beating uh Ohio State so and then Harbaugh coming back but we weren't there after the Championship um when Harbaugh coached the championship Big 10 Championship that was so we had an exciting season I'm always looking at it yeah I'm always interested in what's going on in college football and now it's so exciting with UCLA USC Oregon and Washington moving into the Big 10 so the schedule looks good for everybody I mean not only us NBC and CBS some good games that are going to be shown on television over all um platforms so um I'm always looking at it man I'm always interested and we got an exciting schedule coming up we got Texas and Michigan week two I think I'm really looking forward to seeing that with Quin y coming back again for Texas is their quarterback Arch Manning their backup quarterback now um and going into ant Arbor taking on Michigan now with a new quarterback most likely a kid named Alex orgy um big strong physical me just built like a Greek god like aonis this kid Alex orgy he's from Texas African-American kid so um it's always something to pay attention to there's always some good hot stove topics so man I'm always interested in what's going on with college football I prepare as soon as the season ends which is just keeping up on on what's going on talking to Gus Johnson Fox Sports play byplay announcer he'll be on the call tonight it's Team USA versus Canada that's at 10:30 Eastern on uh FS1 where do you stand on the Cooper flag bandwagon you in first class seat first class oh man you know not only I'm Man In First Class I'm In First Class flying on United Arab Emirates I don't know if you been on that plane talk about first there's first class and then there's United Arab Emirates got folks what wait what's that like first class off the bo oh it's out of the world it's off the charts being on the United Emirates I took a flight I think from New York to London one time on that flight and it's just it's it's amazing and it's the greatest first class I've ever been in so when you ask me the question about coup I'm in United Arab Emirates first class with this young man I mean okay and and I was thinking about him because I knew you were going to talk to me about him today and I figured you would ask me a question like what makes is he standing out and my answer as I thought about it last night I said yes he is standing out because he's not standing out meaning on what day did I come to practice I went to practice first practice was Monday they had a great scrimmage between the um the national team and the select team that they have to practice against them and I was watching because I I I I can't take my eye Dan I can't excuse me for rambling but I Can't Take My Eyes Off LeBron James because I've never seen LeBron James prior to Monday practice I've never seen him practice I had a chance to watch him practice the last two days and what's amazing to me is here's a man that's arguably the greatest player in the history of the game of basketball who you know has a very very good argument to become to be the goat and as I watched him practice and I kept my eyes on him the entire time both days he worked like well LeBron James in practice worked like he was trying to make the team at 3 I mean his energy his determination his commitment all that stuff he plays so hard so to answer your question about Cooper flag does he stand out no well that was my question to does he stand out no he doesn't stand out because he just fits in like he's just normally a part of this situation and he's 17 years old I saw LeBron James checking him checking him in the scrimmage and Cooper flag was playing point guard at 17 years old at 69 against LeBron James and he he didn't Flinch it was nothing it was just like he's playing against some kids that he played against in high school uh a few months back in Maine I mean this kid it's it's you know it's it's really amazing as a sports caster especially a guy that's always on the road and still walks in the locker rooms unlike a lot of you know people in today's sports casting you know work in locker rooms and and being around people it's so interesting when you run into a a person uh that is special just just as as as a baby as a a young person and you just see the future like LeBron James when he was a kid out of out of high school was a sports illustrator I'll never forget nothing the chosen one this Cooper flag is the real deal and it's just I was thinking as I was watching them I was like here's a kid that's 17 years old playing against not only the best players in the world but some of the greatest players of all time playing with them fitting in not dominating but you being effective and he's 17 and now what is this July so he's got August so he's got another month and then he's gonna walk onto a college campus and have to play against college kids this is going to be phenomenal to watch just I mean I can't wait to watch Duke he's only G to be there for a year so he's gonna be the number one player in the draft there's no question about it I mean we are looking at the future of the NBA uh the future of American basketball which makes me feel good because if you look you seeing all these International guys winning MVPs MV dages the jokic an tumbos um and now you got a guy like Anthony Edwards who a young upand cominging cat American and and this Cooper flag is going to be uh he's gonna be special over the next 15 years so it's just uh it's a treat you know I was sitting there saying to myself I can't believe that they pay me to do this but I'm not going to tell anybody uh you know Dan don't tell nobody man I won't tell nobody they pay us for this right I I promise you uh so we'll talk to you in uh 2038 does that sound about right next time we'll have you well I mean that's usually uh what kind of schedule you have me on so but I hope be here thanks for join how you doing otherwise everything good how you doing otherwise I haven't spoken to you you good you always treated me great everything's good no complaints I I still get to do this guys that's that's the fun part I mean after a while uh I don't take it for granted uh but I'm very fortunate that you know you survive and this is It's A Young Person's business and uh you just try to make sure they eventually tap you on the shoulder and say uh come here bring your playbook but uh until then we get get to do it every day that's what's up man and and you're absolutely right words can't express the amount of gratitude that I have for the good to the good lore for allowing me to do this for a living in this particular lifetime but I don't think it's a young man's game 100% I think it's a game of men and I think guys like us who have survived that uh bring a certain kind of wisdom to this job and to the covering and the chronicling and the you know of sports is a big deal and uh you do a fantastic job you have always I learned a lot from you as I mentioned to you about 15 years was it I haven't been on the show in what 16 17 18 years something like that it's still 2011 J 2011 been kind of a mentor you've always kind of been kind of a mentor because not only you know are you Dan are you credible as a as a journalist but uh you know you just have a way a style a Grace about yourself and I really admire that and uh and I'm really a big fan of you and your shows and everything you've done during your your illustrious career you know if you keep talking that way I'm going to have you on probably on Monday again you know that's what I'm hoping I'm hoping I'm hoping I'm hoping uh give my best to uh Raph and uh tonight it'll be 10:30 Eastern it'll be Team USA against Canada thank you Gus for joining us all right man you got it guys thank you for having me Dan I'll talk to you soon hope Gus Johnson Fox Sports playby play announcer I didn't realize it had been that long yes Paul